[lefty]

In my meet'n'greet, basilwilliam encouraged cooler-weather fishing with the recommendation "Think deep water, smaller lures / flies / or bait, and super slow retrieves."

Deep water, slow... Sounds like what I read about bottom-fishing for flounders. I know how to drag a 2-oz teardrop weight along the sand with a bottom rig.

However -- the sand at Hatteras is probably more forgiving to that 2-oz weight than what I expect the bottom of Jordan Lake (man-made) to be. I expect dragging the bottom of most of the lakes around here will consume a whole lot of tackle.

How does one fish deep, but not too deep? Do you have to learn how fast a given lure will sink, and how fast to retrieve it to climb, dive, or hold a level?

Thanx - lefty

 

[5biguns]

Dont worry about losing tackle, carolina rigging with a 1oz sinker is no different than the flounder rig you're talking about. Carolina rigging is a very common method of bottom fishing as is drop shotting and fishing a heavy jig on the bottom. If you're wanting to fish deep (relative to where you are) but not drag the bottom, then a suspending jerkbait or crankbait will work. Hope this helps

 

[basilwilliam]

Hey Lefty, I would agree with all 5bigguns suggestions. From your post I am not exactly sure if you are targeting bass or what. Can you give us a bit more detail about the body of water and the type of fish you are planning on targeting. Also are you planning to use bait or lures?

 

[lefty]

basilwilliam
Not sure how to answer the question about my target. "Fish. Something bigger than my hand."

If I decided to go after catfish, but wound up with half a dozen bass bigger than my hand and fun to fight, I would not be the least bit disappointed. Nor vice-versa. I'm not searching for a particular menu, I'm planning on catch-and-release at this point.

As for which body of water -- at the moment, I'm foot-bound in the western part of Wake County (cary, apex, etc). I've got a buddy whose folks keep a pontoon boat on Jordan, and DragonBreath is trying to talk me into renting a paddle-craft to accompany his kayak sometime, which sounds real fun, but I'd need to figure out how to sedate my wife. She almost drowned when she was in college, she's kinda got a thing about water. (Her story makes a great Testimony if you're interested.)

Thanx - Lefty

 

[basilwilliam]

Lefty, Usually it helps to target specific species of fish so you can use the most productive tactic for that particular species. Based on what you have said though, if you want to just be out fishing and catch whatever is biting. I would go with some minnows. Use a small hook and the smallest split shot you can use and still cast proficiently. This is a good rig to use in areas with allot of snags because it can be replaced without losing expensive lures. Almost all game fish will hit a minnow if its sitting in front of its nose.

As far as fishing with your significant other. It might not be the best idea to introduce her to the sport during cold weather. Two things will be working against you. One with the fishing be a bit slower paced she will pry get bored quickly and lose interest. Two once that happens its just a matter of time before she's had enough of the cold. Also if she has a water phobia, you might want to consider fishing from the bank.

My wife enjoys fishing and we go out with the kids and have fun. This type of fishing requires allot of patience's on my part though. Often times its more like being a fishing guide as I have to bait all the rods, unhook the fish, and untangle the lines that are inevitably tangled. I find if I do some fishing on my own in between my family fishing trips, that its easier to put aside my own personal desire to catch fish and can better apply myself to helping the family out. Also when they are done its time to go home.

One time we packed a picnic basket, loaded up all the gear and drove about an hour and a half to fish a lake up in the mountains. We got to the lake and I hauled all the gear (several armloads of it) into our spot about a quarter of a mile from he car and set up to fish. Within 5 minutes my young son was stung by a bee and we soon discovered bees flying all along the shore line. After that it was clear that he and my wife were having no part of it and that it was time to go. So reluctantly I hauled all the gear up to the car and away we went. Had it been myself I would have just continued fishing, perhaps tying on a bee pattern to take advantage of the opportunity, but there is not much you can do in a situation like that.

 

[lefty]

I realized shortly after posting that I could have clarified a bit...

First, though, thanks for the recommendation about minnows and light split-shot. That'll also give me something to practice in the backyard -- casting lighter stuff than the saltwater weights I've done most recently.

Which calls to mind another question -- I think my rod has 12-lb line on it. Is that too fat for freshwater critters? I think I've got some 8-lb, but it's been in the garage for a few years...

As for the wife, she's got no interest in tagging along. Even if I head out on a small boat solo, she'll still be uncomfortable worrying that I might drown. She'll need another dose of valium before she lets me take her son along. At the moment, though, he's not terribly interested in fishing. (Just turned 7, we haven't even finished all the 'some-assembly-required' yet.)

Thanx - lefty

 

[lefty]

Which calls to mind another question -- I think my rod has 12-lb line on it. Is that too fat for freshwater critters? I think I've got some 8-lb, but it's been in the garage for a few years...

I decided this issue is simple enough to deal with. Instead of unwinding a whole reel full of perfectly good 12-lb, I can add 20 ft or so of the 8-lb to the end. I wouldn't expect the presence of fatter line 20 ft away to cause much of a problem...

Especially if I write off wintertime freshwater work as practice, who cares if the line's not really 100% up to snuff. I'll get some good line after the spring thaw.

Lefty

 

[lefty]

Usually it helps to target specific species of fish so you can use the most productive tactic for that particular species. Based on what you have said though, if you want to just be out fishing and catch whatever is biting.

I had come to the conclusion that what I wanted to do on my next jaunt to the outer banks was to stop by a tackle shop and ask what they'd heard was biting, where, and on what. Hopefully I could purchase whatever bait & tackle I needed for less than $20, and then spend a few hours following the shop's recommendation.

I guess what that amounts to is waiting 'til I get there to decide on my target species. Kinda goes against my grain -- I'm an over-preparing kind of guy generally.