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I’ve been fishing for as long as I can remember, so I wanted to share some things that have worked well for me over the years.
In this blog post, you’ll get 10 fishing tips that have helped me catch fish during my time on the lake. These tips cover not only what is going on with your bait and the boat but also what you should do if you spot a school of fish nearby or if you hook one but it's being uncooperative.
I hope you find these as useful as I did. Maybe you'll even have one or two moments where your buddy asks "How'd you do that?" and it's because of one of my fishing tips!
Tips 1: Hooking the Fish
Three out of four fishermen who fish never catch a single fish, so if you think you’re going to catch fish by just throwing your line into the water, think again. Hooking a fish isn't easy and even if you know what I'm about to show you, it doesn't mean that you'll always be able to hook one on the spot.
Actually, making a good cast is only half of the battle.
The other half is how you hook the fish. If you think of fishing as a game, hooking a fish is like passing the ball into the goal and scoring a touchdown in football or hitting a three-point shot in basketball when you're down by one point. It's not always going to happen, but it sure makes winning that much sweeter when it does.
Tying a good knot is the first step towards landing more fish. If you have a bad knot or try to hold onto your fishing pole with wet hands, you'll lose that fish every time (and probably break your fishing pole in half). The best way to make sure you're using the right knots is to learn how to tie fishing knots from the pros.
The first knot I'm going to talk about is called an improved clinch knot. It's used mainly for tying monofilament line and fluorocarbon leader lines to hooks, lures, beads or swivels but you can use this knot to tie on everything except braided fishing line, which is thinner than monofilament and can easily break under pressure.
When you use this knot, it's very important that you pull the end of your fishing line towards yourself and not away from yourself after you tie the first part of the knot (the loop).
The second knot that has made my fishing experience a lot easier is the improved clinch knot because of how quickly it's tied and how strong it is. It's also what I use when I tie on swivels or beads because they're one piece that can't be pulled apart, unlike hooks.
Tip 2: Choosing the Right Fishing Line
The difference between fishing and catching fish is using the right line for your baits and conditions. The same goes for choosing a line that works best for you and how to pick it out of all the choices at your local tackle shop. If you ask me, one of the biggest mistakes fishermen make is using the same line for all their baits and situations.
Choosing a fishing line isn't something that you want to decide on quickly. There are too many variables between river, lake and ocean fishing lines so it's important to know what types of fish you're looking for, the season, water depth, weather conditions, and the type of reel or fishing pole that you plan on using.
Just like how different fishing lines are designed for specific purposes (like trolling a lure in saltwater or freshwater), there's also fishing line designed specifically for your favorite fishing situations so there's no reason to cut corners by buying cheaper bulk brands. When it comes to fishing lines, you get what you pay for. It's just that simple, which brings me to my next tip.
Tip 3: Save Money and Buy Quality Fishing Line
If you’re the kind of guy or gal who likes to save money by buying cheaper brands of fishing line in bulk, then you might as well throw all your money into a river or lake because all your hard earned cash is going to waste.
You can’t just go and buy any type of fishing line because it’ll end up costing you more money in the long run, plus it makes catching fish that much harder because you're using substandard materials in most cases. There's no point in buying fishing line that's going to break or tear under strain if you're only planning on using it twice.
If you plan on doing a lot of type of fishing, then buy quality lines that will last you a lifetime. But when it comes to types of lines, there are so many different kinds out there and I really don't want to confuse you, especially if you're a beginner. If that's the case, then I suggest sticking with monofilament fishing line because the most important thing is knowing how to tie your knots properly and being able to cast effectively.
When it comes to picking out the right line for a specific type of fishing or bait, you should always have a chart that you can refer to so you don't get confused, but for now let's stick with the basics.
Monofilament fishing lines are probably what most fishermen use because they're cheap, easy to find and still very effective under normal conditions. They're also great for single-hand casting because they offer a lot of stretch, which can help you prevent break-offs.
Monofilament lines are usually made of PVC and stretch from 5 to 20% under normal conditions (depending on the brand). When it comes to picking out monofilament lines, they're fairly straightforward because there's only 2 basic types: clear and colored. I suggest getting a clear line because colored lines are usually made of a heavier material and are less comfortable for long-term use.
So if you want something that's light, easily visible underwater and strong enough to hold your fishing gear, monofilament fishing line is the way to go. It's also very easy to cast and inexpensive so there's no reason not to try it out. There are too many advantages to using monofilament line so just go with what you feel comfortable with and make sure not to cut any corners by using cheap bulk brands...you’ll regret it in the end.
Tip 4: Tie Using Knots
Fishing knots may seem like a simple concept but they really aren't because not all types of knots are strong enough for certain uses under specific conditions. It's also important to know what types of situations you're fishing in before picking out the right knots to use because different types of water demands different kinds of knots.
So if you want your line to last longer, then ditch the cheap store-bought knots and learn the different types of fishing knots. Not only will they help you save money, but they'll also prevent a lot of frustration during the tying process.
There are too many ways to tie fishing line that I could possibly explain in this article so instead I'm going to teach you how to do the most common three - the Palomar knot, the Uni knot and the blood knot. You can find all types of resources on how to tie more advanced fishing knots but for now I'll keep it simple because I'm assuming most readers are new to this stuff so here we go.
The Palomar Knot is great if you want a strong knot that's easy to tie and untie. I like to use this one for tying flies to my line because it's easy to see in the water while your fly is sinking or when it hits the bottom of a lake or river. The Uni Knot is best used for tying monofilament fishing lines to hooks or swivels because it's very strong and reliable under normal conditions. The Blood Knot is most commonly used to tie 2 pieces of monofilament together, but it can also be used on braid fishing line as well. You should always tie a blood knot and then apply a piece of waterproof tape over the top of it to keep it from fraying and weakening. It's also very important to make sure you tie your knots very tightly otherwise they will come undone and just ruin your day.
Tip 5: Always Be Prepared
You should always be ready to fish whenever you're out on the water by having all of your gear at hand. This will reduce frustration because you can focus on fishing instead of looking for stuff under rocks and in the water while trying to keep your line straight. So before going out, make sure you have a tackle box with all of the things you need like your fishing line, hooks, swivels, weights (if needed) and anything else that usually comes with a bundle deal.
Tip 6: Buy The Right Tackle Box
There are a lot of tackle boxes you can buy out there, but there's only one that I'll recommend to anybody and that's the Plano Guide Series because they're extremely versatile, very well built with soft-grip handles for comfort and 100% leak-proof as far as I know. So if you want a tackle box that meets all of the above criteria then go to your nearest fishing store and ask for this particular brand.
Tip 7: Only Use What You Need
Here's another tip that's pretty simple but very important. If you want to match the color of your fishing line, then try using a permanent marker and marking them with different colors so you can tell the difference between your braided lines and monofilament. This way you don't waste time untangling various leaders and lines when you need to put your bait on the hook.
Tip 8: Don't Lose Your Hooks
I'm sure most of you have lost a hook or two on the bottom by accidentally dropping them in deep water, so I hope this will help prevent that from happening again. When you're not using your hooks, just tape them together with the eye of one hook facing the shank of another and wrap a piece of electrical tape around them. This way they'll stay together until you unwrap them to use them.
Tip 9: Don't Lose Your Bait
Another very common problem when fishing is that a lot of fishermen lose their bait every so often, which really gets on your nerves after spending so much money on them. So before dropping it into the water, secure it with a piece of tape to keep those pesky trout and bass from stealing yours. You can use an old piece of tape if you don't have any masking or duct, which is probably not the best option.
Tip 10: Wear the Right Shoes
To put it simply, you should wear shoes that have a good grip in the soles because if you're standing on slippery rocks with normal sneakers and your line gets stuck on something underwater, then there's a pretty good chance that you'll lose your balance. You don't want to break anything or worse yet, fall in the water and get your clothes wet.
Conclusion
Overall, I hope you found this article useful and your fishing skills get a boost from some of the cool tips and tricks that you can do. Don't let anything frustrate you when it comes to fishing because frustrated fishermen don't catch anything at all. Be Very Careful & Enjoy!
