Strange Fish Challenge - Retrospective

The world of fisherfolk generally is an insular place.  People in it are solitary or intent on fishing in little family groups.  Within this world individuals looking to catch multiple species, or focusing on Weird Bottom Feeders are a tiny and bizarre sub-cult.  So I have few illusions that a "how to guide" on this will be of much interest.  Of course the same could be said of some of my other obsessions.  But for what it's worth, here you go.

1. Timing is (almost) everything.  Fish generally are more active in the Spring than other times of year.  They also have varying appetites based on weather, and in the case of river fishing water levels are very important.  You won't keep bait in place during floods.

2. As the old song says "Many Fish Bites if ya Got Good Bait"*.  Nightcrawlers are the universal bait.  Big ol' crawlers on the bottom for big ol' fish.  Teeny bits for teeny fish.  I did catch a few game fish with lures early on.

3. Multiply your odds.  In Wisconsin it is legal to fish three lines at once.  Using slightly different rigs and in different depths/current flows is useful.

4. Location, location, location...  No matter how good you are at fishing your "home lake" the number of species in it will be finite.  Some lakes have a near infinite number of tiny bluegill.  You will wear out your arm catching and releasing them and never catch anything else.  Another lake a few miles away will have the same scenario but with Green Sunfish.  Mix it up a bit and enjoy the diversity.  In general the further south you go the more types of fish you'll encounter.  Rivers have more diversity than lakes.  Bodies of water that connect to major waterways, especially big rivers, have more theoretical species.  

5. For river fishing, pack lots of tackle.  Especially when fishing a new site you don't know where all the snags and logs are.  You find out quickly.  I tend to use this type of sinker for bottom fishing. 

Hook one end to 20 pound test line and the other to either a hook/leader or if you want to keep the bait off the bottom a few inches a Lindy Rig.  

6. Microfishing is disappointing.  There are so many little minnows out there.  They are all hard to catch.  The tackle involved is small and hard to rig up.  The critters involved are smarter than prestige species such as trout.  To really make an effort on these would require a lot of wading up and down ins steams, ditches and swamps.  That's a level up, or perhaps down, on the Insanity Scale. 

7. Five of my seven days were entirely bank fishing.  I think a person could hit multi species more efficiently by putting a boat onto some bodies of water.  On the other hand the ability to switch spots easily is nice.  And given the places you end up fishing you'd likely ding the motor prop pretty often.

8. Bottom fishing is an art.  My trout fishing pals are a bit snobbish with regards to the artful presentation of just the right fly to just the right place.  But factoring in all the variables of three lines at once, and keeping an eye on them for subtle bites, it is quite engaging.  But I will admit that there is a downside.  The main targets of bottom fishing are pretty tolerant of being hooked.  Bullheads, Redhorse, etc come up with the hook stuck on their tough mouths.  When you are surprised by a gamefish that takes a bottom hook they usually are hooked pretty deep and this is not  good for the fish.  So I think bottom fishing should be limited to certain settings.  It can actually be a bit too efficient.

----------------------

The line is from a song called Fishin' Blues that dates back to 1911.  It's been recorded many times since.  Being in theory about catching Catfish is should be a sort of Bottom Fisherman's National Anthem.  But much of the wording seems freighted with double entendre.  It sure talks a lot about fishing poles.  Here's the best known version courtesy of Taj Mahal.