In the first
part of this article I discussed some of the ways to more
accurately identify fish holding territory using a sounder.
This was only half the story.
Finding areas that are likely to – or do – hold
fish is only half the battle. Anchoring the boat, and then placing
your bait amongst the fish is the second part of the exercise.
Anchoring the boat is the first and a critical part, putting down
a berley trail that will attract fish to your bait is the second
part, and anchoring the bait is the third, and just as critical
part. But the second and third parts are entirely dependent on
the first.
One of the hardest parts of trying to place the
anchor in the right position is, it is very hard to tell just
where you want to end up. There are very few markers on the water,
usually even less on spot ‘X’. (Especially if someone has shifted
the ‘X’ on the water!)
There is a good marker buoy for this and other purposes
now available. As you pass over the spot just drop the buoy over
the side and the weight drops to the bottom. It is a good and
precise system. (This type of marker-buoy is
easy to make).
Less precise, but pretty effective is to drop a
sheet of newspaper over the side. It does not move in the wind
and is easy to spot.
A few drops of ‘Glow Bait’ in a squeeze container
filled with cooking oil makes an effective and visible marker.
It is amazing how large a non-toxic slick forms from just a little
squirt of oil. This slick is very visible.
Once you have established where the fish are, or
where they are likely to be, you can now work on anchoring the
boat.
Two main factors have to be taken into account:
current and wind direction.
Once you have a marker in position motor up past
the marker at least a far as the water is deep, doubled. For example
if the water is 20 metres deep motor upcurrent and upwind for
60 metres and let the boat drift. If you hit the marker–go back
and anchor. If you don’t–try again. Persistence pays.
Diagram 1 shows the how-to and not to anchor the boat in a straight
line, up-current situation. Diagram 2 shows the problems associated
with anchoring in a current and cross wind.
The next job is to decide on the type of berley (ground-bait or chum)
trail to set up. If there is little or no current a surface berley
trail is ideal. Drifting a lightly or unweighted bait down with
the particles from a surface berley trail is the ideal way to
catch fish. But if the current is too strong, very often the berley
trail will be going over the fishes heads.
If there is any significant current using a weighted
berley container such as ‘Berley-Mate’ down near the bottom is
the way to go.
In either case it is important that the berley is
positioned to attract fish to where your bait is, not away from
it. Observation is the only way of deciding which method to use.
Once the boat is anchored, the next task is to place
your bait in the right place.
It is just about useless to anchor the boat in a position where
the current will push your berley trail back towards where the
fish are holding, and then to drop your bait under the boat, under
the berley trail and away from the fish.
The old advice of using the least amount of weight
to drift your bait down to the fish as naturally as possible,
is still good advice. Trouble is that ‘least amount’ varies from
none to a ton.
There are spots I know where just enough is 2.5gms
and less. There are other spots where two or three kilos is light
tackle. The key to getting it right is good judgment and observation.
Having a good idea how far behind the boat the fish
are, is the start point. Pull off the line in arm lengths, around
about a metre each pull. Allow about another third to cover the
angle, and you can get fairly close.
A thin, small rubber band looped around the line
at this point gives you a good guide for how much line to let
out, on the next drop of the bait.
The article previous to this one, and this one,
form part of a theory. That theory is that what separates the
good fishermen from the not so good, is that the good fishermen
fishwhere the fish are more often. This
does not mean fishing in the general area where there might be
fish, but taking great pains to seek out the prime spots where
fish are most likely to be holding at any one time. This attention
to, and curiosity about, fish habits and habitant separate the
fishermen who catch fish from the fishless.