APRIL EDITION
Marty Sipe
Our Angler of the Month for April is Marty Sipe from western Pennsylvania. We were all speechless when this shot of Marty’s came across the feed recently. The fish is an absolute stunner in its own right but captured in the snow, in this particular photograph … it was truly an epic USA capture.
Marty is an excellent carp angler, who also loves to target them on the fly in the warmer months as well. He shies away from petty drama and nonsense, and is a true USA carp angler, one we’re proud to have as a member. He pursues the species with a healthy respect for the outdoors, and takes some stunning pictures as well to help further the sport.
Big congrats Marty, keep doing what you’re doing bro!
Check out his Insta for more awesome shots.
notable member captures
Many great fish fell to ACS members last month: here are just a few that particularly caught our eye. We greatly appreciate all your tags and mentions, and can’t wait to see what everyone is catching in April! Don’t forget to tag us #americancarpsociety #jointheguiltyones and tag american_carp_society in your stories!
Some really great captures this month on the Barnaby’s. We hate to play favorites, but look at those scaly beasts that fell to the rods of Brain Daugherty. Stunning! A big shout out and thanks to everyone for tagging us in their captures. We look forward to a lot more catches and success for ACS members as the weather heats up. Please remember to tag captures #americancarpsociety, #jointheguiltyones, and #barnabysrevenge to be featured.
NEW ACS POP-UPS
Now available in the store, we’ve just released our new Pop-Ups!
100% sourced and made in the USA.
4 oz pots.
Highly buoyant.
The range perfectly matches our other proven big fish flavors: Asterbury Creme, Mapex, Nutraberry, Pineapple Fusion, and NEW, exclusively for Members (members store), Peach & Mussel.
Limited supplies. Head on over to the store and get yourself some.
BCT CONTEST WINNER
The month of March saw our very first BCT contest winner! Big Congrats to Vernon Carroll. who not only takes the Zone 3, Gardner Tackle prize from BCT but also wins himself a Kilo of ACS Barnaby’s Revenge Nutraberry Boilie, Nutraberry Tigers and a Nutraberry Spray … Just for wearing his ACS Cap in the winning picture. Not too shabby!
Don’t forget to support the BCT photography competition each month everyone … and if you win your section wearing an ACS Cap or Beanie with visible logo, you too can win some extra bait swag!
P.S - If you enter wearing one of our caps or beanies, you’ll always get an additional vote from us as well. ;-)
ACS SOCIAL, Lake Perris, SOUTHERN CA
The ACS Social at Lake Perris is just around the corner …With 30 anglers set to attend, there’ll be prizes and doubtless many fish caught! Spring is in full swing in So Cal, so we expect some terrific carp fishing. Results will be posted in next month’s Angler’s Insider. Big thanks to our very own Richard Cervantes for hosting this event!
DIRECTOR OF FLY EDUCATION
We are very happy to announce that Dagur Arni Guomundsson of California will be officially stepping up as The American Carp Society’s Director of Fly Education. Welcome Dagur to our team!
Dagur is an incredible fly angler, professional guide, and writer for the species. He’s also a multi-species angler, spending some of his time overseas each year in the pursuit of trout and other species. If you haven’t checked out his ACS blog yet, it’s well worth a read!
Keep an eye out for monthly content and more carp on the fly know-how from Dagur!
MONTHLY CAP COMPETITION WINNER
Congratulations to Ricky Hiller for this great catch picture he tagged us in, wearing his ACS stars and stripes cap! Boilies, tigers, and spray coming your way my man.
We’re looking for great images that capture all angles of this great sport. The preparation, the capture, the wildlife. It’s not just about the largest fish or weight … which open’s the contest up to ACS members in all states.
So if you’re posting fish on your social feeds and you’re an ACS member, this is another opportunity with a few tags and a shout out to the organization to potentially add to your personal monthly baiting inventory at no cost! And as a bonus, you’ll also be entered into the BCT Carp of the Month competition.
NEW MEMBERSHIP T SHIRT DESIGN COMPETITION
We’re starting a new design competition for all of you budding artists out there - STRICTLY NO A.I. !!
If you have a design idea that you’d like to submit for a new ACS Member T, please send an email to info@americancarpsociety.com and we’ll put it into the contest for you. The designs can be for long sleeve, short sleeve or hoodie ... Front, front and back and arms as well if you’re so inclined … it’s completely up to you! If you are designing something and need one of our ACS logos to incorporate into the design just reach out to us and we’ll send it along (with a short disclaimer). The winner will get their design printed and offered on the store for our members and will receive merchandise from us with their final design print. Good Luck!
More incredible lenswork from this month! it has to be said that American Carp Society members lead the way when it comes to promoting and sharing the message of this great fish to the rest of the USA. The incredible photography, angling ability, sportsmanship and behaviour to others represents the fish well. To say we are proud of you is an understatement!
Click on thse incredible images to check out the authors social sites!
ACS MEMBER EXCLUSIVE CAPS
Our classic olive green ACS member’s cap is back in stock, exclusively available in the members store. We’re making two patch versions available: ‘OLD SKOOL’ or ‘GUILTY’ … pick your poison! One of the most recognized ball caps in USA carping, we hope to see it winning free bait in on our ongoing competitions.
… AND T-shirts
We’re releasing another two exclusive ACS designed T-shirts this month to add to the collection. The Stars and Stripes + Guilty and the new ‘Leave Only Footprints…Take Only Pictures’. Both are now available in multiple colors and sizes on the Members Store.
Carp on the Fly - ACS Director of Fly Education, DAGUR GUOMUNDSSON
One of the things I love the most about fly fishing for carp, is the amazing waters you fish when targeting them. Now, carp are found in some pretty iffy waterways, urban sloughs, duck ponds, and your local city park toilet, but what people often underestimate about carp is that they are also found in some pretty stunning locations.
From crystal clear mountain streams to beautiful lakes nestled in the hills with super blooms down to the water, carp are not only an awesome fish to fish for, but found in some beautiful locations.
I think a big part of changing some of the mainstream angling preconceptions of carp is to showcase the beauty of the fish, and also to show the beauty of the areas we find them, whether that be a hidden city gem, or a crystal clear mountain stream that would be on the cover of any trout fishing magazine.
Fishing is about more than just the fish, and one of the things that make carp so awesome is the diversity of the places we find them. Let’s show some love to the locations we fish, share pictures of what makes your waters unique, soak in the beauty, and pick up some trash while at it!
I’ll be checking in each month and sharing more info on pursuing this great species on the fly … until then, good catching!
Dagur.
COLD WATER - LUKE WILSON
Carp, I’ve learned over the years, are some of, if not the most, hardy fish around.
Currently I find myself staring out the window during the early spring, waiting and hoping for fair weather. I sit inside, watching the rain and wind blow by and wishing I could go fishing.
Then I remember how tough these fish are, and despite the poor weather, I’ve caught them in this kind of stuff before. I have the choice of staying warm inside. These fish do not, and it’s not surprising how little this disrupts their life.
So many times I’ve said the weather is too poor as an excuse to stay in. And if I waited for comfortable weather in western New York to get out, I’d be stuck inside until May!
But, again, carp are the pinnacle of a tough fish and can withstand the cold water and are often some of the first fish we can target. Weather doesn’t matter as much as you may think. Now I’m not claiming that it has no effect, we all move a bit slow on a cold day. But I’ve had many occasions where carp were being caught and pulled in while the snow was on the ground.
One of the largest carp I have ever caught was on a crappy day in mid March. I remember not wanting to go out. My brother always has a way of convincing me otherwise. It would be the second or third time that year we went fishing, but the first for a carp. We had gone steelhead fishing a couple times with a little bit of luck, but carp always had my attention more than anything else. It was windy, rainy and, much like a normal March day, staying below 45 but above freezing.
Now I hate being wet and I hate being cold, but despite all of that my brother’s enthusiasm to check the creek got me out of the house. We had been checking the creek looking for large schools of carp that can often be seen in the cold spring waters. They tend to stick together when it’s cold, I’ve noticed especially during early spring and late fall.
As we rounded the end of the trail and started looking into the flooded banks, we had finally found the carp we had been waiting for. After several failed attempts of fooling the fish, despite getting quite a lot of flies in front of their noses, I let my fly sit in defeat and watched the crowd of fish slowly change positions. During this my rod bent over and my line began to unspool.
At first neither of us had any idea that the fish at the end of the line was that big even though there were several large ones around. It just wasn’t fighting very well, likely because of the cold. As I pulled it closer and closer the first thing I noticed was the grayish blue back and the big fan of a tail. Adrenaline kicked all sense of being cold out of my fingers and the rest of my body.
In the flooded shallows where we were standing ice was still present and I was worried the big fish was going to swim right underneath. My line could get caught on the ice and break. Luckily, my brother was able to land the fish before that could happen, leaving me with the biggest carp I’ve caught to date.
All that on a miserable, cold and rainy day.
The fish in the cold water tend to be fairly lethargic and picky eaters. Most times ignoring your fly completely as they slowly pass by. They don’t want to exert energy, and I don’t blame them. My best luck usually comes with a fly that is simple and free-flowing, with dark colors, and a sharp contrast. For example, black and red and black and white are some of my go to colors. Malibu and thick tails that can move freely in the water and attract attention while also not running away from a slow moving fish that could be interested.
Low and slow is a good way to think about how your fly should be moving in the water. The colder the slower. The fish are lethargic and aren’t feeding very much in the cold weather, so letting a fly that moves on its own sit in front of a carp can initiate a bite. It’s hard to tell when they eat in the cold as they hover over your fly for much longer than usual.
To combat the weather, always dress warm, wear layers, and do your best to stay dry. This can make the difference between a good or a bad trip whether or not anything is even caught. I cannot stress how important it is to practice casting in the wind. Lots of times we can dip our flies in the water if we are close enough, but when we can’t the wind will be your worst enemy. It’s constantly going to be pushing your line so learn how to get a solid cast in the wind.
Watch the sun and the side of the water with the most sunlight. In spring and fall the sun always favors a side, it will get more sunlight meaning warmer waters and active fish. Track the sun and use that to your advantage. Think of how much difference the sun makes for you when it shines on your face during a cool spring day. Lastly, consistency is key for finding these spring fish. I say this time and time again, the only way you aren’t gonna get a fish is if you don’t try. The weather may be bad. It still may be cold. But Mother Nature has a clock and when the alarm goes off, nature follows.
The bite may not be consistent until warmer days but you have to look for them constantly until you find the day it breaks. When the sun and warmth become consistent the carp will begin to feed like crazy. Their metabolisms turn up a notch like they’re making up for all the lost food over winter. This break in weather is one of my favorite times to go. They are constantly feeding in shallows bathed in sunlight.
They must be just as thankful as a cold Western New Yorker for the warmer weather and sunshine and don’t miss a beat on taking advantage of the shift in weather. Neither should you.
Happy spring, and let the crazy carping begin!