Anyone do any daytime bow fishing? If so, what do you use to chum/bring them to you? We do daytime fishing off our riverlot dock and I'm looking for any food, fishing, or bow items that would help. Thanks.
I haven't officially started bowfishing yet, but I plan on bringing a couple of my good "chums" with me. I find things are more fun with friends around. XD
Only on a couple of occasions have I chummed for carp. If you have really muddy water (like the Upper Fox and IL River can be) you can get the fish to come up in the shallow flats were they will actually get thier backs showing. (otherwise you can barely see the dang things) I've used chumming and had good luck with it when we took some newbies out in MO on Table Rock Lake. Table Rock is mostly crystal clear but the carp are few and far between. We found a sandy flat and tossed a bag of frozen corn kernels out in the shallows. Close to the bank. The carp would quickly find the corn and come up where we could get shots at them. Unless you can get them to stick out of the water, you want to chum over a rocky or sandy bottom. If it's a silty, muddy bottom the carp will stir it up and make it like looking through chocolate milk. Mostly, we just use the boat and hunt them down. No waiting for the carp to come to us.
If you're not over a shallow spot you can get carp to come to the surface if you use floating dog food pellets and floating fish food pellets. Just toss a little out at a time. I've seen it work for common carp and grass carp. Be careful what you shoot at. Catfish really respond to the floating food... but we can't shoot 'em here.
Flooting food... could be interesting... could be dangerous for our neighboring dock. Hmm. Thanks for the input.
Christine, I am gonna give this thing an honest crack this Summer. I am on the Susquehanna River (on the same riverlot as Mr. Dopey here) and the only time that we have seen chances to get shots were off the dock after dumping the remains of a griddle breakfast or corn in or one other time when I assume the fish were breeding in real shallow water. (Of course we didn't have the bows in the boat that time) Where can we "hunt them down"? Water depth, bottom conditions, etc. Thanks for your help. Seems like it is gonna be a blast. We are gonna get way more prepared this year, I have 3 old bows that we are gonna convert. I have seen guys drifting or trolling the bank at night with tons of mounted spotlights? What are they shooting?
I have found that if you put your hand in the water and make splashing noises similar to mating carp, they come right over. I never thought of chumming, good idea. I've been using a Zebco 808 on a Bohning fishing extension that screws into the stabilizer bushing, works awesome. I just saw on the web where a guy was using an open face reel (I googled Bear Mini-Magnum). It so much more fun and quicker and easier than hand over hand style. Anybody ever shoot a double???
Going out for some defenseless fish this weekend Ken? BTW, I have your redneck kneepad doohickey here.
No I almost have the boat done...I am waiting for my circuit breaker for my troller to come in...How about next weekend at Dawson for the "Champion of the World" Match????? LOL....you can throw it away....It is like me...It has a slow leak!!
Ben, They're generally shooting carp with that type of set-up. But I'm sure they'd take whatever legal fish they see.
I usually buy some Milo and sour it up. It makes the carp go crazy. I buy a fifty pound sack and last all year. I mix it up in five gallon paint buckets, half one third Milo fill with water, let sit in the sun for two weeks. I use an old five pound coffee can to throw in the water. Give them thirty minutes and be ready to shoot. I once had some Milo souring for six months; I don't recommend this unless you have a real strong stomach...... Good for hog bait too.
Milo is a grain. Used as livestock feed. Looks a lot like chicken feed. Almost all feed stores carry it. I use all the carp I kill, I use it for cut bait to catch big catfish.
I have not done it in years, but usually wait for the spawn in spring and catch the carp and gar in the shallows. I just walk along the shore and shot. Usually lots of action during the spawn. Hey Bob, you get that mash out, im wanting to come up to P.K. for some bow fishen.
I'll give you a heads up.. When the lake is rising, the grass carp come up to feed and it's Hammer Time.. Maybe we can invite out little buddy, we need someone to laugh at. We'll be wading knee deep, and he'll be doing the back stroke.
