Good morning from a cool Foxford. Its been a beautiful week and it would have been lovely to go fishing. The River is coming into ideal condition and i’m quite sure there’s a few Salmon throughout the system. In the big picture our not been able to get out fishing is minor detail and we will get over it. Good feedback from our Junior/beginner piece. I even received a picture from my own Gran-daughter who I didn’t know was following the blog :). So if your missing your fishing why not share some of your knowledge and enthusiasm with a younger person. This weeks beginner friendly lesson is bellow.

Hi again, that’s another week gone. Every week that goes by we are getting closer to going fishing and we already know more than we did two weeks ago. Like the name of our Fishing spot and the type of fish that live there. We also know the difference between Salmon, trout, Pike, perch and eels. We know the colours of the different types of trout. That’s actually more than a lot of people who have been fishing for a long time. We will be experts.

For this week I think we need to look at how we will catch some of these fish. What do you think we need?

A fishing rod and reel

Some fishing line

Some hooks and weights

A net to put the fish in

I’m sure ………………… and  you can add at least one other thing to this list?

How about bait?

Bait is what we use to catch the fish. We can use lots of different types of baits depending on what type of fish we are after. The secret is to use something that the fish like to eat.

So we need to think again. What do fish like to eat?

Well they don’t have shops and they don’t have kitchens and they can’t cook, hmm.

Have you noticed that we have to think a lot? That’s one of the biggest secrets to been a good angler. Always think

Fish eat lots of different things which they find in the water around them. These things include other fish, worms and insects. It might sound gross but it’s not actually bad and the fish enjoy these things.

When we go fishing we sometimes use real baits like worms or we use artificial baits like spoons and spinners that look like small fish. We can also use fishing flies that look like natural insects like May flies or Daddy long legs.

Next time you are out walking see can you spot any natural insects or flies? At this time of the year you might see little groups of black flies with white wings. Anglers call these “duck Flies”. See if you can find a picture of one.

Gathering Our Bait

Just to be prepared for when we can go fishing for real you could ask ……………….. Or another adult to dig some worms with you. You don’t need too many and you can easily store them in a jar with a lid on it. Make sure to put some tiny air holes in the lid and feed the worms every week with some wet newspaper. Keep the jar somewhere cool like in a shed.

A very important Knot

Something we all need to know as anglers is how to tie knots. This is the most important one to learn. Its called a tucked half-blood knot but if you just remember it as a fisherman’s knot that’s fine. We use it to attach all our hooks and other bits and pieces to our fishing line. It’s not very difficult but you need to practice it. It’s very important to tie good knots when we go fishing. ……………………. may have some fishing line and an old bait for you to practice with, no need to use hooks yet.

Step 1 : Pass the fishing line through the eye of the hook.
Step 2: Twist the end of the line around the main line four or five times.

Step 3: Pass the end of the line through the loop you have created.

Step 4: Tuck the end of the line through the second loop you have created.
Step 5: Moisten the knot and slowly pull the main line to tighten it.

Ok, It’s going to be a busy week for you. You have to go walking and see can you spot a duck fly. You have to dig worms and you have to practice your fisherman’s knot.