Dock Fishing With My Grandsons

English: lily pads floating in a lake in Toron...Image via WikipediaWe have been having a wonderful winter around here.  60+ degree weather and very calm days.  I picked up my grandsons a few days ago and went to a small lake with a boat dock.

The water around the dock is about 4 to 6 feet deep and has bulrushes, lily pads and other water plants surrounding it.

The boys rigged up drop-shot rigs with long shanked #4 hooks and the line from the hook to the sinker about three feet long.  This kept the hook just under the tops of the pads - where the fish were.

At first they tried 2 inch Bass Assassins and the Crappie just loved it. After about an hour the bite slaked off - the boys were getting bites just no hookups.  We finally figured out that the Crappie were tired of getting caught and the Bluegill had moved in.

We changed out the #4 long hooks for #4 short drop-shot hooks.  A small plastic trout type worm was placed lengthwise on the hook and the Bluegill bite got interesting.

When the Bluegill tried to play with the worm they hooked themselves on the short shank hook and the boys reeled them in.

They got about 20 keepers so as I took them home and cleaned all of them, stuck them in the freezer and we are going to have a fish fry this weekend.

Go fishing when it is warm enough, it is fun, relaxing, calming and good for you.  Take a kid along if you can it makes fishing even more fun!

Good Luck and good fishing.

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Why Night Fishing? Why Not?

Deutsch: Der Vollmond, fotografiert in Hamois ...Image via Wikipedia
I love to fish at night. The lakes I go to don't have the water skiers trying to fill my boat with water and because I don't get to go out and fish during the day due of my work.  I've noticed that night fishing offers you the slightly better conditions than daytime: the lakes are not as crowded, the fish don't seem to be spooked as easily and they seem to bite better.

I've also noticed that when you find a good day time fishing spot, you should try coming back to it at night and you may net even more fish, and sometimes larger ones. Although I don't really know why the fish bite at night.

One major drawback - it's harder to see your line, so I use a lighted bobber or fish using a floating light. The plankton are drawn to the light followed by minnows followed by the larger fish, Blue gill, Perch and Crappie.  Once in a while you may catch a bass, sometime a walleye and once I had a fair sized pike bite and immediately break my line!

You should really try night fishing, but be very sure your area weather forecast is good for the night. It's going to be difficult enough moving around and finding things in the dark; if you go out night fishing during bad weather, it can get dangerous. Wear you life jacket and move slowly.  Make sure you know where the dock or boat ramp is.

Here's one tip to make your night fishing even better: Watch the moon!  You may be surprised at the things you learn. One thing you're most likely to notice is that some fish hide in the shadows during a full moon. I can't tell you why because I don't know myself, but that's what I and my night fishing friends have observed, anyway. So now when you find some shadows on the water, you'll know where to cast your line.

Other time fish go on a feeding frenzy during a full moon.  Maybe they can see their prey better highlighted against a lighter surface, who knows.

I do know that fall night time fishing really picks up around where I live during a full moon.  Try night fishing if at all possible, you beat the heat of summer and it is very relaxing, the lake is less noisy and usually you are the only one out there.

Good Luck and Good Fishing

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Using the Drop Shot Rig

OK now you know how to make a drop-shot rig you need to know the best way to fish it.  Now most of the time I use a 1/8 to 1/4 ounce weight.

When fishing lily pads or floating week mats I may go up to a 1/2 oz. bullet weight with the tapered end pointing away from the bait or lure.  This helps the weight punch through the pads or mat.

Here is a video showing the best way to fish the drop shot rig.




Just remember to keep the line pinched between your thumb and forefinger, please.   I  just let it rest on the webbing between my thumb and forefinger until I had a large fish take my lure and rip line off my reel.  It took 7 stitches to close the cut the line make in my skin.
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