1) I fish a local city lake that is managed by the conservation deparment. Everytime I'm out there - there seems to be fish jumping and breaking the surface. When I see one coming out of the water - it always seems to have a yellow belly. What kind of fish is it? Yesterday I was in a couple of different coves where small balls of baitfish were on the surface.  I'm fairly certain some bass were breaking the surface on them but never actually saw one (I could hear the tail smacking the water - kind of like a clapping noise).  

2) I've been using a carolina rig a lot more as the summer goes on. Yesterday - I was fishing a point that had a large drop-off on it. I was dragging the c-rig right up to the ledge and then could feel it falling off the drop off. Right on top of the ledge I was feeling something different on the bottom than anything I've felt yet (chunk rock, mud bottom, brush pile, etc). The feeling was similar to what a crankbait feels like when dug along a rocky bottom. I hooked into a little branch at one point making me think it might be brush. To find out I threw a crankbait and texas rigged worm and couldn't find any brush. I also idled over it with my depthfinder and find any brush on bottom. Any idea what it is I'm dragging the c-rig over?

1) Probably carp.

2) Sounds like trash, sometimes you hook up, other times you just come through it. I would focus on the ledge.

In the Virginia tidal rivers the carp make big splashes which gets the friends I take fishing all excited.  They want to go and catch them.

As for the underwater stuff you felt, I agree that it was probably trash.  It may have been some decaying vegatation with a few sticks in it, too.

Don't get all excited about the carp, especially during mating season when they really make a racket.

However, it you want to try to catch one, try a big Nightcrawler.

I'd say it's carp for sure although catfish will sometimes roll on the surface also.

Couldn't say what you were feeling on your c-rig unless I felt it. Sorry.

Thanks