Cloudy & Overcast: Is Carp Fishing Good? (+10 Carp Tips)

Carp fishing can be awesome because these are strong powerful fish that fight very well. A lot of anglers wonder if cloud cover or overcast conditions will cast a shadow on their fishing success. This is a great topic to discuss because you will find yourself on the water after the sun goes behind the clouds with some big decisions on your hand. 

Is carp fishing good on cloudy and overcast days? Carp fishing can be very good on cloudy days or under overcast skies because the reduced light makes it more comfortable for carp to venture into shallower water and also to stare up at the water’s surface for insects to feed on.

The reduced sun makes water cooler and more comfortable for carp and often turns on their feeding drive. There are some situations where these conditions can have a negative effect which we will cover later on in this article.

Check out this link here to view my complete carp fishing gear recommendation list, including rods, reels, baits, gear, etc. I have field tested a lot of carp gear and these are my recommendations.

Cloud Cover & Carp

Best Time of Day for Carp with Clouds & Overcast Conditions

Generally speaking, you can catch carp all day and all night long. As long as you are willing to experiment with the position in the water column to find fish, you can catch carp.

Carp will often cycle between feeding mid-water columns in the morning, sunning themselves near the surface at noon, feeding off the bottom in the afternoon, and gobbling up insects at the water’s surface at sunset.

Unlike species like bass and pike which prefer early morning and late afternoon, there really is no shining “best time” to catch carp.

That said, when conditions are cloudy, I prefer to fish in the middle of the day and afternoon. This is when I have the best carp fishing success.

Nighttime can also be great during the summer. I think the best thing you can do is pay attention to where carp are feeding at that given time and present a bait that matches.

Now during the winter, cloudy weather can be bad for carp fishing. If you experience winter clouds, fish in the middle of the day when the air temperature is warmest.

Carp will be more active when the water is warmest. For a complete breakdown of the very best times of day to catch carp and how to locate them, check out this article I wrote. If you want to learn the best time of day to catch any fish, then you need to read this article I wrote as well.

Best Baits for Carp Under Reduced Light

The best baits for carp under these conditions are going to be pack baits. From my experience, pack baits outperform almost any other carp bait by a long way. I recommend investing in some good method leads or method feeders and hair rigs.

You can buy all this for about $15 total. Pack baits come in many sizes and variations but I prefer to make pack baits with panko bread crumbs, Jell-O powder, and sweet corn kernels. That is my go-to carp bait and the one I have the utmost confidence in.

Carp love it. If you see carp feeding at the surface, try throwing bread, single corn kernels if they float, and even flies if you are a fly fisherman.

I rarely mess with topwater baits for carp under cloudy skies though. My first and favorite approach is bottom baits with pack baits.

Winter Clouds: Effects on Carp

Most of the year, I don’t think cloudy weather hurts carp fishing at all. In fact, I’d argue it makes it better and surely will make you as the angler more comfortable.

But during the winter, I have found that cloudy weather can slow down carp fishing. Carp are most active during winter on days that are a little bit warmer than other colder days before or after.

Cloudy skies will make for cooler temperatures than full sun will. This could cause carp to become more docile and less likely to bite.

You can still catch these carp but you may need to be a lot more willing to pick up and move to new locations until you get bites. During the winter, carp head for deeper holes adjacent to shallower water.

All the carp on the lake could be in 5 holes and nowhere else all winter long. Well on overcast days, carp will hold tight to the bottom and be unwilling to move around.

You will need to place your bait right in front of the carp to draw a bite. Have faith in the process and keep casting to new locations until you get bit. I recommend fishing in the middle of day in winter if you have cloud cover because this is when the weather should be warmest that day.

10 Proven Tips for Cloudy Weather

1. Location is Everything

I cannot stress this enough. In fishing, picking the right location is THE most important thing you can do for fishing success.

You can have the greatest bait in the world but if you are fishing where there are no fish, you won’t catch anything. On the other hand, you will catch a lot of fish with a mediocre bait if you find the right location.

Location makes that big of a difference. On cloudy days, you will often see carp at the surface. It should make it easier to find them and once you do, that is at least 80% of the battle already won.

2. Bait is Secondary but Still Noteworthy

While the quality of bait you pick is not as important as location for carp, it can still make a big difference. Many carp anglers recommend PVAs or zig-rigs but I recommend wholeheartedly pack baits. You can buy the method feeders and hair rigs for under $20. They work great.

I recommend hair rigs because they work amazing for finnicky fish that are hook shy and have an awesome hookup ratio. I mentioned earlier that corn, Panko bread crumbs, and Jell-O powder is my favorite pack bait mixture. 

3. Be Patient in Summer

When fishing for carp in summer, be patient. This is especially true when it is overcast out or the sunlight is reduced. Carp roam far and wide in summer looking for food.

They will be very scattered out across the lake. I recommend giving carp at least 2 hours to find your bait before moving.

If you pick a decent location, carp will bite your hook before those 2 hours is up. If you move too soon though, you aren’t giving fish enough time to find your bait. Again, this only works in summer.

4. Move Quicker in Winter

Now while you need to be patient in summer, patience will leave you fishless in winter. So in summer, carp are very active and spread out across the lake.

But in winter, all the carp will head for deeper holes near shallow water. If your lake has 6 spots like this, those 6 spots will hold every carp in that lake all winter long.

If you aren’t fishing in one of those deep holes, you can wait for weeks and not get a bite. In those good holes, carp will packed so tight that you will get bites almost immediately. If you don’t get a bite within 15 minutes, move.

You are not in the right spot. Keep moving until you get bites. You can catch a ton of fish in winter once you locate a good spot because so many carp will be bunched up.

5. Fish When You Can

When it comes to carp fishing, just fish when you can. If it is sunny out or cloudy, it really won’t matter. Carp will bite rain or shine and at night too.

If you have a few hours to go fishing, that is the correct time to be fishing for them. Don’t overthink it. Just get out there because carp can be caught any time of the day. Go when is most convenient for you.

6. Use a Hair Rig & Method Feeder 

I really recommend fishing pack baits for carp on cloudy days. In my opinion, it is your best option almost every time.

I also recommend packing the bait onto a method feeder because it will do a great job holding onto the bait. It essentially lets you chum the bait into an area to attract carp.

I also recommend using a hair rig for your bait as it will catch hook-shy carp and has a tremendous hookup ratio. This combination is one you cannot go wrong with.

7. Pack Baits are Best (In My Opinion)

I’ve covered this numerous times in this article for good reason. Go online or YouTube and look up pack bait recipes for carp. You’ll find some awesome ones. My favorite is Jell-O, Panko bread crumbs, and whole kernel sweet corn. It’s so effective!

8. Watch for Carp at Surface

If you need to find carp quick, just watch the surface on overcast days. Carp will often be basking at the surface under these conditions and you’ll be able to easily spot them.

Sometimes, they will jump completely out of the water which is something to see for a 20-pound pile of muscle. Look for carp and you’ll find great fishing locations.

9. Clouds are Great, Wind can be Problematic

Cloud cover is great for carp but wind can give you issues. It can drag your pack baits off the bottom, put slack in your line to rod connection, and also cause casting issues.

Wave action caused by wind can also falsely set off your bite alarms. A little wind is fine but strong wind will cause more grief than it’s worth. 

10. Use as Many Rods as are Legal

Find out what the max amount of rods you can use legally in your state is. For example, in California, the most rods I can use as a single angler is 2. That is nowhere near enough for me.

I would use 10 if I could legally do so. The more rods you have, the more lines in the water and the better change of catching carp. On overcast days, that is what can make the difference between 2 carp and 20 carp caught.

Night Fishing Under Cloudy Skies

I think you’ll do just fine fishing under these conditions. Carp are very active at night and unless they are eating insects at the surface, they aren’t using their eyes to find food.

Carp are great at detecting food in darkness without their vision. Contrast that with species like bass and crappie that rely heavily on vision to find food.

At night, they need moonlight to locate food near the water’s surface. Carp and catfish are limited by what the moon presents them. I have caught a lot of carp under both full moonlight and complete darkness.

Cloudy conditions should still be really good during the warmer months for carp night fishing. I firmly believe you will do great if you are in the right spot and using a decent bait. Again, I recommend pack baits because carp will be attracted by the sweet smell of Jell-O and sweet corn.

How About Sunny Days

As I mentioned earlier, carp will be active rain or shine. I attribute this to the fact carp are omnivorous but really seem to feed on food items that aren’t mobile. Unlike bass which need to hunt and ambush their food, carp can move along and just slurp it up.

There is no advantage to a carp having ideal ambushing light conditions when its prey are butterflies floating on the surface or some vegetative matter on the bottom of the lake. So if you are going to fish on sunny days, you can enjoy success all day long.

Make sure you pick a good location with food plentiful enough to attract carp and deeper water nearby for carp to push off into if they feel unsafe.

On sunny days, I prefer to fish on the bottom because most carp will be rooting around on the bottom for forage. Now if you notice carp slurping insects off the surface, fishing with floating items like corn kernels, bread, flies, and even Styrofoam can be the winning ticket.