Beyond Know How

Wet wading can be an extremely fun, yet dangerous form of fishing. There are  any number of hazards that go along with the sport of fishing, and many of these are amplified or added to when wading is thrown in the mix. The possibility of drowning, breaking bones, suffering cuts, and any number of other unfortunate events are all possibilities when wet wading. This however does not mean that wet wading is just a life threatening accident waiting to happen, far from it. As long as you follow a few safety tips, none of the above events should ever happen to you.

When wet wading, always keep an extremely careful eye on where you are placing your feet. More than any other fishing situation, slow and steady is your safest bet when wading. Also never wet wade without the use of wading shoes. Going barefoot is just asking for horrible damage to your feet,. Wading shoes also have the added benefit of giving the angler much needed traction on slippery surfaces. Finally never go alone, or without a form of emergency communication.

Often overlooked as a target for the fly-angler, the humble panfish can make for some truly memorable days on the water. Almost every fishery in North America features one species of panfish or another, and to overlook this great fly fishing resource would be fool hearty at best. You could even consider acknowledging the panfish as a target species to be one of the best fly fishing tips!

When fly fishing for panfish, many nymph patterns designed for trout can be truly deadly, especially when fishing in rivers and streams. The Bitch Creek nymph and Wooly Bugger are both excellent subsurface flies for panfish, as they can mimic a wide variety of panfish forage. As for top water fishing, any highly buoyant, buggy fly will work. Panfish are insane about top water, so take advantage as best you can.

The purchase of new fishing equipment can be a pretty stressful undertaking, especially if you are looking to spend some real money. One of the most important, and expensive, pieces of fishing tackle is the fishing reel. It’s the fishing reel that controls the cast, retrieve, and not to mention, holds all the fishing line! Spinning reels can almost always be a great choice for anybody looking for a dependable, quality fishing reel.

When going out to buy a spinning reel, always make sure you have a list of your spinning rod’s specifications on hand. Matching your new reel to your rod is exceedingly important, as mismatched rod and reel can lead to line control problems and impaired functionality. Also, the old phrase “you get what you pay for” comes largely into play when selecting spinning reels. Always be sure to buy quality, as a cheep reel is just that, cheep.

When people think of fishing, they either imagine large scale fishing with nets and such, or they think of the angler. The fisherman’s fishing tackle is like a painter’s brush, it’s what allows him to perform his craft. But what is sport fishing tackle? Sport fishing tackle is defined as anything used by a fisherman in the pursuit of catching a sport fish. This is a very broad definition however, and not of much help to somebody new to the sport of angling.

A better definition would be that sport fishing tackle is all of a fisherman’s rods, reels, line, tackle boxes, lures, baits, hooks, and other tools used directly when fishing. Deciding how much of what kind of tackle to use is up to the fisherman, as every fishing situation is different or unique. Luckily due to sport fishing’s amazing popularity, there are many information resources on what tackle to use for what species.

Many anglers will argue that using live bait is the best way to catch a wide variety of sport fish, and this can be true in many cases. The term “live-bait” means any fishing bait that is or once was a creature of some type. This can mean a lot of things to a lot of people though, as different fishing baits are used for different species of fish. It’s important to understand what your target fish species’ natural forage is. Once this is figured out, try to obtain bait that most closely resembles that food type.

Some times it can be difficult to discern what the game fish in your local waters are feeding on. Perhaps the body of water is too large and the fish too deep. Or maybe there’s such a vast array of forage types, such as in rivers and streams, that finding finding out which one the fish are feeding on can be a challenge. If this is the case, your local tackle retailer or fishing club can be an invaluable source of knowledge.

Many fisherman watch all the bass tournaments and shows on espn and other outdoor networks and think they need to be fishing large lakes to catch quality bass.  I’m from an area that really doesn’t offer much in the way of quality fishing lakes or ponds but we have an abundance of small streams and rivers.  While most people I see fishing these rivers are usually after catfish and the occasional panfish they are overlooking the small mouth and large mouth bass that these bodies of water hold.  Lots of fisherman think you need to fly fish in streams but that is just not true.  Ignore what you see on television , grab your fly fishing waders

photo credit: Margaret Anne Clarke

, spinning rod and tackle selection and you will be surprised at the amount of bass you can catch.  Using live baits like night crawlers or crayfish work especially well in landing nice sized small mouth.   Look for streams with rocky bottoms that have a decent flow and you will be sure to find a bass lurking just outside of the main current.

photo credit: astrogrl

Each year I hear how my kids have struggled coming up with ideas for things to do for me on Father’s day.  This year I took the initiative and told them what I wanted.  I want to take the day and go fishing with my family.   I usually make my trips to the local pond by myself as most of my kids really don’t care to spend time waiting for a bass or bluegill to take the bait.  I figured this year I’ll spend the time with them on Father’s day not fishing but rather teaching these bass fishing beginners the finer points of casting, lure presentation and other techniques that will hopefully make it more enjoyable for them to join me on a regular basis on my fishing trips.  There is nothing more discouraging that taking a kids fishing and not catching a thing so if your kids are up for the challenge teach them what it takes to become better fishermen.  Happy Fathers Day all.

photo credit: Brianmoc

Bass fishing is a sport that requires a lot of skill and knowledge.  In order to acquire them you need to start with the right foot, keeping in mind that it is very important to master the basics, and read about bass fishing principles and tips.

To get started, you’ll also need your own bass fishing equipment.  Right now on the market there are a lot of brands, offers and even gadgets that may or may not be worth buying.  As a beginner, you probably are not familiarized with all this, so it is better to start with small, but reliable equipment.

Also when choosing lure, just take what you need, and don’t become crazy when buying. From there you are on your way to the boat.  It would be advisable to seek company from an experience fisher.