Mike Pike Posted May 19, 2018 Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 A FEW WEEKS AGO... I made a return to Hammy Harbour in an attempt to avenge a season opening blank in March. After scouting around and having a good look about, I discovered carp jumping clear out of the water in a shallow bay and thought to myself; "That'll do!" I returned early the next morning with hopes high. I fired out my offering of maize on a hair and a method feeder packed with a nice ball of 'secret mix.' ( Secret because I can't remember what the heck I mixed in! ) Then, I just sat back to enjoy the sunrise. Well, I had line bumps all morning and single beeps a plenty on the bite alarm, but not one run. So, it was time for a walk about, and that's when I spotted this fellow a courtin'. "Hey Ladies!" Then, this couple who had already made the 'love connection.' It was also nice to chat with the birders and photographers who frequent the area in spring. Thanks to one of the photographers, I was finally able to identify all the diving ducks and birds I was seeing, including the little black and white Buffleheads, as well as this Horned Grebe. So, did I break out of an early season slump? Nope. But, I did see one carp caught by the fisherman right next to me who was fishing a worm and sinker for catfish. Yup, there is noooo justice! FAST FORWARD TO TONIGHT... Well, little did I know that it would be weeks before my next outing. Work, family, getting hit from behind and dealing with insurance, all conspired to deny me adequate fishing time. So, I took off a bit early from work this afternoon and went to a spot on the north shore that produced for me in the past and I hoped would again. Upon arriving, I watched the water for several minutes and saw a fish head and shoulder off in the distance. Good enough for me and I set up shop, ever hopeful again. Although I couldn't cast my ball of method out as far as the fish were showing, I got as close as I could and it would have to do. This sheltered spot also offered a little relief from those bitter NE winds today and, combined with my large carpin' umbrella, I was nicely protected from the elements and hunkered down for the session. I was encouraged by the bite alarm sporadically signalling activity around my offering, but twice I jumped to grab the rod only to reel in a slack line and nada. I feared that my optimism may have been the result of catfish playing with my bait and dearly hoped that they would move along. After re-baiting and re-casting repeatedly, the sun began setting and the air temps started to drop, but I was finally rewarded with the one-toner I was hoping for. The fish took a substantial amount of line, as they do, and then proceeded to kite left and right. A couple of anglers nearby offered to help with the netting and I told them; 'sure,' but not to hurry as it was going to take a while. Finally in the net, this lovely 24.75 lbs carp was hoisted onto the landing mat. Actually a PB for me. Now, the only thing left to do tonight is to celebrate with an adult beverage and write this report! I will sleep well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishingking Posted May 19, 2018 Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 Nice fish .good job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted May 19, 2018 Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 Congratulations Mike !! That's a handsome looking specimen ! Your " secret mix " should have been written up for future encounters with these big girls , but I'm sure a simple piece of maize will do the trick in the coming days ahead . I have been having luck with my 3 year old corn puffs , they hit them hard rather than tinkering with can corn which attracts the cats as well . The gobies are on the move so I check the bait every 20 minutes or less if I had a curious invader move the line . Time to bring out the maize ! It looks like a big umbrella day , rain here in St. Kitts . Hoping to get out through the week and break the 20# goal for a start ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted May 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted May 19, 2018 You know Smerch, I think you throw enough stuff into your method mix and there's gonna be SOMETHING in there they like! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted May 20, 2018 Report Share Posted May 20, 2018 Process of elimination Mike .....you will find out what makes them happy .....just might be the "hot sauce" . I think bigugli uses his hot salsa on his flies to catch carp & walters..... Hoping to get out Monday for some carp action ....open spots where there's no ticks ...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted May 20, 2018 Author Report Share Posted May 20, 2018 Good luck Smerch. Gonna do chores tomorrow and then head out on Monday as well. Good hunting! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted May 23, 2018 Report Share Posted May 23, 2018 No luck ....drastic change in landscape & water levels.....a few cats being caught by others using worms . Checked out another spot , saw a guy doing very well on the carp .....using a spod to chum 100 yds. out in the bay plus boilies . I gave him about 75-80' of elbow room & tried my luck with my corn puffs.....some small fish were devouring it before any carp could wrap it's lips around it ! Then....a couple of guys show up ....plant their gear between us & toss their lines in......which begs the question ???? What is an appropriate distance that "informed" carpers use as a "distance for etiquette" ? The guy who was there first was chumming straight out & doing very well ,catching many carp . He got into a lunker & knew he had the best fish of the day , & tried his best to steer the fish away from the other 2 lines which were sitting 6' high over the water . The hook snapped in half & he lost the fish ....he already has an entanglement with one of those dudes earlier..... As I was leaving , one of the dudes said to me the guy catching all the carp was "hogging" the water (by over chumming) ... ???????? Comments on this ?? Carp can take a lot of line in all directions . I have reeled in my line to allow a fellow angler fight his fish . I believe I gave the first guy plenty of room & would reel in quickly if I saw the need to remove my line . I helped him land a couple & chatted.... he was definitely a well seasoned carp angler ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fredfisher Posted May 23, 2018 Report Share Posted May 23, 2018 great report and photos mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted May 23, 2018 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2018 Thank you Red. As to your question, Smerch, it's pretty obvious that "Dudes" were novices if they sit next to a fellow carper and complain he's chumming too much. Hogging the water? Please. In the Hammer, if we're at a popular swim, before I plop myself even remotely close to someone, I'll always ask if he's cool with me settling in next to him. Also I'll watch the movement of the line of any fish being played and if it's kiting over to my line, I just reel in. PS...Sounds like you let the long casting carp guy catch all the fish and that was very generous of you. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DNorton Posted May 24, 2018 Report Share Posted May 24, 2018 That’s ridiculous Smerchly obviously they weren’t seasoned carpers. Anytime I’m out carping and anyone’s around I tend to move on to the next spot. Don’t want to chum and pull someone else’s fish. As for ediqute on how far I got no idea but if it were me I would be doing the same as you reel in the fish is running my way. AnywYs enough of that. Nice report mike! Thanks for the pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted May 24, 2018 Report Share Posted May 24, 2018 Thanks for your input on the "carp etiquette" Mike . As a seasoned (not old) carp angler I value your responses . I will have to beef up my carp arsenal and invest in a spod for those "far out" carp . My catapult doesn't quite do it ....(frozen maize balls will zing out there quite a distance) ! I'll also be looking at getting a telescopic "beeper" ....they really do get your attention when eyes are elsewhere ! I'm sure you will soon break the 30# barrier ....I'll be waiting for the photo ...... Cheers . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted April 20, 2019 Report Share Posted April 20, 2019 Sitting at work watching hammy harbour carp videos, wishing I was fishing. Hoping to get out this week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NUNZIO TANASI Posted May 26, 2019 Report Share Posted May 26, 2019 Where’s hammy harbour can I have exact location? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted May 27, 2019 Report Share Posted May 27, 2019 Hamilton harbour, google maps it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted June 3, 2019 Report Share Posted June 3, 2019 I fished the harbour for two hours last night. Corn on a hair rig with some treats in pva mesh. Had a fish on, felt like my line was tangled in the rocks and then pop! Fish gone and 1oz weight flying back at me. I thought damn must be shallow here. Check navonics today and was fishing in a foot of water. One more short scream of the reel for the night and that was it. Pretty good surface action though, the wind didn’t make things any easier. Looking to get back out soon. Get some scouting in before the tourney in two weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted June 3, 2019 Report Share Posted June 3, 2019 I have checked many spots for depth with my handy dandy lead weights and have used slip floats on another rod to check depths . Some spots at Gibby are 4' deep and other spots are 15 ' deep where it takes about 5 seconds for my 1 oz. egg sinker to hit bottom verses .5 secs. in 2-3' . Were you using can or maize Tyler ? I expect to see the gobies soon ....robbing the can corn from the hook without a bleep from the alarm ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted June 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2019 1 hour ago, Tyler0420 said: I fished the harbour for two hours last night. Corn on a hair rig with some treats in pva mesh. Had a fish on, felt like my line was tangled in the rocks and then pop! Fish gone and 1oz weight flying back at me. I thought damn must be shallow here. Check navonics today and was fishing in a foot of water. One more short scream of the reel for the night and that was it. Pretty good surface action though, the wind didn’t make things any easier. Looking to get back out soon. Get some scouting in before the tourney in two weeks. Hey Tyler. I was out on the harbour as well yesterday. Fished the afternoon and into the evening with only the occasional single 'beep' on my alarm to keep things interesting. I would have killed for a run! lol I'm surprised you found a foot of water anywhere on the harbour this year. Man, is the water level ever high! Ya, that wind was pretty annoying( and cold! ). I hunkered under my umbrella, which I fastened securely to a post to keep from blowing away. Oh well, better days ahead for us, I'm sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted June 3, 2019 Report Share Posted June 3, 2019 1 hour ago, smerchly said: I have checked many spots for depth with my handy dandy lead weights and have used slip floats on another rod to check depths . Some spots at Gibby are 4' deep and other spots are 15 ' deep where it takes about 5 seconds for my 1 oz. egg sinker to hit bottom verses .5 secs. in 2-3' . Were you using can or maize Tyler ? I expect to see the gobies soon ....robbing the can corn from the hook without a bleep from the alarm ! Canned corn on a hair with a pop up corn. And canned corn with a pop up boili on the other rod(two people fishing). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted June 3, 2019 Report Share Posted June 3, 2019 49 minutes ago, Mike Pike said: Hey Tyler. I was out on the harbour as well yesterday. Fished the afternoon and into the evening with only the occasional single 'beep' on my alarm to keep things interesting. I would have killed for a run! lol I'm surprised you found a foot of water anywhere on the harbour this year. Man, is the water level ever high! Ya, that wind was pretty annoying( and cold! ). I hunkered under my umbrella, which I fastened securely to a post to keep from blowing away. Oh well, better days ahead for us, I'm sure. I’ll be spending some evening/nights around the harbour, maybe we can meet up one night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted June 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2019 I work out of town Tyler so I don't have much time in the evenings. PM me though when you're likely to head out if you like, and if I can't join ya perhaps I can share some info to help you out. Of course, with my luck lately, whatever I tell you, do the opposite! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted June 6, 2019 Report Share Posted June 6, 2019 On my way to Hamilton to fish tonight and coming down the mountain I realize I forgot the rods at home. What a waste of a night. It’s beautiful out and the bay is calm. Hopefully tomorrow night will be as night Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted June 10, 2019 Report Share Posted June 10, 2019 Anyone having anyluck in the harbour? I’ve tried around the lift bridge area twice with no luck. Wondering if the bayfront area would be better. Ill be out during the early nights this week. Hopefully have something to post about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted June 10, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2019 I haven't fished the lift bridge in a while Tyler, so I can't help you with that location. But if you're coming from Niagara way, the lift bridge is convenient as is the Canada Centre For Inland Waters( CCIW ). That's going to be the site of the Lorne Morley memorial fish in again. I just haven't fished those locations myself yet this year, so I can't tell ya what's going on and if the fish have arrived yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted June 10, 2019 Report Share Posted June 10, 2019 Can you only fish cciw during the day? It looks like everything is gated unless I’m looking at the wrong location Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pike Posted June 10, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2019 No, no gate and it should be good to fish any time, Tyler. Take the entrance road off Eastport Drive in and park in the first parking lot to your right. Lots of shore space especially with the high water. There is a fishing platform there too, so I'm wondering if your at the right place?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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