june 1963 boating issue - Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission

SPINNING THE BIG RIVER
Big rivers like the Delaware and Susquehanna are, in reality,
a combination of little streams and in their travels between the
banks are many subtle shallows, long slick runs and eddies, as
well as the obvious unwadable stretches of white water tumbling
between house-size boulders. The sight of all this variety within
the easy reach of the spincaster can be most devastating and
one's first impulse is to start casting any and everywhere. It
is far better, however, to think out your moves in much the
same way the fly-fisherman, with his limited equipment, must do.
By sparing the number of casts, you automatically enlarge your
chance of taking a really big fish, for with the exception of
those times when the stream is very high and roily, big fish
are, more often than not, scared by indiscriminate casting.
The way to the big fish is that which is most direct. Figure
out where he is likely to be, then go about the strategy by
casting the lure, preferably above his lair, in such a way it
will come down to him in perfect timing with the pressure of
the retrieve. You will then present it to him perfectly the first
time and all the nuances of the lure's built-in action will work
its deadly attraction.
If you simply heave the lure in the general direction, it will
usually go by the fish too fast, too high or in such a way he
will not see it properly. Often the simple strategy of selecting
a casting point above a midstream rock and working a cast
well above it, letting the lure drift naturally, will draw the
big one out. Other times a spinning lure is best fished slowly
straight across the hot spot.
Streamer fly-fishing is the general technique which can be
well adapted to big stream angling. If you have taken bass on
streamers in big rivers, you've likely had to wade long and
difficult stretches to put the lure in just the right current movement
where the action will count. Any fly-rod man who has
used a spinner knows what I mean. Spinning, however, makes
the whole proposition easy. You need not wade, and banished
is the heavy, bellying line with the accompanying difficulty of
sinking the lure to the right depth just where you want it.
Spinning will do all these things and more if you apply yourself
to the task and put your faith in the tackle. Bass, big ones,
will come out of the hot spots lured by weighted bucktails and
even salt-water jigs in the spinning sizes if you don't scare
'em down by a lot of unplanned tries.
In the matter of lures, the heavy sunken lures such as the
brass, copper and silver finished spoons are good teasers and
will not snag up readily despite their weight, if you cast them
bullet-like and not up in the air and down ... a common
failure which allows too much slack.
Remember . . . heavy line with the heavy lures if you want
distance, but remember too that distance is only as good as its
control. If you can reach the other bank but cannot manipulate
the lure into the hot spot properly, save your effort and work
from another point.
For fast water, avoid the lures with revolving blades that
fan out from the lure shank. These spin too fast and create
too much drag on the line and if and when a fish does hit, the
pressure will often be too much for the frail line. The rod tip,
already bent from the excessive drag, has little cushioning
power left in it.
Avoid the lazy habit of tying your lures directly to the line
for the holes in most of them are rough. Wire loops are also
bound to cut into the thin nylon. Your best plan is to tie on a
By Ray Ovington
snap swivel of the proper size and weight for the job. Make
sure your tackle box includes many sizes and use the smallest
possible, for a large swivel detracts from the action of the lure-
Tie your swivel with a clinch knot and carefully test it before
you snap on the lure or the lure split-ring.
Often it is advisable when working with large lures in quest
of river bass to use a short length metal leader ahead of th e
snap swivel for this will help avoid line breakage when the fis' 1
carries the lure into rough rocks or pesky snags. Bass, hardscaled
and hard-mouthed, tend to wear through a fine line-
Incidentally, I have never found that the short leader of wire
or plastic covered wire detracts from the killing qualities 0»
the lures, so it just makes good sense to use them.
Fast-water fishing will twist your line unmercifully unless
you take the proper precautions. When using lures that have
any tendency to spin (and bait is definitely included here)employ
a transparent fin to the leader or just ahead of the
swivel.
Live bait is duck soup for the big stream. A hefty nigh'
crawler needs no additional weight unless you are still-fishing
at the head of a pool. The worm fished, dead drift, casting i' 1
slightly upstream fly-fishing style, is still one of the most killing
forms of bait-fishing. These same thoughts also apply to minno\Vfishing
as well and you'll note that you can make long casts
easily with little danger of flicking the bait off.
Though it may seem like a great deal of bother, change you''
lure weights for given circumstances, even though you keel'
fishing from the same location. For example, suppose you are
working from the head of a pool on a big fast section of the river
and right below you is deep water with a combination of backwater
and heavy flow with a white-water stretch in the center-
Light lures can be employed on the shallow, slow fringes an''
retrieved right to your very feet.
The middle water can be handled with the middle-sized lures
with ease and for the deep water too if it is slow enough-
When casting across the three levels from a position downstream,
the heavy lure is O.K. if you throw it just the other
side of the fast water and retrieve as it is brought down by
the current. Let it remain in the white water as long as you
can and bring it upstream, holding the rod high as you work
it quickly through the shallows. The lighter lure is sometime^
more practical, however, for you can cast it upstream, allowing
it to sink farther for its weight in the fast water and then
take your time on the retrieve, bringing" it through the fish)'
spots. I've taken many bass just at the fringe of white water
where the bottom of the stream slants upward, for here there is
a dead water current, not visible to us, where bass congregate-
Make it a point never to stay with one lure for too long < l
time in the same area. Change often, for fish seem to tire of
the same lure. They might follow it once or twice, but if yov'
present them with something different on the third cast the)'
will often strike. I've seen this proven in salt-water angling-
A school of mackerel will go crazy for a particular lure fo'-'
maybe three or four casts and then interest begins to lag. Put
on something of the same color but different shape and actid 1
and they come in fresh and eager again. Remember this, for i'
will pay off again and again. Changing lures will also get yotf
into the habit of selecting the right weight lure and action for
the type of water you are fishing.
Never underestimate the power of the midget bass plugs i' 1
16 P E N N S Y L V A N I A ANGLEU