What Is FreshWater Fishing: Guide for beginners.
The content below is going to take you through some main aspects of freshwater fishing and what indeed it all means, we are going to take you through some different types of freshwater fishing, along with a guide on some species you may come across. The aim here is to give you knowledge on the exact meaning and to give you tips along the way to help get you started.
What Is Fresh Water Fishing.
Fresh water fishing is a term used for one of the two types of disciplines if you like, one obviously been freshwater and the other been saltwater fishing. When we are talking about freshwater we are referring to locations such as lakes, canals, rivers, streams and other relating bodies of water that are freshwater NOT saltwater like the sea for example.
Fishing on such waters can be enjoyed from places like boats, river and lake banks, certain bridges when safe to do so and dockland area’s. Freshwater is occupied by a whole range of species, over 40% of known species are found in freshwater and we will get into a few of them later. Fishing for different species will sometimes require that you use certain methods to catch them but even if you are a beginner there are some simple methods out there that will get you catching in no time.
It is very likely that if you are starting out in your fishing journey then you will be fishing at lakes, rivers and streams, depending on your demographic the species found will differ somewhat so if there is a certain species you would like to target then look up on google in your local area to find the spots where you are likely to find your targeted species.
Common Freshwater Species For Anglers.
I’m going to start off with a few well-known species here and explain some characteristics you might come across while out fishing. If there are any specific species you like to know more about then please leave a comment below and maybe we can dedicate a page to that request.
Northern Pike: It’s one of the largest fish to be found in freshwater in the UK, The average size is from 16-22 inches and have been found to sometimes reach sizes of over 50+ inches in length and over 30lbs in weight. The pike is a carnivorous predatory fish which is why it has a whole array of sharp teeth along the top and bottom jaw line. Pike like to sit tight and wait for there then snatch its prey. To fish for pike you would use Deadbait, Livebait and Lures with rigs such as Pike float rig or Pike Ledger rig.
Cyprinus Carpio: More widely Known as the Common Carp, although they are actually classed as a sort of invasive species they do have their own sector of fishing that been carp fishing. They can hit sizes up to 100lbs in rare cases depending on the location but a 40lb + common carp is not uncommon to come across if you know how to fish for them. Carp are one of the best species to fish for especially in the summer months, to do so you would use specific rigs like, Hair rigs, Chod rigs and Zig rigs for example and have the correct kit to do so.
Israeli Carp: Another variety of the common carp which was developed through selective breeding, you can always tell the difference between them as one has larger mirror like scales and the other has more smaller scales along each flank. You normally find these alongside the common carp in places such as lakes and rivers. They will reach sizes similar to the common carp but generally you may find more mirror carp caught are larger than common carp, the British records for example seem to have been mirror carp and not common carp.
Tench (Tinca tinca): you will find Tench in places such as rivers and lakes normally in slow moving waters, it has a very distinctive olive/gold colour and a square shaped tail fin, this species can grow in excess of 10lbs + and live in waters when the bottom is built up of such substrates such as clay and mud. The tench also has the nick name Doctor Fish, this is that its said to have an antibiotic within its skin to aid other fish. When fishing for tench use such rigs like a Tench Helicopter rig or a method feeder rig for tench.
Wels Catfish (Silurus glanis): The wels catfish is one of the biggest species that can be found within the UK and Europe, this is not surprising as they can reach sizes of up to 200kg (440lbs) plus in some cases. A common way to fish for catfish is by using an Slip sinker rig or see here for more. Catfish are not a picky eaters you can use live or dead baits and they will try almost anything so mixed a batch of your left overs and give that a try. The Wels can be found in lakes rivers and canals but I wouldn’t say they are as common as some other species so be sure to look up places which are known for Catfish.
LargeMouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides): Is very popular game fish in the United States, its 1 of the 9 types of bass you may come across as follows, Suwannee bass, spotted bass, smallmouth bass, shoal bass, redeye bass, Florida bass, Guadalupe bass, Alabama bass and of course the largemouth bass. The largemouth is largest of the black basses reaching sizes up to 20lbs+. You can use such rigs as a Texas rig, Carolina rig or a Drop shot rig for example to fish for such species.
Lake Fishing.
If you are at the beginning of your fishing journey then I would highly recommend that you head to your nearest lake with minimal equipment just all the essentials and give it ago, that’s basically what I did and now I’m hooked, Click here for information on the basics of fishing and more. There are a variety of lakes out there to choose from no matter what your location may be, to start off with I would choose a well-known commercial lake that is heavily stocked, these seem to fish very well especially in the summer months from my experience, so this would be great for a beginner Angler.
Lakes are commonly still bodies of freshwater with basically no under current unlike rivers for example, they also have many types of substrates meaning a variety of natural materials and layers on the lake bed, including, clay, sand, stone, mud and heavy reeds, these are some examples, the reason for mentioning this is that depending on what your lake bottom consists of will have a heavy impact on how you would want to fish that particular lake, there are methods used to determine with more accuracy what it is you are fishing over, see here for a guide on the basics of a method feeder and how to use it, I have used this personally many of times and its one of my favorites as its so simple to set up even for beginners and very efficient so be sure to check it out.
Before you head to a lake be sure to give the owner a call and ask them what type of fish can be found within the lake and also what’s the best times for fishing certain spots within the lake, you will be surprised at the amount of knowledge you can gain from doing so, you may find that it helps you dramatically with your success.
River, Canal and Stream Fishing.
Rivers, canals and streams can often derived from the same body of water, there are many locations you can fish from, some people have their own personal place that they enjoy fishing on rivers like near or under bridges or aqueducts, I know a few people that only fish on rivers and canals etc as they believe that its more rewarding to catch a fish at such places due to the fact that if you catch then there is a high likeliness that the fish you have caught has never been caught before giving it more prestige if you like which makes sense if you are a hardcore Angler. If you are fishing commercial lakes for instance then you may be catching fish that many people have caught prior, now for a beginner this will obviously not be something that phases you too much as you probably just want to catch fish regardless but going forward this might be something that peaks your interest.
River fishing is slightly different to say fishing on a calm still water like a lake, this is that some river location may have a fast flowing current which for certain means that specific ways of fishing are required. Above I have mentioned the method feeder now this way works on rivers in fact its perfect for river fishing as the method feeder itself acts as a weight keeping the bait in one place on the riverbed when you have fast flowing water, float and ledgering methods are also used but keep in mind that the rig setup and tackle may differ depending on the location and water flow, If you are planning on fishing on rivers I would attend with someone who has experience fishing rivers so they can give you insights on the best locations for your area and really help you setup your tackle correctly.
You may have driven past fast flowing rivers before and saw a fisherman stood physically in the lake fishing, they would have undoubtedly been fly-fishing this is very common for fast flowing stream and rivers fishing for maybe Trout, Bass or Salmon for example, we go into a little more detail on this page about fly-fishing and the basic to understanding it, as this might be something you would like to take up in the future.
Be aware that in the UK the river season starts from the 16th June until the 14th of March, anyone caught fishing on rivers between that period could be heavily fined by the Environmental Agencies, this is due to the fact that between that time fish are spawning and it has been agreed that the fish deserve to be at peace while doing so for the health of the fish and protecting the populations. If you are fishing outside of the UK then be sure to look up the rules and regulations within your home country or region.
Flowing Forward.
To start fishing does not take too much thought and should be pretty simple at least in the beginning and now that you know a little more you should be able to decide on the type of fishing you want to pursue or at least have a better understanding of Freshwater and the general meaning behind it, let us know in the comments if there is anything else you would like us to cover, your input would be more than helpful to us and other Anglers out there, we want to provide as much information as possible but with as much relevancy as possible so we can give you the information you need without the information you don’t making for a more usable knowledge for yourself any other visitors.
If you indeed require more info regarding other aspects of fishing then please checkout some of our other pages on this website and leave your thoughts, if you are just getting started as a beginner Angler then I’m sure that you will find some useful info throughout.
Thankyou for reading.
martin@lakeamenity.com
