Some Do and Some Don’t

Have you ever experienced a fishing trip, whether it is with friends or with a guide, where one person seems to catch the most and biggest fish? Why is it that one certain angler seems to catch the bigger fish all the time? Is it because he is lucky and is always at the right place at the right time. I tend to believe luck plays a small part, but nothing plays a bigger role than experience on the water. Your time on the water is and should be a lesson in the big blue classroom. Your equipment is the tool needed to master the objective. And one of the greatest things about fishing is that the only time you fail is when you fail to learn or simply give up. Certainly, nothing is more important than experience on the water, and through this experience, that one angler seems to put himself in the right place at the right time.

On a recent trip I teamed up with Capt. Tricia, we had our clients stretched out in a line working a sand and shell bottom. As we waded forward, no one but Capt. Tricia was doing the catching. All of us were working the same area, but she was doing something different. Her retrieve was slower than normal. The fish were hugging the bottom, and they did not want to move too fast or too far for their food. A slow retrieve was what the fish were wanting. Everyone moved over to where she was fishing. Consequently, moving over to where she was did not bring any success to the anglers. It was her retrieve and rod action that enticed a strike and a tight line. As soon as the group mimicked her technique, they began catching fish.

If you are fishing with one or several fishermen and one of the fishermen is doing more catching, pay attention to his or her technique. How is he or she working the rod tip? Is it a fast or slow retrieve? Be sure to match the type of bait that is working at the time. When fishing a general area and one fisherman is catching while the rest are not, that fisherman is probably doing something a little different that is bringing success.

On some of my "big fish" trips where the client's request is to catch a fish of a lifetime, I have observed many times why one angler from the group seems to do better than the rest. That successful angler seems to be very observant of his or her surroundings. He will notice that small break in the water from nervous bait trying to escape a predator. His wade is much quieter. He won't send off wakes that alert the fish of his presence. He is willing to work the area very thoroughly when everyone else is wading as if they have an outboard tied on to their back. He doesn't throw everything in the tackle box but tends to stick to what he has the most confidence in. He doesn't mind wading in mud, sand, shell or any bottom that stands between him and the trophy fish. Most importantly, such anglers are good listeners, quick learners with great patience, and always seem to be more persistent than the fish pursued. Do they always succeed? Yes, even when their prize is not caught, they always take it as a lesson learned. And does it stop there? Certainly not, this is where experience is earned and not taught.

The last few months we have been targeting big fish. I tend to make it a practice to instruct my anglers before they jump off the boat concerning any details that might be beneficial in landing a trophy. The most important instruction I give them is to work the area slowly and thoroughly. Some listen, but some do not. Those that listen to the advice of local knowledge are usually most successful in landing a trophy fish.

Several groups that I have fished with recently come to mind as groups that have done everything that it takes to increase their chances at landing a trophy. There have been times where I told a group that we would be working a small area for five hours. At times, I have instructed my fishermen to stay put and cast meticulously in the same area for three solid hours. Sometimes we had to fish an area no more than a hundred yards long for hours on end. If the wade did not produce the desired fish, we did it all over again. The fishermen that had what it took, meaning patience, perseverance and sticking to the game plan, were kindly rewarded with a personal best fish.

Being a successful angler will take experience, patience, perseverance, good listening, and a quick learning of the sport. Possessing all of these traits and having the right equipment in your hands will land you in the "Do" rather than in the "Don't" column. If you already possess them, get out there and continue chasing that fish of a lifetime. Remember never stop learning. If there is a deficiency in these qualities, it is time to challenge yourself to become the angler that you would like to become.