I Havent Caught Any Fish. Plz Help

[Thraeka]

Hi all. My friend and I have picked up fishing since late January. We try to go every weekend if we can. We've looked at websites for tips, rigs,and bait to use and try to apply it best we can. So far we have not caught anything. We go in the early mornings to a decent size lake nearby San Jose. I know it is a little difficult to say what we are doing wrong without seeing us, but is there any advice you guys could give to help our fishing game?

Some specific questions I have are:

How long should you stay in a particular spot?

How long should it take to catch a fish?

I have a 7 ft Ugly Stik Bigwater rod, is that ok to fish with?

Why am I not catching fish?

[MIbassin]

It would help to know where you are located and what species you are specifically targeting.

[Thraeka]

I'm in San Jose, CA. We go fishing mostly at Anderson Lake. We've tried for large mouth bass there mostly and catfish. I've tried all the common rigs; texas, drop, carolina w a 5 in plastic worm. Ive also tried rapalas, spinners, and rooster tails.

["BRB"]

Just hang in there. Fishing can be tough at times. There are so many things that come into play. What the water temp, the weather, post or pre front, water clarity, and so much more. My best advice Is try to find someone that fishes and invite Them To go with you.or even hire a local guide for a day maybe your best option. but hang in there. And probably slow down. Fishing can be a little tough right now once the water starts to warm up a little more it will get better.

[Missourifishin]

Keep trying the various different lures like plastic worms, rapala crankbaits, and spinnerbait. Don't give up. Try fishing in and around cover such as weeds, grass, lily pads, and submerged trees or stumps. Don't be afraid to lose a lure by getting in snagged while fishing in cover. It happens to everyone occasionally. But the fish like those kinds of areas.

[Thraeka]

Thanks for your guy's responses. I really appreciate it. I talk to other fishermen and they all catch at least one or two by the end of their fishing trip, so I figure I must be doing something wrong. I'll try to look for areas with cover, but the lake is mostly flat. I'll check out that guy. Any more advice would be much appreciated. Thanks a lot!

[MarksHooked]

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/13845-guaranteed-to-catch-bass/

 

This is what worked for me! Stay confident, watch your line! I am not familiar with that rod, but make sure you've got something sensitive enough if you are fishing bottom contact baits. You want to feel that bite so I hold my rod up at 10 o'clock and focus the entire time. Are you getting bites but missing fish, or not getting bit at all? Hopefully you'll get some responses from people who fish near you on here.

 

Good luck! Remember it's supposed to be fun.  There is absolutely nothing like the feeling of landing you're first bass!

[McAlpine]

Dude, that first fish is gonna be so sweet after you earn it. Great advice above, read the senko article.

Good luck!

[swagkid300]

haha the good old days i remember when i used to be noob

[pbrussell]

haha the good old days i remember when i used to be noob

I'm still a noob.

 

Here's my tip. You might have to invest a little money in some more tackle, but it'll be worth the investment.

 

First of all, you'll want an all purpose setup. Try a 6-6' medium heavy action rod. This rod can do a little bit of everything, which will help you try a variety of techniques. Stay away from the ugly stik- it has a ton of flex and therefore less sensitivity. Maybe invest in a rod in the 80-100 range to pair with whatever reel you have.

 

Secondly, the first technique I will grind your teeth with is learning how to fish a senko. Rig this bait weightless, texas rig style. Raise or sweep your rod to bring the bait up through the water column, and then let the bait sink to the bottom. Fish it slow. When using this technique, watch your line. Typically the bite comes on the fall or when the bait is resting on the bottom. You'll want to let the bait "Soak" on the bottom for at least a few seconds. When you are watching the line on top of the water, you want to look for something different. If the line jumps, starts to move, or even stops sinking before it hits the bottom, reel up your slack and set the hook. 

 

You will catch fish this way- I guarantee it.

[Chief 2]

Hang tight. I have fished here in Fla. all winter and not picked up one darn fish. Sometimes they just are not cooperative.

[Trek]

Ok may sound like something you don't want to do but try hiring a guide for a day. They will get you in the right direction on the lake your fishing. Anytime I go to a new lake out of state I hire a guide for a day. It gets us on fish the very first day. I think well worth the money.

[Darren.]

Welcome to the forums. Lots of good advice to be had here. Stick with it, be patient, try different things.

 

Trek has an interesting suggestion, to find a guide. That'll put you on to some fish and you'll learn some techniques to find them in the future.

[gripnrip]

I thought I knew a lot about bass fishing until I set foot in a seasoned tournament anglers boat.  If any advice I can give you it's this, never give up and never stop learning.  I been at it 20 plus years and I am still learning.

[Thraeka]

Thanks for all your responses. I'm definately gonna try them out. I'll read up on the articles posted and try the senko. If all else fails... then I will try the guide (no offense haha) How often or long do you guys stay in one spot? I see people moving around all the time while I'm staying in one area for hours. I feel as though it isn't that the fish aren't there because I can see them splashing, but rather I'm not presenting the bait the right way.

 

I am definately going to keep going at it. Thanks again for all the advice.

[BassAssassin726]

Thanks for all your responses. I'm definately gonna try them out. I'll read up on the articles posted and try the senko. If all else fails... then I will try the guide (no offense haha) How often or long do you guys stay in one spot? I see people moving around all the time while I'm staying in one area for hours. I feel as though it isn't that the fish aren't there because I can see them splashing, but rather I'm not presenting the bait the right way.

 

I am definately going to keep going at it. Thanks again for all the advice.

 

I roll into a spot with a few rods. I throw some kind of worm, usually a Senko, some kind of creature bait, usually a Fat Ika, spinnerbait, jig and a crankbait. If I dont get a hit within a half hour on one of those baits I move. If you're seeing fish splashing on the surface try throwing a swimbait, spinnerbait or a crank right through where they are splashing.

[Bassintheweeds]

Are you sure the fish that are active arnt tilapia or carp? When I lived out west I had 0 luck if the carp or tilapia were really active. More so the tilapia because they will kill bass they are so aggressive. Maybe if you posted what lake or a nearby address we could look and try to give you some tips on where to start.

[roadwarrior]

Here ya go:  http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/13845-guaranteed-to-catch-bass/

[Weaponofbassdestruction]

Although I have a small fortune wrapped up in tackle and rods, I don't think you need expensive equipment to start. I would start by following some advice on here but don't be too hard on yourself. The thing that helped me most when I started

, is to stop reading how to fish and start reading about the fish. You will gain more about learning how the fish move and what there primary forage is on different lakes then you will watching videos on how they catch fish in other lakes. It could hurt you if nothing else, you will think your not doing something right or not using the right tackle and so on. Instead of going fishing one day. Walk as much of the lake you usually fish and see what kind of bait is swimming around, are there crawfish,? Is it primarily shad? Then go find a couple baits that resemble your lakes primary food. If they are spawning learn what they bed in. If it is post spawn go to the first drop off off the flat, summer go find some offshore structure, fall go to the backs of creeks. I kind of think they move shallow, deep, shallow, deep starting with spring, summer, fall, winter. If that makes any sense. I don't post on to many subjects but I remember how frustrating it was starting out. Hang in there you'll get it.

[WRB]

Anderson is a good bass lake. The water should be in the upper 50's to low 60's, pre spawn transition to spawn right now, perfect time to be bass fishing.

Where, sheltered bays.

Fishing from shore. Use soft plastics worms and creatures Texas rigged or Carolina rigged.

Fan cast an area and slowly work along the bottom.

Read or watch a video on rigging both the C-and T-rigs.

Worms, 7" Roboworm in Aaron's Magic.

Creature, baby Brush hog in watermelon red flake.

Hook, Owner #5100, 3/0

Line 10 to 12 lb premium mono like P-line CXX.

T-rig, 3/16 oz bullet weight black, C-rig 3/8 to 1/2 oz egg sinker, red glass bead.

You will be fishing uphill from 15' to 2'. Start at the bay points, then work the shoreline all the way around to the opposite point. Start at the south end of the lake and fish the bay on the Morgan Hill side of this lake.

Tom

[fishva]

I'm fairly new to this too, but I'm getting better. Here's what I do:

Keep a log. Yeah, it sounds boring, but it helps. Write down the water temperature, the air temperature, how clear the sky is, how muddy the water is, what you're fishing with, how you fished it, and what your success rate was.

There isn't a 100% formula by any means, but I can't tell you how useful it is to look back at this and have a guess as to what you might have luck with in certain conditions.

[CincyBassMan]

Whats the water clarity like? If you are fishing clear water then that is probably the first and biggest obstacle you may be facing. I fish a lot of deep clear gravel pits and your best bet will usually be a weightless senko in a natural color such as black, green pumpkin or watermelon seed or no seed. Cast it let it sink on slack line and kinda give it a jerk upwards every ten seconds or so and repeat. You may see results if not the its the old trial and error that we all face as anglers. Tight lines!

[geo g]

I fish at least 5 days a week, many times from the bank, weekends from the boat.  I'll give you a couple of clues. 

1). Most people fish way too fast.  SLOW WAY DOWN!!!!!!!!!!!

2). When things get tough, DOWN SIZE.  A 4" senko type bait Texas Rigged, excellant all across the country.

3). Make little movements with the bait and then let it sit still as much as 15 seconds.  Then repeat.

4). Find a drop-off close to vegitation and fish it hard.

5). If you catch a fish don't move, they are often in packs.

6). Be a line watcher, any movement take up the slack and when you feel the fish, set it hard.

 

Good luck, I hope this helps a little!

[Wbeadlescomb]

If all of this info fails i would take up decorating cakes