"Fishing
is easy, catching fish takes work."
Author - John E. Brady, Hanover PA-USA
Copyright 2001
e-mail - jeb@jebswebsite.com
I always believed in the saying "any day is a good day for fishing". After all, over the 30 plus years of enjoying the sport I've fished in just about any type of weather you could imagine. Like the mailman some fisherman pursue their passion of fishing whether it be through rain, sleet, snow, cold, wind, or dark of night.
I've never minded fishing in adverse weather as long as it wasn't a combination of several. Fishing in the rain isn't too bad, but add in cold air or wind or both, and that will test your intestinal fortitude. Some say it separates the men from the boys, however the older I get, the more I tend to agree with my wife's assessment in that it separates the sane from the insane. But as all hard-core fisherman have found out you can fish in any weather situation.
Those of you who aren't avid fisherman might be saying at this point, gee, if it is that easy, maybe I will try it. You can, it is easy, anyone can fish young or old. Grab a rod, tie on a bait and toss it in. Your fishing!
Now comes the hard part. If you want to "catch" fish as well, that will take a little extra doing. It takes a little more than just tossing a bait anywhere.
To catch fish you have to be at the right place, at the right time. Although it might sound more like luck, and it is to some degree, catching fish and catching fish consistently, takes knowing fish habitat, behavior, as well as knowledge of the water you are fishing, and the right weather conditions.
Each species of fish, whether it's bass, crappie, walleye, or perch each have their own behavioral patterns. And these behavioral patterns change depending on the water and weather conditions.
Bass for example are structure oriented. They like to stick to or close by to some sort of structure. Especially on very bright days. It could be a downed tree, stump, drop off, submerged creek channel, grass or rocks. Some bass have even been found holding around some pretty unconventional structure such as sunken cars, refrigerators, tires, even picnic tables during high water periods.
Bass also relate to water temperature. During the winter and early spring when the water temperature is below 60 degrees, bass are very lethargic. They will not expend any energy for feeding unless absolutely necessary and the meal is right in front of their nose.
In late spring, summer and fall when water temperature is above 60 degrees, bass will be much more aggressive and will move quite a distance to catch a meal.
The type of bait is also important depending on when you are fishing. This time of year use slow moving baits such as jigs, tube baits, and worms. As the water warms and the fish are more incline to chase their food further, then you can use faster moving baits such as spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and buzzbaits.
With these tips in mind, while your out fishing this spring, remember that fish will move very slowly and to catch them, you need to put your bait literally on the fish. Later on in the season, you won't have to be quite as accurate, but you will still have to fish where the fish are.
This time of year is a good time to reacquaint yourself with the water you fish. Get out there and study it. Even if you have fished it for years, waters change, especially streams and rivers. So don't take it for granted that you know the water you fish. And make sure you use the proper bait for the time of year. It will increase you chance of success.
As my son use to say "Fishing is fun, Catching is even funner."
"After all they call it fishing, but the goal is catching."