Why the hell do I never catch anything

[SonofWWIIDI]

Two guaranteed ways to catch fish:

[mif_slim]

I dont know... i say its 50/50 luck/skills.

Why? Im pretty lucky at fishing. But one species i never landed, Carp. There was a large school and all my buddies and i were using the same bait from the same jar. Same length leader and bobber (we all used one if my friends tackle box because he loves carp fishing). Everyone got bites but me.

I would cast right next to a friends bobber, carp will take his. I leave mines forever, a buddy cast his next to mines and he gets a bit. Happen for over 15 years. Lol. I still get skunked fishing for Carp. Anything else, im good.

Basically, OP, learn to fish and pray luck is on your side. Haha.

[Southwest Chuck]

I dont know... i say its 50/50 luck/skills.

Why? Im pretty lucky at fishing. But one species i never landed, Carp. There was a large school and all my buddies and i were using the same bait from the same jar. Same length leader and bobber (we all used one if my friends tackle box because he loves carp fishing). Everyone got bites but me.

I would cast right next to a friends bobber, carp will take his. I leave mines forever, a buddy cast his next to mines and he gets a bit. Happen for over 15 years. Lol. I still get skunked fishing for Carp. Anything else, im good.

Basically, OP, learn to fish and pray luck is on your side. Haha.

Do a change-up. Use Corn. Never fails on carp!

[BluNorthern]

When I figure it out I'll get back to you.

[ratled]

10% of the fishermen catch 90% of the fish. Make some new buddies on the fishing forums and learn how to properly fish. It's skill not luck. Be prepared to bring sando's and pay for gas and a lot of guys will show you the ropes.

^^^^THIS^^^^^^

Beer and gas are cheaper than guides

ratled

[bigbossman]

No one in this town could catch any fish except this one man.

The game warden asked him how he did it so the man told the game warden that he would take him fishing the next day.

Once they got to the middle of the lake the man took out a stick of dynamite, lit it, and threw it in the water. After the explosion fish started floating to the top of the water. The man took out a net and started picking up the fish.

The game warden told him that this was illegal. The man took out another stick of dynamite and lit it. He then tossed it into the game warden's lap and said "are you going to talk or are you going to fish?"

[GMG]

I can never seem to catch anything be it at the lake or on the coast. When fishing for bass I use all the stuff for bass and when I fish in the salt water I use squid. I have caught stuff with squid before. What the hell am I doing wrong ? I love being out there but would like it if I could catch something as well

That's why they call it fishing and not catching.

[krwada]

Fishing

I am an avid fishing type person.

I can say this much for certain ... There are two ways to get better.

1. The slow method ... go out, and fish ALOT! Try different things and keep doing whatever you find works.

2. A bit quicker method... go out with someone who is very good. Have them teach you proper rigging and all the tricks of the trade.

In any event ... You need to go out and fish ALOT.

With ocean fishing, it is best to get on a charter boat with a decent captain. Also, the deck hand can teach you a thing or two with proper rigging.

I have gone out fishing a lot. There are times that there are fellows next to me complaining that they are not catching anything. Sometimes, they come up to me and ask me how I do it.

What I usually do, is go over to where they are fishing and check out their rigs. Usually, I can spot the problem with how they are rigging and how they are presenting their rigs.

For fresh water lake fishing, my favorite is using soft plastics and lures. However, I do not get many hookups this way. Usually, in the early morning, I use the soft plastics, lures, top water ... spinner baits. Then, as the day wears on, and I decide to catch dinner ... it is bait for me.

My very best way of catching fresh water fish, (bass, crappie, bluegill), is to use a slip bobber with a minnow or night crawler or wax or meal worms. I usually come home with enough to feed a family of four this way.

On ocean fishing trips, I usually use light tackle. That is unless I go out to the edge of the shelf, (Farallon Islands). The problem with the Farallon today is that area is now protected and you are no longer allowed to fish there.

Anyhow, for ocean fishing ... I usually use diamond bars, jigs, shrimp flies, big senkos, big gitzits and scampi. I usually tip these things with a strip of squid. Usually, I clean the squid and turn them into 3 to 6" long strips. These strips are fished like bass pork rinds ... only in ocean water. In general, it is no problem for my friends and I to catch our limits of ling cod, cabezon and other rock fish.

For salmon, I usually have the deck hand rig me up. Usually, we use a spinner rig with an anchovy. I usually prefer trolling over mooching. I usually use a 10 oz lead ball attached to a drop rig and troll down at around 30 pulls or so. The last time I went salmon fishing, I caught and released a silver and a coho. I managed to win the prize by hooking and landing a 30lb king!

For tuna/albacore, I usually prefer live anchovy hooked on the back under the dorsal fin. Usually, this is a slip sinker rig with a small size-0 hook. The sinker is one of those that has the rubber insert that slips on the line itself. Again, you want to go light with these things.

For striped bass, I prefer to fish in waters that are really clear and full of bait. Usually, for these conditions, fishing with cut bait like pogey's or sardines will not do it. You will need to either use live bait on a drift line, or my favorite ... something bright and shiny! Usually, for this kind of fishing, I use a heavy duty fresh water bassing rig and my lure of choice is the 1 oz castmaster with a buck-hair tail. I caught and released some very nice bass when I was traveling up in Kennebunkport Maine. The best thing about fishing the New England coast is that NO FISHING license is required for that kind of fishing!

For catfish, I prefer to use frozen anchovy. Usually, what I do here is use a modified drop-shot rig with a 1/2 to 1 ounce sinker. I then cut the back of the anchovy just behind the head, and pull the head along with the guts. I then rig up the anchovy head with guts onto a #4 octopus hook and toss the thing out. I then VERY SLOWLY ... drag that thing back towards me ... check the bait, then toss the thing out again. I have caught a lot of catfish this way.

[just in joy]

Proper Line rating is Important for most species of fish for trout I am usually around 2-6lb and that depends on the clarity of the water clear water I go 2lb dark murky water 4-6. I have many different rods and reels so it is simply swapping a set up out. Bass I have only fished Stripped Bass and I always used Live Shad for that. Trout I like fishing the top of the water temp permits it ( which is a float and worm)

Biggest thing is to know where the fish are. I did lots of reading to become proficient in specific species of fish. I Mostly fished Stripped Bass In Nevada and Salmon & Steel head in Washington State.

Here in Cali. I haven't fished enough to figure it out. I tried a few times on the Oceanside pier and also Dixon lake I caught fish but it was a Fluke Pure Luck as I did not know if fish where down where we were fishing or not. Fishing the Pier is Boring to me sit and wait and doing that in the sun and sometimes cold.

My Idea on Charters are for those that do not have a boat to take out themselves or for the person like me that wants to learn that system of water. I paid for a guide 2 times while in Washington state and both times I did not catch a fish. I went back with my fishing buddies and we limit out with in 4 hours. These are rivers that where not known to my buddy and I but we wanted to fish them but didn't know anything about the rivers.

Patients Luck skill and learning to read water and fish habits ( IE spawning habits what they eat during the time of year you are fishing and where they will be at when the water is a certain temp)

[stoeger562]

1st its called fishing not catching
2nd bring beer to always catch a buzz

lol,,,,naw try different things and always ask locals whats good. Remeber, What will work on a cold cloudy day down by the rocks may not work, on a warm windy day past the dock

for the longest trout eluded me because my line was to thick- once 1 switched to 2lbs test couldn't keep them off.


for freashwater trout jigs i like best are. Thomas buoyant watermellon flick in moving water medium retrieve &
Panther Martin spinner- black with yellow spots..flick wherever shade is hitting the water, slow twitching retrieval.

[krwada]

Carp

Do a change-up. Use Corn. Never fails on carp!

I have found that carp will eat just about anything.

And yes ... they especially like canned corn and bread dough.

I have caught a lot of carp.

I remember my youngest told me that he wanted catch and eat some carp. To which I asked ... "Are you sure you want to catch and eat some carp?" To which he said ... "YEAH!!!"

I then took out our lunch and took some of the bread and rolled it up into a nice round ball of dough. I then changed his rig to a sliding sinker rig and showed him where to cast. (Usually near the edge of a concrete out-cropping).

Lo, and behold, he hooked up a nice sized carp! Then he hooked up a couple of more.

Then he complained ... He said ... "Dad! these fish do not fight ... I mean when they first get hooked, they fight ... then all of a sudden they quit .... it is like dragging a boot!"

Then I said ... "Well ... that is carp for ya!"

We got home, I cleaned the things and fried them up. Actually, they were quite tasty ... but all full of bones!

At this point ... My youngest no longer insisted on going carp fishing.

Some folks do not mind the bones. The meat of a carp is very flavorful however ... it is just ... all those bones!

[teg33]

Use Hoppe gun oil, it attract fish like magnet

[MJB]

Think like a fish

[stoeger562]

put the tip of the pole in the water and press the other end to your ear to hear if there close.

[krwada]

Cripplure

For lake fishing for trout or kokanee; almost nothing beats the cripplure. This thing is based on the time tested design of the original Luhr Jensen Super Duper metal spoon.

I got a chance to meet the inventor of the cripplure, Gary Miralles of the Shasta Fishing and Tackle Company. Gary told me that he too really liked the action of the Super Duper. However, he was inspired, (over 35 years ago), when he was playing with one of those Boy Scout metal belt loops. He thought that modifying it would make a very good spoon ... and the cripplure was born!

I remember a few years ago ... I was up in the Northern Maine area, (Blue Hills region). I asked the locals that I wanted to catch a lot of fish. They all told me to go to a very specific pier where the lobster boats put out. They said that I could catch all the mackerel I wanted there.

I go out and rig up a Cripplure spoon, and toss the thing out ... and I get a strike when the thing hits the water! About a half hour later, some guys come up with 3 5-gallon buckets. They asked how the fishing was. I told them that I had caught and released at least a dozen mackerel in the 20 minutes that I was there.

So, they go and put some cut bait on their lines. They also asked me that instead of me releasing the fish, if it would be OK for me to dump my catch in their buckets. So ... I said "Yeah ... sure... why not?"

So, I keep dumping mackerel into their buckets and they asked me ... "How are you doing this? We are not getting a single hookup?" To which I told them ... "Look at the water! It is just alive with bait ... Cut bait will not work ... You need to send something bright and shiny ... In fact ... if you put 5 bright and shiny spoons or lures on your line ... You will most likely reel in 5 fish!" I reeled up, and showed them a bright silver cripplure that I was using. And sure enough, they started showing me their tackle box.

Sure enough, I spot some humdingers and Super Dupers in there, and some Swedish spoons! I told them to use these things, and to just toss them out and reel back. They will most certainly catch fish this way.

Here is a link to the Swedish Spoon

As far as humginders... There is only one, the original one designed by Gary Miralles. Here is the link for the Humdinger

In fact, one of the fellows did rig up 5 spoons, and managed to hook up 5 fish with one cast this way!

At the end of about 45 minutes, every single 5 gallon bucket was just brimming with mackerel! I asked what they were gonna do with the fish ... and they said ... "We are gonna fire up the smoker and smoke them! Smoked mackerel is the best!"

As to colors for the Super Duper or Cripplure; I have found that the red tip with gold or red tip with nickel work best with the Super Duper. I have found that the shiny chrome or nickel for the Cripplures are the best overall for trout and other gamefish.