fishing w/ only filament line and bait

[EricMNlakes]

I have a small kayak, and I have fishing line (just the filament line, no fishing rod). I plan on buying two hook/baits (like a crankbait or something).

I would like to go out on White Bear Lake with the kayak, take the fishing line (maybe attached to a 2x4 to make it easier to reel in the fish), and drop the line into deeper water, slowly pull it out, then let it drop again. Or maybe put my kayak into the weedy spots and toss the lines a few feet from the kayak and pull in the line. I don't have a rod, so that's as far as I can go and still set the line.

I know this seems odd, but I don't really want to use a fishing rod. Just my kayak, a fishing line, 2x4, and one or two baits.

I was wondering if you could give me some tips on what type of bait to use, what area of the lake to look for, and how to fish like this. There's a lot of largemouth bass and northern, I'm told.

Thanks for putting up with a dumb question!

Eric

[islandbass]

Let me state first that there is nothing wrong with your desired method to fish. Matter of fact, that is exactly how they fish in my wife's hometown, with line, hook, and hands, no rod.

All you need is an empty 16 oz coke bottle (plastic) to hold your extra line and use the drop shot method.  Swing the line as you would a lasso and aim toward your target and point the bottle in a position that allows the line to pail out by the momentum of the line being lassoed out.

It is actually a blast to fish this way.  You will learn quickly that our hands and fingers are more sensitive than other rod out there.

As for bait, use whatever you want.  Real bait would be a great choice, like worms or fresh shrimp. Any soft plastic could work too.

[bilgerat]

That's how we fished for bluegills and perch when we were kids.

The Coke bottle is a good idea. We used to use the string holder/handle that comes with kites.

As far as bait, anything that flies, hops or crawls is fair game. Something will eat it. Go into the member section and look up Fish Chris. He's a California guy who has caught HUGE bass on nightcrawlers. Nothing fancy about the way he does it either. A single crawler hooked once through the head. Thats it !

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

What you are looking to do is called "hand lining".  There is an actual aparatus used for this, pictured below.  Keeps it all neat and you can replace the cloth line with monofilament if you like.

I have some very fond memories of hand lining off the bridge in Colt State Park with my Nana.  Ptobably one of my very first fishing experiences, I might have been 3-4?  You triggered some nice thoughts with this thread

[WRB]

In Mexico they use soda or beer cans to hold the line and cast like a spinning reel with the line coming off the bottom end.

Round split shot with a night crawler or plastic worm will work, it has for generations of young fishermen. Good luck.

WRB

[SirSnookalot]

I see it down at the pier every now and then.  For $5 you can a line spool, it's about 6" across.

Don't use braid, unless you're wearing gloves.

[fishinfiend]

Am I having deja vu?  I could have sworn that this was posted yesterday and closed by RW.

A 2x4?   :-/