Carp Fishing

The carp first appeared in history around the 2nd century BC in Europe and Asia. Around the same time, it is thought that the Chinese were the first to use the carp as food. By the 17th and 18th centuries AD, carp were being introduced into the United Kingdom by European monks. People started to realize their value as a food source because they grow very large in short amounts of time with little space needed for one of the fish. These first introduced carp are known as “wild carp” and still exist, although they are becoming rarer in British waters.

By the 1950s, very few people could catch carp and they were still a mystery to most. However in the 1960s new developments in bait and tackle and the stocking or larger imported carp in more waters resulted in a boom of carp fishing that is still experienced today. As the 1970s wore on, anglers were catching bigger and bigger carp. People strived to come up with the best baits and rigs. Someone made new bait by taking paste bait, adding egg and boiling the pastes. This enabled fishermen to leave the bait on the hook for days without ever worrying that it would breakdown or that a nuisance fish would take it.

By the 1980s the fascination with carp had reached a peak and it continues to be very popular today. Now there are thousands of baits, tackle, rigs, equipment and techniques to aid in the catching of carp.