Can't get no catisfaction, but stalking succeeds!

After this past Monday's success attracting and catching carp and channel cats, I set out this evening with the same plan, only in a different part of the neighborhood lake. I have been wanting to try a point where several arms of the lake converge, and where this lake is at its deepest--around 6-7 feet. My hope was that, during these dog days, bigger channel cats would spend the day in the cooler, darker depths, then venture toward the margins to hunt as the sun started to set. I brought two rods: a 6.5 foot Ugly Stik for channel cats on the float, and my 12' crappie pole with 6-lb. test and an ultralight spinning reel in case the carp started feeding on top--a good rig for dropping a piece of bread impaled on a small hook in the midst of clopping carp. I started out today as I did the other day, scattering handfuls of floating trout chow, dry dog food, and small pieces of bread 10-15 feet off shore. Of course the first to come were the ubiquitous hard-shelled folk, who quickly numbered a dozen or more, all happily munching on the floating fare. After I had rigged my catfish rod, I cast out beyond the floating chum, then reeled my float back into position, sinking the line in the process to keep the float from being dragged under by the wind. As the flotilla of particles would gradually disappear down voracious turtles' maws, I would throw out more, hoping to attract both carp and cats to the area, and, hopefully, to get them feeding on the surface. After many casts, re-casts, and handfuls of chum, I never had a nibble on my catfish rig, even though I could see some swirls that looked like small catfish in the vicinity. After a half hour of inactivity (excepting turtles, of course), I decided to pull up stakes and head back to the spot I had such good luck at Monday night. On the way back, I was walking along a shallow cove. When I got most of the way down it toward where my car was parked, I saw a carp in the margins feeding on the surface near a large sycamore tree about six feet from the water's edge. I decided to see if I could lower a little piece of bread and get a take. Unfortunately from a fishing perspective, my wife Carolyn called at that moment, and, by the time we had finished our brief conversation a few minutes later, that carp I had seen had disappeared. I decided to tear a piece of white bread into small pieces and throw them close to where I'd seen that carp grazing on the surface in hopes of luring him (her?) and possibly others in. It didn't take five minutes before several carp converged on the bread and started slurping it up. Staying behind the sycamore tree trunk as much as possible, I gently lowered my breaded hook to the surface. Even though there were carp slurping up bread all around, my hookbait went untouched until it fell off the hook from becoming water saturated. This scenario replayed itself about three or four times before I finally got one of the slurping denizens of the deep to take my floating doughball. I waited just a second after the take to make sure the carp had my bait (and hook) fully in its mouth, then I set the hook! That carp took off like a freight train toward where the creek joined the larger lake. Made quite a nice first run before I was able to gain a little ground. Several more powerful runs, then eventually I was able to guide my prize to my waiting net. Yes! I brought it up onto the grass away from the water's edge to remove the hook and snap a quick picture or two. I was able to get the hook out with my just my hand--no needlenose pliers required this time, but the hook hold was solid, thanks to a new, sharp Korda Krank #10 hook. After three quick pix, I quickly returned my catch to the net, then back into the safety of its home waters. I had just enough light left to try once more, but the carp had been so spooked off by the previous fight's frenzied runs, that it soon got too dark to see my floating bait clearly enough to keep fishing. No matter, that one stalking success more than made up for the lack of catfish action. Carpisfied!