Fishing Forum

Hello all my name is Mo and I am extremely sorry if I posted this in the wrong area, I am a noobie to this forum and I might as well be a noob at fishing also. I live by Lake Milton Ohio and my whole life I have fished on the shore and seemed to never have any luck no matter what I did or who I went with, finally after years of never really knowing anything about fishing and no one who knew better to teach me, I have became fed up with it and have now turned to the internet (you guys) for some much needed help. I went fishing on a boat awhile back which inspired me to buy one myself, I decided on a fish/ski boat its an older 1980 somethin 4 winnz horizon, its very nice and seems well suited for fishing and tubing, but anyways I have alot of questions and if anyone can help me or guide me the way I need to go it would be much appriciated. My questions are as follows...
1) I like to troll but what speed and depth should I troll, and what kind of fish do I quest for and What kind of bait is needed.
2) How do I know what baits to use and when?
3) What are the best fish to quest for in my area?
4) What should I fill my tackle box with?
5) Should I troll, fishh off bottom, off of a bobber, cast and real?
6) What other tips are there like Being Quiet, rinse hands in water and rub bait on them?
7) My list gos on and on and on and on. To put it simply, I can setup my poles and equipment but I dont know anything about Fish, lures, baits, setups or How To Have A Successfull Fishing Trip
So I beg of you someone anyone find it in your heart to help out a fellow person who has a great love for fishing but doesnt know the first thing to do about it.
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howdy doo, and welcome to our site. you could not have come to a better place to seek answers to your questions.

I hope you will take time and explore the rest of our site and othe boards both regeonal and topical. they all have a lot to offer.

I will toss you a worm or two, make sure you take time to hand write it down, not copy and paist. there is a lot of info that is realy to much to remember all at one time so writing it down will help to make as much as posible stick.

1)[#ff0000] I like to troll but what speed and depth should I troll, and what kind of fish do I quest for and What kind of bait is needed.[/#ff0000]


[ul][ul][li]the speed greatly depends on what you are fishing for and they type of water you are fishing in adition to the type of rig you are using. This one question can go on for pages and pages. mostly because every angler has their own prefferance to wich has best produced for them. I will give you a genneral speed and when you come up with a body of water wich can remain nameless if you like and the species of fish you wish to target we can give you a more indepth answer to help you be more productive.[/li][li]trolling speeds are from 0-12 miles an hour. and yes, you can be productive at both zero and twelve miles an hour. One would wonder how you would troll at those speeds. the answer is quite simple, to troll at zero miles an hour, you get in to a river and with your trolling motor mounted to the front of your boat, you maintain a speed that keeps you in place.[/li][li]a good way to konw what speed to use is, look at the packaging of the lure you have bought. some of the higher end quality lures actualy have printed details as to weather they are surface lures or diving lures and how much line out will equal the dive the lure will make.[/li][li]to give you the best answer, open your box and pull out a lure. if you dont know the name of it, take a digital pic and post it here, we will be happy to tell you how to use it. The last thing you want at this point in time is to have a thousand people to tell you to go buy a couple G's worth of lures that dont catch flying carp let alone anything else untill you have learned to master it. So its best to learn how to use what you have before picking up any more.[/li][li]Exception to the above sugestion, there are a couple lures that every one should have in their box. Thiese lures are a must for all beginners and yes they are on stock in every master angler's tackle box. a small yellow Rooster Tail, Black or Frog colored Jitter Bug, a three inch silver rapala, a six inch silver split repala. a split repala is a lure that is jointed in the middle, just ask at any tackle shop and they will put you right on them.[/li][/ul][/ul]

2) [#bf0000]How do I know what baits to use and when?[/#bf0000]


[ul][ul][li]the genneral rule is, on sunny days use dark colors and on cloudy days use light colors[/li][li]Choosing between artificial lures and live bait rigs is realy an anglers choice, to each his own. I use both. some anglers only use live and others use artificial. one works as well as the other. How ever, I have seen a lot of artificial lure anglers use sents on their lures to help intice a bite while others dont use anything at all except the power of agrivation.[/li][li]the other thing of knowing what and when depends greatly on the species you are targeting. Just note that any lure can catch any kind of fish, I have caught carp on flies and catfish on dare devils.[/li][li]the other rule is match the hatch. If you know what a fish is feeding on at a particular time of year, then use the lure or fly or live bait that best resembles what they are feeding on.[/li][/ul][/ul]


3) [#bf0000]What are the best fish to quest for in my area?[/#bf0000]


[ul][li]I am in southern michigan so I dont know exactly what is best for your lake, but in our genneral regeon guys like to target, Carp, Cats - flatheads - blue chanel - grey chanel - bullheads, Small Mouth Bass, Large Mouth Bass, Striped Bass, Gills, Crappie, Perch, Pike, Muskie, Tiger Muskie, Walleye, Trout/Salmon.[/li][/ul]

4) [#bf0000]What should I fill my tackle box with?[/#bf0000]


[ul][ul][li]This will cost a pretty franklin or two. It is nothing to spend a franklin every year on restocking your box. This is why a lot of anglers like artificial lures. unless lost or damaged you get more fishing life out of your franklin.[/li][li]before we tell you what kind of stock to fill your box with, tell us which type of angler you want to be. [/li]

[ul][li]An artificial lure angler[/li][li]Live Bait angler[/li][li]General angler - like myself.[/li][/ul][li]no one type is more or less productive than the other, some days one will out produce over the other, and that can varie from angler to angler on what they know and how they chose to represent.[/li][li]Terminal tackle is a must for every angler. so here is a list of some of this stuff.[/li]

[ul][li]swivel snaps[/li][li]barrol swivels[/li][li]bobbers of different sizes, and dont laugh because I do have bobbers half the size of marbles and the size of softballs. and I use every size. note you only need bobbers if you are using live bait.[/li][li]sinkers of various styles and sizes. [/li][li]extra line slightly lighter than the line on your reel to make leaders out of.[/li][li]forseps, a couple different sizes depending on what you are targeting. In case you dont know what a forsep is, it is one of those neadle noze clamps used in hospitols to stop arteries from bleeding, every tackle shop carries them now-a-daze. this is escentual if you want to take the hook out and release the fish safely.[/li][li]a couple stringers, yes two because you will use one and forget to put it back. the type you get is anglers prefference, I have used them all, one works as good as another.[/li][li]Trebble hooks, half dozen of every size available or match the sizes on your lures, not only can you use them for live rigs you can use them as replacements for lures where hooks have been streightend out or broken, you can some times bend a streightened trebble back, but it will never be the same as new again.[/li][li]steal leaders, you need them for live bait rigs or artificial lures.[/li][li]Bug and Sun repellent[/li][li]some kind of small first aid kit if you dont already have one in your boat.[/li][li]neadle nose pliers that have wire cutters, you never know when you will need to push a hook all the way though and cut off a barb so you can get the hook out of your finger. or need to clamp down on a split shot sinker.[/li][li]this is why I say start with opening your box and take inventory. learn what you have before stocking it with anything else, it can get quite expencive to start up cold turkey. It took years for me to fill my box and over the last 10 years I have dumped a cool grand into my box just replacing what I have.[/li][/ul][/ul][/ul]

5) [#bf0000]Should I troll, fishh off bottom, off of a bobber, cast and real? [/#bf0000]


[ul][ul][li]This depends on first what your targeting and the rig you are using. I use all of those methods. I like to keep my options open[/li][/ul][/ul]

6) [#bf0000]What other tips are there like Being Quiet, rinse hands in water and rub bait on them? [/#bf0000]


[ul][li]start at home, use a good cleansing soap. "no I dont mean irish spring or lava or any other sented soap" unsented is the best, if your wife is in to facial soaps that is good for fishing because it lacks perfumes. It dosnt hurt to keep a bar in your tackle box, you never know when it will be your turn to gas the boat on the way to the lake.[/li][li]you can wash your hands it the water your are fishing, just like deer hunting it helps to blend in. and no, tie sents will not scare the fish away. If I could put a tie on a hook I would fish with it [:p][/li][/ul]

7) [#bf0000]My list gos on and on and on and on. To put it simply, I can setup my poles and equipment but I dont know anything about Fish, lures, baits, setups or How To Have A Successfull Fishing Trip[/#bf0000]



[ul][ul][li]First and formost, I will tell you the same thing I tell everyone else, RedeFine your perception of a Successfull Fishing Trip.[/li]

[ul][li]the fact you went fishing meant it was successfull[/li]

[ul][li]baring acidents and deaths[/li][/ul][li]productive means you harvested or caught and relased or acheived the goal you entended when you set out.[/li][li]Lay them questions on us, it is seldom we get stumped here excpet for info on spicific lakes. I dont have enough gas money to fish every public lake in the contry let alone in the county of wich I live in.

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Hi ItzAllXero,

We have a pretty nice beginner's guide to fishing. Check it out here.

Please check our faq before posting links.

Also, if you're looking for a place to actually fish, then check out the page of your state. Pretty cool google map locations with fish species in each area.
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That is a large list of info you need. Welcome to the site and hope we can help. Dave has already given you a lot of info. You will find that as you progress in your learning and skill that one tackle box will not be enough. I got 7![laugh] All set up for different kinds of fish and fishing from warm water to cold water to float tubing to hiking in to fishing small streams to rivers. First find what kind of fish you want to catch then build your box from there. Some baits will catch all speceis and others are more specialized toward one species. Since I am farther west than you I do not know what you have there in your area and what the water conditions are like. Most of my fishing holes are clear streams or lakes that make it very challenging since you can see the fish in deep water they can see you too.
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Well, Fishing is not that hard. If you have a boat you need or you might have a fishfinder,with this little unit it will tell you how deep the lake,river is and also it will tell you at what depth the fish are.It all depends what kind of fish you are going after, here where I live walleye can be caught by trolling or by putting the anchor in the water and bounce your bait off the bottom.You may watch some fishing show on the TV. and You tube?
Just a though...
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Hi Mo, my name is Dan, I'm a relative noobie to this forum as well but I've been fishing for a while. 1 thing that I find makes or breaks fishing is anticipating the weather and conditions. A fishing buddy of mine told me about this great resource called ScoutLookWeather that not only is super accurate but it also has great resources (tools) that are excellent for predicting wind speeds and direction over the water so you can choose the best spot to fish. I'm getting super stoked for my fishing trip in April with my buddies. Do you have any fun fishing trips planned in the coming months?
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Thank you all for the advise i appriciate it, as far as what kind of lures i want to use im in the same boat as you, live artifical ill use whatever seems to work. and whoever the new guy was no i have no special trips planned just planning to fish as soon as the weather is nice enough for me, how about you, and you from ohio?
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Before you buy a single item, you need to determine what species of fish are prominent in the body of water you are fishing, and you need to study them. That is such a important key to actually catching fish, and is often over looked or not relayed to new anglers.

All the information you've been provided is great in it's own right, but it's mostly universal. If you really want to be sucessful, you need to fine tune that information into a specific species. It's kind of like shooting. If you just aim for the paper, you'll probably hit the paper most of the time. If you aim for the little black dot in the center, you'll hit the paper every time.

Becoming a great angler isn't determined by how well you can catch fish when they are biting, it's how well you can catch fish when they aren't. The key to that is understanding your target species, and what makes them tick. When you figure out something that works, right it down. Keep a log, so when you run into those conditions again, you'll know what to do and where to do it, in order to catch fish.

For example, you want to target blue catfish. Well, they like a quick current, live or fresh bait, holes and/or the shallows, and mild structure. they hunt primarily by scent, but have good vision. What types of natural baits are in your area? Shad? Crawfish? Eel? What water temps do they prefer? When is the spawn for your area? All these things play a HUGE role in where you'll fish at what time of day, and what tactics to use. Now, that's not even part of it, just an idea of what i'm talking about. Moon phase, air and surface water temps, pressure, etc.. can effect the feeding phases of fish, and how they feed.

Someone mentioned electronics. Well, a boat with out a good Sonar/GPS unit is blind. Unless you've got super fish physcic powers, you may want to invest in some good electronics and learn how to use them. A quality Sonar will give you surface water temps, show you where the thermocline is in the water column(key when fishing deeper water), identify hidden structure under the water, tell you what type of bottom your over(hard bottom , mud, sand), and of course mark fish. You'll also be able to mark the area with the GPS/Plotter, so you'll be able to find the spot again another day.

Anyone can bait up a bobber rig, toss it in a bush in the summer, and catch a pan fish. Successfully targeting multiple species takes skill and patients, and you'll always learn something new every trip, no matter how good you become.

You need to hook up with a seasoned local angler and have them take you out on your boat. Pay for the fuel and bait, and buy them beer and lunch. Give them the helm and you do nothing but sit back and learn. You could also take a charter on a local lake, and note what they are doing. When I first got stationed in Guam years ago, that's what I did. I went out on two seperate charters around the island, and that's all it took. Have a gander at my photo album if you need clarification. I killed the fish from there on out, on my own, after only two trips worth of local knowledge. [] Local tackle shops are normally a good place to get up to date info on the fishing conditions, and find out what's biting also. One thing about fisherman, we can't keep our mouths shut when we have a good day on the water. Somebody knows something, and it's usually the tackle shops. [cool]

So, get some Asprin and a few books, and start doing research. Buy a good sonar, like a high def Lowrance or Garmin. Once you've got that figured out, post up something on here of a more specific nature, and watch your cooler fill up with fish.
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