I have never heard of back reeling until I came across this video on myoutdoortv.com. It’s an interesting concept, where instead of relying on your drag, you reel backwards to give the fish line, when it makes a strong run.

I can’t believe I never though of this myself. I’ll have to try this next time I hook a large fish, to see if it has all the benefits mentioned in the video.

Watch the video here: Back Reeling to Success by Wade Bourne

Here is another video from YouTube that demonstrates the Technique:

                          

I was reading an article about the “Top Trout Lures” on OutdoorLife.com and would have to agree with their selection. Here is what I have to say about those lures when it comes to fishing for the larger brown trout.

Spoons – Spoons are definitely great for covering alot of water. There is something about them that the large brown trout just can’t seem to resist. You can retrieve them at any speed, jig them, and twitch them. I would recommend 2-3 inch spoons (not including the hook) for the larger browns.

Spinners – Probably the most popular type of lure out there, spinners are also great for enticing strikes from large brown trout. I would suggest to experiment with different colors and styles in the #2 or #3 blade sizes.

Rapalas – Bait fish imitation lures like Rapalas are great for catching large brown trout. This is because only the larger fish target bait fish as a food source. My personal favorites are the Rapala Countdowns in natural looking colors like silver minnow, gold minnow, rainbow trout, etc. 2-3 inches is the ideal length.

Flatfish – There is something about the action of a Flatfish that make trout go nuts. If you never tried one, I would recommend you pick one up. Even when the bite was slow, I brought in good sized fish on a Flatfish lure. Once again, 2-3 inch is the ideal size.

Marabou Jigs – This is not in the Outdoor Life article, but I had to mention marabou jigs. This is one of my favorite lures for a good reason. That reason is: They consistently produce good catches of trout. I usually use 2-3 inch jigs in darker colors like black, brown, olive, and blood red.

You have probably noticed the numbers 2 and 3 in this article quite a bit. Those are the numbers I go by when choosing lure lengths and sizes for larger brown trout. (2-3 inches in length or #2-#3 blade sizes for spinners) It seems to be the ideal size.

So, get out there on the lake or river and catch those lunker brown trout.

                          

Northern Pike are relatively easy to catch, but if you really want to maximize your fishing potential, follow these simple tips and techniques to catch more summertime pike.

Where to find them: Pike can be found just about anywhere in a body of water. They tend to stick around places where there is a higher concentration of bait fish. They hide around structure waiting to ambush its prey.This is why you can find them around fishing docks, vegetation, and any other cover. So, to find northern pike, look for structure, vegetation, and higher concentrations of baitfish.

While pike primarily feed on smaller fish, they will eat just about anything that makes itself available as a food source. They eat fish, frogs, insects, leeches, ducklings, and mice/water voles. So, when choosing a lure or bait to catch pike, you don’t need to be too particular. I would use larger lures like: spoons, spinners, crank baits, jigs, soft plastics, and top water. If I’m bait fishing, I would stick with fish between 4 and 8 inches in length.

Use a wire leader. I cannot stress this enough. Pike have “razor sharp” teeth that can cut through even the toughest of lines. With a wire leader you won’t loose nearly as many fish due to line breakage. Anyway, I hope this short blurb will help some of you in your summer pike fishing adventures. Good Luck!

                          

The best time of year for largemouth bass fishing is during the spring. This is when they move from deeper water into the shallows to start their spawning action. This is a great time to catch those big bass because they will be concentrated in the shallows near the shore.

Between about the middle of March to the middle of June (when the water really starts warming), look for nice debris-free sandy spots in about 2-5 feet of water to locate the largemouth bass spawning beds. Cast your lure/bait starting from the edge of the bed(s) and working your way throughout the whole area.

I recommend to using a smaller lure/bait fished at a slow to medium speed near the spawning beds/flats. The reason for this is: largemouth bass will hesitate to leave their beds unattended to chase some food. So, in order to induce more strikes, you will need to place and keep the lure/bait in the direct vicinity of the spawning bass.

Watch the great fishing video at the top. Kreig Adkins shows us how to use spinner baits for spring time bass. There is a great deal of information that can be learned about catching largemouth bass in the spring. Enjoy the video and get out on the lake to catch those springtime bass.

                          

This is a technique I developed for fishing in lakes and reservoirs for spawning rainbow trout. Every spring between the beginning of May and the end of June (in my area) the rainbow trout cruise the shore in large groups looking to spawn. This is my favorite time of year to fish, because the largest trout can be caught right from shore. I usually use black marabou jigs (my favorite lure) to catch them.

One spring I was fishing at Quartz Lake, Alaska with my black jig. I noticed that the fish were very lazy so I needed to really slow down my presentation. My jig was too heavy to be retrieved that slowly. It would drag on the bottom of the lake. Hmmm… I though. How can I fix this problem? I decided to add a small bobber on the line to control the lure depth. I started catching them one after the other. A new trout fishing technique was born.

Not only did the bobber control lure depth but also allowed me to fish the jig super slowly. That’s not all. The best aspect of this technique is that even the smallest of waves would jig the lure up and down giving it a life-like action that the rainbow trout just couldn’t resist. I would catch them without retrieving the lure at all. I would just cast to where the fish were. The waves gave my jig all the action it needed to entice strikes. I would watch my bobber until it went down. I’d set the hook and then… FISH ON!

So far, this is the most productive technique I know for spawning rainbow trout in the spring. I strongly recommend that you try it. Let me know if it works for you.

                          

When choosing a fishing spot, make sure to take the wind direction into consideration. The wind blows phytoplankton and other surface foods towards the windward shore. This attracts insects, crustaceans, and bait fish that feed on it. When so much food is concentrated in one area this will attract the larger game fish that are looking for a meal.

So when you’re fishing in the wind, try fishing from or near the windward shore. This will help you put more fish in the boat, whether it’s trout or bass. Remember that wind is not the only factor that affects fishing. Look at all the factors before making a decision on where to fish.