Fishing in the wind. Getting out fished!

[1simplemann]

My partner consistently outfishes me in the wind. He uses all fluro. I use braid to fluro. Fishing 1/4 oz tube bait for smallies in the river .Same bait ,same hole 15 to 3! I have a big bow in my line and can't feel the bite. Rod tip down, and short cast help but He put on a clinic yesterday. At one point it was 12 to 1. Is it the Fluro? or is he THAT good? E2 just killed em in the wind on jig in the Classic. There's gotta be a way to feel the bite. Thanks in advance Rob in Montana 

[gulfcaptain]

What size braid are you fishing?

I can say the same thing but the other way around.  I've done the same thing to my fishing partners with braid while they have fluro. Maybe your braid is too heavy.

 

[papajoe222]

Welcome to the forums. When you get the chance, stop by the introductions forum and tell us a little about yourself.

He likely had a big bow in his line also.  Chances are he's very good at line watching while you were likely waiting to feel the bite. Bow in your line, or not, you need to watch where the line enters the water, especially on slack line presentations. That may have been the other difference, he may have been letting the tube free fall and you were letting it fall on a semi-tight line.  Don't be afraid to ask questions of your partner, especially if he is more experienced.

[1simplemann]

I'm using 15 lb Fins to 10 lb fluro. He's not seeing the bite IE the line moving. The line is  already moving because of the current. He claims he can feel the bite and /or the tension on the line and therefor sets the hook. Myself, I know tension he speaks of as I can feel it on non windy day. On  a wind day casting cross wind and cross current there is a 10-15' bow in my line. I can't feel crap. I'm just not connected to the bait. I bumped up the 5/15 jig heads and that helped but I snagged the bottom way more. Only thing I can find out is that fluro sinks and braid floats. I'm really scratching my head on this one because generally I can stay with him  and generally the only time he out fishes me is when we're throwing tubes in the river especially on windy days.

[gulfcaptain]

Well maybe try a longer leader of flouro to match the depth you're fishing.

[1simplemann]

I was thinking this same thing. 6-8' is the longest I've ever done. 20-30' leader should cast OK especially w/ my knot.

[Allen Der]

are you using similar rods?

[papajoe222]

I've been told that straight fluoro is more sensitive than braid on slack line.  Take it for what it's worth,

[Bluebasser86]

You're fishing a river so I'm assuming there is current? That big bag the wind is blowing in your line is adding additional lift to your bait, which the current is doing as well. So it's possible the wind whipping your line is adding unnatural movement, slowing your sink rate, maybe even preventing your tube from reaching the bottom. 

When I'm fishing braid in the wind I like to lay my rod tip down so my line is on the water to prevent the wind from being able to have too much of an effect on the line. Stepping up to a heavier weight on your tube might be another option as well. All else fails, if you can't beat them, join them. 

[Catt]

It aint the line

It aint the rod

It is the operator 

Like it or not you are letting it get in your head & your partner beating you 15-3 is making it worse!

[skno]

you have to at least try what bb86 said, you may not be in the strike zone as much.....................

[new2BC4bass]

6 hours ago, papajoe222 said:

I've been told that straight fluoro is more sensitive than braid on slack line.  Take it for what it's worth,

Same here.  Whenever I fish braid I am retrieving a worm through junk so I have tension on the line pretty much all the time.

[WIGuide]

Was the bow in his line as big as yours? From what I've experienced, braid is lighter and seems to be more effected by wind than fluoro. Add in the fact that braids slack line sensitivity in near zero and you have a tough situation to deal with. 

[Bass Turd]

Next time out ask to switch rods with him. That way you could both feel what the differences are between rods, lines etc without having to guess as much. Love to hear the results.

[WRB]

Sounds like spinning gear and you can't feel the line movement.

Forget about the line above the water as long as the slack is being controlled. The only place you need to watch for line movement is where it enters the water where it creates a V as the lure sinks....watch for any change in the V that indicated the line has stopped, if it does set the hook.

Tom

 

[1simplemann]

WRB, I do use spinning gear. He does use a baitcaster. I have always used spinning gear since it's what I started with. Is there a difference in sensitivity? If so then this could get expensive cause I don't own any BC's! ( I do have a lot of spinning gear which my wife will attest to. She says I have far too many rods. If she only knew what they cost LOL) As far as the "V" goes, all I can say is it was almost impossible to see. Wind, current and glare made it extremely difficult to see. My friend wasn't seeing the line move either. According to him  it was all feel.  I'm going to try a few different things this weekend. I'm going to use a much longer leader. 10-15' Typically I use 3-6". It was kinda hard to see how much of a bow he had but he did agree that even he wouldn't be able to feel crap w/ as much bow as I had. I have a feeling BB86 may be right and my bait isn't getting down to them or isn't staying down w/ them.

[Allen Der]

put your index finger on the line

[Paul Roberts]

I think you are dead right. The density of FC both bucks wind and offers slack-line sensitivity better than other lines (already water-soaked mono is second, light soft braids are worst –complete disconnect where slack is involved). FC can also sink below the surface currents inevitably created by the wind.

First, I’d say switch to FC (and see what happens). It should go all the way to the reel.

Other things he could be doing, and/or you should be doing, regardless:

-Control of rod (and therefore line) movement (rock solid and/or instantaneous), so that movement from the other end is most apt to be detected.

-Reduce, eliminate if possible, bow in the line. If breeze is consistent and you can keep the line steady –mebbe– great! But, realize the more bow the less detection you have, period. If breeze fluctuates -is turbulent- I for one am in trouble. Keep your back to the wind, or secondly, face directly into it. Fish shorter casts. Keep rod low. Allow FC time to sink below surface tension currents (although being in a river may or may not allow this).

-Heavier lure, and those that provide tension.

-Stretch your line straight when you start.

-I like Allen Der's keep line pinched between fingers but that may not be practical if there is much current, with horizontal retrieves, esp with spinning tackle. And it's moot if there is enough bow. 

-BC'ing gear could be a factor, esp if you have any challenges dealing with slack at the reel.

-Don’t let your buddy distract you. Fish the water in front of you, not him. May or may not be a factor but at 8:2 it's easy to get distracted.

Good luck. Let us know.

[1simplemann]

Allen, my index finger is on the line but thanks anyway.   Paul, I'm going to be setting up two reels this week. 1 all fluro and the other w/ a long leader but not past the reel. Probably 12-13'. I did some research and watched a video clip from A-Mart and he mentioned that a leader past the reel causes line lay and  casting problems which is something I hadn't considered. Both should help get that bait down and stay down. As far as reducing the bow, that is something i always try to do by anchoring in the current, casting up river and upwind so I'm not cross wind or current.Right now I can't do that because  at the present time, I don't have an anchor system set up on my kayak. I removed the old one but that is another story. I honestly don't feel that I was distracted because for the 1st hour we were seperated by 100-150 yds and we had no idea how the other was doing. I would say on a normal day it runs 3:2 in his favor but 15:3 was highly unusual. I started looking at the differences in our setups because on a calm day I usually stay right with him or at least  close. I 'll try both setup this weekend and report back.

[ww2farmer]

On 3/14/2016 at 7:09 AM, Catt said:

It aint the line

It aint the rod

It is the operator 

Like it or not you are letting it get in your head & your partner beating you 15-3 is making it worse!

This......................................

[Paul Roberts]

1 hour ago, 1simplemann said:

Allen, my index finger is on the line but thanks anyway.   Paul, I'm going to be setting up two reels this week. 1 all fluro and the other w/ a long leader but not past the reel. Probably 12-13'. I did some research and watched a video clip from A-Mart and he mentioned that a leader past the reel causes line lay and  casting problems which is something I hadn't considered. Both should help get that bait down and stay down. As far as reducing the bow, that is something i always try to do by anchoring in the current, casting up river and upwind so I'm not cross wind or current.Right now I can't do that because  at the present time, I don't have an anchor system set up on my kayak. I removed the old one but that is another story. I honestly don't feel that I was distracted because for the 1st hour we were seperated by 100-150 yds and we had no idea how the other was doing. I would say on a normal day it runs 3:2 in his favor but 15:3 was highly unusual. I started looking at the differences in our setups because on a calm day I usually stay right with him or at least  close. I 'll try both setup this weekend and report back.

Curoius what Aaron Martens was saying. Couldn't find the vid. 

[Catt]

2 hours ago, 1simplemann said:

 I honestly don't feel that I was distracted because for the 1st hour we were seperated by 100-150 yds and we had no idea how the other was doing. I would say on a normal day it runs 3:2 in his favor but 15:3 was highly unusual. I started looking at the differences in our setups because on a calm day I usually stay right with him or at least  close. I 'll try both setup this weekend and report back.

Y'all seriously need to come clean  from the beginning!

At 100-150 yds away his on different fish, heck from the front to the back of a boat he can be on totally different fish.

But from what you've said you are well on your way to adjusting!

[1simplemann]

Paul, Look up Aaron Martens favorite shakyhead. It's a bassmaster clip. Basically he prefers to start w/ a leader w/ the knot just above the reel and NOT past the bail arm due to the knot catching. Makes sense to me.  Catt. Come clean? Well, we fished along a 300 yd stretch of rocky shoreline.  We started in the middle. He went his way,I went mine. We met back up an hour later, compared results and then fished the same hole side by side.  At the time, we met back up,  it was 4:1. In the next hour it became 12:1 and finished 15:3. Clean enough for ya? The 20 mph wind  seemed to trigger the bite because as soon as the wind died so did the bite. As far as adjustments, I'm not too old to learn a new thing or two cause after the butt whoop'n I took on Sat. i figure I need change something. He was over for dinner tonite and agreed that the fluro was probably the difference. we'll see this weekend. Tight Lines Rob in Montana

[Catt]

8 hours ago, 1simplemann said:

Catt. Come clean? Well, we fished along a 300 yd stretch of rocky shoreline.  We started in the middle. He went his way,I went mine. We met back up an hour later, compared results and then fished the same hole side by side.  At the time, we met back up,  it was 4:1. In the next hour it became 12:1 and finished 15:3. Clean enough for ya? The 20 mph wind  seemed to trigger the bite because as soon as the wind died so did the bite. As far as adjustments, I'm not too old to learn a new thing or two cause after the butt whoop'n I took on Sat. i figure I need change something. He was over for dinner tonite and agreed that the fluro was probably the difference. we'll see this weekend. Tight Lines Rob in Montana

Even sitting side by side he could be reaching fish you can not, that could be part of the 4:1, 12:1, or 15:3.

Not saying ya aint got a problem felling the bite in wind, heck I hate anything over 15 mph.

[Team9nine]

9 hours ago, 1simplemann said:

 He was over for dinner tonite and agreed that the fluro was probably the difference.

No, not possible. We all know from reading these forums that fluorocarbon is overhyped, overpriced, totally unmanageable, and basically just a bunch of crap compared to braid, used straight or with a fluoro leader.....

 

-T9 ....sorry, couldn't help myself. Just feeling a bit sarcastic this morning