* Jig Color Considerations

image fishing-today.com

Jig Color Considerations
You've got to pick just one

Some anglers say color doesn't matter much. They say you can get by with black blue jigs, green pumpkin soft baits and chartreuse white spinnerbaits are all they ever need. I'm not one of them.

I've seen color matter too many times. While I don't want to overplay the importance of color, I don't want to discount it either.

The biggest tip I can give you when it comes to color is to keep an open mind, meaning don't get married to any favorites and don't cotton to "go to" colors. That's the best attitude - unattached and indifferent - to have toward color. In time, it is true you will get settled down into your usual or standard colors you use. Just don't get emotionally attached to them. Keep looking for what color the fish want - not what you want.

Bottom line, you've got to pick just one color - meaning you can only tie one color jig on the end of your line. You can only present one color on a cast. The color you have tied on will influence how many fish you catch. So keep an open mind and make the color you cast count.

In paging through this article, you'll notice a number of different jig skirt colors. In assessing so many colors, almost everyone forms the same questions at first along these lines:

• "Why are there so many different colors?"
• "Which color do you use where or when?"
• "Can one angler really even use - or need - so many colors?"
• "How can one possibly cope with or manage so many colors?"
• "When all is said and done, what are the very best jig colors?"

So that's why I'd like to first summarize for you some of the feedback I have gotten from anglers who use skirted jigs worldwide. This may help to narrow down some of the most popular and productive jig colors for you.

First, let's sidestep down nostalgia lane. Historically, black or brown jigs (with various accent colors such as a thin swatch of blue or purple) seem most popular. This may be because originally, latex rubber jigs (also called "living rubber") were really only available in black or brown rubber (with accents of red, blue, orange or purple rubber). There weren't many other color options for latex rubber jigs.

Nowadays, most jigs are silicone, not latex rubber. There are many more color options today with silicone. Nevertheless, the black, black blue, black red, brown and brown purple colors still rank among the most popular, no doubt due in part to their long legacy as limited colors of living rubber.

Various good green color skirts, never really possible in living rubber, are nowadays gaining popularity as silicone skirts.

The "Dark Green Pumpkin" and the "Green Pumpkin Blend" are popular jig colors today. They have been used in a handful of tournament wins made by anglers.

The "Green Sunfish" color always seems to get mentioned as a good producer by anglers, especially on weedy lakes.

Another that always gets good feedback is the "June Bug Bluegill" used on jigs in murky water like deltas, muddy rivers and such.

A short list of other skirt colors that anglers tend to write me about most often to say they've done quite well with these colors on jigs include:

• Black Blue
• Black Blue Flash
• Black Brown Craw
• Olive Pumpkin
• Green Pumpkin Olive
• Brown Purple
• PBJ Flash
• Peanut Butter Jelly

A number of other colors certainly produce well too. I could mention another 6 or 8 good jig colors but I don't want to water down the list here. Just note that there are some other very good skirt colors - but the ones already listed above are the most popular color jig skirts cited by anglers who have done well worldwide. So that's the short list of what seems to be the top jig colors used by anglers.

Additionally, in Europe, anglers show a lot of confidence in the rusty red craw and black neon jig colors.

Across North America, are there regional differences reported in terms of jig colors? No. Dramatic differences are not reported from anglers in different regions across North America, including the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Where differences do exist, they seem to stem from water clarity, depth and whether weedy or rocky cover.

For instance:

1. Anglers who fish areas with overall shallower, darker water tend to report success on the various black blues, black reds, june bug bluegill and other darker-than-average colors.
2. Anglers who fish areas with overall deeper, clearer impoundments (usually = rocky) tend more toward various browns, especially brown purples or peanut butter jelly colors.
3. Anglers who fish areas with overall shallower, clearer water (usually = weedy) tend to rely more on various greens - green pumpkin, watermelon and olive jig colors.

Those are the major differences I hear from anglers about what jig colors seem best where.

In terms of jig styles (flipping, football, Arkey power, Arkey finesse, etc.) there does not seem to be differences in colors based on different jig styles, except where the differences are because of what is already reported above. What I mean is, more blacks, black blues, black reds get favored on flipping jigs because flipping tends to be done in shallower, often murkier areas. Conversely, more browns are used on football jigs because they are used in deeper areas. So the differences are not because of the jig styles, but where they're used (shallow vs. deep, murky vs. clear, weedy vs. rocky for example).

One jig style that does vary from the others, however, is the Wisconsin style swimming jig. It is often used in baitfish color skirt patterns such as chartreuse shad, white shad and gold shiner for example. The other jig styles (football, flipping, Arkey, etc.) are not used as much in such baitfish colors.

In terms of the two most popular freshwater bass species:

1. Largemouth anglers tend toward black-based and darker colors.
2. Smallmouth anglers tend toward brown-based colors.

As you may realize by now, this is most likely since largemouth tend to be caught in relatively shallower, darker water. Smallmouth are more often caught in relatively deeper, clearer water.

Lastly, are there any "undiscovered stars" among the jig skirt colors in the store that anglers aren't using - but should be?

Well, among the other jig skirt colors, the assorted watermelon varieties, watermelon candies and others, are being used by anglers with good, steady success.

There are a few, however, that I am surprised that anglers do not use more. The brown oranges such as the Brown Sunfish, Brown Sunfish #2 and Green Craw. Always a good jig color combo, brown orange has been around since the beginning since it was one of the few colors possible in living rubber. With a watermelon trailer, brown orange jigs can be incredibly productive. Yet it surprises me that anglers do not seem to use brown oranges as much as I do.

Also, the green reds - Dark Watermelon Red Pepper, Dark Watermelon Red Belly and Rusty Green Craw - are steady producers that anglers should try more. And Green Monkey Shine and Dark Green Monkey Shine are admittedly unfamiliar yet awesome jig colors. A few anglers who have tried the Monkey Shines have reported outstanding results.

Practically all the jig skirt colors have been mentioned above - either by name or by generic color category. The few that haven't been mentioned yet are Rain Frog (a weird weedy color that defies classification), Natural Frog (with its chartreuse belly that's visible even in very heavy cover) and the combined brown greens like Warmouth Sunfish, Olive Brown Craw and Olive Cinnamon that combine both brown and green in the same skirt.

That's just about all the jig skirt colors now, and they're all good. Please enjoy and use them with confidence.

True, it does seem at first like there are so many colors, and it may seem daunting how to possibly manage them all. But in time, it's really not hard to get a handle on them. All you have to do is try, and you may find the pieces of the puzzle all fall into place.

A really big step, in fact a leap, that few anglers ever make - is to realize that all these jig colors also work on spinnerbaits. After all, a spinnerbait is just a punk rock version of a jig with its nose pierced and a pair of flashy earrings dangling overhead.

An easier step is to realize all these jig colors equally apply to soft plastic lures. The only difference is the addition of smoke-based colors in soft plastics. But all the blacks, black reds, black blues, browns, brown purples, watermelons, green pumpkins and everything else about jig colors equally and fully applies to soft plastic lure colors too.

So when you master jig colors, you're also mastering soft plastic lure colors at the same time, and don't hesitate to apply the same colors to spinnerbaits also. You'll be pleased with the results.

Source : http://www.bassdozer.com/articles/jig-fishing.shtml

* Giving Fish too much Credit

pict from : charterbooker.com

Fishing Articles by Colin D. Crawford

Giving Fish too much Credit
by Colin D. Crawford

A fish has two major things in its environment, the water it lives in and the weather that is changing, not only seasonally but day-by day, hour-by -hour and minute-by-minute. These two things alone control fish activity. The most unstable either the weather or water becomes, the more rapid these two factors change, and you'll see an effect on fishing. A fish cannot stand a fast change.

A lot of people don't realize that fish move on a seasonal and daily basis, and when they move they use underwater structure, essentially the bottom of the lake that is just a little different. Things like bars, underwater humps and manmade structure like submerged roadbeds, levees or riprap along dams or causeways.

When a fish leaves its sanctuary, to eat or search for food, it has to have something visually to follow. A fish is a stupid creature. It cannot rationalize like a human being, and when it moves about it must have something it can follow. Fish don't swim about a lake haphazardly. Not only can they see structure but, we can also locate that same structure with our observations of land, depthfinders and the feel of the lures on the bottom.

Largemouth bass will be in 30 to 35 feet of water the bulk of the season, and in winter they will be a little bit deeper if that depth is available.

The most important thing to remember is that the larger a fish becomes the tighter it schools and the more time it spends in deep water. A fish lives there because it is forced there by environment over a period of time. When a fish becomes an adult, its body takes longer to make adjustments to the changing conditions of the water and weather. It's easier for it to make these adjustments in deep water. The deeper you go, the more stable conditions will become. A fish can stay there for weeks. It doesn't have to move into the shallows all summer.

Is there enough food and oxygen down deep to support fish populations? Absolutely there's food. There are shad, baitfish, and bluegills at 35, 45 feet. A fish's menu may change and it may be less selective, but it doesn't have to move shallow to feed. But you have to keep this in mind: When a fish is down deep it's probably dormant and its body requires very little food. It is just sitting there and not expending much energy, so it really doesn't need any food. This also makes for difficult fishing, and you have to get your lures closer to them. A strike zone is very small in deep water, because of visibility and the lethargic nature of the fish.

We all know that a fish requires certain amounts of oxygen to survive. You must remember that a fish is a very adjustable creature, and when there is a very small amount of oxygen in an area it will adjust, unless the situation gets to a point where there is just not enough to survive. But no one has proven that a fish has a preferred oxygen zone. Structure in relation to deep water is our guide to finding fish.

We've heard hundreds of times that "you can't catch fish in this lake because of the thermocline and there's not enough oxygen down there," and invariably we go find a deep hump and bang there is the walleye or smallmouth.

When big, adult fish do move out of this deep water they leave as a school. Even muskie school, contrary to some things you may have read. The reason most people don't realize this is because they are not fishing the depths correctly.

A good level wind reel is essential and a good graphite rod that has the potential for a long sweep of the rod tip so that when those "eyes" hit, it has some give. I prefer to use the downrigger variety of rods. They have the sensitivity and the backbone that I need for this type of system.

You should start with a level wind reel spooled with 500 feet of 8 pound test line, tie in a segment of one, two or three colors of 18 pound leadcore, and finish with another 50 feet 8 pound test, as a leader to the bait.

The length of the leadcore segment varies by the type of crankbait you'll be using and the depth you need to achieve. For example, in the late fall's chilly water, I've found walleyes to prefer subtle action lures like a Reef Runner Ripstick. To get this shallow-diving bait down 30 to 40 feet you need three segments of leadcore. If we're using a deeper diving lure like a Reef Runner Deep Diver you can achieve the same depths with just two segments of leadcore. The general rule is high action crankbaits for warm water, subtle action for cool water.

When you find a concentration of fish in over 40 feet of water and they are suspended at 30 feet, start from the bottom and work your bait up to the strike zone. Most anglers would try to determine how much line to let out until they were in 30 feet of water. The easiest method is to let out line until you are on bottom and then crank in line until you have a strike.

A fish basically is a fish, and it reacts to the environment accordingly. If you keep the basics in mind you will catch the species that you are after.

If you are interested in reading more about this technique or other techniques you can find me on the web at www.northwoodsfishing.net. If you are interested in a guided trip, a personal media interview, or photo shoot, please call 715-545-8347. I am located in the Phelps, Wisconsin area.

This Fishing Article is brought to you by Colin D. Crawford

Source : http://www.walleyehunter.com/articles/crawford33.html

* How Important is Your Boat ?

image  from : ceduna.net

Fishing Articles by Sam Anderson

How Important is Your Boat ?
By Sam Anderson

As I pulled my Ranger 620 VS out of the garage the other day I started to think that many anglers don't realize that a boat is an extremely important part of your fishing presentation. Hundreds of articles have been written about how important your rod, line, and bait selection are, but few, if any have been written concerning your boat and how it is a factor in helping you to catch fish.

I know what you are thinking at this point. You probably think that a boat gets a person to a specific spot that you can't reach from shore. That is true, but your boat does more than that. Think about what you have in your boat. Yes, it is true that it not only makes it easy for you to reach the spot, but also your tackle, thermos and cooler. Again, your boat is more than an object to carry items, it is part of how you present your bait so that fish find it attractive enough to bite.

What then do you need to look for in a boat.? The answer of course will describe what kind of fishing you prefer and what items in a boat, "creature features" you can't live without. For example, how does this particular boat drift? Will it drift faster from the stern or bow? What or how do you need to compensate for an uneven drift? Do you need a bow mount trolling motor or a stern mounted trolling motor? Does your boat give you a dry ride? Are there places in the boat that are advertised as dry storage, but in a torrential down pour you discover that your expensive camera is ruined? How does the wind effect the boat? Does this boat have big enough side boards to take rough water?

My answer to all of these questions have been addressed by Ranger Boats. The Ranger Fisherman series boast an entire line of formidable fishing machines. From walleye and musky to bass and crappie, these multi-species rigs are among the most versatile anglers have to choose from. Whether it’s the rigorous demands of professional walleye trails or simply a weekend get away, this series is specifically geared to deliver superior performance both on and off plane. The 620 VS sports a deeper, wider vee hull to crush rough water. It’s bog 50" aerated livewell is positioned at the stern so re-entry in rough water carries a softer; more stable feel. Fuel capacity measures 50 gallons and is located on the center line of the hull for faster hole shots, solid tracking and responsive boat control. The 602’s integrated engine set back not only enhances acceleration, but virtually eliminates backwash from sudden stops.

Inside there’s a world of lockable storage and a built in cooler sits just in front of the passenger console. Gauges and electronics are positioned on the upper portions of the instrumentation panel while an all new digital switching system lines the lower panel. The 620 VS is a console boat that is 19’10" in length. If you are a tiller person Ranger has also included a the 620T. This is a beautiful boat that is 20’ 1/2" and is rated for a 115 ? 125 HP motor.

When a person spends as many days on the water a year as I do, it's important that thry fish in as much comfort as possible. The comfort level also is important when it comes to selection of a motor. My choice are Mercury Motors.

Mercury’s newest form of motors incorporates an onboard computer system called SmartCraft. SmartCraft operates in conjunction with the company’s 2001 OptiMax outboards to gather data from sensors all over the boat. It then uses that data to monitor over 15 different systems, including speed and fuel flow, then automatically adjusts each operation to peak efficiency. Like your car, SmartCraft responds to operator input, so you can program your engine and boat to perform exactly the way you want. Functions include Troll Control, which sets rpm up to 1,000. This function alone is ideal especially if I am pulling trolling boards or if I have multiple lines out forward trolling. It allows me to sit at my console and monitor my depthfinder and use the steering wheel to follow the active fish.

Although the backtrolling technique is still ideal for vertical jigging and live-bait rigging in deep water walleye professionals today favor trolling forward with a small "kicker," typically a 9.9 to 15 hp outboard. Why? It allows them to fish large bodies of water such as reservoirs more effectively at higher speeds than electric trolling motors can sustain. Forward-trollers commonly use crankbaits, bottom bouncers or weighted three-way rigs with crankbaits, spinners or spoons.

My Ranger 620 boat is equipped with a small four-stoke kicker motor from Mercury. It allows me to fish all day without using much fuel. This small engine is extremely quiet which makes for a more pleasant angling experience.

Your boat is as critical as the rod you select or the bait that you tie on. It delivers you to the spot to fish but it gives you the confidence to arrive there safely and works with you so that you can get the most fishing pleasure. It provides you with the tools you need to enable you to harvest a days catch and gives other members of your family http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifa relaxed enjoyable experience. If you have selected the right boat you will notice that it stays in the family for a long time, because it has become part of your presentation. If you have selected the wrong boat you will see it in the classified section, because it just didn't fit the bill for your presentation purposes.

If you are interested in more information about Ranger Boats or Mercury motors drop me a line on the web, at www.samanderson.com and we can talk about your favorite fishing presentation.

This Fishing Article is brought to you by Sam Anderson
Please visit his Website for more information.

Source : http://www.walleyehunter.com/articles/anderson32.html

* Basic Live Bait

image from : fishing-day.net

In most fishing communities small fish for bait can be obtained. Sardines, anchovies, sardinella, mackerel, herring, squid and cuttlefish are good bait fish (Figure 16), but others can be used as well.
Figure 16. Various bait fish: (a) mackerel; (b) herring; (c) sardine; (d) anchovy; (e) cuttlefish; (f) squid

PREPARING THE BAIT

It is important to keep the bait as fresh as possible and to cut it to the right size for the hook you will use and the fish you want to catch.
Very often the bait fish is caught the evening before you use it. In such cases the bait fish must either be kept alive overnight or be well iced (Figure 17). If you have easy access to ice at a reasonable price, then you can ice your bait on board your boat and be ready to start off before sunrise the next morning. If you cannot get ice, then after killing the bait fish keep it well covered, wrapped in a large leaf and stored away from the sun.

Figure 17. Keeping the bait alive or fresh: (a) bait fish kept alive in net; (b) bait iced in boxes; (c) bait wrapped in large leaves and stored



Figure 18. How to cut the bait fish: (a) cut the head and tail off; (b) slice to suitable size; (c) if the bait fish is large, cut from close to dorsal fin to tail and (d) put the two sides together again and cut to size







The size of bait depends on the size of the hook and should range from a size that covers the gap or throat of the hook to one that covers the whole hook.
When you start cutting the bait, first remove the head (Figure 18a), then slice the fish into pieces as shown in Figure 18b. If the bait fish is a large fish, and the fish you expect to catch is of average size (grouper, snapper or croaker), then cut the large fish lengthwise first (Figure 18c) before cutting the bait to the preferred size (Figure 18d). Insert the knife into the fish close to the dorsal fin and cut forward, and keep the knife as hard against the backbone as possible.
Baiting the hook
We just showed you how to take care of the bait and how to cut the bait. Now you will learn how to bait the hook.
Live baits. Figures 19 and 20 show you how to attach the live bait to the hook.
Dead baits. Always put the point and barb of the hook right through the bait in such a way that the bend of the hook surrounds the backbone of the bait (Figure 21a). If you have split open the bait fish before cutting the bait to size, then the pieces without backbone must be threaded on the hook by putting the point and the barb twice through the bait,always with the barb on the skin side, as shown in Figure 21b.
If you are expecting to catch large fish and are using large hooks connected to the mainline with wire snoods, then small fish like anchovies or sardines can be threaded on the hook in one piece. First put the hook through the head of the bait fish and then through the centre of the body near the backbone or through the eyes (Figure 22a). A similar method is used with squid or cuttlefish (Figure 22b).
Figure 19. Some ways of rigging live bait



Figure 20. Rigging other live baits



Figure 21. Baiting with pieces of fish


Figure 22. Baiting with fish or squid in one piece



Lures
Natural bait can be caught in most coastal areas, but bait capture can be time consuming and may only be possible at certain times or in certain seasons. In addition, natural bait has to be replaced almost every time a fish is caught. However, most fishermen agree that natural bait is more effective than artificial bait or lures. On the other hand, the latter can be used repeatedly and for a long time. It is therefore worth trying to make a few lures and to compare the catches taken with lures to those taken with natural bait.
As you may know, lures are more and more commonly used in handline and troll fishing. The main reason for this is that it is possible to create a vibration with the bait or lure and the larger fish (the predator) can be tricked into striking or attacking the source of the vibration, especially when the shape and possibly the colour of the lure make it look like live bait.
Feathers, plastic, nylon and light metal can all help create the right vibration needed to trick the predator. You must always keep your line moving up and down if you are using a lure when handlining in order to let the lure simulate the movements of live bait as much as possible.
Various varieties of jigs and lures are available in most fishing communities (Figure 23), but you can also make them yourself. Some of the materials you can use to make lures are shown in Figure 24.
As an example, take a hook similar in shape to hook No. 10 in Figure 4.
First, take a piece of cloth and wrap it around the shank and tie it with thin electrical wire, string or nylon (Figure 25a).
Next cut small pieces of coloured nylon twine, untwist them into threads and tie over the cloth as shown in Figure 25b. Finally, tie a few feathers on top of the nylon thread and your lure is ready (Figure 25c).
You can also use wool or cotton yarn instead of nylon, or plastic strips instead of cloth as a first cover.
There are other types of synthetic lures. For example, you can cut out a strip of tyre tube or a piece of plastic, wrap it around the shank leaving a good piece extending below the bend and tie the other end firmly to the shank and the eye. You could also glue it together to form a long tube which you thread onto the hook and tie well (Figure 26).
Figure 23. Various types of artificial bait or lures



Figure 24. Materials that can be used to make lures: (a) wool or cotton; (b) rope fibres, possily coloured; (c) strips of cloth; (d) feathers from different birds; (e) plastic strips, preferably coloured; (f) twine or thin wire; (g) tyre tube or piece of thin rubber or plastic sheet


Figure 25. Assembling a lure


It is advisable, when using artificial lures instead of live bait, to smear the liver from the first fish caught on the lure or hooks. You are now ready to go handline fishing with gear made by yourself. Good luck!
Figure 26. Lure made of a piece of plastic or tyre tube


Source
Originated by: Fisheries and Aquaculture Department
http://www.fao.org/

Text: B. A. Bjarnason
Illustrations: M. Carlesi

The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

David Lubin Memorial Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Bjarnason. B.A.
Handlining and squid jigging
(FAO Training Series, no. 23 )
ISBN 92-5-103100-2