The First Time Fisherman

The Change of Seasons -- Best Time to Fish!

2010-09-24T00:07:00.000-07:00

One of the best fishing seasons is the "change" of seasons. In Maine, the big change is "ice-out," when spring first arrives, the ice melts, the fish feed ravenously and the fishing is especially good. Here at Bob Hall pier in Texas, the water temperature has been close to 89 degrees for months, and it was an especially hot end of summer.
But for the last five days of summer, a long tropical rain spell kept the skies cloudy and the temperatures down. The water temperature dropped ten degrees -- and the fish, especially prized redfish or red drum, started feeding. Fishermen all over the area reported sudden limit catches as the start of fall arrived.
Even though the heavy rains that had caused major floods in nearby Corpus Christi threatened yet again on September 21, I wanted to see if the fish had been properly energized by the temperature drop. The water was rough and murky so lures would be hard for fish to see. I brought a fresh skipjack (ladyfish) to cut up for bait, the people next to me had live shrimp and the people next to them used cut dead mullet.
Didn't matter -- all of us caught redfish. I landed two reds around 5 pounds each in about an hour. As I was leaving I got a picture of the people next to me landing a 28 inch red, about 8 pounds. I came back the next night for a few minutes (again, just a few folks there) and caught a 20-inch redfish after a half hour or so. (There were some "nuisance" hardhead catfish biting, and the larger and tasty gafftop catfish as well.) Notice the "circle" or "drop" net -- it's your only hope for landing a big fish on a pier. You drop the net into the water and do your best to get your fish to swim into it, then pull it up.
You see that redfish really aren't very red -- until they're out of the water a few minutes. The first one I caught was bright red by the time the second one joined it in the cooler. Also, I was fishing in the early nighttime only because that's when I could make it out, but daytime should be good, too.
When seasons change, fishing can improve overnight, you can plan on that. And it's always nice when a plan comes together.

One More Cast -- Hey, It Worked!

2009-11-18T19:43:00.000-08:00

"Just one more cast." One of the most familiar phrases in fishing, often associated with times of slow fishing. Sometimes you just need to admit that it's not a great day for fishing, cut the losses and instead of spending a whole day with no fish, you only spent an hour or so. But "one more cast" is sometimes responsible for turning a slow day into a great day.
Today I was at the gulf coast near Corpus Christi, on a day that should have been ideal for pompano. Light winds allowed to the water to turn flat and clear. Sight-feeding pompano move in close to shore when this happens, and are often caught with shrimp. I use the popular peeled shrimp with the "fishbites" artificial shrimp on a size 3/0 circle hook. From 9 am to noon, the fish were absent. Nobody was catching any. I was saying, "One more cast before I call it quits," when I felt some bites, then a powerful foot-long pompano on my line. A few minutes later, another one, and then a black drum so big it barely fit in the ice chest (it was 2 feet long, seven pounds).
"One more cast" saved the day. And what a great dinner.

I have the whole pier to myself! Hmmm, I'm getting a sore throat...

2009-11-01T06:34:00.000-08:00

A sunny October afternoon — Halloween — the temperature in the 70's, but almost no one at Bob Hall pier in Corpus Christi. Red tide arrived here two weeks ago, turning the water a brownish red, filling the air with a toxin that stings the eyes and throat, and killing fish by the thousands. Normally October is considered by many the greatest time of all to go fishing, but when the red tide hits, it's a disaster. From the ocean beach at Corpus Christi south to Mexico, the beach is lined with dead fish, mostly mullet. They're not game fish, but they're a big part of the diet of game fish. Other fish of many species are killed in smaller numbers. This was the first major red tide event here in three years.

The red tide is an algae bloom, and relief only comes with cool weather. Two weeks after its arrival, it looks like it's finally moving out. You could hardly see or smell it, and the water was fine for swimming and surfing.

The question is, what's left of the fish? A few people were fishing in the afternoon, and none had any fish. A fellow fishing on the end of the pier said he had caught two "bull reds" (red drum over 30 inches long) and one shark earlier in the day.

I went a mile away to the Packery Channel jetty, where water from the bays enters the ocean. At the moment it was flood tide, so water was going in from the ocean, but all was clear. I saw one person who had just caught a mangrove snapper. I decided to try for a few minutes, and in just a few casts with a "gulp" lure, I caught a foot-long redfish (red drum), a ladyfish and two grunts ("piggy perch"). That's all I needed to see. I believe the fishing will pick right up.

So if you hear Red Tide is hitting the beach you're going to, find somewhere else to go, but when it's gone — no problem.

The only ones who LOVE red tide are the sea birds. They're so fat now they probably can't fly.

Red tide updates in Texas:

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/landwater/water/environconcerns/hab/redtide/status.phtml

The ONLY bait that works!

2009-06-20T18:48:00.000-07:00

Friday I had a chance to fish -- but the wind returned and the Corpus Christi surf was as brown as it gets. I noticed seagulls feeding very actively in the Packery Channel, so I thought I had one good chance at catching fish -- use minnows. When the seagulls are feeding, that usually means small baitfish in the water being chased by big fish.

I had been hearing from many people about one fish that has always eluded me -- snook. As I got out of my car, a fellow stopped to tell me he had caught a dozen snook right there the day before, in the brown surf. He said he had one lure -- bright green "speck rigs," little lures that simulate small fish or shrimp. He said no other color worked. I asked about live shrimp or live minnows. His answer: he NEVER saw a snook caught on shrimp or minnows.

Well, I still went to get a few minnows. Just a few, because it was blazingly hot and I didn't expect a large number of minnows to live long under that sun in my bucket.

When I got back, Mr. Greenlure was gone. But, surprise, I saw a tourist from out of state who said he was catching one snook after another. His bait -- live shrimp! He caught a snook while I watched, close to the jetty rocks in the rough brown water, using a float to keep the bait from the rocks.

I took my five minnows in the bucket out to the end, put a float on and hooked on a small croaker to the size 1/0 "circle" hook. (The circle hook is a miracle invention, nearly circular, and as long as it's sharp, it will hook fish better than regular hooks. More in another entry.) In ten seconds I had a great big trout, biggest in a year -- 24 inches and very very fat. It weighed 4-1/2 pounds.

Unfortunately, the fight cost me my float, and I was just a little too lazy to walk all the way back to the car for another one. I fished with no float, just the bait and the hook. I lost three minnows, then with my last minnow, history. My first snook. It was hard to get a photo since it came free from the hook and wiggled so much. I had to throw it back because snook are protected, but first I got its picture, secure in my hands.

(In Texas you can keep one snook per day, but only if you're lucky enough that it's more than 24 inches and less than 28. This was maybe 16 inches.)

So remember, snook will only bite on green speckrigs. Make that live shrimp. I mean, minnows.

I'm Going Fishing for 15 Minutes

2009-05-11T21:30:00.000-07:00

Here's a variation on the famous saying, "A bad day fishing is better than a good day at work:"
"A few minutes fishing is better than none."
Sunday evening I decided I was going fishing. Nothing wrong with that except, the sun was low and it was already 7:30 pm -- and the nearest place had no lights. Wherever you live, maybe you've had the same opportunity to fish late in the day, or for whatever reason you know you'll only have a few minutes. I decided, what the heck, and got to the jetty at Packery Channel on the Texas Coast with the sun already setting. When I got there, people at the very end were catching one of the prized gamefish, redfish. Some were using shrimp, some live minnows, some using cut fish. All were getting fish on their lines, and the skilled ones were able to land them through the rocks. I rushed to get my line in the water, quickly caught one hardhead catfish, cast again, and caught a highly "debatable" redfish. The question was whether it was the minimum size -- 20 inches. I pulled out my trusty tape measure -- make that, my rusty tape measure, and it broke. The section you see is 4 to 5 inches long. You be the judge. Anyway, the fish went back. But I did take pictures of some very nice fish in the few minutes I was there. Worth it!

Windy, rocky and slippery!

2009-05-02T04:22:00.000-07:00

Jetties are very good places to find fish. The rocks attract minnows and other creatures the big fish can feed on.
I didn't say jetties are good places TO fish. They're probably the worst possible place to fish -- the rocks catch your hooks, the fish swim into the rocks and break the line after they're hooked, and many jetties, including this one at Packery Channel on the Texas coast, are often very slippery. Today, May 1, it was windy for the 8th straight day. Waves were crashing over the top, and very slippery moss made for very unsure footing.
I fished anyway, with some frozen "finger mullet," small fish, cut in half and placed on a hook -- and cast just as far as possible from the rocks. I caught fish, but these are not the kind you want to eat. One jack crevalle was really fun to catch. It weighed only nine pounds (small as these go) but "jackfish" fight so hard, you'll feel lucky if you can land it. They're not good to eat, and neither are the common saltwater catfish often called "hardhead" (although some, including the Texas Parks and Wildlife website, claim they're pretty good).
Persistence did pay off for a lone pair of fishermen using cut mullet like me, and also live finger mullet. They got two fine redfish (red drum) while I was there. You'll notice they stayed close to the railing even when they had fish, and yes, some fish got away because they were careful not to get into the slippery rocks just to land a fish.

Wintertime Pier Fishing in Texas

2009-01-31T21:48:00.000-08:00

It was a Saturday afternoon in the middle of winter, and here on January 31 at Padre Island, Texas, Bob Hall Pier was once again busy. Even though it's about 100 miles away from the devastation of Hurricane Ike, the pier still suffered enough damage from the storm that it was closed from September 2008 until mid January.
The fishing can be very good here in winter, but not always, and today was "not always," although there were steady occasional whiting, and the little "piggy perch."
But with sunny skies and a temperature of 70 degrees, nobody was complaining.

The Most Famous Saying: You Should Have Been Here Yesterday

2008-11-19T20:01:00.000-08:00

One of the most famous sayings in the sport of fishing is, "You should have been here yesterday!" This was what I heard today, November 19 at Padre Island National Seashore.
I drove to the North Beach, the one maintained for two-wheel drive cars. The reports from the day before were phenomenal: pompano are running. Some people were catching them by the dozens.
The pompano doesn't get much publicity because it's just not seen that often, but it's famous for one very good reason: it's a great delicacy. And it's a fun fish to catch, a hard fighter.
People I saw when I arrived told me they caught 18 yesterday, and it was so much fun they came back today. But after two hours they only had one fish.
I put on the bait that was so successful according to reports: shrimp with the artificial shrimp strips called Fishbites (hook size 1/0).
The bait just sat out in the surf. I reeled it in and cast it back out. No fish for the better part of an hour.
The day did turn out okay: I moved up the beach and found some other people who were catching fish. I caught two pompano, 13 inches and 14 inches long. And yes, they do taste sooooo good.
I just wish I was there yesterday.

After Ike on Padre Island

2008-10-13T19:57:00.001-07:00

More than 100 miles from Galveston, one of the great fishing piers of the Texas coast, Bob Hall, was closed by Ike's high waters that carried dozens of its 1200-pound concrete slabs hundreds of yards down the beach, and ripped out some of pier railings. But we're told the pier will soon reopen.
It's clear the pelicans had no problem surviving the storm. They jammed the waters at the nearby Packery Channel jetties two weeks after Ike, many diving on schools of fish.
The jetties handle the fans of October fishing here who otherwise might have been seated somewhere along the 1240 feet of the pier. The early fall fishing has been excellent for speckled trout and, shown at Packery Channel in late September: redfish (the photo shows a limit, two people had three each), spanish mackerel, a warsaw grouper and, a little unusual this year, very abundant mangrove snapper.

Fishing in Texas Two Days Before Hurricane Ike

2008-09-10T19:05:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Ike is due here in less than two days. Today, Wednesday September 10, I went to the surf in Corpus Christi, Texas.
What a tremendous fishing day, for the few of us who went.
At daybreak I went to Packery Channel, the jetty-protected opening between the Gulf of Mexico and the upper Laguna Madre. I have never seen so many skipjacks (ladyfish) as I did at dawn. These tailwalking relatives of tarpon were so numerous I simply couldn't get my lures past them for the first hour of the day. When I went to the end of the jetty, the skipjacks I caught were much bigger. One that was at least two-feet long broke my line. Two are pictured.
However — the fishing was tremendous for those four people on the jetty, including me. I used a live mullet to catch a 27-inch redfish. The person next to me had the odd fortune of catching a redfish just a fraction over 28 inches. In Texas, you can keep three redfish a day between 20 and 28 inches, but if you keep a redfish OVER 28 inches, you have to take a tag off your saltwater license and attach it to the fish. You get just one tag with your license.
Another fish pictured is the snook, even more regulated in Texas. Only one allowed per day, and only if it's between 24 and 28 inches. This one went back. Other fish caught at Packery channel in the short time I was there: mangrove snapper, blacktip shark and flounder.
At 11 am I went to nearby Bob Hall Pier. The water was clear, the fish were biting better than I have seen all year. And there were only five people fishing, all together in the shallow water. In three hours they had caught a huge stringer of trout and spanish mackerel using live mullet, and like me earlier, they were constantly battling the super-aggressive skipjacks, so numerous they were a nuisance. Sad to say, the county parks department had to close the pier at noon to prepare for Ike.
We can just hope it'll still be there after this weekend.

An Almost All-purpose Saltwater Rig

2008-09-10T18:56:00.000-07:00

There are as many different rigs to attach to your line as there are fish in the sea. Here's the one I use the most, and it's very common in fresh and saltwater.
There are three parts: the weight, the swivel, and the hook. The hook is at the end of what's called a "leader." It's stronger line than you have on your reel. Here, the line from the reel is 20-pound line, and the blue leader is 25-pound line.
The round weight just slides up and down the line and it's known as a barrel sinker, or an egg sinker. With this set-up, the brass swivel prevents the weight from sliding down to the hook, and when the fish bites, it can't feel the weight, as it would if it was the type of sinker that's tied on to the line.
Especially in saltwater, you may want to substitute a steel leader for the blue fishing line leader, because so many saltwater fish have sharp teeth that cut even heavy line.
You'll see many, many kinds of rigs, some with two hooks. Use whatever you like, or — whatever you see that's working where you are.

Saltwater Safety: My Big Three

2008-08-08T12:33:00.000-07:00

Here are the three things that I see newcomers at the beach so often don't know about: teeth, catfish fins and jellyfish.
Everyone is probably aware of the power of sharks. Their jaws can crush a metal tackle box. But you do need to keep the fingers away from the teeth of many other saltwater fish. Bluefish have razors in their jaws, and mackerel (top photo) can suddenly lunge after they are landed, with their sharp rows of teeth.
Little sharks have very strong jaws and have to be handled with care, and even the benign speckled trout have teeth that will scratch up your fingers, possibly without you knowing until later on. They have one great big tooth you need to watch for. Just after this photo was taken, the trout clamped down hard on my thumb. Fortunately the glove was just thick enough!
I believe the biggest unknown danger on the saltwater fishing pier is the "hardhead" catfish. Its teeth are not much of a problem, but it has three fins that are sharp spikes. The BIG mistake is to put your shoe on top of a catfish to hold it down. I have seen the terrible result: that top fin is so strong and sharp that it goes right through shoes. To avoid having to handle these fish, ALWAYS have pliers handy.
Of course, stingrays can deliver a similar spike-like stinger with their tails, and most people are aware of that danger. Wearing shoes in the water is always a good idea.
Jellyfish: don't touch 'em. Whether they're in the water or washed up on the beach, some types have tentacles that will sting just like a hot matchhead if you touch them. Portuguese Man-O-Wars, by far the most lethal (they can actually kill people but that's very rare) are well known, but fortunately they have the bright rainbow-colored air sac that floats above to mark their presence. With most jellyfish stings, it's usually a matter of time, enduring a pain that can be severe. The treatment is meat tenderizer from the grocery store, but it's not always effective, and if you get stung, it's probably 30 to 60 minutes of waiting for the pain to go away. Afterward there may be little red spots where the tentacles made contact.
I almost always wear pants or waders in saltwater. They protect very well.

There was a Tropical Storm?

2008-08-05T19:14:00.000-07:00

They said there was a tropical storm named Edouard hitting the Texas coast this morning. At Padre Island National Seashore the surf was calm in the sunshine, but the water is still cloudy, less than two weeks after Hurricane Dolly. The beaches are back in shape after some spot repairs.
But on the other side of the island, the water in the Laguna Madre was clear at the Bird Island Boat Basin, and at the windsurfing park the trout were biting in three feet of water where I went wade fishing at sunrise. I used the white shrimp "Gulp" lure.
There are many who believe fish bite more when the barometer is falling. Today the barometer was in free fall, and the fish were biting.
At one of the piers ("Marker 37") along the Kennedy Causeway that leads to the island from Corpus Christi, the fish are supposed to bite mostly at night.
But at mid-day the trout were hitting on every cast. There was one slight problem — the speckled trout in Texas have to be 15 inches, and these were SO close. I measured one at 14 and 7/8 inch.
Also hitting were skipjacks, also called ladyfish. Related to tarpon, these are not fish to eat but are really fun tailwalkers and summersaulters. They usually get away by shaking the hook in mid-air.
I checked at the marina fish cleaning station, where they ask that all fish remains go into plastic tubs and not into the water. Also, people are requested not to feed the pelicans, one reason being pelicans cannot swallow fish that have been cut up.
There was proof that elsewhere, plenty of big — and VERY big — trout and redfish were biting today.

Fishing After Hurricane Dolly

2008-08-01T20:06:00.000-07:00

An outing this morning shows me that apparently there are no worries in the aftermath of Dolly, at least at the northern tip of Padre Island after the hurricane stirred everything up a week ago.
At the Packery Channel jetty (the divider of Padre and Mustang Islands), no visible damage —but yes, if you look closely, that is a tree — not fishing rods — impaled into the rocks at the end of the jetty. The water in the surf never has cleared up as of Friday, but will anytime.

In the Laguna Madre the water is clear and the fish are there and biting.
These trout were caught on mid-day lures close to the Kennedy Causeway when I went wade fishing in three feet of water. I cast to the trout in slightly deeper water, maybe four or five feet deep. Most of the Laguna is 3 to 5 feet deep.

I use gloves whenever I reach into the mouths of speckled trout — good to have in your back pocket. (Wade fishing is fun but it takes practice. Use steel-toed boots and cover your legs in salt water to avoid jellyfish. Hip or chest waders are a very strong recommendation. And wade in sand — not mud!)
Also a hardy lizardfish hit the same lure, a "Gulp" on a lead-headed jig. Yes, lizardfish, and it does look like a lizard! (It went back into the water.)

Can You Fish in a Hurricane?

2008-07-25T13:27:00.000-07:00

Can you fish in a hurricane? There's some lore about hurricanes stirring up the surf and putting fish in a feeding frenzy.
A visit to the Padre Island surf at Corpus Christi gave me the complete answer: No.
No, you can't fish in a hurricane. You can't cast your line into 50-mile an hour wind, you can't stand on the beach, if you could cast into the surf the water would whip your line in every direction. People did come to experience the power of a hurricane in between blinding rain squalls (and try to fly in the wind), although most beach roads, and certainly the pier, were closed.
At Packery Channel the jetties were barely visible from the highway, and the boat launch docks were nearly submerged.
In the Laguna Madre, the water was high at the piers lining the Kennedy Causeway (photo shows Clem's close to water level), and the wind made it scary to stand there since it was hard to avoid losing your balance.
I did notice these three hardy souls fishing at the closest-to-land-pier, the famous Red Dot, where they sloshed their way to the very end. And no — I asked and they had not caught any fish at all.
Maybe AFTER a hurricane, fishing will be good.

Night of the Whiting

2008-06-24T21:49:00.000-07:00

The whiting is not a rare fish in the Gulf and Atlantic, but it's also one you don't often see in huge numbers. After sunset June 23, the whiting were present in huge numbers at Bob Hall Pier in the Gulf of Mexico in Corpus Christi, Texas.

The bait needed to be on the bottom, and the wait was often only a matter of seconds before these powerful fish struck, especially for the people using shrimp for bait. I was using a plastic imitation shrimp with a strong scent called "Gulp," in white. It worked very well, and since this tough plastic didn't come off when the fish nibbled, it was much easier to use.

I lost count of the fish that I caught (in the mid-Atlantic many people call them "kingfish.") Most were about one pound, and a two-pounder was a big fish. I didn't keep any, but they are good to eat, and many people lucky enough to be at Bob Hall this night took home enough whiting for a great meal.

By the way, these fish are known for being in very shallow water. This night they were all in two to three feet of water, very close to the shore. So yes — for people who know how to cast their lines a good distance, or for people who like to wade into the surf and fish (they do bite well in daytime), there's no need for a pier!

The Fishing Pier in the Summer

2008-06-21T20:59:00.000-07:00

There is nothing like the pier in the summer time, and seeing the beach, the boats, the surf, the birds and the fish.

If you have never tried salt water fishing, the sheer variety of fish you see always makes it fun. Above are photos from a visit on the first day of summer at the Horace Caldwell pier in Port Aransas, Texas. It's a standard fishing pier just like you'll find on any stretch of the U.S. coast, a couple hundred yards long with a T-shaped ending.

The first four fish pictured are prized speckled trout that were biting on live shrimp and on lures shaped like shrimp or minnows. But there were many other kinds caught, and pictured are a blue runner, a sand shark and a four-foot scalloped hammerhead shark.

The pier fishing experience is one of the nicest under the right conditions. On this day you'll notice the pier has the unusual luxury of plenty of open room with extra space for casting. Beginners might want to avoid fishing on crowded piers. Also, this pier, which has been here for decades, recently banned alcohol. That's had a good effect for the family experience. The crowds did arrive when the sun got lower on this weekend, and there were many friendly people having good times.

Fishing on a pier is very different from fishing in a freshwater lake, with very different equipment. That four pound line that's so effective at a lake just won't work on a saltwater pier. Here a three or four pound fish — possibly with sharp teeth — is likely to bite (and a three HUNDRED pound fish is not out of the question!). With a light freshwater outfit you probably wouldn't be able to pull a fish up through the air before the line broke, and in fact, you wouldn't even be likely to see the fish before feeling the snap of the line.

The stores that cater to tourists here offered acceptable saltwater fishing rod-and-reel combos at reasonable prices — $25 to $35. Some have large pushbutton reels with 14-to-20 pound line, and very heavy rods. If push button reels are the only type you can use, these will work fine, and you should be able to land up to a five - or possibly even a 10-pound fish. (You'll need help getting large fish up onto the pier. Friendly people will be glad to help, and you'll need to accept their hospitality. If you're really lucky, someone will have a "drop-net," a circular net that is dropped down to the water to bring the fish up.)

There's a lot you should know before trying saltwater fishing, including: which fish can hurt you (including jellyfish), which bait to use, how to put the bait on the hook, how to attach big hooks, big lead weights and steel "leaders" to your line — all subjects coming up here.

2008-06-14T17:32:00.000-07:00

Do Fish Bite at Night?

2008-06-14T12:33:00.000-07:00

Some of the best fishing happens at night. Lights on dark water attract small fish, and small fish attract big fish. Often the fish — and the fishing — gets concentrated in the tiny areas where bright lights shine beams into the water.
On June 14 I went to this pier in saltwater along the Kennedy Causeway in Corpus Christi, Texas, where the highway leads from the mainland to the famous Padre Island. The tactic here works exactly the same everywhere, on bays, rivers and lakes from coast to coast: the light shines into the water for an hour or so, the small fish gather, then the bigger fish move in.
Here my nephew and I paid just $2 each to fish on one of several lighted piers along the causeway. We used only small plastic imitation minnows with lead heads, cast through the bright beams in the water. There were bites on every cast, and we caught nine speckled trout (they call these fish "spotted weakfish" in the Northeast) in one hour, along with other non-game fish collectively known in this area as "perch" (none are really in the perch family but it's a word that's often used to refer to the various types of fish that are generally too small to keep). As you see, we sometimes caught two fish at a time when using two lures, and there were scary-looking ribbonfish, with their protruding large barracuda-like teeth.
In Texas you can keep 10 speckled trout per day, but they have to be between 15 and 25 inches long, and none of these were quite that big, so — no keepers, but a good time. (Here, if you catch any trout over 25 inches, you can only keep one per day. If that sounds strict, here are some other limits: any tarpon has to be 7 feet long to be kept, you can only keep one shark per day, and any blue marlin under 11 feet long is too small!)

Where Does this Path Go?

2008-05-09T12:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes a short adventurous hike can lead to a find.

Along the Potomac River in Williamsport, Maryland on May 8, I followed the advice of a local trout fisherman I had seen earlier in the day: go to Williamsport, find the C&O Canal, cross the aqueduct and follow the path to the river. Locals know the best spots, it's all a matter of luck as to whether they're really giving the scoop.

The spot was the mouth of Conococheague Creek. First cast, smallmouth bass, first of about 12 smallmouths. I also caught (l to r) bluegill sunfish, largemouth bass, pumpkinseed sunfish and a sucker, all on the same green soft plastic "grub." None were large, but it was fun. (Note the maple tree seeds, sometimes called helicopters. There were so many they did get in the way. A small lure got caught on the seeds less than a big lure.)

Hidden Trout Fishing: Devil's Backbone, Maryland

2008-05-09T10:59:00.000-07:00

Here is one perfect place for a first try at a trout: Devil's Backbone Park, in Washington County, Maryland. It's a classic park next to the side of the road with trees, numerous picnic tables -- and a stocked trout stream open to the public. It's about two hundred yards of rushing trout water from the dam to the other end of the park where there's a scenic stone bridge (and below the bridge, as you see above, much more trout fishing with parking along Maryland Route 68 at various spots). This is Antietam Creek (yes, just a few miles upstream from the famous battlefield), and Beaver Creek is another very accessible trout stream in the neighborhood.

This is out of the way, as are many fishing places. Lappans Road doesn't really go from anywhere big to anywhere — so not many outsiders know about this park. Still, on a Thursday afternoon in May a half dozen people were fishing for trout here, so the weekends could get busy.

Don't be put off by the appearance of people fishing at lakes and rivers. Like most people getting out to go fishing, they wore jeans and t-shirts. The people here were all more than friendly, asking if I caught anything and sharing their trout fishing methods. The person who caught the rainbow above said he used a Berkley Powerbait, corn flavor. As always, these trout can be caught on a size six hook baited with a single kernel of canned corn.

The park is about five miles south of Hagerstown, Maryland on Lappans Road (Md. State Highway 68) between the two very small towns of Lappans and Millpoint.

Hidden Public Parks: Lake Chesdin Dam

2008-05-09T10:38:00.000-07:00

If you look around, sometimes you'll be surprised at the places you find, nice and open to the public. This is along Highway 36 (River Road) south of Richmond on the Chesterfield County line.

Does the sign mention a park? No, not at all. And driving past manicured drinking water ponds surrounded by barbed wire fences, you definitely get the feeling, "I don't think I'm supposed to be in here!" No hint of the park at the very end of the road. The first Sunday of May, 2008, sunny and warm — and there were three cars in the parking lot, including mine. I fished for a while and caught three sunfish.

Burke Lake, Va: Fishing has started

2008-05-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

It's May, and after a colder than average spring, the fish are finally out and about at Burke Lake (and probably all the other lakes in the mid-Atlantic). Today I caught these sunfish around 9 am on soft plastic lures on little lead-head jigs (1/16 of an ounce).
When I got to the pier, I noticed all the people were out in the deeper water, but I saw fish in the shallow water, two or three feet deep. It's clear enough to see to the bottom there. I caught one and got lots of bites just bouncing my lure straight down below the rod.
None of these other people caught any fish at all. I took a look, and they were using worms below a float, which is very good. But they were in 10 to 15 feet of water, with their bait only one foot below the surface, which is bad.
I suggested to one daddy on the pier to take his sad little boy to the shallow water. It worked. They were getting bites when I left, and if nothing else they had the excitement of watching fish come up and grab their bait. (They also could have probably caught fish in the deeper water if they dropped their bait down ten feet or so, but that's a lesson for another day.)
By the way, the fish that were so visible at 9 am in the clear shallow water were mostly gone by ten am, presumably to deeper water to escape the bright sunlight, so this is one place where it might be true that getting up a little earlier can make a difference.

In Case You Were Wondering...

2008-04-25T21:35:00.000-07:00

The new National Harbor at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in Washington, DC has three big piers (I count the marina above as one) in a prime fishing area along the Potomac River. But, surprise — the signs say "fishing is strictly prohibited."

Occoquan Shad and Thoughts About Closing a River

2008-04-07T06:44:00.000-07:00

After fishing at Chain Bridge where no one was having any luck, I went to the Occoquan River late in the day April 6. The shad are arriving here, and I caught two shad and lost two, and took a picture of the one-pound hickory shad that hit on a little dark soft plastic minnow on a lead head ("Rattlesnake" brand).

Once a wide open fishing river, the Occoquan has almost no bank access anymore. Especially annoying is the sign at the tiny spot still open to the public just below the Occoquan Reservoir dam. The sign is aimed at the some of the lowest people on earth, fishermen who leave garbage on rivers and lakes. The sign says, "You must dispose of your trash in the trash cans provided. Otherwise the town will be forced to enact a no fishing law."

WHAT?

Let's see — I saw some trash by the roads, so let's just close the roads. I saw trash at the baseball fields — let's outlaw baseball.

I hope this sign is meant only as a scare tactic, and I think it's working. There's very little trash when I visit, and certainly any cleanup crew, or cleanup person, could take care of it in 15 minutes, once a week. But the very idea of being "forced to enact a no-fishing law," again, is annoying.

Some small number of people who fish are litter bugs. Most are not. Town of Occoquan, you have trash to pick up everywhere, including the river. "Oh, life is so unfair, these people come from far away and litter our tiny public spot on the water." Let's have equal protection. Only if Occoquan can guarantee that none of its citizens will litter anywhere they go — where another town has to clean up after them — should they be free to close the historic Occoquan to fishing.

[I would think one source of cleanup funds would be from the taxes from those new enormous condos that block the last open view of the river in the historic section of town.]

I'll note that Occoquan Regional Park does offer very extensive bank access to a wide and scenic stretch of the river. It's downstream from the rocky narrow fishing haven near the historic riverfront. The park gate is along Hwy 123 uphill from the river near Lorton.

Accotink Trout — Just Stocked!

2008-04-05T16:34:00.001-07:00

The trout truck arrived Friday and the fish and fishermen were there Saturday. Fisherman Bill Boatman picked up five rainbows on Saturday using a Berkley Trout Worm. It's a little white scented plastic worm that's just a little bigger than a piece of overcooked spaghetti.
Fishing is $10 for adults, who also must have a regular Va. freshwater license, no trout license required here as it is at some other urban fishing sites. This is probably the last stocking as this year's program ends April 20.

Rules: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/trout2008.htm

Shad returning at Occoquan River

2008-04-04T14:49:00.001-07:00

Shad are starting to show up in the mid-Atlantic, including the Potomac River and its tributaries. One of the many traditional spots to catch shad in April is the Occoquan River just below the dam at the town of Occoquan. The shad in the photo was caught in the morning of Friday, April 4. The action wasn't fast. No more were caught by any of the five people fishing here for another 15 minutes. Within just a few more days the shad will probably be much more numerous here and in the other creeks with open access to the tidal rivers (the ones with no dams blocking the migration) --and the fishermen will be more numerous, too.
The two game species, American or white shad and hickory shad, were once so numerous there were no limits, but those days are long gone. In Maryland the season is colsed and possession is illegal. Virginia has a hodgepodge of rules, as do many states, so it's best to just release your catch after enjoying the fight unless you're sure you're in a place where you can keep them.
Va rules: http://www.dgif.state.va.us/fishing/regulations/creelandlengthlimits.pdf

Burke Lake, VA in March

2008-03-30T09:27:00.000-07:00

Burke Lake in Fairfax County is always nice to visit on a sunny day, even in March when the temperature is 49 degrees and there's a breeze, as it was on March 29, 2008. However, leave the fishing to the experts in their boats. The water is still too chilly for much action from the shore, or the pier, where these fellows had no fish. But the park facilities open in one more week, the first Saturday in April. If it's warm it might be a good day to rent a boat — and try to catch a fish or two.

Accotink Trout in April

2008-03-30T08:35:00.000-07:00

Accotink Creek at Lake Accotink, near Springfield, VA is another place to fish for winter trout. The Fairfax County program differs from the state urban trout programs. Here you have to have a state fishing license and a one-day pass from the lake marina and it costs $10, $9 for kids over 10. For that money, you would expect to have some very dependable fishing. All reports indicate it's not especially dependable fishing. It's nice to visit, but the best fishing is the day the fish are put in the creek and, especially at the dam, the day after, when many fish have adjusted to the new waters and are ready to strike. The stockings are every two weeks on Fridays. The next is set April 4, 2008, and it's possible this will be the season finale. This is a 20-year tradition here, and there's a crowd waiting every time, and they actually help with a bucket brigade, releasing the buckets of trout. Unlike other urban fishing lakes, here the fish seem to be mostly caught within three days of stocking, although you do have a chance of catching a trout on any day. One possibility you rarely find anywhere: fishing with corn, you could catch either trout or carp.
The lake itself has the standard species (no trout), but has silted so much since the dam was built in 1943, it appears most of it is about two feet deep or less. A three year dredging program is in its final year with a goal of removing 161,000 cubic yards of silt, but much of the lake still looks very shallow. It's still a good lake for small bluegills and sunfish, with occasional bass and catfish, and plentiful carp.

Still Chilly -- Perch Weather

2008-03-23T18:52:00.000-07:00

Still chilly most places in late March, and the fish haven't started biting much. You could go fishing for perch this early, the spawning runs are on -- yellow perch first, then white perch a little later. The most famous place for March yellow perch in the mid-Atlantic is called Allens Fresh, along highway 234 in St.Mary's/Charles Counties in Maryland. Many people fish from the side of the road (check your safety rules). March 22: a fellow with two small boys had two yellow perch in ten minutes fishing with worms and floats at this bridge. White perch will be there by early April, and also at many places on the Potomac. Fletcher's Boat House at Washington's Key Bridge is one of the most famous places for white perch and shad.

It's like they stocked it yesterday!

2008-02-21T11:57:00.000-08:00

Yes, that's snow on the ground and a mid-day temperature of 28, but the ice was gone and there were seven people fishing Alexandria's Lake Cook on a Thursday. This was Feb 21, 2008 and the trout were restocked on schedule Feb 20.
One fellow had these four trout — the four he had kept of the 15 he caught in two hours, all close to 12 inches. Surprisingly, he was not using Powerbait. He was using a small Panther Martin spinner. Another person saw the spinner's success and started using his own but had only caught three. "He's really good!" he said of the fellow with the stringer, who had just left. "He showed me a lot."
So there is something to know about catching hatchery trout.

Can't fish today!

2008-01-27T16:02:00.000-08:00

This was completely unexpected today. Lake Cook, the lake that's stocked with winter-only trout in Alexandria, Virginia — frozen solid. I mean so solid, those big rocks out on the lake just bounced around rather than making holes in the ice.

Equipment — Don't Buy a Lot!

2007-12-30T12:14:00.000-08:00

It isn’t necessary to spend much money at all to catch a fish. In fact, your first fishing trips are a LOT MORE fun when you don’t invest much time OR money – and still have a great time.
What items do you need to catch a fish? Not that many.Here are the FEW things you NEED:
Rod
Reel
Small tackle box
Pliers
Nail clipper
Cotton gloves
Assorted size hooks
Small weights (1/4 ounce)
Several plastic floats
Plastic grubs (see “Lures or Live Bait”)
If you’re using bait: Worms or other bait (keep the worms cool)
First aid kit (at least a couple bandages and antiseptic wipe)

Those items above, all inexpensive, would get you through the day at 90 percent of fishing places in North America. If you want to keep and eat any fish, then certainly you need things like a filet knife, ice chest, plastic bags. Possibly you noticed a lure at the tackle counter and you want to see what happens if you use it. Go ahead, try it out! (If money – or lack of it – is a factor, don’t be dazzled by the big claims you see on many products. They ALL claim to be the secret weapon. Just try one, but DO try the inexpensive techniques on the blog here!)

I don't include the net because you probably won't catch a big fish on your first trip, and using a net takes a little experience. For the record, you probably wouldn’t land a large fish without a net. If you’re fortunate enough to hook one, you would end up just trying to lift it in the air or drag it along the water’s edge, and it would wiggle until the line breaks, and it would escape. So consider buying a landing net if you don't want the big one to get away.

You’ll wish you had photos of your first trip, so probably the camera should be on the list.

There is absolutely no limit on how much you can spend for tackle and accessories. After you’ve made a trip or two you can decide if you want to invest in expensive equipment.

The Reel

2007-11-29T01:08:00.000-08:00

The reel can be the big stumbling block. Here is the best advice for every beginner: ignore all of the reels you see that are expensive. What you want is called a closed-face push-button spincasting reel. There are several available in the $10 to $20 price range that are the best choices of all reels to learn fishing.
These are not the choice of most experienced anglers, and they will be likely to tell you to buy the reel design that they use. Just smile and say, "That's what I'll get next." There is way too much to learn first, and if you buy the push-button reel, you will spend your time learning to fish — not learning how to use a fancy reel.
However, the very least expensive push-button spincast reels are to be avoided. These often are sold with an accompanying cartoon character or otherwise are made to appeal to children. This is ironic, since they usually don't work well and could create a potentially life-long aversion to fishing for the child who experiences the sad disappointment of being unable to fish because the line won't come out of the reel. A rule of thumb is simply, the more you pay for these reels, the more likely they are to have sensible design. Among the least expensive reels that work well are the Shakespeare Synergy Steel 10 or Titanium (Ti) 10 series. These start at around $10 at discount stores. Most of the spincasting reels over $20 are "heavy duty" reels, designed for holding 12 to 14 pound line, and for first-timers, that line is too thick.

Fishing Line — Less is Much More

2007-11-29T01:07:00.000-08:00

The one “dangerous” bit of advice here is to replace the line from the reel you buy, because it’s almost always eight or 10 pound line. (If this is all too complicated, skip this step! You can still catch fish with the original line.)
“Pound” refers to the strength of the line – it would hold that amount of weight without breaking. That is, you could suspend an eight pound weight tied to a segment of eight pound line, but adding another pound would make it break.
The natural inclination would be to use stronger line rather than weaker line, but in fact, the weaker line often brings much, much better results. The reason is simple: six-pound line is thinner and harder for the fish to see than eight-pound line, and four pound line is even harder for the fish to detect.
Imagine dropping a worm in the water and watching it slowly sink toward fish. The fish will dart after it, and it will quickly disappear into their hungry mouths. However, put that worm on a hook, with heavy 10-pound fishing line, and the fish may well simply swim up and then swim away, or bite very cautiously, and avoid the hook.
If your first fishing trip involves small fish, and they usually do, then you will want your reel filled with four-pound line. (If the fish are plentiful and large, that is, over a foot long, then you will probably do fine with eight pound line, and if the fish are running quite large, over two pounds, then eight or even 10-pound line will probably work best. Fish over two pounds can break four pound line.)
A likely reaction: “Hey, I want line strong enough for big fish!” That’s the reason that heavy line is there. Response: first of all, for kids, ANY fish is big. A five-inch perch is a thrilling first time trophy. For adult first-timers, just catch something. There ‘s much to learn catching small fish. And you’d surprised how much fun it is catching six-and eight-inch fish. The lighter line easily may make all the difference between a fun outing and a fishless foray.

Any brand of line will do well, and there’s no reason to buy the fancy expensive lines. You should be able to get a couple hundred yards of four or six pound line for $5. By the way, line for spincasting is called “monofilament.” The old fashioned type that looks like string is called “braided” and doesn’t work with spinning reels.

Changing the line means pulling all the old line out of the reel, a tedious job. You’ll need about ten minutes and some space in front of you for a pile of tangled line.
You’ll have to unscrew the cover of the reel to see if you’ve reached the end of the spool. (There are electric line winders to speed this up. Also if you have access to an empty old reel, you could wind line from your new reel to the old one.)
When the line’s finally all off the reel, take the end of the line from your new spool, run it FIRST THROUGH THE FACE OF THE REEL COVER, then tie it in a simple knot twice around the core of the spool. Screw the cover back on the reel.
Pull the line lightly, then start turning the handle and reel until the spool is about full. This will probably be around 110 yards of line. You don’t want it too full or it’ll be hard to manage. However, if there’s not enough line on the reel, it won’t cast.
Congratulations! You have probably quadrupled your chances of catching fish by replacing the heavy line.

Tying Knots

2007-11-29T01:06:00.000-08:00

The problem with knots comes as a surprise to everyone who's new to fishing.
If you tie a lure to the end of the line with a simple knot, and then pull, the line slips and the knot comes undone.
The secret is to wrap the line around several times before completing the knot. This type is called a clinch knot. There’s debate as to how many times to wrap the line – four, five or six times. Five will work fine for now. To see, do a “clinch knot” video search.
One thing you’ll want is a nail clipper to trim off the extra line after the knot is tied. You want your knot and line to be as close to invisible as possible.
[There is also the improved clinch knot, and it is an improvement. But don’t worry about it now.]
Here is a clinch knot demonstration from YouTube. Click on the screen first, then on play:

Picking a First Rod — Easy

2007-11-29T01:05:00.000-08:00

Rods are easy for beginners. Just remember you need the kind that has the handle with what appears to be a trigger.
You’ll want a 5-1/2 foot or 6 foot rod that comes apart into two pieces. Discount stores offer these starting at about $8. Look for small print on the rod that says either light or medium action. Durango by Shakespeare is one inexpensive rod brand.
Stores offer combos, the rod and reel together, at a discount. These are usually a good way to save money and get a rod and reel that match – but you don’t save if they add in other equipment that you don’t want with the package and the price goes up. Also, only buy a combo if it has one of the better reels. Check the prices of the reels separately, and frankly, if they’re offering one of the five-dollar reels in a combo, don’t buy.
With fishing rods, you could pay any amount of money. There are plenty of hundred-dollar rods out there, and some that are hundreds of dollars. Those work better and last longer (and you can feel really cool carrying that expensive equipment.) They’re completely unnecessary for the beginner.
Also, the more expensive rods are often one-piece rods. Once you have tried to fit a six-foot rod in your car, you’ll quickly realize any loss of performance with a two-piece rod is completely acceptable.

Casting Your Line

2007-11-29T01:04:00.000-08:00

Kids, especially, see the button on push-button reels as a very mysterious thing. What powers does that big button have?
Many people think that pushing the button would somehow launch line out of the reel.
In fact, holding the button down prevents any line from leaving the reel. It’s letting go of the button – taking the thumb OFF – that allows the line to come billowing out of the reel.
So naturally, you need to take your thumb off at just the right time – that is, when the bait is traveling through the air in the direction of the fish.
Tie a small lead weight to the end of the line and hold the rod so the weight is suspended in the air. Push and hold the button, then take your thumb off the button. The weight will fall to the floor.
Now do the same thing, but first give the weight a little swing away. If you take your thumb off the button at just the right time, the weight will fly through the air several feet away from you. You just made a cast.
Find the swing that works best for you. If there’s room, swinging the weight over your head, and letting go at just the right time, will allow the weight to travel a good ten or twenty yards.
If you have internet expertise, do a “video” search, and enter how to cast spincast to find a demonstration video.

Live Bait — or Lures?

2007-11-29T01:03:00.001-08:00

What to put at the end of your line to catch the fish?
Choose either a bait or a lure, that is, natural food on a hook or an artificial imitation of a live creature.

Lures:
Many people object to using live bait, such as a worm or minnow. Fine! You don’t need to! Lures made of plastic catch fish, and often they work better than bait, and you don’t have to handle worms.
The general subject of lures is way too large for the beginner. After working with many first-timers, I can recommend one all-inclusive, catch-em-every time lure. It goes by names like grub or twister tail. Every tackle counter has some variation, and they all work.
Get some about one inch long. You can buy the two parts, the lure and the 1/16 ounce lead-head hook separately, or for a higher price, buy both already rigged. The color to use is the subject of endless debate. Two very frequently used and successful colors are bright green (chartreuse) and silvery nearly-clear and those are the two colors recommended here. Purple, white and yellow are also widely used. However, there is no wrong color. Even pink has been very effective. Wherever I have fished, from ocean pier to mountain stream, this lure has worked.
[One condition: the water has to be fairly clear for lure fishing, enough that you can see six inches or more. If it’s really muddy, a beginner won’t catch fish with a lure.]
Simply move the lure through the water. If you’re fishing from a boat dock, drop it down move it up and down and back and forth. Try to get it a foot or so from the bottom. If you can cast, toss it out in non-weedy water and reel it in fast enough to keep it out of snags like rocks and weeds. One turn of the reel every two seconds is a good starting speed.
Bait fishing:
For standard freshwater fishing, find out ahead of time if you or anyone in the group is going to have a hard time seeing a worm impaled on a hook. This is the all-time tried-and-true fishing bait, and for millions of people has been the key to many happy hours and fun childhood memories. If there are howls of disgust and revulsion, live bait fishing may not be for you.
With everyone on board, purchase or dig your worms. Small worms work fine. Big nightcrawlers are also very good bait, but so large they need to be cut into pieces.
You’ll want to be at a place where the current is not strong. Moving water creates all kinds of problems for beginners, so a swift river or ocean spot with moving tide is a bad choice. Ideally you’re on the bank of a nice lake. [In salt water, a fishing pier or dock is best. It’s likely that heavier line, at least eight-pound, and weights of a half-ounce or more will be needed.]
At the end of the line are the hook and the float. Your hook should be a size four. If the fish are truly tiny, less than four inches, go to a size six. Tie on the hook (see “Knots”), then place the float a couple of feet above the hook. Now grab a worm and to the best of your ability, thread it all over the hook. If you leave a lot of the worm dangling, the fish may be able to easily pull it off without getting hooked.
Toss your rig out at least eight or 10 feet from where you’re standing. Now wait for the float to start moving.
It will be a big help to know how deep the water is. If your float is in more than ten feet of water, the fish may be too far down. If you’re on a dock or in a boat, you can skip the float, and just drop the bait straight down, trying to keep it a foot or two from the bottom. [ In salt water earthworms are generally not used. Cut pieces of fish, shrimp or squid will work fine.]
Artificial bait:
Worms are the number one freshwater bait. However, they are sometimes out-performed by packaged fishing dough, which sometimes has strong odors that may not please the nose but do attract fish. One well-known brand is called Power Bait, and is a standard for many trout fishermen. Another bait that works very well for catfish, small sunfish and bluegills is a dough ball made from a roll of biscuit dough.

You can fish baits without a float and let them sink to the bottom, possibly adding a lead sinker for longer casts. Don’t use more than a quarter ounce, and usually a very tiny bb-size pinch-on lead weight will work fine where there is no current. Heavy weights interfere with the fish’s strikes. The drawback to fishing without a float is that lines often get caught on the bottom or tangled in weeds. A snag is one of the most unpleasant parts of fishing. Always try to avoid snags, and floats are a good tool for beginners to steer clear of them. But when they do happen, don’t get upset. Snags and lost rigs are part of fishing. They happen to everyone.

Where to Catch Fish

2007-11-29T01:02:00.001-08:00

Where Can I Go to Fish?
Don’t let anyone give you too-quick answers here. There really are good fishing places nearby – that is, an hour drive or less – just about anywhere in North America.
By “good fishing places,” I mean places where you are fairly certain to catch some fish. Not certain to catch large exciting “tacklebusters,” because that’s always UN-certain. But some places are very dependable for small perch or sunfish.
Those big fees your pay for the fishing license do go for management of certain waters in state parks. Usually those lakes or streams have the fish and the facilities – that is, the lakes are scenic, the waters are managed so there are some fish all the time, and there are piers, shoreline pathways and rental boats available so you can take your new fishing rod and make a cast to waters with fish.
The best advice at these lakes is to find a spot where the water is not too shallow. Often the deepest water is right at a dam, and at the opposite end of the lake, the water is terribly shallow, only a foot or two deep even far from shore. Fishing in this shallow section might be very frustrating, with your line constantly caught on submerged rocks and sticks.
Most areas have those little-known places on rivers and streams that are not really parks, they don’t have signs to find them, but they just happen to be scenic places where there is good fishing. A ride in the countryside might unveil one unexpectedly around a corner. (Just be sure there are no signs that say “Keep Out.”)
If you’re fishing in salt water, look for a place that offers a chance to drop your line on the fish, a pier, a bridge (where it’s legal to fish) or a jetty. (Again, in salt water you want the heavier line, at least 8 pound. And always wash the salt off your equipment when you’re done or it’ll rust.)
And the obvious final advice on where to go: ask somebody who knows!

When to Go Fishing

2007-11-29T00:59:00.000-08:00

Some times ARE better than other times for fishing. Yes, there is a reason why people get up before the sun to go fishing. When the sun’s first rays start to illuminate the water, many fish start to look for food. Particularly in lakes, many large fish have entered shallower water, and are just moments away from returning to their daytime hiding places.
One of the best reasons for fishing at the crack of dawn is simply that it’s a nice time to be on the water. It may be the only time of the day that everything is calm and the scenery is most attractive with the rising sun.
But if you really don’t want to get up early to fish, relax. You can catch fish at any time of the day. Smaller fish particularly will go for a baited hook whenever and wherever it’s presented.
The one off-switch to catching fish is cold weather. Freshwater fish will slow down in the cold of winter. There are notable exceptions: ice fishing is very productive for certain species. Also in many areas where it’s chilly in winter, trout are stocked for wintertime fishing in lakes and streams. Although it’s unlikely they will survive when summer returns, they provide fun in the winter.
If you live in warm areas such as Florida, any time of the year will work. For those who live in more temperate climates, for your first fishing trip, your ideal time would be a month after warm weather arrives, that is, in North Carolina, for example, the spring peak could be around the middle of May, while in Michigan, perhaps late June.

"Winter Only" Trout Near You

2007-11-29T00:55:00.000-08:00

One relatively new idea that continues to expand is the “winter” trout, also sometimes called the (seemingly contradictory) “Urban Trout” program. In many areas where waters are too warm in summer for trout, state agencies or sportsmen’s groups stock trout in the winter.

(Photo) This was taken inside the beltway of Washington, DC in November, 2007. A tiny lake in Alexandria, Virginia called Cook Lake along Eisenhower Avenue is stocked with trout each month in winter, starting November 1. The limit is four trout per day. This gentleman had no problem catching his limit of rainbow trout using lures for two and Power Bait, sold in jars, for the others. What may be most interesting is, in this metropolitan area of five million, he was the only person fishing at the lake that weekday afternoon. A trout fishing license is required.

These are fun to catch, and in certain cities, the trout normally associated with a day-long drive to the mountains to streams and lakes are instead right around the corner.
Hatchery trout are a little less exotic than the wily natural trout of the great crystal mountain streams, but they will bite on those carefully hand-tied trout flies and other fabled lures at the tip of a fly rod handed down from generation to generation.
However, the hatchery trout have had it a little easier growing up. They’ll also bite very quickly on a kernel of corn on a size six or eight hook (use a larger hook if you don’t want to keep the fish. They’ll be less likely to swallow it). Another popular bait is called Power Bait, a dough sold in a jar. The most effective way of fishing is to put the bait on the hook and add a split-shot sinker (these are very small sinkers that you pinch onto the line with your fingers) for weight. Cast the line to one of the deeper areas and let it sit right on the bottom. Wait until you see your line moving, then reel in the trout.
If you choose to eat them, these fish are very tasty.
In many areas you do need to purchase a special trout fishing license to fish these winter trout waters, so check the laws. Enter your state and the words fishing license in a search and the link to your regulations will pop up.

Handling Fish

2007-11-29T00:54:00.000-08:00

It can be a humbling experience to watch seven-year old kids grabbing those squirming fish like it’s nothing, while you’re completely helpless on how to proceed.
Let’s back up. Before you leave you need to have gloves. Never mind that no one else has a glove. They have practice, you don’t. (And don’t be surprised if they ask to borrow YOUR glove. They’re always good to have on when fishing.)
Fortunately the best gloves are the cheap gloves. Simple cotton gloves you can get for around a dollar a pair at the hardware counter will work fine, protecting your hands and giving you a good grip on the fish. (Those pesky sharp fin tips can sometimes go through cloth and stick you slightly, but with most fish this is not a big problem – watch out for catfish, though.)
There are expensive fish handling gloves. Not necessary, but if you have extra cash, go ahead and get those. Whatever you use, be sure to wash them after the trip!
Now, you just pulled a wiggling fish out of the water. We’ll assume it’s not a big fish, maybe 6 inches long? Leave it hanging in the air but grab it as soon as possible, putting the rod and reel down to your side or on the ground.
Reach around the fish’s mouth and grab the head. It will probably wiggle when it’s touched, so be ready. You’ll probably pull your hands away in a reflex action. If so, then just grab it again and hold it tight, but not enough to hurt it.
You’d like to get the hook out easily. The way to do this is to push it further into the fish’s mouth about a quarter inch. The reason is to get the barb of the hook out of the fish’s tissue. This would be much easier if the fish would hold still, but it probably won’t.
You should have long-nose pliers for this – much better than using your fingers.
Once the barb is clear, pull it out.
Fish to be extra careful with:
Catfish have fins that can stick you much more than most other fish can. Be very careful with them.
Fish in the pike family have sharp teeth. Use pliers only. Some fish, like bass, are routinely handled with a thumb or finger right in the mouth. But if you don’t know the fish you’re handling, keep fingers clear.
In saltwater there are many fish to watch out for. Bluefish can slice fingers and saltwater trout have jagged teeth that will scratch you. Of course many of the large fish such as barracuda and sharks are dangerous, as are stingrays.
Summarizing, for your first trip, handle all fish with gloves and pliers!

The Fishing License — A Necessary "Evil"

2007-11-29T00:49:00.000-08:00

This entry comes with added opinions.
If the license laws make you groan, you have my sympathy.
I don’t like the concept of a license to fish on public waters. A nation’s residents should be free to drop a fishing line into the nation’s public waters, as long as they follow the fishing regulations, including methods allowed and size limits. License laws are too complex and the prices are far too high. The license fees do provide many millions of dollars to fund the stocking and management programs, including those at my favorite fishing places. But personally, as a big fan of fishing, I’d like to see most of those funds come from general fund tax dollars. Today’s license procedures simply prevent millions of people from ever enjoying a day of fishing on their own public lands because they haven’t obtained the expensive and troublesome licenses. All right, enough venting.
The fact is you gotta have ‘em. The game wardens are out there looking at licenses all day every day. It is extremely tempting to avoid the cost because you simply have the feeling, “Who in the world is going to come up to me in the great outdoors and demand to see my license?”
Believe me, they do. I’ve had my licenses checked more times than I’ll ever remember, sometimes on crowded fishing piers, but also in the middle of lakes or on a lonely riverside with not another soul around for miles.
Here’s an example of the licensing situation in the state this where blog originates, Virginia, and this is typical:
A license for a resident to fish in freshwater is $18 for one year. But wait – to fish in TROUT fresh water, that’s another $18. To fish in SALT water it’s $12.50 more. Or if you buy the fresh and saltwater combined, you save 50 cents. I don’t have a Virginia salt water license. Since I’m doing my salt water fishing in the nearby MARYLAND Chesapeake Bay, I paid 15 dollars for a non-resident Bay Sport license. My contributions to Maryland continue with a non-resident freshwater license for $35, and a trout stamp to fish in mountain trout streams for $9.
That all totals $95.
There are temporary five-day licenses that cost less and you may want those if you’re still trying to decide if fishing is for you. They are good for about two percent as much time as annual licenses, but they cost a lot more than two percent of the price.
If you’re still following all of this, one more issue is the term of the license. In Virginia, your license is good for a year from the day you purchase it. In Maryland, not so. When you pay the fee to fish for one year, you get less for your money every day you wait after January first. You guessed it: all licenses expire December 31. So to go fishing, say, in November, you pay a full year’s fee for a license that’s only good for a few weeks. Again, a lot of people certainly end up choosing not to go at all. Oops, I said I was finished with venting.
At least it’s not as complicated as, say, Maine. This is one of the truly great areas for fishing. But entire huge areas of that state are reserved for people fishing with fly rods. No fly rod, no fishing. That’s a good part of the reason it’s so nice and unspoiled in Maine, because so many people don’t have the means to fish there at all. But for beginners – beware the laws!
One good recent development is internet sale of licenses. Put your state, followed the words fishing license in a search and you'll come up with the site for buying your license. If you have some expertise with computers, you can often download the PDF of your own license, and reprint it anytime you lose your old one. Remember, you have to sign it.

Safety for Beginning Fishermen

2007-11-29T00:47:00.000-08:00

One of the worries I’ve had about fishing is that parents might be so afraid of the dangers posed by fish hooks and certain other hazards that they will prevent their kids from ever knowing the joys of the sport.
That said, the fact is, experienced anglers know instinctively that you have to be vigilant about the dangers of sharp hooks every single second you are fishing.
When beginner kids are fishing, keep them apart if they are casting their own lines. Before they fish give them one very strong rule: ALWAYS look behind before you cast. And every time you see them casting without looking back first, let them know in no uncertain terms they just made a mistake. (Certainly that’s true for any grownup, too.)
Do not leave hooks on when you’re done fishing. When the last cast is made, the first part of packing up to go is to remove the hook and place it in your tackle box.
The other danger is the fishing rod and eyes. Whenever you’re walking, always keep the tip down or up. The classic is when the person in front stops and turns, and the one behind with a rod keeps walking and it goes right into the face. It’s always a good idea to pull the rod apart when walking. Doing that also makes it easier to avoid bumping tree branches.
I have purchased snake bite kits for some beginners who I know will be in areas where poisonous snakes could lurk, and I have one for myself. Poisonous snakes really aren’t common in most areas (although water moccasins are practically part of the scenery in southern swamps) but it’s good to be safe. Those kits also serve as a backup first aid kit for ordinary injuries.
One other mention for beginners: slippery rocks. If you’re on rocks near water, remember that one rock can give you firm footing while the one right next to it can be as slippery as soap. Also, rocks can appear firm but shift when you step on them, causing you to slip. Always move slowly on rocks.
Don’t let fear keep you from the great experience of being in the outdoors, but keep these safety rules in mind.

The Drag

2007-11-26T10:09:00.000-08:00

Something that's a little hard to grasp for beginners is the concept of turning the reel handle, and no line being reeled in. That is, "I'm reeling and nothing's happening!"
This is "drag." You'll usually see a plus and minus marker on the drag control. You won't understand this until you've hooked a big fish: you have to be able to let line back out of the reel when you have a big fish, or the line will break, or else the hook will come out of the fish's mouth.
If the drag is "tight," then the line will be tested at its limits. If the drag is "loose," you may not even be able to reel your line in.
Find a spot somewhere in between until you get a feel for drag.

The Typical (useless!) Fishing Lesson

2007-11-26T01:47:00.000-08:00

The typical fishing expert will offer beginners advice like, "Get a good spinning reel with eight-pound line and a light action rod, and cast a spinner to the edge of the weeds."
These people have no idea that, to beginners, this is gibberish. Eight pound line? This is line that weighs eight pounds? A spinning reel — don't they all spin around?
Fishing is fun, but it can have such a long learning curve that many people miss out. I've had many opportunities to take people of all ages on their first fishing trips — and soon after, their second and third trips.
Here is what I have learned: a trip to a pretty spot on the water and very simple fishing methods combine for one of life's greatest pleasures.
Don't spend a lot of time or money on your first trip. Seriously — inexpensive equipment, and an hour or less on the road are all you need, especially if you're taking youngsters for their first fish.