Fishing Tips - let's catch our own meals

I have a collection of fishing tips that I'd like to share. I think fishing is fun, relaxing, and a great way to help keep yourself fed.

And, it's also a source of big lies about the fish that got away. It's also a bit like raising small animals for meat and eggs; it brings you a giant step closer to the honesty associated with how we obtain food. Sometimes you need to catch and kill it.

Although nearly any kind of food can be found neatly packaged for us at the grocery store, catching our own (or at least trying to do so) is a great pastime and a good skill for everyday living and emergency survival. You know what they say...

Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you give him something to waste his time on when he really should be working.

Well, something like that.

Anyway, a recent frugal fishing experience on the lake inspired me to create this section on the site so I could share with you what little I know about catching crappie and bass and catfish and panfish, and a bunch of other aquatic life. It's fun, it can be an inexpensive form of recreation, and it puts food on the table.

Some of the best times in my youth were associated with catching creatures from the lake and preparing them for a tasty meal that evening. And, I think the most beautiful view on the planet is watching the ever-changing shimmer on the blue water as the afternoon sun begins its quiet decent into the woods behind the lake. Even a starlit night doesn't compare with that view.

I'm happy to share fishing tips associated with live bait like worms and crickets, using artificial lures, and using no bait at all. I'll also show how I clean fish so they're ready for the kitchen. Sure, that will make for some yucky discussion and photos, but again, part of frugal living is getting much closer to the truth about how we get by, and part of the truth associated with catching something for dinner is that animals need to be killed and cleaned before we can eat them. At least I prefer it that way.

So, let's get started with a general discussion of how to get clean fish from the messy job of cleaning fish. I use a rinsing and soaking technique to minimize the fish smell and off color that can sometimes be associated with our aquatic meals.

Next, I want to give you a primer on how to cast and be ready to set the hook when you get a bite.

Then, I'd like to tell you how to catch catfish, one of my favorite finned fillets.

If you've never fished using a trot line, my discussion in this area might be quite enlightening.

And, none of this would be complete without telling you some of my big fishing stories. Well, sometimes the story is big, even if the fish aren't. Let's look at:

• Loosing a pole in the lake and then catching it again.
• Catching a fish and the lure/bait never touched the water.
• One large bass going after a large lure, and then another even larger bass going after that fish.
• Dipping your lure in the water to get the weeds off and having a fish strike at boat side and snap your line.
• Catching fish with no bait and no lure? Now that's frugal fishing.

As I build on these fishing tips, I'll give better organization to the material. For now, it's a place holder for my less than organized thoughts on the subject.

Enjoy the fishing tips and good luck angling.

Done with Fishing Tips, take me back Home