I had a great surprise this week, Ethan Simowitz brought Lindsay Carlsen over to show me how it’s done. She said let’s just go down to the lake (Beaver) and fish a little off the bank. A lot of people think that it’s a waste of time to bank fish.
I catch my biggest fish stalking them from the bank. Bank fishing is the same as boat fishing, but you don’t scare fish as much if you learn to be sneaky.
And that’s just what Ethan did. He fished the whole shoreline as far as you could see. He came back our way and said if I could just throw off that point right there, I know that’s where it is. He got in the right spot and made that cast. Bam, the fish was on. It even put on a show coming out of the water three times.
The one thing I do to “keep it fresh” is walk. If I’m pond hopping, I’ll walk all around the pond, fishing every bit of water from different angles. I love to wade the rivers where it’s shallow enough, or climb out on the bank and fight my way through trees, brambles, and overgrowth to a place I think I can catch fish.
That’s what my granddad taught me. If I want to relax, I fish the ponds. If I want an adventure, I pick the river. I come home tired out and aching with, scratched arms, mosquito bites, sometimes a sunburn. That’s not always the case, but there’s always something new with the river. The cover is always shifting, water levels are always different, sometimes day to day.
If you know the body of water and the fishing spots that are productive for the time of year/day/weather/conditions, can get there quickly and hit it from the bank, you can catch faster and more often than having to lower a boat into the water.
I catch a lot more fish when I’m on the boat, but I catch just as many big ones from the bank.
When it’s not feasible to reach ideal spots and presentation from the bank, a boat is needed.
If you need help getting out on the water, give me a call at Custom Adventures Guide Service. (479) 244-5259. We can set up a customized trip just for you.