It is depth, not luck. The key to catching more carp has much more to do with depth than luck. One angler can catch a big one right next to you even though you’re throwing to open water. More times then not, it’s a matter of knowing how deep carp holds in the water.
Carp will position themselves vertically based off light, oxygen levels, and temperature. These factors will cause them to change positions horizontally. So putting your bait at the incorrect level are akin to throwing through a wall. Where they position themselves is a huge factor and many anglers don’t consider this part when getting ready to go.
Why Depth Is More Important Than Luck
“Typically most lakes have sloping sides with a deeper area in the middle, so those shallow waters has more weed growth and warmth right down to about three feet of water. That’s where you want to fish the shallower areas in the early morning and evening in the spring. The water is warming rapidly here and triggering that carp metabolism. They like to hang out in these areas.
But if you leave your bait up here on a blistering summer day at high noon, you probably won’t have much luck. In this case they want to get off the bank for cooler water as well as to avoid exposure to bright sun and heat.
One of the most productive area on many lakes is called the shelf, or the transition area. For most of the year, it’s going to be four to eight feet deep. In this mid-water zone, there’s a good combination of security and available food. Here we’ll find gravel bars mixed with some clay, which holds worms, snails and other goodies that carp are looking for.
When you locate the shelf edge, you’ve found one of the main feeding paths on the lake. Regardless of small weather fluctuations, you can expect this zone to offer steady bites; experience proves this true. The depth and side of the shelf you want to hit is dependent on seasonal changes.
During the summer months, a thermocline develops as water heats up. This creates a rapid drop in water temperatures within a matter of inches, and oxygen depletion below can be deadly. Carp will suspend right above it typically within the 6-10’ range during daylight hours. They’re holding their spot and saving energy until they get the chance to feed heavily when it cools off.
Winter time reverses all of that. The whole lake will cool down and deep basins will be the most stable warm water available. You have to coax a barely moving fish with slow presentation and small bait on sensitive rigs.
Depth reading Just as important as the depth reading is substrate. A soft silt basin will hold bait very differently than a hard gravel bottom. Within minutes your standard hooklink has sunk below view and your hook are in the mud. That’s one reason that pop-up rigs work so well in deeper water. They maintain the bait above the silt, which makes it available without any digging from the carp. Immediately this mechanical change resolve the buried bait issue.
By day, carp use depth as a form of cover. Until dark, trophy fish will seek safety in depths of eight feet or better. After sundown, however, these wary fish moves into shallow water to feed. Younger (and smaller) carp are aggressive and often fight over food in just two or three feet of water near the reeds.
Knowing how depth relates to size should of assisted you in bait presentation and your choice of gear strength. Heavy lead is unnecessary in shallow water, but it becomes a must when fishing for big fish in deep water that can pull your line away if you aren’t careful.
You don’t need expensive tech for finding the proper depth, but a fishfinder wouldn’t hurt if you have one. To find the depth of water, you can use a plumb bob clipped to your line or just a simple marker float. Tape off segments on your line as markers. Feel around by dragging your lead across the bottom. The gravel bar you feel under your foot might be sitting exactly on that productive shelf edge. If so, it’s sitting right out there on the productive shelf edge.
Map it out and no more guesswork; just fish with purpose. Remember, “Depth first; then bait.” Without putting the bait where a fish might be holding, it won’t get found. So study the weather, guess at the thermocline, and target that shelf edge. It’s not complicated stuff, but it’s the groundwork of serious carp fishing. If you can learn to read the water, it will tell you the truth.