Gasoline prices are driving many recreational anglers to leave their boat and car in the garage and pursue their hobby close to home. Even if you don't have access to large bodies of water, such as rivers or lakes, you can still enjoy a fun fishing experience in an often overlooked small stream or stream.
Steps
Step 1. Find a small stream or stream suitable for fishing
You will have to make several considerations in your choice. Here are some of them:
- Is the stream on public property, or do you have permission to fish there?
- How clean is the water? Streams in agricultural or industrial areas can have levels of pollution that make fish unhealthy, or, in extreme cases, even poisonous. In theory you should choose the upstream streams of nearby industries.
- Does the stream have good water flow all year round? Some rivers only have a flow of water during the thaw season, or when rainfall is sufficient to sustain it.
- What species of fish are you planning to fish? Keep in mind that small streams typically don't have large fish, due to the limitations imposed by that particular environment.
Step 2. Gather the materials needed for your fishing
In general, the basic elements you need to have are a line, a hook and the lure. However, for practical purposes, it would be better to have specific equipment for fishing in streams. These are some things to consider:
- Use light or super light equipment. Small streams are often transparent, and you will need a very light monofilament line to prevent the fish from seeing it.
- Get the appropriate live or artificial bait for the type of fish you want to catch.
- Use long-stemmed hooks of the smallest gauge possible. In streams it is very common for the hook to get entangled in some ravine and you can be sure that it will happen to you too. A long shank hook will bend instead of breaking and it will be easier to unlock. In this way you will save time because you will not have to constantly replace it. Also, a long shank hook is easier to remove from the fish's mouth.
- Among the various accessories you can plan to add insect repellent, a basket or a bucket for catching and, in some cases, boots to keep the feet dry.
Step 3. Choose your bait
Stream fish are indigenous, or native, and often prefer their habitat food as bait. Worms, grubs, and small insects like crickets and grasshoppers are good choices. You can also consider jig or spinner lures if the fish you want to catch bites you.
Step 4. Obtain baits by digging into the ground or catching them yourself, if feasible
Digging for worms requires a suitable environment, such as a compost pile or other place with good moisture and fertile soil. Catching crickets and grasshoppers will test your reflexes and speed and hand-eye coordination, but for both methods you need to have some experience.
Step 5. Grab your gear and head to the stream
Unless you're lucky enough to have a creek nearby, you'll need to load up your car or van and drive down to the river. Look for an isolated place, such as a national or regional park that can offer you a good fishing experience but at the same time a pleasant landscape.
Step 6. Get off the beaten path
Even small streams can be crowded with fishermen, so moving away from civilization increases the chances of having a good experience and of “reaping the rewards” of your fishing trip, as well as enjoying an uncontaminated forest.
Step 7. Don't judge the cove or stream by its surface
Fish can be found in any pond or stream that has enough water to live on. Often, a good fish can remain still and invisible as long as the bait is close enough to make it bite. Fishing in small ponds, near the shore among tree roots and in creeks will give you a better result.
Step 8. Adapt your technique to the environmental conditions
Small streams in the woods often have bushes covered banks and many uprooted trees or trees growing in water. Sometimes the only way to get close to the fishing area is to wade the stream and stand in the current. If you are casting with a reel or with a fixed rod, you can still keep the bait hidden, except near the lowest branches and obstacles.
Step 9. Fish in different areas at different depths
The fish remain "in suspension" where the conditions are more favorable and where there is greater abundance of food. Sometimes they are on the surface, others almost on the bottom, so don't rule out any possibility when you cast the lure.
Step 10. Use the current to present the bait to the fish
If you fish with a reel or with other casting equipment, you can get close to the fishing area even if you are downstream from it, then letting the bait flow downwards. This will make it look more natural to the fish, since insects and worms that fall into the water follow a similar path.
Step 11. Change the bait when you don't get good results
If you use lures, try changing color, type and size to find what the fish prefer. If you use live ones, try any worms, insects, or maggots you can find on the stream bank. There may also be centipedes or shrimp in the stream, which you can use as bait.
Step 12. If there is enough space and the current allows it, use a float
In this way, even an inexperienced fisherman can understand whether the fish has taken the bite or not. In addition, the float keeps the bait at the desired depth. Use the smallest float possible in relation to the depth at which you want to keep the bait, in doing so you will have greater sensitivity to "feel" the bite. A small hook and lead will allow you to adopt a small float.
Step 13. Remove your prey from the hook and hang it on a support, or put it in a clean bucket that you have previously filled with water from the stream, so the fish will stay alive for as long as possible
Step 14. Take away the fish and all your gear when you are done
Leave nothing but your footprints when you leave, so the next visitor will enjoy the same clean landscape you saw.
Step 15. Clean the fish
For very small catches this is a very accurate and precise operation, usually removing the scales, entrails and head before cooking the fish. The discarded parts must be kept until there is a place to bury or throw them, in order to avoid bad smells.
Step 16. Cook the fish
The smaller ones sometimes have some difficulties because they are full of bones, but fresh fish, freshly caught in a clear stream, is great when fried to the right point (golden and crunchy so the bones are fragile as crackers).
Step 17. Serve the fish with corn scones, coleslaw and beans
You will have a delicious meal to end the day in a worthy way.
Advice
- Keep the fish alive for as long as possible to eat it fresh.
- Adapt the size of the bait and equipment according to the type of catch you want.
- Check that the area you fish in is not specifically regulated. Some areas allow catches only for release and others only with the use of artificial bait.
- The "catch and release" technique is a great way to enjoy fishing without altering the balance of a stream.
- Read up on the specific types of fish that populate the area's streams, you'll find there are limits on quantity, size, and other restrictions.
- Check the water conditions before organizing the fishing trip. Muddy waters, especially after rains, can make catching difficult.
- Check the maps, especially the topographical ones to identify streams, waterways and their access routes.
- You can remove the branches and other obstacles from the shore where you want to fish only if you have the permission of the owner or the authority that has the jurisdiction.
- As much as possible, try to stay upstream of the launch point so as not to scare the fish.
Warnings
- In areas frequented by bears, do not clean the fish until you are home or in a safe area. If you are camping, bury the scraps far away from where you pitched your tent.
- Tell someone where you will be going and what time you plan to return.
- Be careful and informed if there is a risk of flooding in case of heavy rain. Some streams grow fast, although it is not raining in that area but upstream.
- Watch out for deep spots, especially if you plan on wading up to your hips or chest.
- Some streams and streams can be infested with dangerous animals such as poisonous snakes and alligators.
- Make sure you have the right fishing license before you go fishing. Some areas and parks require special permits.
- Be careful when walking or climbing on wet surfaces as you may slip.
- Remember that sometimes going to the nearest fish shop to buy fish will cost you less, even in the short term.
