River fishing requires a little more accuracy because of the flow rate, snags, and fallen trees that can get in the way of your line. What you want to catch will determine the equipment needed. A lighter rod is better if you do not need the heavier rod because this makes it easier to detect bites, but the bigger game can break your rod or reel, which is when you want a heavier rod. If you decide to leave your rod in a holder, you can buy a reel that will make noise once a fish has taken the bait.
For river fishing, you will typically want a lighter pole because, in general, the fish in these streams will be lighter than those found in dams and lakes.
Different to Other Bodies of Water
Ocean water can obviously be a lot deeper, and there are varying levels of water. If you decide to fish off the beach, you will want to pay attention to the water movement. With ocean fishing, the water can move in any direction, but with river fishing, the water will flow in a single direction. With a narrower section in the river, it will bottleneck the water, and a wider area will reduce the amount of energy in the river. Rivers running straight will often be much faster than curvy rivers because curvy rivers will have more obstacles to overcome.
Resting and Hiding Area
River fish are always on the move. They try to find areas with calmer and slower moving waters, so they expend less energy. Generally, you can find fish around banks, weeds, plants and closer to the bottom of the river. If you can find an area that stops up the river like a sunken log or backwater, this will usually lead to more catches. Most of the time, fish only leave a slower moving current to change their location or to feed. If you bounce your bait along the river bottom, you will often have a higher catch rate.
The Feeding Area
Choosing to target fish in the feeding area can be another place to catch them. If you are looking for a feeding area, check for foam patches, which will usually be near submerged logs, rocks, and trees. In the larger rivers, food will often pass along the spillways and fish will often gather at these points to feed on the food. You can also pay attention to where the birds seem to be hunting. Many times, birds will hover near the bait fish areas or swarms of insects, which attracts the big game fish. That will give you a better idea about where to cast.
Watching The Weather
Weather becomes another important factor when trying to find fish. If it is raining, the water drops will sometimes catch insects and drop them on the surface of the water. Fish use that to their advantage to feed on the insects near the surface. Also, raindrops help to break up the river surface so that they cannot see you as easily.
Planer Boards
Planer BoardsPlaner boards are ideal for river fishing. As mentioned earlier, rivers will have a constant flow in one direction, making it easy to attach a planer board and send it out to the center of the river, or even the opposite bank – a feat that’s usually very hard to do. Learn more about planer boards here.
Yellow Bird Products
1803 Holian Drive
Spring Grove, IL 60081
815-469-9686
