Introduction: HOW TO FISH
Hello people! In this instructable, i am going to teach you some lessons on Fishing. In these, I will be telling some techniques, When is good time to fish, Setting the hook, Playing the fish, landing the fish and many more.......Hope you like it.......
the instructable is from an external source(( the source ))but before i published this, i took permission from the site administrator to use their content on this site........still, it was not so easy to create the steps, edit the pictures and all that........
thank you
Step 1: FISHING TECHNIQUES
Bait Casting
Bait casting is a style of fishing that relies on the weight of the lure to extend the line into the target area. Bait casting involves a revolving-spool reel (or free spool ) mounted on the topside of the rod. Bait casting is definitely an acquired skill. Once you get the hang of the technique, you will be casting your lures right on target into the structures where fish are feeding and hanging out.
With bait casting, you can use larger lures (1/2 to 3/4) and cast them for longer distances. To get started, youll need a rod with good spring action, a good quality anti-backlash reel, 1015 pound test line and a variety of specific bait casting lures.
Spin Casting
We wont say its foolproof, but spin casting is an ideal fishing method for beginning anglers. Spin-casting equipment is easier to use than bait casting. You can use it to cast both light and heavy lures without tangling or breaking your line. Basic equipment includes a 7-foot rod, a spinning reel and 610 pound test line for casting 1/16 to 3/4 ounce lures. You can use an open-face, closed-face or spin-cast reel for spin casting.
Fly Fishing
With fly fishing, various materials are used to design a very lightweight lure called a fly. Fish think the fly is an insect and they take the bait on, or just above, the surface of the water. It takes a little practice, but fly fishing is a pure and exciting way to fish.
Unlike other casting methods, fly fishing can be thought of as a method of casting line rather than lure. Non-fly fishing methods rely on a lure's weight to pull line from the reel during the forward motion of a cast. By design, a fly is too light to be cast, and thus simply follows the unfurling of a properly cast fly line, which is heavier and casts easier than lines used in other types of fishing. The angler normally holds the fly rod in the dominant hand and manipulates the line with the other close to the reel, pulling line out in small increments as the energy in the line, generated from backward and forward motions, increases.
Still Fishing
Still fishing is a versatile way to go. You can do it from a pier, a bridge, an anchored boat or from shore. You can still fish on the bottom or off the bottom in ponds, lakes, rivers and streams for a variety of species. And you can still fish during most seasons and during any part of the day. Your equipment and the size of the hooks and bait you use depends on what kind of fish you're after. But your best equipment for still fishing is patience. You have to wait for the fish to bite.
Drift Fishing
Drift fishing allows you to fish over a variety of habitats as your boat drifts with the currents or wind movement. You can drift fish on the bottom or change the depth with a bobber or float. Natural baits work best. But jigs, lures and artificial flies will produce good results, too. You can drift fish on ponds, lakes, rivers and streams any time of the day and year.
Live Lining
Your line is live when your boat is anchored in a flowing body of water like a river or stream. Use live or prepared baits and keep them on or just off the bottom. Live lining off the bottom allows your line to drift with the current through holes and rocks where the fish may be holding. Your equipment and the size of your hooks and lures depend on what type of fish youre after.
Chumming
To attract fish or get them biting again, you can throw chum into the water where youre fishing. You can use ground-up bait fish, canned sweet corn, dead minnows in a coffee can (for ice fishing), pet food, even breakfast cereal. Or stir up some natural chum by scraping the bottom with a boat oar. Be sure not to over-chum. You want to get them interested in feeding; you do not want to stuff them before they get a chance to go after your hook. Chumming is not legal in all states. Check local fishing regulations to make sure you are not illegally stimulating the hunger of your future catch.
Ice Fishing
Fishing through a three-foot hole in the ice? Yup. Its a unique way to catch multiple species of northern, fresh-water fish. And thanks to advancements in garment design, portable fish houses and fish locating devices, its becoming more and more popular every day. One- to three-foot rods are most often used and simple reels hold the line. You can also ice fish with tip-ups. When a fish hits your tip-up gear, it releases a lever that raises a flag or rings a bell. This means you should stop playing cards with your buddies and start reeling.
Many fisherman fish with no protective structure other than their winter clothes. Longer fishing expeditions can be mounted with simple structures. Larger, heated structures can make multiday fishing trips possible, but these are often eschewed by seasoned fishers, many of whom do not use these larger shelters. In other words, they think they are wimpy.
For those who are game for a cozier experience, a structure with various local names, but often called an ice shanty, ice shack or just plain shack, fish house, bob house, or ice hut, is sometimes used. These are dragged or trailered onto the lake using a vehicle such as a snowmobile, ATV or truck. The two most commonly used houses are portable and permanent shelters. The portable houses are usually made of a heavy, watertight material. The permanent shelters are made of wood or metal and usually have wheels for easy transportation. They can be as basic as a bunk, heater and holes or as elaborate as having satellite TV, bathrooms, stoves, and full-size beds, and may appear to be more like a mobile home than a fishing house.
Step 2: WHERE TO FIND FISH
Lakes and ponds are great places for fish to live. They produce abundant plant food and offer plenty of cover for fish to hide. Shoreline structures like docks, logs, stumps, brush and rocks provide shelter, shade and protection for fish. Which means they also provide great fishing opportunities for the anxious angler.
You can fish lakes and ponds from the shore or from a boat. You can find fish in shallow or deep water, in open water or near natural or man-made structures. In lakes, you can catch freshwater fish like largemouth and smallmouth bass, pike, pickerel, perch, panfish, trout, even salmon.
Get to know your lake structure. Points, inlets, holes, sunken islands, dams, submerged objects (manmade or natural) and reeds and weeds are all considered structure. You should always fish in and around structure. It's a simple formula.
- Structure creates shallows
- Shallows create plant growth
- Plant growth attracts bait fish
- Bait fish attract game fish, the fish you want to catch
A shear cliff or bank that goes straight down into deep water provides no structure, break line or gradual path to deeper water. So it doesn't attract fish. On the other hand, a cliff or bank that has an underwater shelf or slopes gradually toward deeper water does attract fish. You should also look for crumbled-off rock at the underwater base of sharp cliffs. Deep-water fish may be attracted to these rocks for food or spawning.
Rocks
Rocks are structure. They provide fish with shelter (cover), food and a possible place to mate. Remember, always fish structure. If the rocks are in deeper water or on the edge of deeper water, they provide an even better place to fish. Just don't snag your bait.
Points with Break Lines
A point extends out from the shoreline and slopes gradually down and into deeper water. It's a good place to fish. But a point with a quick drop-off or one that doesn't extend into deeper water isn't a good place to fish.
- The sloping-out formation of a point creates a break line.
- A break line draws fish from deeper water to shallow water in search of food.
- Fish the point of the point and the corners of the point (the part that curves back into the shore).
Have you ever noticed lines on the water during a breezy day? Those breezes are actually pushing surface water around the lake. Which in turn pushes around surface food. Look for the drift lines and you'll find fish.
Stronger winds can actually push bait fish closer to shore, bringing game fish closer to shore to feed.
Even really strong winds can make for good fishing. Stirring up everything from microscopic food to lunker fish, but it's pretty tricky and more than a little dangerous. Leave it to the pros.
Weed Beds
Weed beds are structure. They provide food and shelter for bait fish and bait fish attract game fish. Look for weed beds that lead to deeper water and create a break line. Or look for sunken weed beds in deep, open water.
Step 3: WHEN TO FISH
WHEN TO FISH
Spring/Early Morning
Fish aren't biting. The water is cold and doesn't heat up because the sun is low and the rays bounce off the water. But don't go home yet, because winter is over and fish are hungry and spawning. Best to wait until a week or so after thaw, as spring turnover takes time for the water temperature to even out to 39.2 degrees.
Spring/Late Morning-Early Afternoon
Fish are biting off and on. The water begins to warm up because rays begin to penetrate the water. Remember to fish the downwind shoreline, as the winds will push the warmer surface water along with surface food into that area.
Spring/Afternoon-Early Evening
Fish are eating a lot because their metabolism and digestion are cranked. Water is warm because the sun is directly overhead.
Summer/Early Morning-Late Afternoon
Fishing is excellent from before sunup to just before mid-morning. At this time of year there is abundant food and cover for fish, so finding hungry fish can be a challenge.
Summer/Late Morning-Early Afternoon
Fishing is poor for most of the day. Fish move to deep water to cool off.
Summer/Afternoon-Early Evening
Fishing is excellent from early sundown until dark as the waters cool and fish rise up from the depths.
Fall/Early Morning
Fish aren't biting much from sunup to early morning. The water is cool because the sun is too low to penetrate the water.
Fall/Late Morning-Noon
Fish are biting off and on in warmer, shallow water. The water is generally cool due to the season.
Fall/Afternoon-Early Evening
Fishing is excellent. Sun is directly overhead for several hours and the water gets more comfortable near the surface. This makes for seasonally good fishing because fish are putting on weight for the winter. Look for bait schools where bigger fish are more likely to be.
Step 4: SETTING THE HOOK
When you're ready, set the hook by giving your rod (and consequently the fishing line) a quick jerk backward and up. If you have a fish on line, it will fight back and your line will follow the movements of the fish. It can sometimes be difficult to tell if you have a bite or if you're just feeling the current or a fish bumping into the bait.
It takes a lot of experience to know when to set the hook. It also takes a lot of patience.
Setting the Fly Hook In Running Water
When you're fishing across and downstream, your line will be tight and you will recognize how the current feels against your fly. Set the hook as soon as you feel anything different on the line. But don't go crazy. Just a quick wrist movement should do it., moving both the line and the rod back and up. Straight, quick casting makes this technique work.
Setting the Fly Hook in Still Water
Cast your line, pull in a bit of line with your left hand. Hold the line. It's called twitch retrieving. But don't twitch your rod tip. Continue drawing and holding line until you feel the line tighten. Then keep drawing in line until the rod starts to bend on its own. Then hold tight on the line and raise your rod tip.
Setting the Fly Hook in Salt Water
Similar to still water hook setting but everything is bigger. Draw more line with each twitch and tip the rod hard, with both hands. You're using bigger hooks that don't penetrate as easily. And you're trying to hook a bigger fish.
Setting the Fly Hook in Flats
Fish living in saltwater flats don't act like other saltwater fish. You can't really feel them hit the fly. If you can see the fish, wait until it looks like it's changing direction to run away with his catch. Wait a second or two and then pull in about a foot of line. If you feel the fish, set the hook. And several times if need be.
Step 5: PLAYING THE FISH
When a fish feels the hook, it struggles to get free. This might involve jumping, making a long run, swimming back against the line or swimming around obstacles. Each species of fish fights differently.
Fish hooked in shallow water are more likely to jump and behave more frantically than those hooked in deep water. Deep-water fish often seek the bottom.
It's possible to land many small fish just by reeling them in. They'll fight, but they aren't as strong as the line and the rod. Use lighter tackle and you can get some fight out of the smallest fish in the lake.
If you're catch and release fishing, don't fight too long or the fish will die from exhaustion before or after you release it.
Fighting Bigger Fish
If a fish makes a run for it, don't panic. And don't try to reel in while the fish is swimming away from your line. Relax and let the drag and rod do the work. After you've set the hook, set your drag. If you're using 12-pound test, you should use about 4 pounds of drag. Just keep the rod at about a 45-degree angle to the water aim it straight at the fish.
When the fish slows down and stops taking more line, it's time to go to work. The best technique for the catch is to gently pull the rod up and then reel down as you lower it, using a pumping motion. Do it in small, smooth strokes rather than large abrupt sweeps because it will help keep both the line tight and the fish much calmer.
If the fish runs again, let it go and you will probably notice that this run is shorter and slower. But don't let the fish rest. If you can't hear your drag working, you should be reeling.
Don't be anxious. Even if you get the fish close to the boat, that doesn't mean it's done fighting. If it turns and runs, let it go. Your line is pretty short at this point, and pump-and-reel action could break it.
Step 6: LANDING THE FISH
Landing
As your fish gets closer to the boat, drop your entire rod and reel to your waist. If the fish goes under the boat, get your rod tip in the water and follow it. If you can see the fish, you'll know when it's tired. It'll roll over on his side. And if you can't see the fish, you'll be able to feel it.
Mouth Pick-Up
Carefully avoiding hooks, many bass anglers use the thumb and index finger to grip a bass by its lower jaw. This holds the jaw wide open and temporarily paralyzes the fish. You can also land pan fish by pulling the fish towards you with the rod. Then grab the fish by the mouth or around the belly to remove the hook.
Gaff Landing
Don't gaff a fish unless you're planning to take it home. In most cases, you should try to land your catch with a net. If you gaff a red snapper or a grouper that's too small to take home, you'll be releasing a fish with a gaping hole in its side that's not likely to survive.
Today's nets are made to withstand a lot of weight when handled properly.
Netting
Always try to land a bigger fish with a net. Place the net in the water and lead the fish into the net head first. Don't stab the net at the fish. If you don't get it the first time, re-aim and try again. Keep the fish in the water if you plan on releasing it. If you plan on eating the fish, get it out of the water as quickly as possible and take the hook out away from the water.
To handle a fish with sharp teeth like a walleye or northern pike, carefully hold it around the body. Other fish like chinook or Atlantic salmon have a strong tail and you can grasp them in front of the tail fin.
Eye Pick-Up
Never hold a fish by the eyes or gills if you plan to free it.
