It
is an easy fate to just go fishing and hope for success. How many
times have you gone fishing and returned home without a story? Becoming
lazy and complacent is a recipe for disaster. Applying learnt material
as I discovered in recent times turned bronze into gold. Knowledge
is something that is gained over time, be it large amounts or small
and new substance. Added together, knowledge becomes a powerful
tool. But do we utilize it to the fullest? Applying learnt experiences
on the water is a contributor to success. Failing to apply is like
painting wet timber; a dodgy result is imminent. Rods, reels, lures
and boats all require the power of human kind to see them in action.
Human brains control their movements. Fishing is a thinking game,
if you think before you fish, and when you fish, you become more
tuned to what it is that you are doing- or in this case, what you
are not doing.
The
finesse of fishing can be passed on to others via practical
demos and detailed talk. Motivating fish and anglers is the
name of the game. This lady angler, focused and wanting to
succeed, cast and retrieved her first ever barra. She applied
human traits in a positive way, and came away a winner.
Click
on image for larger version
Turn your brain ON.
I was fishing Awoonga with a close friend, Anthony, a non barra
angler, September 2007. We had caught a barra in the first 20 minutes,
but failed to produce any more action in the following 3 hrs. We
tried a bundle of ideas, new lure styles and new territory to no
avail. Finally, one more fish was boated after another hour of hard
work. It was cloudy, miserable so I aimed the boat for home. I had
seen enough for the day, and learnt a bit as well. Every day on
the water helps. Tracking back toward the ramp I had a brainwave.
Years ago when Awoonga was a much smaller lake it was weed heaven.
Weed edges require a unique fishing approach. I pulled the boat
up in a new spot and again we tried with the lures that were tied
on our rods- but again, no action. Do we go home or do I dig out
the old faithful lure from 5 yrs ago and give it a proper go? Positive
thinking and the new idea got the better of me and within 10 minutes
I had a missed strike. Five casts later I landed a 110cm barra.
I changed Anthony's lure to something similar, but after another
20 minutes he had no strikes whilst my lure hooked another three
80-100cm fish. I swapped lures and gave him mine. I tried in vain
with another lure but it failed to receive interest from barra.
Anthony was having no action either, but I did notice his retrieve
was not acceptable to stimulate the barra to respond. One cast later,
with a newly tuned retrieve and he was onto an 82cm fish. Three
casts later, he was on again, a 115cm fish busting clear of the
water like a torpedo. We had struck gold, our positive thinking
and application of past experiences had paid off! During that afternoon
17 barra were hooked, mostly on that one lure. I had known of this
situation for years, but I failed to bring it into play since 5
yrs ago as fisheries go through massive changes over time with all
techniques working their finest in certain circumstances. As anglers,
being open minded is an enormous opportunity maker. Being one eyed
and stubborn is a restrictive force.
I learnt a great deal that day, about barra and about myself and
the human brain. Fishing can be extremely specific; anglers need
to be extra precise.
Weed
edges require special attention for thorough and effective
fishing to take place. Weed stands can easly conceal big fish
making for smarter approaches in drawing fish out toward lures.
