Trout Fishing TIPS!

[troutasassin]

Trout Fishing 101

I have decided to write this article to help you guys out as much as possible in your pursuit in catching more trout. Plus a few members asked me to, so now I have the time to do this in detail.

You may save this to your hard drive and use it as a reference if you find it helpful. I am by no means a pro, but do know a thing or two about fishing for trout with artificial lures.

Artificial lures where do you begin?
What lb. test line should you use?
What size pole?
What size spoon for that matter?
Once you pick the spoon what color do you use?

These are just some questions I hope to answer for you along with a lot of helpful tips that will get you catching trout on lures in no time! No matter what lake you are at.

I am not going to go into much detail on gear, but will cover the basics. Some people including myself love light tackle. There is both pro’s and cons to this no matter what people say.

The pros would be lighter tackle make smaller trout fight better. They seem a lot bigger when your fighting them. For this you would use a 5ft ultra light rod with 2lb test maxima ultra green. This would be a 1 piece rod with a small reel. This is a great set up for county and state stocked fish. I know people who have caught big trout on this setup and I know from first hand how disappointing it is to lose one on this set up! The 2lb test line does allow you to cast farther. Yes trout are very sletchy so the lighter the line the better off you are.

The cons on this setup is if you get a big trout the chances of losing it go up!!
If you get it hooked, hope that you don’t run out of line and have your drag set. I have had fish break my line numerous of times and take line like it was nothing. So be prepared. If you are going to fish for big trout please use heavier gear. Your chances of landing it are much better than if you didn’t.

The longer the pole the farther you can cast. I have a 6’6 and yes people do use 7ft and 7’6 poles for jigging plastics and powerworms. On my pole I use 4lb test line p-line xtra strong.

Now that you have the gear lets get on to how to catch FISH!

When you first arrive at the lake look for an inlet where water is flowing into the lake. Trout love this because there is more oxygen there plus they like to swim up the current.

Second, look to see if the trout are rising in the water after bugs or not. If they are get a clear bubble and a fly and cast where the rings are of them surfacing. You will usually see this early in the morning or at dusk.
Also a wooly bug with a weight attached to a hook you can buy them this way are killer:
Colors: Green – Brown –black work well.

If no love there or the conditions don't permit I would put a pink or orange power worm or lip zippers worm on with a split shot or a drop shot which ever you prefer and cast out (when using a split shot Please consider the weight of the shot. You do not need to cast super far and do not need a huge weight).
Point being if the weight is to heavy and you feel the bottom every time then it will be hard to tell when you get a bite. The weight should skip over the bottom not drag!

Work it slow and erratic pausing here and there work in like a injured fish. If you feel a bite and it's not on the bottom tighten your line reel slowly or jerk the rod a lil to give the worm movement but staying in the bite zone.

If power worms are not working I would go with a spoon or vise versa.
If you have been looking at the spoons at the store they might all look the same there is a lot of them on the market in a lot of different colors. I will tell you what colors work what sizes and how to work the lure next.

Spoons:
I believe that big lures catch big fish especially with spoons.
This is what you should have in your box at a bare minimum.

Thomas buoyant:
Size: 1/4oz.
Colors: fire – Watermelon
Load up on these you will be glad you did!!
They also make a lure called the cyclone which works just as good so add that to your arsenal to

Lil Cleo:
Size: 1/6oz.
Colors: Silver – Silver/Orange - Gold

Kastmaster:
Colors: Silver – Gold – Gold/Rainbow

Safe colors in any spoon:
Gold – Silver – Orange – Red - rainbow


Now that you have all the spoons how do you fish them? I know this sounds basic, but I will give you some tips that will have the people next to you using the same lure asking what you’re doing.

Look at the people catching fish with bait. How much of a leader do they have? Is it close to the bottom? Is it 2ft off the bottom? If you know this then you already have an idea of where the strike zone is because hey they just reeled one in. The whole thing with fishing for trout is trying to find the feeding zone.

Ever notice that you can have 6 guys fishing within feet of each other using the same bait but one is catching more than everyone else? His leader is at the right depth in the feeding zone. Others maybe to high or to low. So you might be saying to yourself this is great but how do you fish a spoon?

When you work a spoon you want to work different depths of the water to see where the strike zone is. This is CRITICAL. Do not cast and reel it in right away. This is often the first mistake people who are starting out make. Unless the trout are on the surface then you can do it because that’s where the strike zone is as I mentioned earlier.
Let the spoon sink count how long it takes for it to hit the bottom. Try different speeds at retrieving the lure. Slow – Medium – Fast. Remember a lure/spoon is supposed to resemble an injured bait fish. This is critical. When retrieving the spoon don’t be afraid to jerk it erratically or let it fall a little by pausing a second. This will resemble an injured fish and will often cause a strike. While casting start at 9am o’clock and work your way around in a fanning motion before you hit another spot.
Here’s another tip: If 5 people next to you are using Silver try gold. Give the fish a different presentation.

The feeding zone:
If you get hit remember how you were workin the spoon/jig/powerworm.
where you casted.
speed - method of retrieve.
was it on the bottom – middle – top

Now if all else fails and you need to use bait and have a second pole.
Yes we all know powerbait is hot. But how you have it rigged is a big deal. Say you are fishing and the weeds are really bad.
Get a clear casting bobber fill her up all the way 18 inch lead to trouble hook role your powerbait like a worm. This way you have your weight being the bobber and it will sink but keep you bait above the weeds no snags

Also other good bait combos:
>>>with or without bobber
Velveeta
night crawler with salmon egg
night crawler
night crawler no weight fly casting twicth here n there
Power bait try different colors mix them to if you wish

Last but not least the midge. I have been told they rise from the bottom.
I tried this and killed the trout.
1 midge and rig it drop shot style. keeps it off the bottom in the feeding zone twitch rod reel in slow with pauses. smallest split shot possible to be able to cast.

There is tons of other combos to try but this is my arsonal when i'm in a tube or on land. Travel light so you may try different spots if your on land.

Oh yea did some one say polarized glasses! cruise the lake lookin for schools of trout. Yes they work wonders.


Stink bait:
trout gravy and
cod liver oil mix in a jar. shake well
dip your lures or bait in it.
put some in a jar of salmon eggs and let them soak it up.

How do I get my rubber worms to smell like night crawlers?
Buy live night crawlers and put your power worms in with them over night along with some minced garlic.

All of these tips have been tried and proven at:
Green Valley
Lake Gregory
Glen Helen
Jenks
Jess ranch

I really hope this helps you guys out. I know a lot of people do not like to tell there secrets. It has taken me forever to write this out so I hope you guys enjoy the information. If you see me on the lakes or have any questions please feel free to ask and I will do my best to help you……

Tight Lines..
Joshua

[Walt]

Josh,
Great information , kind of you to share your knowledge. Its a fantastic help for everyone. We need a lot more of this type of posting .

Walt

[dodoman]

i learn somthing new from this post, really , its a good one.

keep up the great work.

[mickeysindahous]

Joshua, this is an exemplary article! Very informative and well written. I have learned much from this article.

Trout, to me, can be a frustrating fish to catch because they're so line-shy and once you get 'em on light line, they can snap it if you don't pay attention to your drag. However, once you land them it's the most rewarding feeling.

Lots of tricks of the trait here...thanks a bunch for sharing the knowledge!!!

Thanks bud!

[Local Rookie]

Awesome article Josh! Thanks for sharing!

[Nick Velvet]

Great info.

[Wahoo!]

Great article! Thanks for your hard work.

[fishtaco]

Excelent !!! same stuff for mini stripers.

Armed with this information we can go back the the
very sletchy ones by the ramp at silverwood

if it does not work, we can always try
dinamite !!

guys I have not fish yet the swells are huge
and lots of wind near San Carlos, but
we may go yellowtail hunting Thursday