For those that like a little bit more leaser to their fishing experience, then river fishing might just hit the bill. There are all kinds of river fishing from casting a line and watching for a bit , to trout lines and to going down the river in a boat bottle line fishing. River fishing is a different type of fishing that cannot be compared to lake or pond fishing, thou the same kind of fish can be caught. River fishing is usually done from the bank by most people and with some a set of waders to get out in the water and stay dry. Many of the best fish available are fished for in rivers like steelhead, salmon, small mouth bass, large mouth bass, Gar, catfish and carp. The unique thing about river fishing is the clarity of the water as it will play a huge role in the type of lures and bait that you use and how you fish the water. Muddy water is not good as fish will not be able to see the lure but is still good for for live bait. Muddy water will definitely hamper your ability to catch fish with a lure. A little cloudy color in the water is best and you want to fish a river right after a big rain for the best results because as the water is high the fish will come in closer to the bank to feed and as it lowers it is not as easy to catch them as the food supply goes down.
River fishing can be a great challenge even to the best angler out there fishing.
P.S. By the way, while you are on my site please feel free to check out my shopping page. There are 50 stores from which to buy and window shop from. There are items from books, printing needs to jewelry. It also includes Home Depot for all your shopping needs.
One of the most important things that you can do when your fishing is to know and understand what the effect of the clarity of the water will have on your fishing trip. Different levels of clarity in the water will help determine what is the best way to fish particular water. Cloudy water can be fished one way while murky water can be fished another and clear water fished completely different because if you can see the fish then the fish can see you as well.
You would always like to see a little color in the water in most instances and if the water is too murky then you more than likely will have a difficult time because the fish will not be able to see what you are using to get their attention and get them to bite. This is where scented bait can come into play.
Water clarity can play a big part in your fishing experience and knowing how to read the water will be a big help. For those that are fishing in exceptionally clear water you want to remember if at all possible to keep your shadow behind you or try to fish upstream of a hole if you are on a river. Learning through experience is one way to learn but if you can ask someone or attend a fishing clinic as they usually talk about clarity of water and what seems to work best in certain situations and conditions. Clarity can make all the difference.
Safety-pin is the most versatile bass lures made. They can effectively fish almost any depth and cover situation and with the possible exception of the plastic worm can be labeled “All Around Lure.”
Spinnerbaits are available in a staggering array of sizes, types and configurations and this can cause some confusion for the angler when it comes to selecting the right one for the task at hand. The confusion can be halted if the angler understands that there are five basic categories of safety-pin spinnerbaits and that each one has proven to be more effective under certain conditions than the others. The five categories are: single spin, tandem spin, long arm, short arm and flexible cable arm.
The single spin has only one blade and be in any size and type. This is not quite as weedless as the tandem spins and are best in sparser cover. They tend to run deeper and produce a more distinct vibration that can be felt through the rod. This makes it best for deeper water, slower retrieves and used as a drop bait.
The tandem spin features two blades mounted in line. The larger blade is mounted in the rear and the smaller blade in the front. It tends to be more weedless so it is better for heavier cover. They seem to to run a bit shallower due to the second blade holding them closer to the surface when retrieved at the same speed as the single blade. Most experts don’t fish this bait much deeper than eight to ten feet unless they are working with a bait in the half-ounce or heavier range.
Long-arm spinnerbait is one that the blade-holding arm extends back as far as the hook. This protects the hook and makes the bait more weedless. They can be either single or tandem bladed but you will find most pros using the tandem blade in heavier cover.
Short-arm is one where the blade doesn’t reach the hook. They can be either single or tandem blade and the difference between the short and long arm is the ability to hook the fish better and be weedless but not as so the long-arm. So this bait is better for sparse cover, top choice for fishing deeper, more open structures especially with a large single blade.
The flexible cable models dispense with the wire blade arm. This makes the most weedless model for thick, clinging cover but not good for hard cover so you will want to leave them in the box when working on wood cover.
Now you know what safety-pin spinner bait to use for the different types of cover or no cover to use to catch the bass you are looking for.
I know a lot of out there do not consider fishing for jack salmon, dore, pike-perch. Better known as Walleye but that is because the Walleye is not really a know fish by most. It is a very difficult fish to catch unless you know about it as most know about bass. So here I am going to see if I can give you some incite on a relatively easy fish to catch once you know where and when the best time to go on the hunt.
First, Walleye are not blind though their eyes makes one to believe they are but their eyes are opaque so that they can see in low light which gives them advantage over their pray in low light, dark nights and cloudy days as well as windy days. They shirk away from bright light and are more active at night. Now that does not mean that you can’t caught them during the day. You just need to use the weather to your advantage. Cloudy, windy and low light day or evening and of coarse at night. The wind will diffuse the light rays and make Walleye more active during the day.
Walleyes do not like dense vegetation, muddy bottoms or lose sand. So what do they like, open bottom with rocks, gravel or firm sand as long as they are not in spawn and love current. When the Walleye spawn the males enter spawning area first followed by the female and are found schooling. The female swim over the spawning area dropping the eggs and the males impregnating the eggs and the eggs drop to the bottom to settle where they may and both the male and female leave the eggs unprotected. This is a good time to catch Walleyes as they are in schools and they are hungry. The spawn begins when the water warms to 45 to 50 degress. If you find a current you will most likely find Walleye.
You can use live minnows or artificial bait, artificial bait that is fluorescent or bright in color is best, or a combinations of both. Just remember that Walleye are bottom feeders so you must get down to the bottom or close to it to get them.
I hope that you give Walleyes a try this spring.
Happy fishing and be save,
William
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Time is coming close to thinking of getting things ready for the early spring, going after Crappie. Most fishers will have forget this time of year for fishing for slabs and pan fish because of the unpredictable weather and water conditions. That could be your biggest mistake in missing some great fishing. Let’s take a look at why some decide not to in this time of year. The top problem that most see is the water conditions, water to clear, to muddy or to dingy. Let us see if we can give you some help to look past these condition and get out there and have fun and give you some proven plans for catching crappies under these conditions.
Clear Water
When you have clear try going with ultra-light tackle and 2 pound test line. The ultra thin line is practically invisible to the fish. Also you you will have to fish deeper to find the crappie. you can exspect the fish to be in the 10 to 15 foot range and as far as 22 feet. You can also troll with live minnow but keep the bait behind the boat about 75 feet as the Crappie are going to be spooky.
Muddy Water
Muddy water can be the most difficult problem to over come but us need to remember you will have to change your method to produce fish. In muddy condition, Crappie will be holding near or even in weeds, rocks, logs and ledges. The method best to use is minnows and straight line. Really bump the minnows into the cover. Give scent a try in muddy water. You have to get the Crappie to notice your bait to get them to bit.
Dingy Water
This sitution is not as dramatic as Clear and Muddy Water situations. You just have to adjust to the condition. Go with trolling with minnows but you canshorten the amount feet behind the boat to about 40 feet. If water temperature is above the magical 50 degree mark you will want to troll between 0.7 to 0.9 miles per hour and if the temperature is below 50 degress you want to slow down to 0.5 miles per hour. You will want to fish along creek and channel ledges with scattered cover or if on deep lake look for points with stumps.
So don’t miss out on getting those big Early Spring time Crappies just because of water conditions. Just remeber that you have to adjust to the condition and you to will be able to catch those Crappie.
Let’s go fishing and be save.
William
P.S. By the way, while you are on my site please feel free to check out my shopping page. There are 50 stores from which to buy and window shop from. There are items from books, printing needs to jewelry. It also includes Home Depot for all your shopping needs.
Just as the seasons come and go so do the rivers and streams change their course. Rivers and streams can change an old established fishing hole into nothing more than a mud bank depending on the snow melt or flooding or any of a multitude of natural occurrence that will change the course of a waterway. Each year our waterways change course and will create new and different places for the fish to lay while making their trek up or down stream. Change of waterways occurs mainly in the rivers and streams, lakes and oceans can also experience changes that will cause the fish to stay in new areas. Rivers and streams are more predominately affected by floods and glacier run off and with an increasing water flow can change
completely eliminating old fishing spots all the while adding new holes that will provide lots of action for the sports fisherman. The change of rivers and streams provide a constant challenge to those that favor fishing there with finding new opportunities as well as revisiting old spots that still exist on the waterway. With this challenge each year thousands of fishing enthusiast take to the rivers and streams to see what is in store for them prepared to take Mother Nature’s challenge and try to win in the game of fishing. No matter what the odds with rod and reel in hand the mighty angler seeks his fortune of fish while battling the changes nature has placed against him.
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Every angler is always looking for that new fishing hole to improve his catch. As he meticulously views his surroundings and the water that lays in his path he is on guard to find a new and better fishing hole. Most fishermen already have their favorite spots to fish and go back to them time and time again but the advanced fisherman is always on the lookout for new fishing spots that will provide lots of action on the end of his pole. Fishing is much like treasure seeking in that it is a constant challenge to figure out where the fish are and what will attract them to pick your line. It could be the shininess
of the lure or the smell of the bait but if one can’t find where the fish are staying no matter what you have for equipment it will not work. The search for fishing spots is nothing new and those in the guide or charter business are constantly looking for new and better spots to take their customers to catch fish. For those who provide chartered fishing trips or guided fishing trip lots of action for their customers is paramount in their own success and can often break them if they can’t get their paying customers to where the fish are. It will always be a search to find news holes and make sure the hold holes are still fish able as the sports fisherman continues his treasure hunt for the bounty of fish he is seeking.
PS: We have added a donate button to the page for those of you who may wish to donate to the site. It is located at the top of the page. We thank you.
It has been a few days since I have added a new article so here we go. I was reading the other day about “Wallhanger Smallmouth” tactics. Me being a fisherman who is into fishing for the fun of it my ears kind of perked up so I thought you might like a summary of what I read. They were talking about five different tactics. They talked about when, where, water conditions, lures and presentation.
#1 Jerking for Prespawn Giants
Where: Main lake prespawn staging areas like points, rockpiles, dropoffs and the like
When: Late winter/early spring
Water Conditions: Moderately stained/Temp 48 to 52 degree water/Sunny to partly cloudy/Windy the better as this bring the fish shallower and they can see the bait from longer distance
Lure: Suspending jerkbait/10 pound fluorocarbon line
Presentation: Long cast with the wind past the target/reel the bait as quickly to maximum depth/Pause than snap the tip of the rod a few times and pause as the fish will smack the bait on the pause
#2 Sight Fishing for bedding Giants
Where: Sand or pea gravel flats 3 to 12 feet
When: Spring/early summer
Water Conditions: Clear 61 to 64 degree water/Sunny/Calm winds/with polarized sun glasses
Lures: Tube bait or twister grub on 3/16 to 3/8 jighead kook exposed/8 pound fluorocarbon line
Presentation: Case pass the target/hop, swim or drag to target/if can not see the fish use fan cast method
#3 On the River
Where: Main River/long stretches of 25 to 35 foot
When: Late summer/early fall
Water Conditions: Clear to moderately stained/68 to 72 degree water/fast current/sunny/light wind
Lure: Small creature baits, realistic colors/1/2 ounce sinker with 2 foot leader/ 15 pound fluorocarbon line
Presentation: Cast upstream/boat drift downstream/hole rod tight
#4 Dragging the Depths
Where: Great Lakes/Glacial or highland reservoirs/35 to 70 feet depths
When: Midsummer/early fall
Water Conditions: Clear 70 to 75 degree water/light to moderate wind/presents of bait fish
Lures: 3 to 4 inch drop shot lures/rig with No. 1 drop shot hook with 3/8 to 1/2 ounce sinker/ 8 pound fluorocarbon line or 10 pound braid and 8 pound fluorocarbon leader
Presentation: Look for deep structures or bait fish on bottom/cast pass target and weight for sinker to hit bottom/slowly reel toward target stopping ever little bit and shake the rod tip
#5 Cranking Mules
Where: Highland/Flatland lakes
When: Fall/Early winter
Water Conditions: Stained 65 to 55 degree water/strong south to west wind/cloudy skies
Lure: 1/4 to 5/8 ounce diving crankbait/10 pound monofilament for the stretch
Presentation: Cast tightly to shore and crank quickly so the bait bumps and grinds on the bottom
I hope you can get one for your wall.
Great fishing and be safe,
William
PS: We have added a donate button to the page for those of you who may wish to donate to the site. It is located at the top of the page. We thank you.
Whether you’re a guide, an advanced angler everyone has a favorite spot they feel gives them the greatest chance to catch fish. It might be a deep hole on a river, a certain pond or a particular area in the ocean that an angler just feels more lucky than any other spot. Even the beginning fisherman will quickly develop a favorite spot amongst all other fishing spots that will produce plenty of action for the sports fisherman. Ask any long time fisherman where the best place to fish is and they will usually crack a smile and name their favorite fishing hole for whatever type of fish you are searching out. Sometimes the crafty veteran will be a little hard pressed to give you exact directions wanting to keep his favorite hole a secret but more often than not they will give you an area where they have caught many fish. There may be several fishing spots on the particular river or lake or ocean that produce fish but anyone who has fished for awhile will have that one hole where the action was happening or they hooked a particularly large fish that plays again and again in their memories. In river fishing that could be one hole or a couple on the same river but when the fisherman is there they know something is going to happen and the game between fisherman and fish will begin. No matter what type of fishing there is always a favorite hole to fish.
For any experienced fisherman one of the important issues when evaluating stream or river fishing is examining the water for clarity. If when looking at the stream or river, it is too clear of water, the fisherman will need to take appropriate precautions as not to spook the fish. If the water is too clear then the way the river or stream needs to be fished is quite different than ideal conditions which an old rule of thumb is eighteen to twenty four inches of visibility. This will allow the fish to see the bait or lure without having the clarity to see the angler above the water. If the angler finds the water too clear it is important for him to keep the sun facing towards him if at all possible, this will prevent the sun from casting a shadow upon the water and spooking the fish. This may not however always be possible and the angler needs to do as much as possible to minimize unnecessary activity that will draw the fish’s attention and scare them. If fishing from the opposite bank is impossible the fisherman may try to go down stream casting further upstream to allow the lure or bait to drift into the fish. Also the fisherman can move further upstream and allow the line to drift further downstream into the hole. Either method described will work in order to avoid casting a shadow upon the desired hole. The important thing is not to do a lot of moving around.
P.S. By the way, while you are on my site please feel free to check out my shopping page. There are 50 stores from which to buy and window shop from. There are items from books, printing needs to jewelry. It also includes Home Depot for all your shopping needs.
For those that like a little bit more leaser to their fishing experience, then river fishing might just hit the bill. There are all kinds of river fishing from casting a line and watching for a bit , to trout lines and to going down the river in a boat bottle line fishing. River fishing is a different type of fishing that cannot be compared to lake or pond fishing, thou the same kind of fish can be caught.
River fishing is usually done from the bank by most people and with some a set of waders to get out in the water and stay dry. Many of the best fish available are fished for in rivers like steelhead, salmon, small mouth bass, large mouth bass, Gar, catfish and carp. The unique thing about river fishing is the clarity of the water as it will play a huge role in the type of lures and bait that you use and how you fish the water.
Muddy water is not good as fish will not be able to see the lure but is still good for for live bait. Muddy water will definitely hamper your ability to catch fish with a lure. A little cloudy color in the water is best and you want to fish a river right after a big rain for the best results because as the water is high the fish will come in closer to the bank to feed and as it lowers it is not as easy to catch them as the food supply goes down.
