Big Waters, Big Fish

By

Brandon Curtis

For me personally, nothing is more rewarding than catching fish out of a 2,300 acre reservoir with acres more surface water just waiting to be discovered... My surrounding area has a ton of water that will forever keep me looking for bigger and more beautiful carp. There are some reservoirs that I have not discovered yet that reach up to 4,000 acres… Plenty of exploring yet to do and that’s exciting!

My name is Brandon Curtis, I have been an avid carp angler for just a little over 3 years now and I’m located in the Southern California area. The amount of knowledge that I have gained with carp angling is incredible, it amazes and reminds me that anything is possible.

I started off fishing for carp with just the basic kit and I really enjoyed it… I’ve since dived head first into the money pit that is “Euro” Carping... From the moment I caught and released my first carp, this sports fish instantly had me glued to the bank day and night; the adrenaline rush of the rod/alarm just completely coming to life is insane, how beautiful and unique this species of fish including mirror and koi carp just amaze me! Yeah, some of their genetics are just astonishing, the different patterns, colors, sizes and all around, it’s just a beautiful fish. I knew the moment I caught my first carp I was hooked…

I started off gaining my basic skills fishing small lakes and my hometown lake that is really known for its hard angling and is not much of a rewarding lake as said by some anglers. I spent day and night in this park lake working to understanding carp, how they feed, how they react to different weather patterns and most importantly, how to catch them there.

This lake was built in the late 1800s and has a very low stock of amazing looking fish and they have been there for a very long time. Having spent countless hours on this lake discovering the secrets of some of it’s inhabitants, I can honestly say that I have enjoyed every hour and second spent on it!

Last year, with my biggest fish from my hometown lake only being 23lbs, I started to feel the need to try some of the massive bodies of water around SoCal. I knew absolutely nothing about them, nor did I have all the gear, or the mind set yet to tackle a massive reservoir, but I knew big waters equals big fish. I knew with what I had learned and the fish I had caught, I was more confident to angle a massive reservoir.

Let's just say it took about 5 blank sessions to finally make something happen.

I set my target on a huge water and I went straight to the reservoir anytime I had free time. I did not fish anywhere but there for almost a year and within that year my knowledge, experience and confidence grew massively.

After meeting a few good anglers here in SoCal that helped with some tips and pointers here and there, I was getting the hang of big waters. One angler, my buddy Adrian who’s originally from Liverpool, England has been angling his whole life and is a very knowledgeable carper that has really helped me. He took me under his wing and helped explain how to properly feed carp and build a swim and find carp in these massive reservoirs.

It took a few months but I was soon on it building swims all on my own and finding amazing wild carp that lurk within these massive water ways. I found carp that were reaching up to 28 lbs. and some beautiful mirrors along the way also…

Due to family and work, I moved out of state to Oregon for a few months at the beginning of 2022 but ultimately, ended up moving back to SoCal at the beginning of Winter (November 2022). There wasn’t much doing in regards to carp angling up north so I by the time I came back to California, I was on fire and so ready to get back on the big reservoir.

I could not keep my lines and net dry. I was constantly looking for fish in my swims and trying my hardest to land bigger fish. I was eventually rewarded for my hard work and perseverance with my first 30lb carp. It came in weighing at 30.2lb with a few other very large commons. That session was amazing!

Following that session, I went back the next day and landed two commons at 31.6 lb & 32.8lb common and a 17lb mirror, I was just speechless.

As November went on, the fish stayed at a decent weight from 24-30 lb. I knew they were feeding right in front of me and were ready for the winter cycle. I enjoyed every fish in that swim through November but as December came and the water temperature dropped they slowed down on feeding and decided to give my main swim a break.

One random cold (well, it was cold for SoCal) winter day in mid December, I fished another reservoir I hadn’t fished in ages. I arrived mid-day and not 1 fish showed or even a beep as if the alarm’s batteries were dead. Six hours passed and hopes were dying with the sun setting when out of nowhere my rod takes off just wrenching line. The moment I lifted up on my right hand rod I knew this fish was the one , it felt as if I had snagged a car tire, it was just solid weight.

This fish had me shaking and double guessing my rods and reels. Not even giving my reel a break, this fish peeled more than 100+ yards at a time, nothing I could do…back-to-back it took so long just to get this common in the net. The moment I glanced at this common I said to myself big waters big fish. It pulled the scales to 33.6lb and set my current PB!

From that day forward, I knew I will never stop fishing these massive reservoirs and working hard to discover more uncaught, wild carp. The addiction and urge for these beautiful wild fish keeps growing.