Sight Fishing

[SWH]

I was curious if anyone else comes across this situation and if so what do you do? I have been fishing (shorebound) I see nice size bass about 2-3 pounds i try and throw what i have rigged up (normally either a plastic texas rigged or a crankbait) yet i cannot get them to bite it. Is this more than likely because if i see them they can def see me?

[mrlitetackle]

you're right in the fact that if you can see them, they can see you.

i fish from shore mostly myself, and encounter this quite a bit.

many times, the fish will strike though.

its all just a matter of if they want to!

think of it this way, you throw lures all day.... and say catch 5 fish (arbitrary #).... just think of how many fish actually saw your lure, likely tons of them, you just didnt know that because you cant see them.  not all fish are going to hit all the time, and this may just be one of them... at one of those times.

[SPEEDBEAD.]

There could be quite a few reasons why they won't bite, one of which is the fact that they can see you.

Sometimes that doesnt matter though and other things will tell the fish not to bite:

A lure landing too close to them

Your line laying on the water over their heads

Sight fishing is up close fishing.  Slow movements, precise presentations and the right bait all factor into your success.

[Big Phish]

that's some pretty good insight mrlitetackle.  I've never thought of it that way.

[SWH]

True good point i guess i just needed to hear from someone else cause althought i am getting more accustomed to this i am very new at it and i loose more lures then i catch fish! LOL It will turn around but i was curious if anyone really did catch the fish they see only a few feet away on the shore. Glad to hear it is possible.. Back out their to keep trying. Cant catch em on the sofa lol

[roadwarrior]

Long casts are key. You want to be behind the swirl and bring the

lure through the spot. I catch a very high percentage of the fish I

see feeding near the bank.

8-)

[SWH]

sounds good i always thought that shorter casts where the way to go. Dont know why i thought that but it makes more sense to throw far and bring it in a little more unsuspecting. Thanks for all your advice guys

[mrlitetackle]

caught this little girl sightfishing.....

took quite some time and patience though, almost an hour of throwing nearly everything that i own.

dont get me wrong, normally i would have given up much sooner.....

but i needed to get this one on the line

[steezy]

caught this little girl sightfishing.....

took quite some time and patience though, almost an hour of throwing nearly everything that i own.

dont get me wrong, normally i would have given up much sooner.....

but i needed to get this one on the line

I just gotta ask, what rod/reel did you use to catch that fish.

A lightweight spinning combo?  8-)  If so, no long did you play her before landing?

[Raul]

Some of the lakes near my home town are crystal clear almost year round, all the ponds I fish are also crystal claer year round, you start from the premise " I can see them --> they can see you", so it everything starts from the way you approach them, from what you wear, what you use to fish, the line you fish with, your casting technique, how you position yourself in relation to the sun, how you move and how fast you move, all those factor come into play, bass in very clear water can be extremely spooky and can be very hard to catch.

I don 't believe in all the mumbo jumbo theory of "matching the hatch" because I fish with bright shiny baits and hot colors as well as with more "natural" ones. You don 't need to match the forage what you need is to fish in stealth mode and be very patient. Long casts, not making your bait landing near the fish, concealing your presence from the fish ( like not standing up, not casting your shadow into the area where you can see the fish, not making sudden moves and things like that ) plus patience pay off in the longer run.

Of course there are day that the fish don 't care but in my exoperience those days are uncommon, most of the times I 've fished gin clear water the fish are extra spooky.

[Hammer 4]

Long cast's are a must..also, stand as far from the waterline as possible, and try to be as quite as you can..

[mrlitetackle]

Posted by: steezy

mrlitetackle wrote on Today at 2:32pm:

caught this little girl sightfishing.....

took quite some time and patience though, almost an hour of throwing nearly everything that i own.

dont get me wrong, normally i would have given up much sooner.....

but i needed to get this one on the line Wink

Posted by: steezy

I just gotta ask, what rod/reel did you use to catch that fish.

A lightweight spinning combo?  Cool  If so, no long did you play her before landing?

lightweigt spinning indeed,

i was using an old model shimano stradic 2000,

on a BPS microlite rod (md lite act.)

with 10lb ande mono....

and.... a light drag of course

honestly, dont remember how long it took..... but she did make more than a couple nice runs!!! (gotta love the "zzzziiiiiiinnnngggggg" from a spinning reel's drag ;D)

[Rhody]

mrlitetackle reading your posts kill me, for some reason during the 4 years i spent in orlando i did not fish at all. ive only gotten back into it since i came home to rhode island.

[DawsonH]

If your fishing from the bank for a fish against the bank make a cast 10-20 feet beyond the fish your looking at, to a spot that will all you to bring the bait back towards the fish's face, but without touching it with your line. Just use some small and light weight, like a weightless plastic stick bait or a 1/0 worm hook and a grub. Something subtle like that is a good bet for that situation. If that doesn't work throw a brick at it and try to knock it out, then go grab it! Works every time for me! ;D

[skillet]

 I know you're talking about catching fish you see but here's something to think about. Try stopping short of the shore where you are going to fish from. Make several casts to the area right in front of where you will be standing. Doesn't always produce strikes (nothing does ) but it is sure worth it when it works...

skillet

[SammyLee]

I watched a pro (on tv) run a drop shot worm over a nesting bass, must have been 20 times, until it just got tired of the darn thing and tried to kill it.  I know it's not so easy from the bank but you might be able to cast from down-bank so to speak.

I had one like that that I could cast to from a little dock and nada, nothing for two days.  I finally got a live minnow and caught her on the first cast.  She was back in the spot in 5 minutes.

[SWH]

Great advice thank you for all the help. i cant wait to get out their and use this the next time i see some.

[tyrius.]

One other thing to think about is that bass are not always feeding.  These bass may just be soaking up the sun in the shallows and relatively inactive.  Catching these "sunning" bass is exceedingly difficult.

Now if you see them feeding in the shallows then you're in luck.  I had just such an experience this weekend.  I was fishing a small pond and could see nice sized bass cruising the shallows.  Every once in a while the bass would smash some bluegill, I would actually see the bluegill come out of the water at the waters edge.  I caught a few of them by pitching a jig or soft plastic past them and then slowly dragging it in.  The bass would actually swim towards where my lure hit the water (this let me know that they were active and hungry).  Then they would check it out for a second before sucking it up.  Great fun.