Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Prospect Park Lake



It is April when common carp and Koi come together to spawn.  If you recall I located a
spawning area in Prospect Park Lake and posted pictures last year, at this time.

The fish become most active in the middle of the afternoon.  They swim in this cove and
jump out of the water.  But by the middle of May, The Koi will be gone from this part of the lake.


Those are not traffic cones at the bottom of the lake. 



Can you count the Koi  in this picture?  Look closely.



It is only when I get very close that I can see the common carp swimming beneath the
Koi.

For each Koi you see swimming just under the lakes surface there are at least 2 commons
 swimming below them.




An egret looking  for a mid afternoon snack


Looking for a few small fry bass


There are scores of panfish here along with carp.


All along the left shoreline there are newly swept spawning beds made by the large mouth bass.


The Orvis Full Flex fiberglass  fly rod with the Franco Vivarelli Goldstar semi automatic
fly reel.

I caught a few of these Bluegills using #14 soft hackles nymphs.  This 16cm fish really
made my rod jump and bend.


Covering 60 acres and with a depth of nearly seven feet, the Prospect Park Lake is one of the area’s most popular spots for catch-and-release fishing. The lake is especially rich in largemouth bass, with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation claiming that the lake holds the state’s largest population of the species. The park offers a free fishing clinic for kids 15 and under over the summer months, teaching them the basics of catch-and-release and lake ecology.

Saturday, April 26, 2014

Orvis Full Flex Fly rod


Carp season is on.  I chose to fish with a favorite fly rod today, The Orvis full flex fiberglass
It is a 2 piece, 8 foot 8 weight fly rod made from fiberglass. Orvis made these fly rods in the
 in the late nineteen sixties.  They were  well made and still work today.


Normally I fish four piece fly rods or the multi piece travel fly rods when I use public transportation.
But since I'm fishing locally, in Brooklyn , I  can take my two piece rod.  Here I matched it with a Wulff
Ambush triangle taper (6 wt fly line).  I like glass rods because they allow for underlining
or over lining.  This is a sweet rod to use.  It has the power of an 8 weight and the subtleness
of  a 4 weight.  If only it wasn't a 2 piece fly rod.


Many of the common carp and Koi like to gather up in this part of Prospect Park Lake.
It stays warm, there is natural food and spawning occurs here. 


I was able to spot about a dozen Koi here.  This is where I plan to catch a carp in 2014.




Yes it is springtime


Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Baisley Pond


Baisley pond was very windy today.  The wind was gusting ( 30 kph +) so much that I did not bother
to set up my fly rod to fish.


Look at the waves here.  It almost looks like the ocean at the beach.


Baisley pond always makes me think of my older brother who brought me here when I was
about twelve years old.  We also would go saltwater fishing near the Rockaways to
catch porgies and black fish in the winter.


Looking south. All the growth here is a weed that has invaded the shore line and limits the area open to fishing from shore.

The problem with this pond is the invasive weeds that cover a large portion of the shore line.



 A close up of an egret fishing next to the weed line.
.


Same bird but without the benefit of the zoom lens being used.


Spring flowers


The pond itself hosts a diverse fauna and flora. It is known for its lily pads which shelter American bullfrogs. The Parks Department lists three turtle species (red-eared slider, snapping turtle, and musk turtle).[1] Fish species include several of interest to anglers, including largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed, brown bullhead, and common carp.[5] Many species of water birds favor the pond. Summer species include great egret, snowy egret, great blue heron, and double-crested cormorant. In winter the waterfowl population is especially large and diverse, with several species that are less common in the area, such as American wigeon, redhead, and grebes mixing with more common species like mallard and Canada goose.

Van Cortlandt Park

Fished at Van Cortlandt Lake.
Fish Species Present : Largemouth bass , Black crappie , Brown bullhead, Bluegill, Pumpkinseed,
Golden shiner, Common carp, White sucker, and Yellow perch.


I had success with this #16 flash back pheasant tail nymph pattern.


 I caught two crappie.  I had hoped to catch a few perch be crappie were active today.


The wind was calm and the lake surface was smooth.  My buddy Jay caught several club size bass
(less than 30mm).



Fisheries Survey Summary

A DEC electrofishing survey performed in mid-April, 2009, yielded a large number of young yellow perch from Van Cortlandt Lake. Without significant competition and predation and with enough available prey, these fish could grow into a large year-class of quality-sized yellow perch in three to four years. Another significant finding was several large (12 - 14 inches in length) brown bullhead catfish, some of the largest we have found while surveying New York City lakes. One disappointing survey finding was a low catch rate for largemouth bass. The electrofishing catch per hour for this species was the lowest of the six New York City waterbodies listed below. Water temperature at the time of the survey was less than ideal and might have contributed to the low catch rates. A follow-up survey will help to better characterize the warmwater fish population of this lake.


In 1694, Jacobus Van Cortlandt made his first land purchase in the area that became Van Cortlandt Park. Four years later, he married Frederick Phillipse’s daughter Eva and soon after bought the 76 acres encompassing the site where the Van Cortlandt House still stands. Over a 38–year period, Jacobus, twice mayor of New York City (1710–11 and 1719–20), systematically purchased the entire area of the present–day park, developing it into a productive grain growing and milling operation. The family lived on and farmed the land until 1888 when the city purchased the estate, and the land became the nucleus of Van Cortlandt Park.

The lake was created during the 1690s when Tibbetts Brook was dammed to power a gristmill. During the American Revolution (1775–1783), Van Cortlandt’s mills ground grain and cut lumber for both the Americans and the British, depending on who controlled the region. In the early 1800s, new mills were built here, and local corn farmers continued to use them through the end of the century.

On the west side of the lake, the John Kieran Trail intersects the Putnam Trail, a former railroad. Two tracks of the New York Central Railroad’s Putnam Division once ran here, as evidenced by the double width railroad bridge. From 1881 until 1958, the line carried passengers and freight between High Bridge in the Bronx and Brewster, New York. Freight continued to be hauled on these tracks occasionally—and very slowly—until 1981. A secondary route carried passengers from High Bridge to Getty Square in Yonkers from 1888 until 1943. Those tracks ran along the edge of the Parade Ground and north through the western edge of the park. What remains of the Van Cortlandt Station can still be seen just south of the lake. Interesting wildlife like white–tailed deer and coyote often made their way into the park along this man–made corridor.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Islip


I went to a new lake that is reported to have some carp.



Knapps Lake is a small pond located in Islip. It is quite shallow and in the summer it becomes thickly covered with aquatic plants. The predominant fish species are common carp, largemouth bass and sunfish. The fish tend to be small. While large bass have been caught at Knapps Lake, they are not common. Few exceed 12 inches.  Knapps Lake provides some fishing opportunity to the immediate neighborhood, but it probably does not merit a long trip.


It was a cloudy afternoon but there was very little wind.


There is a dock but I saw no boats on the water


I found this cove on the east  side of the lake.  It looks like a good place to fish



Walking the path on the east side of the lake.



Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Fly fishing for CARP- Series 1- Episode 10 - TAFishing

Golden Shiner on a fly



I finally caught a fish while out fishing in Prospect Park Lake.  Every spring Golden Shiners appear
while the water is still cold. Crappie can also be enticed to take a fly; a small fly.


I also caught some small Bluegill on my newest acquisition the Temple Fork BVK.


Still haven't received the new JMC Ozone semi automatic fly reel.  Maybe by the end of April
is the latest prediction.


Fishing from the boat deck I hooked a very large Crappie on a # 14 nymph.  I thought
it was bluegill until I saw  the fish turning about a meter from the surface.  I was fishing with a
6X tippet.  Just as I pulled it above the surface it fell off my hook.