CALL HIM CARPMAN - AND BRING A BIG SACK : HAINES DELIVERS LUNKERS ON DEMAND TO HIS CLIENTS.

Byline: Bill Schulz Associated Press 

Many of Bernie Haines' clients come to him because they want to catch a big fish.

But it can't be a world-class trout, bass, salmon or other famous game fish that most anglers clamor for in droves. Believe it or not, they want carp. Trophy carp. Leviathan specimens with rod-breaking girths, silver-dollar-sized scales and faces only a mama carp could love.

Haines usually obliges. That's because, believe it or not, he's a carp guide!

``Last year we caught only two fish under 5 pounds out of more than 1,000 fish,'' he said. The smallest was 4 pounds, 2 ounces; the largest was 43 pounds, 4 ounces.

Haines guides clients over a 100-mile stretch of the St. Lawrence River out of his fishing service based here. His season is mid-May through September.

When he started six years ago guiding for carp - long despised as a trash fish by most North American anglers, he got a lot of questions about his unusual occupation.

``I think the initial reaction from most people was, `What do you want to fish for them for,' '' he said. ``A few people thought, `That's different!' Some thought `Leave him alone, we think he's got a screw loose.' ''

``Actually, people up in the area I fish have been exceptionally nice and very supportive,'' he said. ``They're more curious than anything.''

A transplanted Englishman who came to the United States in 1975, Haines had grown up fishing for carp and other nongame fish. That's because the cost of equipment and licenses for sport-fishing, primarily for trout and salmon, are so high in England. They were out of reach for a youth who was running a newspaper route to make spending money.

He continued fishing for those species in America.

On visits home, he'd bring along snapshots of some of his bigger catches, but found ``they still wouldn't believe me, even though I had taken photographs.''

So he invited a few people to come to the states and see for themselves. Those guests had a good time and caught some huge fish. That was enough for Haines to abandon accounting and turn to guiding.

His clients fall mostly into categories: those who want to learn to catch carp and maybe catch a sizable fish; and experienced anglers who want a really big carp.

``Large fish for most people is 20 pounds or better,'' Haines says. ``A real big fish is 40 pounds or better.''

The world record for common carp is 57 pounds, 13 ounces, caught in Washington's Tidal Basin.

Haines has nothing but praise for the European native fish, which was introduced into the United States in the 1800s.

``They tend to have an average size bigger than other species. They fight like the dickens. Pound for pound, they'll outdo a largemouth bass. Almost nobody else fishes for them, so there's plenty of them.''

Haines said 65 percent to 70 percent of his clients are from Europe, primarily England, Germany, Denmark and Holland. The rest are from the United States and Canada.

He provides a complete package, including rides to and from the airport, accommodations, a boat and the special tackle and bait he uses to catch the prehistoric-looking creatures. Most clients fish with him for a week and sometimes two.

``The rare person comes for three weeks,'' he said.

Since carp are bottom feeders, the best way to get them is by dropping the bait straight onto the mud. When bottom-fishing, Haines uses a strong, 12- or 13-foot rod and open-faced, bait-runner reels that allow the fish to take line with the bail closed.

That way when the fish takes the bait it doesn't feel a stiff drag and drop the bait before swallowing it.

He also uses European-style hooks, sizes No. 2 to 6. ``Compared with an American hook, they have a much shorter shank. They are much stronger for the size - thicker wire, very good steel,'' Haines explained.

He employs two types of bait: pulses - which are mixes of peas, bSeans, corn and grains; and dough baits, or boilees - a mix of various high-protein ingredients bound with raw eggs to make a paste and then boiled for a short time to solidify the egg. And, like most avid carp anglers, Haines has his own secret recipes for baits.

He also has little competition, even though the carp, a cousin of the common goldfish, has become one of the most common fish in North America.

``They inhabit most every local pond or stream, and so they're available to almost every average American resident,'' Haines said.

Fortunately for him, almost every average American resident would never even consider targeting them.

MEMO: For more information, contact Bernie Haines' Compleat Angler carp guiding service at [phone] or 1 Linden St., Massena, NY 13662.

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Photo

Photo: (color) Bernie Haines, a carp guide who specializesin big fish, lifts a 43-pound trophy catch.

Associated Press