Learn To Fish

Learn To Fish:  It’s Fun!

Fishing is a fun and tranquil sport that lets you spend quiet time with your friends, family and with Mother Nature.

Fresh water fishing is a sport involving the catching of fish in lakes, rivers and streams. It involves a lot of patience, challenge and a lot of acquired skill over time.  Anyone can participate in this fun activity, including the kids.

To start, you have to check your State’s fishing requirements and make sure if a license is needed for you to fish. If it is required, you must acquire one by checking with a sporting goods store. They will help you how to get it, and some will even provide it for you.

During the time that you are in your favorite sporting goods store, you can look around and buy the right fishing equipment that you will be need for your trip. Considering that you are a beginner, make sure that you budget well the cost and your spending on the equipment, not deciding on expensive equipments; buy only the basic things you will need.

When in doubt as to what is needed, ask the help of the store keeper, but do keep in mind that you need to stick to a budget. Take your time and don’t hesitate to ask how to use each piece of equipment that is offered to you. Artificial lures for bait can be used or you can simply look for worms from your back yard.

An inexpensive fishing rod and reel will be enough along with a fishing line, hooks, weights, a bobber (this keeps your line afloat), fishing lures and net. A polarized sunglass is also essential, as it will help to see clearly through the water and lessen the glare.

Then if you don’t know the good locations to fish, ask about local “hot” spots, or check your State’s fishing regulations for information about fishing locations around your State.

The time will surely come when you will be a better fisherman; then you may decide on upgrading your equipment. In the meantime, keep things simple.

It is always advised that you avoid fishing alone.  Always be with a friend, as when emergency strikes, there can be someone who can call for help.

It is wise to start fishing in shallow waters. Aim your cast in shady or rocky areas where the water is deep, as this is where the fish is expected to be found. Keep in mind that this is all practice first.

As your skill level develops and increases, you can then attempt into deeper waters. But before going, take the time to practice casting to familiarize yourself with your rod and your reel.

What better place to practice than your back yard. To do so, mark off an area using a rope and use this as your guide in aiming your cast. Rehearse and study your movements to discover a method that will work for you. Bear in mind, cast with your wrist, and not with your arm.

Fishing hooks are very sharp and needed to be handled with care to avoid injury.  Before casting, it is important that you should look around you and stay unobstructed to avoid hurting other people with your hook.

When the right time has come and you go fishing for real, keep in mind to cast your line always ahead of the fish, making your bait land slowly, with as little splash as possible. The fish will see well at a close point, but cannot see behind.

If your casts are going in a disorganized manner, move closer to the water so you can gain better accuracy.

Watch the bobber closely for any movement. If and when a fish grabs the bait, the bobber will be pulled under water. This signals that you got a fish on the line.  Don’t get too excited.  Remain calm.

Keeping your line tight, slowly reel in your catch. Place the net near and use it to bring the fish out.  Remove the hook from the fish with great care.

If you got an undersized fish (as noted in the state’s regulation book), quickly return it to the water. Likewise, if you have no intention in eating your catch, do not waste it and return it to the water. Releasing the fish will supply the water with more fish, giving future fishermen the thrill to experience a catch.

Lastly, look around you and feel the calm, restful and serene view of the river. 

Have fun!

Fishing Tips for Beginners

Fishing Tips for Beginners

There are many kinds of fishing equipments in stores, numerous fishing methods in books, and fishing advices online. To make it all simple, here are the basic things you need to know for your first time fishing adventure.

1) How to fish with bait

* Tackle. To plunk the bait, you should purchase lead weights. The weight of the lead would vary depending on the current of the environment.  Anglers commonly use and recommend bank sinkers with a number-two hook.

To avoid sinkers to slide, you would need a swivel to act as a stop. To protect the knot, you could use plastic beads between the swivel and weight. Using two appropriate swivels could allow you to rig the sliding sinkers.

* Bait. The commonly used bait for all kinds of fishes is worms. Another popular bait is chicken liver. Remember to buy fresh bait and keep them cold to avoid them from getting soft and allowing the bait to stay within your hooks.

Some of the commonly used baits are cut-baits which include skin from fried chicken, fish entrails, grasshoppers, salmon eggs, shrimps and crayfish tails.

2) How to fish – There are three basic methods for fishing.

* Plunking – It is the most common method used. Use a suitable amount of weight for you to be able to take hold of the bait in a position which is against any current. An option in plunking is to use minimal weight for the bait to move along with the water current.

* Back bouncing – It is done by lifting the bait out the bottom and raising the tip of the rod for one to two feet. Allowing the bait to walk with the current, you should free the back reel or spool. Repeat the steps when the lure settles down on the bottom. Back bouncing is effective in deeper water like fishing in a boat.

* Drift-fishing – It is a simple method wherein you cast upstream or downstream. This may vary depending on the current's amount. You should count the appropriate depth and start reeling.

3) How to fish from a boat – It is important to determine in which location you would perform your fishing. Deeper water needs heavier jigheads compared when fishing on shore.

* With heavy weight which keeps your bait near the bottom of the water and the line straight down from your boat, you are able to drift the boat along with any current.  A good technique of fishing on boats is trolling slowly with a fishing device called bottom-walker.

Fishing is easy as long as you’re enjoying the trip.  Bring some of your family and friends along and make your first time fishing a memorable one.