Guided Fishing Trips: High Pressure Tactics

Recreation & Sports Blog

If you're hoping to catch big fish this summer, you'll likely need to battle crowds of fishermen. Guided fishing trips can help you catch fish in even the most high-pressured waters.

Here are some tactics used by guided fly fishing captains when angling in high-pressured areas.

Show Them Something Different

When fish see the same lures and presentations, they can be very difficult to catch. Guide fishing captains often try to show the fish something different to get them to bite.

Sizing Up and Down

Most fishermen try to "match the hatch". This means they throw baits that mimic the size of the forage the fish are eating. Although this strategy is normally effective, high-pressured fish are likely to see the same sized bait hundreds of times a season. Fishing guides often have their clients experiment with sizing up and down. This means throwing both bigger and smaller baits until they find a pattern that works. In high-pressured waters, you might find the fish want a smaller presentation during the morning and a bigger presentation later in the day.

Catch Your Bait

The bait and tackle shops near a fishing spot often sell the same types of live bait. Fish in high-pressured waters can begin to associate these types of live bait with getting a hook in the mouth. Some of the best fishing guides begin their trips by catching live bait. From minnow traps to cast nets, catching live bait is all about finding current and schools of natural forage. Before you attempt to catch live bait you should consult the local fishing regulations in the area. In many cases, you might not be permitted to use "sport fish" for live bait.

Provoke a Reaction

Some of the biggest fish in high-pressured areas can be provoked to strike as a natural defense mechanism.

Locate the Spawn

The biggest fish in any water is likely to be spawning females. If you can locate where these females spawn, you can often trigger a vicious reaction strike. When looking for spawn beds, it's important to use your sonar to look for relatively flat bottoms, in shallow water, with relatively dense soil. If you're able to see slight mounds on your depth finder, you can pitch baits near these spawning beds to provoke a violent strike. Because many spawning females don't strike to eat, but merely to defend their fertilized eggs, you need to set the hook quickly and firmly.

Contact a local fishing guide to get more tips or to schedule a trip.

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28 June 2021

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