When you talk about a fish biting, most people envision a substantial jerk on their rod from the fish. But, sometimes that jerk can be subtle and sometimes even undetectable if you are not watching your line. Lots of fishermen simply hold the rod and wait for a bite. They miss a lot of fish and go through a lot of bait because they usually don’t even know that a fish is biting. Whether bottom fishing, casting artificials, or free-lining live bait, every angler needs to be a line watcher. What that means will become clearer in the following sections.
Free Lining
When free lining live or dead bait, the line is usually slack, and sometimes simply laying on the surface of the water. This is particularly true with braided line. The idea here is to watch the line between where it enters the water and the rod tip. A fish bite can be detected by watching the line for any movement. Sometimes that movement can be seen in small, short, jerky movements of the line. Sometimes it can be detected by the line moving across the water faster than the current movement or even against the current.
Artificial Bait
With an artificial bait, the same technique can be used, although the line is often much tighter. Let’s take a suspending bait, often called a jerk bait. The working action of this lure is several jerks to get the bait down, followed by a rest period that allows the lure to slowly float back toward the surface. Strikes usually come during this “rest” period, and watching the line is often the best way to determine a bite.
Tight Lining
This method of fishing is similar to free lining except that the angler tries to keep the line tighter in order to feel a bite. It still requires watching your line where it enters the water.
Bottom Fishing
Fishing on the bottom requires that you keep a tight line – keep in touch with the sinker on the bottom. Slack in the line between you and the sinker means missed fish because you just can’t feel a bite. Watching the line where it enters the water will help you stay in touch with – that is “feel” – the sinker on the bottom. If eth boat is rising and falling with waves or swells, the rod needs to be almost floating in your grip. It needs to be allowed to move against the waves to (1) keep the line tight and (2) keep the sinker on the bottom. Without this floating action, the sinker will come up off the bottom and back down with every swell – something that is not natural and something that will make big fish wary of biting.