The Beginner's Guide To Essential Fishing Gear

Fishing lines are available in a wide variety of materials and sizes. For example, fluorocarbon lines are abrasion-resistant and nearly undetectable underwater. There are also monofilament lines that are buoyant and stretch.

When purchasing, you should note that thicker lines are more durable than thinner lines constructed from the same material. So, if your budget allows it, go for the thicker ones.

While each line type has a distinct purpose, monofilament is the best option for beginners.

Before your fishing excursion, practice tying knots with your monofilament line. Nothing is more aggravating than forgetting to retie a hook to your line while the fish bite.

At the very least, you should learn how to make a better clinch, palomar, and uni knot. Knowing these three knots is enough to start your fishing journey.

Rod and reel

When it comes to angling gear, you can go from mild to wild, as with other hobbies. Rods and reels are built for each fishing style, but simplicity is crucial for first-time anglers.

You should go for a rod and reel set that you can use for both bait and lure fishing.

A medium action rod rated for 8lb to 20lb line is a good place to start, and it will allow you to capture a variety of species found in lakes and rivers.

As a first-time angler, you should begin with spinning reels (also known as "open face" reels) before using baitcasting reels.

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Tackle

As a beginner, you need only three types of tackle: hooks, floats, and weights.

Hooks: For a great experience, get hooks that aren't snelled. Snelled hooks have a pre-tied leader that the user ties to a swivel snap. This might be too complicated for you.

Floats: Every angler starts fishing with a float. Floats, also known as bobbers or strike indicators, help keep your bait off the lake's bottom and clearly indicate when a fish is eating it. There are no right or wrong floats. Go for the ones that you can afford. You are good to go as long as they can get the work done.

Weights: Weights increase the throwing distance and keep your bait submerged. For first-time anglers, stick to simple split shot weights. They're affordable and simple to install.

Lures

After some time, you might get bored with bait fishing and seek out a new challenge. This is the time to experiment with lures. While there are several lure shapes, colors, and makes, you should go for those that give you a high success rate as a first-time angler.

These include:

Soft plastics: These are perfect for bass fishing. A 5″ green pumpkin-colored soft plastic lure can be deadly on largemouth bass in lakes or ponds.

Attach a 1/8″ ounce ball jig head to use the lure and insert the hook into the bait. Cast it out, let it sink to the bottom, then recover it. Experiment with varied retrieve speeds and depths to determine where the fish are staging.

Top water lures: If you see fish eating on the surface, nothing rivals the exhilaration of catching them with topwater baits. The beauty of these lures is that they are easy to use.

Cast the lure out, let the water calm down once the lure hits the surface, and then begin reeling. You may need to add pauses or twitches and modify the retrieval pace. When a fish strikes a top water lure, it's easy to tell; all you need to do is draw it in.

Spinnerbaits: Spinnerbaits have been used for many years, and it’s for a good reason—they work. For the best outcome, use them when the water visibility is low. The spinning blade generates underwater vibrations that help the fish locate the bait.

Live bait

For many people, the passion for fishing began with live bait. The nightcrawler is possibly the most effective and versatile live bait available. This is because almost every freshwater fish will eat nightcrawlers.

Before you head out fishing, you need to know how to use live bait. For panfish such as bluegills and perch, attach a small circular hook (size 8 or 10) to your line and then add a few little split shots 12 - 18" above the hook.

Clip the float on the line above the split shot, then thread small pieces of Nightcrawler through the hook and cast the line a few feet from the bank.

If there are panfish nearby, they will devour the worm quickly. When you see the float disappear underwater, begin reeling in the line.

The circle hooks will help to keep the fish from eating the hook. Remove the float and replace the small spilt shot with a few larger ones. Tie on a larger hook (size 2 or 4). Thread a complete nightcrawler, cast the line, and let it remain on the bottom to attract bottom feeders like catfish.

Live shiners make excellent bait for predatory fish such as bass. Shiners are tiny baitfish that bass cannot resist. To hook them, use the same setup as for panfish but with a larger hook. Take a live shiner, hook it in the back, and cast it gently.

When your float goes underwater using shiners as bait, you can almost always be assured it came from a large fish.

Tackle bag

You need a decent bag to stay organized as a first-time angler. You should get a shoulder bag large enough to store all the items listed above while remaining comfortable.

The bag allows you to remain mobile which is crucial because you may need to shift locations frequently to chase the fish. You don't want your hands full when going up and down the riverbank hunting for the next nibble, do you?

Disclaimer: The above is a contributor post, the views expressed are those of the contributor and do not represent the stand and views of Outlook Editorial.