Newbie

[Mitcher]

Hi haven't been on the boards in a long time almost a year. But last year i started fishing for the first time for something for me and my daughter to do, so im not very good, i didnt catch anything really last year so after about a month of fishing i gave up. I am back this year to try again. All there really is around my area is a small river that runs into a man made small lake. I dont have a boat so can only fish off the shore.

So i know the basics of how to do texas rig and have an assortment of worms but have never caught anything using them. Could it be that im using too big of worms for what im fishing for, or am i just probably getting bites and not feeling them. The only thing i do catch fish on is a rooster tale, the 2 fish i caught yesterday, (1 trout, 1 bass) where on that and the one was my first cast into the river, and the 2nd one was after i had tried a few other baits and went back to the rooster tail and my 2nd or 3rd cast in i caught the bass. I really want to try to get better with plastics but cant catch a single thing with them and it isnt much fun. So really could use some help.

Also this may be a weird question but after you use a plastic worm, and with me atleast i never get any bites and the worm is still in great condition, is it ok to put it back in the bag to get the scent back or is this something i shouldn't do.
Thanks
Mitch

[3dkicker]

Do a search on worms, worm fishing, and weights. Should be a bunch of posts with this information. I'd stick to 4" ring worms or small finesse worms.
Also there is a post right now on fishing small creeks or streams "small creek smallies". Check it out. Wading small streams in the summer is an excellent way to learn to fish. Rooster tails are excellent baits to use in streams, don't give up on them.

[scrap]

get yourself some live worms/wax worms/grasshoppers in season and start out that way. bend the barb back on the hook for easy release. then move on to other lures, plastics, techniques. better to start catching and feeling good than getting skunked and miserable. (yes, a ton of flack about live bait,
but that is my 2 cents) i dont use live bait myself. he just wants to get started again. just one way...

[Mitcher]

went again today fished for 2 hours and only caught 1 rock bass that was about 3 inches on a kastmaster. I tried live worms, a Yum dinger or two, lizards, rooster tail, a 1/8 rat-l-trap, tiny torpedo, nothing else worked and all i got was that tiny little bass. Not sure what im doing wrong but isnt much fun.

[Rebbasser]

Mitcher-give us a little more info on where you fish. Stuff like water clarity-clear, stained, muddy, chocolate milk-and cover-flooded trees, grass, rock, etc. That way we can give you some specifics.

Sure you can put the worm back in the bag-makes them last longer

[Mitcher]

Well its a small river place i was today was probably 30 yards across and is a larger part of the river, rest is somewhere between 10 and 20 yards across, not real sure on how deep. The water clarity is pretty clear for a river, no big rainfalls as of late that would stir up any dirt really. I cant see my lure when i cast it out, has to be within 10 feet before i can see it. On my side there wasnt any structure really. on the other side there were some trees that were down, also a "singing" bridge goes across the river where i was fishing and moves more quickly there then turns into real slow moving almost swirls cause on my side stuff was floating up stream and on the other side my lures were going downstream. And as far as the bottom go only got snagged hard once on the bottom, besides that just little sticks and grass.
Thanks
Mitch

[Rebbasser]

Mitcher-the current is the key, or to be more specific the current breaks-anything that causes slack water. The fish will position themselves in the slack water facing upstream. When something edible floats by they will dart out, grab it and head back to the slack water.

Throw your bait upstream-very important-and retrieve it with the current. If you pull it upstream against the current it won't look natural. As it comes by the break pull it into the slack water.

I very rarely fish river currents, but when I do weightless soft plastics,curl tail grubs on a jighead, and a jig and pig are the main baits I throw. Try throwing one of your plastic worms without a weight and see what happens. I doubt the worms you have are too big-more than once I've caught fish that were either the same size or snaller than the bait I was throwing. I'd love to know what they were thinking .

[OUTLAW]

Mitch,
The Reb is right,Current,How fast is it going? Look for the breaks,such as a big rock,Logjam,anything that slows down the flow,the fish will be directly behind the structure,facing upstream,and its always tricky casting upstream and trying to get the bait in that spot,it can be done,but With the kids ,its always a better chance to fish the lake area,Use Live bait,minnows & a bobber. Stillwater is the best place to learn how to fish.And It will be more fun & easier than fighting with a current.Most importantly ,Have fun.

[pbruessow@msn.com]

Plastics take some time to get the feel for the bite. Be a line watcher, not just feeling for a strike. Sometimes the bass will just stop the lure as it is flowing down with the current or it may even move sideways vs. down current! In current, it's real hard to feel the bite. Once you see or feel the bite, real down quickly until slight tension is felt, then rear back. This is quite a bit different than fishing with live bait where you can set the hook with a lil jerk. Use a quality work hook with a very sharp point like Gamakatsu's. For river fishing, I'd use a 1/4 ounce weight if deeper than 3 ft. Look for any incoming creeks as these are good ambush areas. Logs or stumps are great, cast right above them and let the current bring the bait down past them.

Try to work parallel to the shore. If there are weeds, cast upstream parallel to the shoreline and let the current bring the worm down past the weeds.

Another good lure is a silver.black back shadrap #5 or #7 depending on the depth.

Try some farm ponds and work parallel to the shoreline instead of casting right in the middle. Good Luck!