Guiding almost every day gives a person a different perspective
on why and how we catch fish. So often with fishing, we make
up our minds as to what is important and how we should present
bait to catch fish. Guiding gives us a reality check when somebody
starts catching fish the 'wrong way' and we are left trying
to figure out why. Guiding reminds me often that the only right
way to do something is whatever way is catching fish.
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The Lindy Rig is a simple way of presenting live bait.
This presentation has probably accounted for as many walleye
as anything else I can think of. Simple really, put good
lively bait in front of fish. What isn’t simple
however are the small variables that happen in the real
world. The real life events that leave you scratching
your head at night. If you fish very much, you know what
I am talking about. The little girl in the front of the
boat that is holding her spinning rod upside down and
has no idea where her sinker or bait is in relation to
the bottom has caught seven fish and her dad has caught
one. People often worry about the wrong things initially
when trying to piece together the pattern. I have watched
people sit in the bottom of the boat for half an hour
with their lines out of the water so they could change
the color of sinker or simply adding a bead, adjusting
snells, etc. While these little things are important,
there are other things that are much more important that
are usually overlooked by anglers. |
Sometimes, the answer to why a one rod is hot might be because
the front of the boat is on top of fish for example and the
back of the boat is too deep or too far from where the fish
are holding. This now becomes a boat control issue where you
have a few choices. You can either hold the boat so at least
the front of the boat is catching fish or hold the boat in a
way where people on each side of the boat can take turns in
the sweet spot. If spooking the fish is a factor or boat control
is difficult because of wind, one hot rod might be all you get.
There are also times when the fish are getting bumped by the
boat. The people who are fishing in the back of the boat and
further away are getting bit while the people in the front and
under the boat are getting blanked. I don’t think fish
are scared of boats but they do seem to merely move out of the
way to let us through regardless of your livewell running, radio
playing, trolling motor running. People sometimes think they
can get away with more if you are quiet but I just don’t
think it really matters. A quiet boat has the same effect as
a loud boat. I often refer to carp as a good example of what
happens. Carp are one of the most spooky and intelligent fish
there is. Try driving by carp. Doesn’t matter if you use
your trolling motor or your big motor, the fish almost seem
to have a force field around them and when you get within that
parameter, they move. Might not be a far move but they move
out of your way. This 'force field' might vary with water clarity,
level of aggressiveness, etc. The bottom line is when you start
bumping fish with the boat; you are going to have a hard time
catching fish below the boat. There are many times however when
we catch fish right below the boat in four or five feet of water.
The amount of line you have out can sometimes make or break
you in another way as well. The angle in which the line enters
the water is the most important element I have been able to
find that duplicates success. If a person is catching fish,
the first thing I am going to do with the other rods is match
the angle of the productive line. Before I adjust snells, change
colors or bait type. I can’t stress enough how important
this simple adjustment is.
Perhaps there are several factors at play. When the weight is
contacting the bottom, the wrong amount of line might make distinguishing
bites difficult. I also feel that the bait does different things
in the water depending on how the weight is dragging on the
bottom. Perhaps a lot of line enables the sinker to bog down,
than pop forward as it slides along the bottom. Sometimes, this
might be good. Another time and place, this same formula might
stir up the bottom too much and might be bad. The whole rig
is going to track differently depending on how much line you
have out. The fish will tell you whether or not what you are
doing is right and it is up to you to force yourself to keep
adjusting until you find the formula of the day. Just remember
to prioritize what variables are most important. The angle of
the line and how much line you have out is one of the most important
variables that can affect your success.
Now that the most important aspects of Lindy Rigging are out
of the way, we can focus on the little things that can be important
and fine-tuned. Efficiency is important in the sense that the
longer you have good bait in front of fish, the more fish you
are going to catch. I have gotten to the point where I almost
always use a Lindy No-Snagg Sinker. These weights slide through
rocks and debris so well that I really hate live bait rigging
without them. These weights enable you to catch more fish.
Snell length should be determined by past experience and what
your electronics reveal. Most of the time, a six-foot snell
is standard. Instead of shortening the snell for tighter holding
fish, I prefer to put a small split shot on the end of the snell.
When fish are riding higher, I prefer to add a small float or
rattling bead (which floats) instead of making a longer snell.
Unless really long snells are absolutely necessary, avoid them
because more can and will go wrong with long snells. Colored
hooks and attractor beads have gotten a lot of attention in
recent years and I find myself tying red hooks and adding beads
often. I still can’t honestly say whether I catch more
fish with a flash of color above the bait. Does this small fine
tuning merely boost our confidence or actually trigger a few
more fish? I still can’t say but I sometimes do these
little things anyway because I need all the help I can get some
days.
Another trend we are seeing is the use of longer rods. With
longer and roomier rod lockers in many of the fishing rigs today,
more anglers are discovering the advantages of seven or seven
and a half foot rods designed specifically for live bait rigging.
I recently had the opportunity to design a line of premium fishing
rods specifically for walleye fishing. We have been flattered
by the number of really good walleye anglers who approach and
compliment us on our line of walleye fishing rods, the Jason
Mitchell Elite Series Rods. These rods are available at several
retail locations and more information can be found online at
www.jasonmitchellrods.com. According to both Bill Ortiz and
Sheldon Meidinger, two very accomplished anglers on the Professional
Walleye Trail, these rods are the lightest and most sensitive
rods ever designed for presenting live bait rigs. This is a
compliment we are quite proud of considering the track record
of these two anglers.
There is no doubt that Lindy Rigs are a highly effective way
to catch fish but there are many things to pay attention to
besides your rod tip if you want to catch more fish with this
proven presentation. Don’t overlook what might seem obvious
or unimportant as you fine-tune the presentation |