Watching The Fall (Newbie Question)

[HeavyDluxe]

Hi, everyone.

Getting right to the question: Can someone give a primer on what to watch for on the fall when fishing soft plastics?

I know that after lifting, you're generally supposed to let the line go slack so the bait can make a slow, unhindered descent. And, I also know that, in theory, you are supposed to watch the line for signs of a bass having picked up the bait while it was on the way down.

As I mentioned in another thread, I picked up my first two packs of GYCB Fat Ikas the other day and started fiddling with them last night. Those things flat catch fish. This afternoon, I got a chance to fish some more and tore them up. Problem is that I tore them up a little too literally. A couple of the bass were deeply gut-hooked. I had no idea they were there until I started to jig up the bait and felt their weight on the line. Neither of those two fish made it (though I did try to follow the gut-hooking instructions that are often posted here).

Both were relatively small, a long way out, and it was ridiculously windy today. All of these factors might've contributed to the reason I didn't feel or notice the pickup. Still, I would love to hear from more seasoned angler ps what I *should* be watching for so, perhaps, I won't have it happen again.

[BassAssassin726]

Just be a line watcher. I cast my worm out, when it hits the water i let some more line out so it falls straight down, your line will be slack but just watch it where it enter the water. Any twitch or jump of the line, SET THE HOOK! Also whe you cast it out count how long it takes to hit bottom. That way next cast, say if it takes 10 seconds to hit bottom and yours stops falling 5 seconds in, set the hook. Thats how i do it on windy days when watching the line just doesnt work as well, counting down works well on windy days for me. Also, there is no such thing as a "newbie" question. Thats whats great about our sport, there is always something new to learn everyday.

[Bluebasser86]

If the water is calm enough you will see the line shoot forward quickly when a fish inhales your bait. This is the "twitch" or "jump" that you hear about. Usually you'll notice small ripples caused by this movement.

Another thing I'd suggest is learning how to unhook deeply hooked fish properly. There are a couple techniques that you can use that will cause little to no harm to the fish so they can be released with the best chance possible to survive.

[garland7]

some great tips here! Line watching can be tough, it requires graet concentration. as they say, Always pay attention to what your lure is doing.

[deep]

I use braid for jigs and soft plastics (spinning or baitcasters); and I almost always fish them on slack line, unless there's too much wind/ waves and then I'm trying to feel the bite, instead of seeing it.

Usually, on a bite the line shoots forwards, or moves forward or to a side, or jumps, or one or more of these. It's sort of difficult to explain what exactly to look for, but you should have a general idea about how fast the line moves when the bait is sinking on its own. Anything different is a bite.

I don't use mono/ fluoro, so I won't know what to look for if you're using those. If it's windy. I hold a taut/ semi-taut line- watch fluemaster's jig fishing video- that's what I'm talking about.

No matter what you do, sometimes the fish eats the bait and sits there; and if the bait happens to be a weightless T-rigged senko, I have had a few gut hooks.

I don't really fish fat ikas the way I fish a senko. Roadwarrior made a post once about dragging fat ikas like a football jig, and that is what I do. If the fish bites while I'm dragging, I feel the bite; if it bites when the bait is sitting still, I can see the bite. That's the theory anyway.

[HeavyDluxe]

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Had a better day today - not in terms of fish caught, but in terms of casualties.

I will watch the jig video as requested. Just to be clear, I -was- already trying to watch the line but just seemed to be missing something. No new revelations here, really, so I suppose I just need some more experience.

[BassAssassin726]

Experience will help. Concentrate when watching that line, youll notice the subtle thumps. Like deep said though sometimes a fish will eat your bait and just sit there. Its tough to detect but focus and concentration will help. I know it sounds sill but i try and be the lure. I always keep contact and i try to imagine what that lure is doing every moment. Something out of the ordinary happens? Set the hook!

[HeavyDluxe]

So, not surprisingly, you all are rock stars.

W had a thunderstorm blow over right as I was making my last post so I took the weather-induced pause as an opportunity to follow deep's advice. I watched Fukemaster's jig video and it was really helpful and informative.

After the storm blew over, we had some really calm water and low wind. Light was fast running out, but I managed to get out on the dock for a few casts. It was like magic. I varied working the Ika in the short, crawfish like hops (a la the jig video) and larger, senko like draws. I also took advantage of the stillness to really focus on the line behavior. As a result I hooked into four fish in just a couple more than that number of casts. It was really cool to see the way that, after pausing on the bottom, the line would sometime start to move again.

So, I short, thanks..

[Jig Meister]

When ever the line, or feeling is anything other then normal, set the hook.

Once you have more experiences you will no what we mean, there is a lot of meaning in that statement, but it comes from knowing what your line feels like normally, when there is nothing on it but a lure. Also, I find it helps when worm fishing, or jigging to leave a little slack in the line, so that when the fish takes the lure they will feel less resistance and you should end up with some more fish caught.

I know it is tempting to set super hard, but usually with an exposed sharp hook a good sweep or tap will do it and result in a bettter set

[Crestliner2008]

Fishing the Ika, it's imperative to be a focused line watcher. When you see the slack "twitch" - even slightly - set the hook! The sooner you do that, the greater the possibility that the hook will be in the front of the mouth, rather than down deep. Fishing plastics with an off-set worm hook, I always crimp down the barb. Have lost very few fish doing this and extraction is so much easier, even if they do take it deep.