Article by Capt. Mark Sampson
I once accepted an invitation to go fishing with a fellow for a few hours on a local lake. When I asked if there was anything I could bring, he said, “Don’t worry. I’ll have everything we’ll need. Just be at the ramp at 7:00 am.” And so I did. The problem was, he wasn’t there until 7:45 because he needed to stop at a tackle shop to get supplies. By 8:00 we had the boat in the water and were on our way to the corner of the lake where he said the fish would be waiting. And he was right! When we got there the water was alive with fish that were swirling and splashing and doing all the things that hungry fish do.
All we had to do was get a hook in the water and we’d be in business. But I quickly realized that it wasn’t going to be that simple because when my buddy started pulling out the tackle, I saw that the rods needed to be strung and all the lures he’d just bought that morning were still in the little plastic packages. It took us about 20-minutes to get everything tied up and ready before the first cast was made, and wouldn’t you know it, by then most of the fish activity we’d been seeing on the surface had stopped, and though we did get a few bites, our success was pale compared to what it could have been if we were ready to cast when first we rolled in. If only my friend had spent a few minutes getting things ready the night before, things would have been a lot different and a lot better!
One thing I’ve learned from fishing all my life is that the best way to ensure a smooth and productive trip is to prepare all bait, tackle and equipment as much as possible before even approaching the water. But folks should know that the level of readiness to which I’m referring goes beyond simply making sure that there’s enough bait and tackle on board or sandwiches made for the day. It involves spending time before the trip getting tackle and gear ready so that when you arrive on the scene, and it’s time to get your line in the water, it’s just a matter of dropping your bait or lure over and you’re fishing. No wasted effort and no wasted time.
The first thing on the list would be all terminal tackle. In other words, everything that might go on the end of the line, including hooks, lures and leader. Take leader, for instance. It doesn’t matter if you’re wreck fishing for sea bass or trolling for tuna, the last thing you want to be doing while out on the fishing grounds is measure, cut and tie leaders. Trolling leaders can be attached ahead of time to any hooks or lures that will be used so that they can be quickly snapped on and off the line when needed. Prepared leaders can then be neatly coiled and stored in zip-lock bags or some other container that will allow them to be quickly put to use when the time comes. Bottom fishermen should rig their rods with the necessary terminal tackle and then also have a bunch of extra rigs tied-up and stored so that when they break one off on a snag, they can quickly attach a new one and be fishing again in just a few minutes.
“Being ready” can also mean being prepared, not just for what you expect to catch but also for whatever other opportunities might come along. No matter if we’re shark fishing or bottom fishing, whenever we’re offshore there will always be an extra rod or two rigged and ready in the event of a surprise opportunity to hook a dolphin, bluefish, cobia or any other fish that might show itself while we’re out. Fish will often pop up quickly, unexpectedly, and be gone long before anyone has time to rummage through a tackle box, grab a lure, tie it on and make a cast.
Keeping tackle boxes, cabinets, or drawers clean and orderly is a great help to always being prepared for action. If someone is trying to quickly get their line in the water, but end up grabbing a lure out of a tackle box that comes out as a tangled clump with four other lures and a wad of knotted leader, the only thing they are going to catch will be an aggravating lesson in frustration while trying to get it untangled, on the line and in the water before the opportunity swims away. When it’s “crunch time” on the water, having all of your tackle properly cleaned, orderly and stored where it’s readily available can be the difference between catching fish or going home skunked.
Another way to be ready for the day is to go ahead and cut or prepare whatever bait will be used before heading out on the water, so that once there it’s just a matter of sticking it on the hook and dropping it in. When the action is hot, no one wants to have to take time out from catching fish just to cut more bait. It’s always easier and more efficient to prep bait at the dock and put it in a cooler, plastic containers or in zip-lock bags than mess with it while fishing.
While going through all the preparations for what will hopefully be a successful day on the water, anglers should not lose sight of also being ready to deal with whatever fish they catch. All the tools needed to help with the landing process such as nets, gaffs, knives, rags, pliers, gloves and rulers should be on hand and ready for use. More that just a few fish have been lost at the last second because the net or gaff wasn’t handy when the fish was ready to be taken. Preparation is always a key to successful fishing!
Captain Mark Sampson is an outdoor writer and captain of the charter boat “Fish Finder”.
