I was swimming one of my bitty jigs in a quarry where the walleye, crappie and white bass had been pretty good.  I got a bite and the race was on.  I fought this thing quite a while thinking it was a 6# or better walleye.  Boy was I disappointed.  The same thing happened a few days later in the same place and it turned out to be a 4# white drum.  Those bitty jigs aren't particular what they catch.   I would have kept it to eat but the vital part of the carp recipe is a pine board which I didn't have.  All I had was CCA and I didn't want to poison myself.

I'm thinking of targeting them this year...they are fun to catch...but to eat...that's another story.I haven't heard one person say they are real good.The people that do eat them have a way around the cardboard taste somehow.I'd pass on eating them as well.Michigan has some hugh carps though .

Those with more discriminating taste usually prefer white pine over yellow. 
I didn?t realize that you carried a pressure cooker with you on your trips.
Have fun.