John Kranick: The Essential Trout Fishing Guide

BAIT AND TACKLE

If you get the chance to use hellgrammites and

water worms — also known as insect larva — try it.

Again, you could ask any number of trout They’re good. But these two are just harder to find fishermen about the type of bait that’s best, especially by mid-summer. And if you’re casting distance, they for a newbie trout angler, and you’d receive an array are a little difficult to work with. Keep them in mind of answers — with chances being great that no two if you go drift fishing. They’re ideal for that.

are alike.

Small minnows are also good bait. And this is

So what should you do? Well, you could just do especially so early in the season when the fish are your own thing to see what works. If it works, keep sluggish. But they’re just not practical. After all, who going. But if you’d like to have some sort of starting wants to lug a minnow bucket around with them all point, I’ll give you a few ideas.

day long?

First let me provide you with some acceptable

You may notice those anglers who are familiar

guidelines on your trout fishing outfit.

with fishing use a chunk of chub or sucker meat

when they plan to go for “the big one”. This also

Start with an ultra light, fast action spinning keeps other chubs and suckers from biting when rod. One that’s between four and five feet long should fishing in water that is a little poorer quality than serve you well. To that, add a light-duty spinning or normal.

spin-casting reel. Place a four to six pound test line

on it.

For a more detailed set of instructions on the

specifics of spin fishing — like how to bait and several

Then add bronze #10 to #14 hooks (I’ve mentioned other suggestions — check out the appendix at the this earlier!). And don’t forget to include a few small end of this book.

The Secrets Professionals Refuse To Share15

CHAPTER 2:

Spinner Fishing

Fishing for trout is a solitary hobby. Notice I didn’t say a lonely sport. It is anything but lonely. But it does seem to be a sport best done alone.

When you get two or more anglers together, trout just seem to know. And this seems especially true when you’re fishing with spinners.

But you don’t need to take my word for it. Jeff Deitrich, author of Spinner Fishing forTrout, makes the very same observation. He says, “Fishing next to your buddy usually isn’t a great idea. My father and I catch most of our fish apart.”

If you’re new to trout fishing, this term spinner or spin fishing may be a bit confusing for you. It certainly was for me when I was a novice angler. Spin fishing is really nothing more than an angling technique. In this method, something called a spinning lure is used to bait the trout.

It differs from fly fishing and bait cast fishing by the type of rod and reel you use. In fact, there are two different rods from which you can choose in spin fishing. One is the open-faced reel and the other the closed-face.

The spin fishing rod doesn’t have a trigger attached to the base of the rod — and this is what makes it different even from a bait casting fishing rod.

TECHNIQUES OF SPIN FISHING

This technique is also popular when you’re fishing

from an inflatable dingy. In this approach, you cast

In spin fishing, it’s standard operating procedure the spinner directly behind the boat, allowing it to

— or at least conventional wisdom — that you should settle on the bottom of the body of water. You’ll see cast upstream. In contrast, you would then retrieve, anglers use this method when fishing for trout in naturally enough with the current. This is done larger, wider rivers.

because the spinner or the lure sinks faster.

One of the techniques most anglers use is called WHAT TYPES OF SPINNERS?

bottom bouncing

bottom bouncing. In this approach, the angler is

Both lures and spinners are simple and effective. Of

standing on the shore as he casts up the river. He course, the idea is to imitate the prey fish for the trout.

then allows the spinner or lure to actually bounce The amazing fact is that these lures and spinners actually on the river bottom until it moves downstream. You look very little like the prey they’re patterned after. So hold the tip of the rod higher than you normally how it is that the trout can recognize them — or even would. Your retrieval speed is quicker as well.

go after them — is one of the mysteries of fishing.

16 The Secrets Professionals Refuse To Share

You’ll soon discover (as you well may already You’ll want to use an unweighted spinner with a worm suspect) that as the seasons change and the fishing on it (only if it’s legal in the location you’re fishing).

conditions change, the most effective lures and Then allow it to drift along the bottom of the body spinners also change. This is only normal.

of water with just enough split shot added to keep it

there for a while.

Here are some of the best spring trout lures a

novice angler could use (even a veteran spin trout

This is easy enough to prepare. Knot a lightweight

fisherman!).

spinner with either one or two Colorado-style blades

onto a 4 pound test line. Then you place a small

1. The Weighted Spinner

garden worm onto this. Some anglers prefer

Irresistible. That’s what most stocked trout think nightcrawlers for this purpose. You may want to try about this in-line spinner with a weighted shank. (Yes! these as well.

I surveyed these fish myself, thank you!)

You’ll then want to pinch from one to three split

You’ll soon discover, if you haven’t already, that shot sinkers on the line. Do this about 10 inches the major challenge to spring trout fishing with above the lure. If you can’t use bait, then you can spinners is choosing just the right lure. If the spinner use (now get this!) a swatch of squirrel hair!

is too light, it’ll pass overhead and out of reach of

At this point, flip the rig up and then across the

the trout who are hugging the bottom.

current. You’ll want to hold the rod high. In this way,

But if you choose one that’s too heavy or even you can feel the lure ticking on the rocks. The slightest one that is retrieved too slowly, then it gets hung up tug, by the way, requires a quick hook-set.

on the rocks. What to do? Bring a large assortment. 3. Spoons

Then I just have one word for you: experiment.

These come in all types of shapes, weights, and

If Itís Not Broke . . .

sizes. But, you needn’t concern yourself much with

When you start getting strikes, stick with it until it choice if the trout season is young. Early in the season quits working. It’s part of my overall strategy that I you’ll want to use spoons that are heavy and compact.

talk about throughout this book: if it’s not broke In fact, you really don’t want to use any type of spoon don’t fix it. And if it is broke, keep trying something that’s longer than one inch.

till it works.

Don’t know what a spoon is? You might not.

Most of the time, the successful trout spinner I certainly didn’t when I first started. It’s full angler casts upstream. Sometimes you’ll notice they name is a casting spoon and they’re metal lures.