Carpin’ From A Canoe

They say if you start a small business or build a house together it will either destroy a relationship or make it unbreakable. True. And I would like to add fly fishing for carp from a canoe to that list. You have to be able and willing to communicate properly—not just to avoid a spill, but to effectively stalk the carp. And things will get intense and not always work according to plan. Actually, things will seldom go right. You have too many variables working against you for things to go well. If you escape the ordeal with no broken or lost equipment, dry clothes and still on speaking terms…consider the outing a success. Hooking up on carp should almost be considered unlikely. But do-able! Definitely can be done. And, if you and your partner sync-up on more-or-less the same page…the canoe can turn into a deadly carp tool. One caveat being, you both have to have “bus legs”. What I mean is you have to have balance enough to not fall over while standing on public transportation. If the train at the Denver International Airport can turn you into a four-appendaged, flailing cannon ball…then, no. Not for you. What I am saying is that for this to work you must be able to stand up in your canoe. Often both of you will need to be standing up—one steering with the tip of a paddle and the other casting. See? It can make or break a couple!

 The higher your line of sight, the better you can see into the water. Simple. And carp fishing is reliant on line of sight. You need to see the fish to cast to the fish and get your fly in front of the fish. Carp rarely go out of their way to make your day. You must earn it. They make you. So…once you combine all these things, you end up looking like some odd breed of native Hawaiian fisherman—standing in a canoe, paddle in hand, then quick switching to a fly rod…bombing a cast… OK, sure, neither you or I are sporting romance-novel-cover brown abs and flowing mane, but damn…you still can feel pretty studly cool. But, you know…be sure to have your wallet and cell phone safely stashed in a sealed freezer bag. Your Fabio ass may just face plant into two feet of dirty brown water. So, you know…you always got that goin’for ya…