Nothing feels more freeing and relaxing than navigating through waters from lakes to rivers. You feel the wind on your face and smell the water surrounding you.
But before you go ahead and enjoy a perfectly peaceful day, there are several things you should know about steering across the water and safely coming back to the shore. Some of the usual considerations before leaving the coast are:
- Budget
- Experience Level
- Weight and Age
- Where You Live
- Weight of Your Gear
- Your Companions
More than just navigating aimlessly in the water, there are lots of activities you can do in the sea. And one of these activities is fishing.
Fishing is an activity that keeps your mind clear and peaceful.
But before you go off and throw the net in the water, check out first if it is safe to go out fishing in the first place. How often do you usually go fishing?
Are you comfortable and skilled enough to do it on your own or do you need someone to accompany your fishing?
What is your fishing style?
Do you catch fish by a pole or by a net?
And what kind of boat would you use?
If you are going to use a pontoon boat and go for net fishing, there are some practical tips you can take into consideration.
Have you ever done this before?
Have you caught a fish through a net before? Whether you are using a simple boat or you are in an inflatable pontoon boat, there are several tips you can follow that can help you catch a fish in no time.
For people who have already used a net before:
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Make sure to keep your net completely out of the water until the fish is in the distance.
If you want to catch that fish quickly, make sure to have one fast and fluid motion in scooping the fish in. Try to make your presence as invisible and little as you can, and this goes the same way with your net.
As much as you can, hide your net before you do the scooping proper since it is highly probable that if the first sees the net, it will quickly swim away before you can even have the chance to throw your net in the water in the first place.
It is also inadvisable to throw your net in the water and wait for the first to come swimming in. Fish could easily skim away and escape even after that, and you would end up empty-handed.
Wait for the right moment to throw your net in and catch lots of fish in the process.
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Use your right hand and tuck the tail end of the net.
Get your net, use your right hand and keep tail end of the net there.
Before you go scooping in, make sure to hold it against the handle of the net. When the right time comes and you need to swing in for the fish, let it completely fall freely into the water.
If you have the tail end on your hand, you will be able to keep the net under control before the final second that it hits the water.
It is necessary to avoid having the net tangled or snagged, or else, you would have to do it again and throw it in the water.
A tangled net is ineffective as not having a net at all since the fish can easily skim away and escape from the net.
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Target to net the fish head-first always.
Scoop the fish and try to target its head.
If you try to scoop a fish from its back, it is more likely for it to swim away faster.
Two results could end up from chasing the tail-end of fish. And these results are:
- End up chasing the tail of the first and simply push the net through the water
- The hook will pull and the line will snap when the fish reaches the net
If you target the fish’s head first though, you will have a second to spare, where the fish would have to turn around and swim away.
In this second to spare, you can have the opportunity to scoop in the fish and finally have your catch.
For first-time users of Fish Net or Cast Net
Have you ever thought about using a fish net before?
Maybe, you’ve always tried to go fishing by using a pole.
But if you have never done this before and you want to try using a fish net, there are some things that you would need to do and know about first before you go and navigating about in the waters.
In collating information that could help you on your first time fishing with a net, there are several ways you could do this, including:
- Basic tutorial from experts
- Watching YouTube videos that can show you the ropes of the basic
- Read content on credible sites for basic details about using a net
You can choose one of these methods but you can also choose to read on and learn several tips that could be relevant in your net experience.
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Look for a friend who has previous experience in using Fish or Cast net.
So it’s your first time and you have no idea how to get on with it. And maybe, you’ve read as much content as you can to learn how to do it properly and luckily get a fish home.
In fact, maybe you’ve already had enough watching videos of experts fishing with the net. But this information gathering is just the start. You need someone to help you with your hands-on task.
No, it’s not as easy as it looks when you’ve watched the videos online. Don’t even think that you can easily get your fish as simply as the expert on the video.
Having a hands-on trial and having someone beside you to help you get on the ropes is the best option you can do to know how to do it step-by-step.
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Make sure to choose the right net to start.
No, you can’t just visit the nearest net store and choose the cheapest one to start with.
In fact, simply choosing the net will also require you to conduct your own research on the different kinds of fish nets in the market and which one to choose.
Some of the basic factors that could help you choose your net would be the following:
- How deep the water is
- How big the fish you want to catch
Big nets are designed for big fishes and deeper waters.
When you fling the net into the water, this type of net can sink in the deep water faster and be able to catch the big fishes swimming at the deeper part of the waters.
If you are a first-timer, it is recommended to start with a bigger net but you can always choose a more easy-to-handle small kind of net, which is at least 8 feet in length.
What you need to bear in mind is that while smaller nets can be lighter, it is now nearly as effective as bigger nets. In fact, it would even be better to go for 10-footer fishnets.
If you want to learn fishing with nets, then the bigger it is, the better.
Prepare three to four nets at hand for your fishing.
Keep different types of nets based on how tight the mesh is so that you can adjust your catch from big fish to bigger ones.
Logically, the smaller the mesh is the smaller the fish you can get.
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Learn how to open it full without having it tangled when you finally throw it in the water.
After choosing the net to use, the next thing to do would be to learn how you can properly use it.
Practice how you can throw it and in the process be able to open the net fully.
Practice someplace else, where you can repeatedly throw the net easily.
You can try it on your garage or the lawn, where you can easily pull it and repeat the process again.
Do it again and again until you are able to throw it and at the same time fully open it.
This is where “practice makes perfect” really make sense.
You need to fully grasp the technique of opening the net fully and in the process learn that skill and have it permanent on your mind.
Another technique that you have to keep in mind is to try to get the feeling of the net hitting the bottom of the water so that you can properly close it and make a catch.
This would of course only be applicable to if the water is shallow enough.
Note: You can attract other fishes by stirring little dirt.
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Never tie a knot for the loop around your wrist.
It is not recommended to true a loop knot on your wrist.
Never ever tie yourself to something that is over five pounds in weight.
While it would seem light at first when the net does not have anything in it, tying it on your wrist is the worst decision especially when the net is finally full of fish.
Never ever try it. It is the same as dropping an anchor you are connected to.
In order to get ready to throw it again, what you need to do is to make loops around your hand in the line when you retrieve the net.
Try to shake the net and be careful on the entire line loose in order to avoid tangles on your next toss.
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Get as close as you can over the fish.
If you want to really catch something, you should try to get closer to the fish.
This will test your throwing prowess since if you can throw the net over a distance and be able to catch the fish off guard.
Of course, you would also need to remember the throwing technique in order to make sure that the entire thing is open by the time it is dropped on the water.
This could be tricky since if you get too close to the fish, it is highly likely that you will spook the fish and it will easily swim away farther and farther from you.
If you know how you can guise yourself and be nearer to the fish though, it is better.
If you are nearer, you won’t have to put in too much effort in throwing the net out in the water. And in the end, you would have more catch.
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Study the seasonal locations and behavior of your fishes.
While learning about the proper technique in throwing the net is important, it is also necessary that you are able to learn as much as you can about the seasonal and behavioral locations of your fishes.
Even in winter, they pile on big bridges and that’s where you should be.
For hotter seasons though, the bay areas are where they pile together.
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Know how to properly keep your net clean and soft.
After you use your net, make sure you learn how to properly keep it in its high quality.
If you want to keep it soft and clean, what you can do is to soak the net to give a gallon of fresh water with a cup of fabric softener mixed in it.
This would help in softening them. And of course, before you even keep them, ensure first that the net is clean and does not smell of dead fish and sardines.
In keeping your net clean and soft, not only you get to prepare it for your next use but you also get to save money from buying a new one out of not properly taking care of the net.
These practical tips can only get you anywhere until you actually do them and be hands-on with the knowledge you gathered.