Need help!

[rock34]

Hey guys.....I need some serious help!

 

I need to start this little rant by mentioning that I am a VERY avid fisherman. I have fished all over Canada and put hundreds of hours in every year on the water. Float fishing is one type of fishing that I have never tried until last year (as well as fly fishing but that is a different story)

 

Here is my story of float fishing. I started float fishing about this time last year. I heard there was a good bite on at the Geen and thought that I would give it a try. So I headed there with no waders, my spinning reel and a 7ft rod. Believe it or not I actually hooked up about a 6lb bow but lost it. So that was it, I was hooked to float fishing.

 

I went out and bought some waders, a new rod and a float reel. Througout the spring last year and the fall I went out probably 8-10 times to many different rivers. I went with guys that were expereinced as well as some others who were rookies much like myself. I never had another hook up all year.

 

I guess this rant has come to the fore front because Saturday I made my first outing of the season. I was on the water for 5 hours in what seemed like perfect conditions to me, again without a sniff of a fish.

 

Now having spent anywhere between 80-100 hrs float fishing with NO hook ups I have to believe that I am doing something wrong. At the same time I did manage to head out with a guy who had tonnes of experience and he said I was doing everything correctly.

 

This is what I believe it comes down to, I dont know how to read conditions. I dont know when the fish will be there, where they will be holding, how to get them to strike I guess. This is not something that I am going to be taught over a discussion forum as it comes with experience.

 

If there is anyone looking for a partner at any point please PM me. I live in Waterloo but have no problem driving a few hours for fishing, even if it means leaving at 3am to be there on time, I love the sport.

 

Thanks for listening to my rant. I will by no means stop tyring and teaching myself. I know one day all of these hours on the water will pay off.

 

Cheers!

[kemper]

I bashed the water alongside my dad for years before I ever got a hookup watching him land steelies (actually most of the time he would do the hooking and I the battling) and it drove me nuts because it seemed like I was doing the same things in the same places!

 

I was probably 13 when I started hooking my own, which was probably right about the time I started to understand how to read the current. Once you get that part of it down, the rest is easy.

 

That said, I still get skunked... more often than you would think.

 

Timing, timing timing

[BillM]

River flow, temp, etc etc. Reading the Geen isn't a very simple task compared to some of the ditches around Toronto..

[muddler]

Althoght brief, BillM said a mouthful. Ditch fishing (i've done a lot of that) around Toronto is nothing like fishing the Notty or the Geen. Here's a few thing that might help.

 

1. Get a stream thermometer. I use 50F as my flip point. As the temperature rises to and past 50F I switch to large flies (buggers, clousers). As the temperature is lower than 50F I use roe/egg flies, pinkies and nymph type flies.

 

2. The colder the water (50F and less) the closer to the bottom I fish. Sometimes I have to hit them on the nose.

 

3. Fish structure. Even small mid stream boulder can hold f fish. Look forindicators that boulder are found below. I love to fish wood.

 

4. Use what everybody else is using IF IT'S WORKING. If not try something completely different. Don't get hung up on one kind of bait. You may have the shock of your life.

 

5. Move. Try different spots. Fish everything from frog water to rapids. You may find a location type that's hot for a couple of hours. Fish move.

 

6. When using larger flies (buggers/closers) try a swing and hold. Hold the line tight allowing the float and fly to straighten up below you. The fly will start to slowly rise in the current. Hang on! I've come close to loosing a thousand bucks of rod and reel a few times doing this.

 

7. Take a break and watch the water. Sometimes you'll see insect activity/ minnows being chased etc. An indicator where, and what to fish.

 

8. Use lighter tackle. Ontario rivers don't need anything over 8lb test. I use 10lb mainline and then use tippet material in diameters based on how clear the water is.

 

9. Chat with the guys that are catching fish. Watch them too. Pick up any subtle pointers you can. Sometimes the smallest differences can make a real big impact. I landed over 40 fish (about 10 years ago) on the Notty one day while all around the area I would see a fish or two caught on roe every hour. I was using a purple wooley bugger and I'll bet 80% of my strikes were on the swing as the fly was rising. Sometimes I could see the wake of a trout coming at my fly from 20 feet away. It was like watching a musky trach a surface plug. Heart pounding.

 

10. Set the hok if you float does anything unnatural.

 

muddler

[msp]

River flow, temp, etc etc. Reading the Geen isn't a very simple task compared to some of the ditches around Toronto..

 

 

Ditches ????? Why do people keep calling them ditches.

[rock34]

Thanks for the advice guys.....

Just so you know, my struggles have included many Lake O Tribs. Including the one I fished on Saturday with no luck.

 

Do you guys think that time of day plays a factor? Is morning and evening always better like other types of fishing? I have been led to believe that is not the case for the fish but if you want to get to a pool that has any fish left then it is a must to get their first.

[muddler]

Well, when you can walk 10 feet above a creek that is 10-15 feet across and you can see the bottom clearly in 90% of the creek, it tends to look a lot like a ditch. It's not rocket science where the fish are. There isn't much to reading the water. If it has cover where you can't see bottom, it probably holds fish. Unlike the larger Huron rivers where you have to read the water to find fish.

 

 

As to the time of day, I found that fisherman traffic was the worst thing to deal with. Regarless of the time of day that you fish, if there are a ton of people out there pounding the water, then your odds of catching a fish will be lower than if fewer people are making a racket. Spooked fish are very hard to catch, especially in the Lake O tribs. Either find a spot away from the crowds (lots of leg work) or go at times (even mid day) when the crowds are thinner.

 

I used to get to the river just before day break and I'd have a hlf hour of fishing to myself. Usually I'd hook a couple. Once the crowds got there things slowed down.

 

I usually get to the Notty around 9:30am as a lot of guys are leaving the river. Often I'd have entire streches to myself all day.

 

muddler

Edited March 23, 2009 by muddler

[BillM]

Case in point, I hit the Geen last wednesday and thought I had a decent setup going until Mike came down and laughed at my rigging :)

 

Nothing helps more then time on the water, and getting tips from seasoned vets never hurts!

 

Oh the curse of a river that is called the Notty. That's one river that's owned me every single time I've wet a line with my float setup.

[fish_finder]

Ditches ????? Why do people keep calling them ditches.

 

I'm not sure what else you could call them??!!??

 

You've got alot of great tips here though. Start yourself a notebook. When you have successful trips, write down what was working, air/water temps, flow, etc. That'll help you next year when you are ready to get out again. Make sure to make notes on conditions even if you we'rent having any luck, but other folks around you were. Chances are you we're off by something if others around you are catching fish and you arent.

 

Keep at it! Tight Lines!

 

dave

[jdmls]

Put in the time my friend..Simple as that. If you can, fish alongside some well seasoned steelheaders , this will speed up your success dramatically... detail, detail, detail. I'm talking in your rig, bait, and where your fishing....The biggest failure rate I see out there is come 10am and the fish have turned off, guys stop putting in the effort and would rather choose to fail and go home than stay on their game and work those fish until they hit your offering again.......When all else fails and your really fed up of getting skunked, take a drive down south of the border into NY where the fish are a lot more abundant and your hooking ratio is much greater than here along the north shore.... Not saying its less of a challenge in NY , but just that there are so many more fish, that it ups your odds even with the lack of experience.

Edited March 23, 2009 by JDMLS

[River Rat]

Hmmm....Don't underestimate the knowledge of a good ditch fisherman. I've seen lots of "big water" guys get stumped in the ditches. Crashing up the high side bank (exactly as described) throwing shadows and stompng all over the redds. Kinda funny watching the "experts" running 14ft searcher leads in a 5ft "ditch" pool....hooking fish with pom poms on the outside of the mouth and they don't even realize the fish was flossed. Same technique they use to floss em in the geen and maitland......"swinging" the tailouts.

 

A good steelheader can get fish to hit in any water, and can read all water big and small. It takes time, patience and passion to learn. I've watched countless fish come chasing down baits from 10-15 feet away in big water.....I've even pulled out of fish on 40-50 yard hook sets and seen a huge splash as they chase it down to crush it again. Just stupid! I have had 20 fish days on HUGE clear water flows running double bags in contrasting colors with 5 inch yarn tags hanging out the back......you don't see aggressive fish like that in the ditches....you gotta know how to fish em out there.

 

My opinion only, but it's an educated one.

 

Cheers

 

RR

[rock34]

Thanks for all of the great feedback guys.

I am really about 90% self taught and 10% internet taught at this point....lol

 

I guess the key is to just keep trying, which I clearly was going to do anyway

 

Like I said, if ever looking for a partner I would appreciate the opportunity to fish with any one of you!

Cheers.