^^^^THIS^^^^
Trying To Improve At Fishing. Please Help!
- Thread starter Stizzla
- Start date
advTHXance
Well-Known Member
I always hear stories about Freeman but every time Ive been down there its been dead! I try to avoid taking my guests down there now because its like a 2 hour run from our lodge on an average day for less than average fishing. Lighthouse and Selvesen were awesome this year though!
Lots of the staff from Hippa will end up at one of their other lodges, definitely not ideal but theyre trying to find places for most of them to land, if they want it.
advTHXance
Well-Known Member
Stop by the lodge and say hi if you make it up my way, ILHG.
fish brain
Crew Member
Dude you got a tackle problem. I don't think there is an AA group for it, but there is a SFBC forumUp to 7 inch in the drawer. Drawer is 6 inches deep.
More
7's oh boy. The bottom is a high liner veteran and now retired.
I like the Tom Macks also. New old stock from the 1970's.
ILHG
Crew Member
Absolutely!
Twinstrike
Member
2 suggestions talk to the folks at the cleaning tables and just go fishing.
Cookie's Cutter
Well-Known Member
If I could only take 1 lure or presentation on a trip it'd be that 602 classic, she's been a savior many times over and aggressive fish just have to chase her! Ill fish it all day without a second thought because I know it triggers fish, I just need to cover water until I get it in front of one. The no-flasher fight is hard to top, I hope your ready to go full turbo on that single action moocher!! When the line rips up towards the surface and you know she's going airborne..... oh baby!!!
Like others have said just put in as many hours as you can. Try to plan well in advance during the hot fishing months to get some really long shifts, 12hrs, sun up to sun down - short trips wont cut it then. Stay home one weekend and power through the honey dos, do some extras, give her some quality time, get way ahead and then advance plan (wives love that kind of organization and planning fyi, you get evil eyes but its harder to say no) then do some long full shifts on the water. Your window for success widens way up and increases your chance of being in the right place at the right time. Once you have more successful moments under your belt you can identify what's been working and your short fishing trips can be more calculated and much more successful. Do whatever you have too to get some long days in when you can though... in my opinion, the short sessions definitely hurt you early in your career (sorry my dude). I'm only a few years into my salt career too, but I've fished several days of full skunk only to limit out in the 4th quarter on a certain tide in a certain spot. Sweet. Only 3 hours to fish tomorrow? its gonna be there at that spot on that tide, boom short window success chance increase!
Always cut your stomachs open to see what they've been eating, it might be my favorite part about landing a keeper lol. Then match the hatch! Size and color. Have a few lures for your local menu, but not too many imo, have a few tried tested and true and never second guess yourself. You got this.
*distant voice whispers 602, 602, 602....*
Without question this honey do list / quality time advice is by far the best advice in this thread.
Ignore the rest of the bullsh$t these divorced a$$holes are spewing about mooching techniques, matching bait size, charging glow flashers etc.
It's all useless if she has your leash so tight, the boat just sits in the driveway.
UkeeDreamin
Well-Known Member
“It's all useless if she has your leash so tight, the boat just sits in the driveway.”
LOL - great line! So true, though, if you can’t invest the time on the water and are just out there for short windows at random times, you’re essentially recreational boating with lines out. There’s nothing wrong with that as any time on the water is better than at work or mowing the lawn but, catching fish under those circumstances is usually a bonus, not an expectation.
Cheers!
Ukee
LOL - great line! So true, though, if you can’t invest the time on the water and are just out there for short windows at random times, you’re essentially recreational boating with lines out. There’s nothing wrong with that as any time on the water is better than at work or mowing the lawn but, catching fish under those circumstances is usually a bonus, not an expectation.
Cheers!
Ukee
Fins -n- Skins
Well-Known Member
^^^ X2 Can't catch them at home.. Think about getting moorage for your boat. So if your time is limited 2-3 hours you spend more time fishing than hooking boat up and getting ready. Moorage is expensive but it increases your time on the water. If you fish Sidney you can get a couple of hours in before work or after ? My buddy said to me once boats are meant to be in the water not in the driveway ! Just my 2 cents.
Time on the water, is huge. Fishing the same place on different tides and understanding what’s happening. Learn a couple areas really well, and don’t chase the hot bite. You also don’t need all the tackle pick a couple of proven lures and flashers. Confidence is a huge thing don’t second guess what and were you are fishing. Come up with a plan for the trip and go with it. Having a reliable and trustworthy fishing partner is also huge and hard to find!
RogersonCrusoe
Well-Known Member
Sunset fishing is my favorite kind of fishing. Vastly outperforms sunrise fishing for me.
My advice is to practice/refine/experiment with your bait rolls. There is no "good enough" when it comes to my roll and I know what works best for me. Sometimes it will take me a couple tries to get my roll just right, but the results are well worth it.
And I'm a total lure switcher
If there's bait on the sounder and I'm not catching anything, I'll switch up every few passes.
feelin swell
Member
Great post everyone. Goldmine of info. Gets your heart pounding. This is what I like best about this site. Can't wait to get out there!
Rain City
Crew Member
We've got another one...
searun
Well-Known Member
After a lifetime of fishing, I can honestly say I learn something every time I'm out. I'll take a kick at passing along some observations in the hope it helps someone. Some of the things I have in my list are similar to what other's have noticed in their fishing.
80% of the fish are caught by 20% of the fishers. The people that I see who are true high-liners start out paying close attention to details, patterns. They are very precise about location, time and seek to understand what fish are feeding on, where that is, and understand why. They constantly experiment to come up with alternative ways to build a better mouse trap. I personally pay a lot of attention to structure, and how bait is pushed around by certain tides. Always make sure that for the golden 2 hours on either side of the slack tide that I'm in a location where there's lots of feed and fish. Location, location, location. Find them and stay on top of them. If you see me circling one spot - don't come, there's nothing to see here.
Other thing is never say never, I have caught fish on some of the ugliest stuff...pay attention to what people are catching fish on. Sometimes it will surprise you...so be flexible. Listen carefully to what people are catching fish on, and where. Especially the 20% club. Some people even keep detailed log books where they write down all the small details of what was working, when etc. They then follow those patterns in subsequent years...with lots of success. Downtime is your enemy...have everything pre-tied up and the ability to quickly cycle through the gear. Especially so during the bite!
Leader length is also an important detail. General rule of thumb is 40 - 42 inches for hoochies for Chinook, shorter for Coho. I like to run long leaders for spoons - usually 5 to 6 feet. Sometimes much shorter works too, so again flexible approach. Keep adjusting length if you know a particular spoon is working, but your not getting bites. Sockeye its critically important to have short leaders, and short distance back from the rigger wire and slow speeds. Even the type of leader material you pick makes a difference. Some leaders are too stiff to create the right action - careful.
Speaking of speed - for Chinook I usually go at least 2.5 mph but usually in the 2.7 to 3.0 range. Also vary speed depending on direction I'm travelling adjusting up or down for going with or against tides. Having a look at your rigger wire is a big deal. Subtle speed changes make a huge difference. You can sometime accomplish the same by a crazy Ivan turn - inside or outside rod being the one that gets hit because the action changes with speed change.
Bait - having a really tight roll is the key to success. Don't just put the thing in the holder - I always double check the action to make sure its is good or I won't put it out. If the roll isn't good, re-bait.
Hook size is also important. Too large on small spoons will destroy the swimming action.
Good luck, and keep sharing your ideas...we can never learn enough new tricks even though we are old dogs.
80% of the fish are caught by 20% of the fishers. The people that I see who are true high-liners start out paying close attention to details, patterns. They are very precise about location, time and seek to understand what fish are feeding on, where that is, and understand why. They constantly experiment to come up with alternative ways to build a better mouse trap. I personally pay a lot of attention to structure, and how bait is pushed around by certain tides. Always make sure that for the golden 2 hours on either side of the slack tide that I'm in a location where there's lots of feed and fish. Location, location, location. Find them and stay on top of them. If you see me circling one spot - don't come, there's nothing to see here.
Other thing is never say never, I have caught fish on some of the ugliest stuff...pay attention to what people are catching fish on. Sometimes it will surprise you...so be flexible. Listen carefully to what people are catching fish on, and where. Especially the 20% club. Some people even keep detailed log books where they write down all the small details of what was working, when etc. They then follow those patterns in subsequent years...with lots of success. Downtime is your enemy...have everything pre-tied up and the ability to quickly cycle through the gear. Especially so during the bite!
Leader length is also an important detail. General rule of thumb is 40 - 42 inches for hoochies for Chinook, shorter for Coho. I like to run long leaders for spoons - usually 5 to 6 feet. Sometimes much shorter works too, so again flexible approach. Keep adjusting length if you know a particular spoon is working, but your not getting bites. Sockeye its critically important to have short leaders, and short distance back from the rigger wire and slow speeds. Even the type of leader material you pick makes a difference. Some leaders are too stiff to create the right action - careful.
Speaking of speed - for Chinook I usually go at least 2.5 mph but usually in the 2.7 to 3.0 range. Also vary speed depending on direction I'm travelling adjusting up or down for going with or against tides. Having a look at your rigger wire is a big deal. Subtle speed changes make a huge difference. You can sometime accomplish the same by a crazy Ivan turn - inside or outside rod being the one that gets hit because the action changes with speed change.
Bait - having a really tight roll is the key to success. Don't just put the thing in the holder - I always double check the action to make sure its is good or I won't put it out. If the roll isn't good, re-bait.
Hook size is also important. Too large on small spoons will destroy the swimming action.
Good luck, and keep sharing your ideas...we can never learn enough new tricks even though we are old dogs.
Stizzla
Crew Member
golden post searun! I hope my book helps me better understand currents, tides, and structure. I really need to put in time on the water in 2019. (And what’s left of 2018)
Rain City
Crew Member
My goal for 2019 is to have dinner on the boat, get to bed by 8pm and get up and fire her up by 4am. Cook breakfast on the way out. While taking a crap... with the heat on. As many times as possible.
Bait rolls are probably where most fail if they haven't seen a proper roll shown to them by a highliner. Once you see a version of a good roll and have it explained to you as it is rolling why it is a good roll...it makes sense. Then you will be able to recognize variations that while different have the key requirements to make it fishy. I have a half dozen rolls that I use off and on through a season. They are definetly not all tight but they all do have that key component of the tail following the head through the arc of the rotation. Whether a bullet roll where it turns like a football thrown in a spiral or a more open loopy roll the tail must follow the head through the roll. If the head is turning in a half inch circle and the tail is turning in a 3 inch circle it won't catch ****!
searun
Well-Known Member
Forgot, if you find a high percentage location - work it as much as you can during the bite without cutting off other boats.
We practice the right hand rod to the rocks rule. Meaning if 2 boats approach from opposite directions, the guy who has his right or starboard side to the rock pile gets to stay on his tack and take the inside line/tack, and all others move out and pass on his port or left hand side. No conflicts that way and if everyone goes the same direction it helps sort it out fast. Nothing worse than some guy who always wants the inside tack on every pass, just because he thinks he can. Eventually, the others get pretty tired of that bs and push the greedy guy into the rocks. That doesn't mean that you can't make a mistake every now and then, but as general rule if we all practice the right hand rod to the rocks it would be a calmer fishery.
We practice the right hand rod to the rocks rule. Meaning if 2 boats approach from opposite directions, the guy who has his right or starboard side to the rock pile gets to stay on his tack and take the inside line/tack, and all others move out and pass on his port or left hand side. No conflicts that way and if everyone goes the same direction it helps sort it out fast. Nothing worse than some guy who always wants the inside tack on every pass, just because he thinks he can. Eventually, the others get pretty tired of that bs and push the greedy guy into the rocks. That doesn't mean that you can't make a mistake every now and then, but as general rule if we all practice the right hand rod to the rocks it would be a calmer fishery.
