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I had my first experience with asian carp on Barkley this weekend. Me and the misses were down puttin around on the toon up in an LBL bay when BAM -- a big fish bounces off the side rail. Scared the crap out of us! That would have been one thing if that were the only one but if we had one jump around the boat we ended up having 3 or 4 dozen jumping. Had 5 clang off the rails or side of the pontoon. Had several more that were looking at me at eye level next to the boat but didn't collide. The side rails on the pontoon kept the clangers from coming in but that is a scary thought having the same action in a bass boat as those fish would have been in. And we aren't talking about 1 or 2 or 3 pound fish. Most of these fish were 6, 8, or 10 pounds. This is not good news. I don't think they would be much of an issue moving fast but be careful idling up on the flats. I am thinking about carrying around a garbage can lid or something for protection! These things are wild for sure!!!
kc
Man, THAT *****........I had my first experience with asian carp on Barkley this weekend. Me and the misses were down puttin around on the toon up in an LBL bay when BAM -- a big fish bounces off the side rail. Scared the crap out of us! That would have been one thing if that were the only one but if we had one jump around the boat we ended up having 3 or 4 dozen jumping. Had 5 clang off the rails or side of the pontoon. Had several more that were looking at me at eye level next to the boat but didn't collide. The side rails on the pontoon kept the clangers from coming in but that is a scary thought having the same action in a bass boat as those fish would have been in. And we aren't talking about 1 or 2 or 3 pound fish. Most of these fish were 6, 8, or 10 pounds. This is not good news. I don't think they would be much of an issue moving fast but be careful idling up on the flats. I am thinking about carrying around a garbage can lid or something for protection! These things are wild for sure!!!
kc
Personally I think the DNR or whoever really needs to figure out how to start eradicating these fish.........
I don't know how, but SOMETHING needs to be done......
Later,
Geo
Yep, we also were in a pontoon and one jumped over the stern and almost hit one of our company in the head. Happened at Barkley too.
As I posted in a different post, my fishing partner snagged one at McAlpine lower dam and had a heck of a fight.
If one ever does get onboard, be sure to kill it before dumping it over.
I bet those things would put up a fight. Jumping the way they do they could be pretty acrobatic. Are these the same thing they call a "big head" carp?
The other nutty thing we noticed was in the same area we saw many of these fish there was a run about pulling a small kid on a board. We didn't see anything happen but I could just see one of those crazies whacking a little kid like that being pulled around.
With the long weekend coming up we are hoping to get one or more of our teens and possibly their friends down to the place and we have already primed them up for a new game - net the flying carp. I can see one (or more) standing on each side of the toon and as these crazies jump near trying to net them in mid air. We may lose or break some nets this way but I am sure guns wouldn't be safe (or legal) and I don't own any bows and you can rest assured that any caught will not be part of our normal catch and release program. We may release them but only to feed the turtles. I drives me absolutely crazy to think about invasive species like this and the harm they cause.
kc
My wife kept talking about the same thing but I just don't know how you can do much with the width and breadth of their range. They are running the rivers and are spreading all over. If you could wipe them out of a lake like Barkley they would probably just repopulate from the river over time...
kc
After seeing many of these crazies I whipped out my iphone and starting taking video trying to get one in action. As always the actions died down at that time but I did get one in the air behind the boat which is where most of them were coming up. I cropped the following pic of that one in the air:
http://s846.photobucket.com/albums/a.../misc/carp.jpg
kc
Yes, we are totally fighting a losing battle there. It would be like trying to urinate on your house while it was engulfed in flames. But killing just a few of this species makes me fell better.My wife kept talking about the same thing but I just don't know how you can do much with the width and breadth of their range. They are running the rivers and are spreading all over. If you could wipe them out of a lake like Barkley they would probably just repopulate from the river over time...
kc
commercial fishing, someplace somewhere folks eat those things.We important shrimp,frog legs, catfish, and other fish, and we could export them, they are edible. BUT!!! it would mean government involvement, from state up to federal, and we know how that would work out. Were doomed!
I was discussing this with a buddy the other day:
Could they not be used as fertilizer? He said dog food.......
its hard to believe they cant be used for something....feed the needy or something
Doe's anyone know why they jump like they do?
Defense mechanism, they get startled easy - like a fainting goat (which is hilarious if you've never seen it) And I did want to say that following too close to someone while on a take of in a tournament can get you a face load of fish real quick on the Ohio River