Brown Trout Set Up For Novice.

[Pete E]

Hi Folks,

Complete novice here looking for help..

Its many years since I’ve drowned a worm in the local streams as a youngster.
Can’t say that I ever caught much except the odd eel.

A little later as a teenager, I dabbled with Pike fishing, but again had no real success.

I eventually gave up on fishing and took up shooting which resulted in deer stalking becoming my passion ever since.

However, I now have an 18month old grandson, and I think it would be bordering on neglectful if I could not take him fishing when he is a little older.

So with that in mind, I wonder if anybody here could suggest a basic spinning outfit for smallish brown and rainbow trout we get in the small streams and mountain lakes here in North Wales.

I am not interested in traditional fly fishing, but after reading a recent thread here, I would be interested in trying bubble float and fly and perhaps bubble float and worm as well as spinning..

I have an 1970’s vintage 6ft glass fibre spinning rod and an equally old Michell 320 reel that I am hoping to get started with, so really I am looking for a detailed list for some basic terminal tackle..

On the other thread “8g Mepps” were suggested, but ideally I’d like to know what sort/colours ect for a basic starter selection..

The same for flies..if somebody could list half a dozen patterns to try along with hook sizes, I would be most grateful.

At the start, I want to keep thing as simple as possible. As things progress I will update my rod and reel and perhaps branch out a little, but that’s for the future.

So if anybody can help a complete novice, it would be most appreciated,

Thanks in advance,

Peter

 

[dave89]

If it was me I would just go to the local tackle shop and ask which floats, weights etc etc as they tend to know their stuff.

I usually use a feeder rod with a quiver tip and either a maggot feeder or bomb/ledger. I have heard they like sweetcorn

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[Uilleachan]

Any decent spinning rod, 8' 5g to 25g cast weight, the one you have sounds great for the lad in a couple of years and good enough for getting going with. 6lb line enables a good cast range.

For mepps, try them in black, gold and silver, they're quite a slow retrieve lure, and you can feel when their working through the rod as when the spoon is rotating it offers up a bit of resistance so you know you're in the zone.

Any spinning kinks the line so look at a light plastic anti kink spinning vein or simply strip off 10 to 20m of line each time you go out. Check for nicks etc. in the line and remove the line from the nick down when you find them. Adding new line at the start of each season or as needed.

Flies in size 10 and maybe a few bushy ones in size 8 if things are very windy and the waves are big:

Zulu, Butcher or bloody Butcher, black pennel, Invicta, Silver Invicta, grouse and claret, soldier palmer, Wickman's Fancy or Cinnamon & Gold, Greenwells glory (wet), Green Peter.

Best to buy a couple of each as when you discover which fly they're taking you can swap out to add another. Also, on the retrieve (which is faster than seems polite ) keep the rod tip low right into the shore and when you lift it to prepare for the final retrieve and re-cast, dangle to fly nearest to you tantalisingly off the surface, big bushy flies work well for this, as very often the fish follow the flies in or are (more often than you'd think) sat close to the bank and very often it's the final teasing lift that induces a take. More overcast/darker it is the darker the fly, as a rule of thumb or place to start.

If you're not picking them up, before you change flies, make sure you're casting into the breeze and have a go at speeding up or slowing down the retrieve, then try changing, still nothing? try the spinner.

I'd use 8lb on the streams simply because you'd be less inclined to lose it due to the propensity of snags you'll come across in those situations, lost line isn't good for the wildlife so best to go heavier. Mepps pulled across the flow where it's deep or in pools, worms trotted and walked down through runs etc. in small streams I wouldn't bother with a float.

Floatless worming works best with a length of line perhaps twice the length of the rod flicked up stream and directed down towards you via the various routes, you have to be coordinated and quick to strike/lift the tip. In small streams up stream fishing is very effective as you can shorten the line and use the rod to guide the worm meaning you're not really casting so can fish right in about trees and such. Can be fast and furious though.

If you thread the worm over the hook completely so just the barbed point is poking out just below the leathery bit with just the eye poking out at the other end, then pull the eye into the worm, if you leave a little tag of line at the knot that can help the eye stay right inside the worm disguising the hook completely, meaning you can dispense with small fiddly hooks and with smaller trout you stand a much better chance of hooking them in the mouth, rather than the trout necking the lot resulting in a deeply stomach hooked fish that'll need chapped to remove the hook.

I always used to use size #4 hooks for trouting with the worm. That may seem big to most but with a worm pulled right over it it'll happily hook trout down to a 1/4lb and less, anything much smaller isn't worth having and would be less likely to survive the encounter, also the bigger hook helps when it comes to removal.

 

[Pete E]

Thanks gents...

#4 hook seems huge! I seem to call using mostly #14's and #12's, mind you like I said, I never caught much! lol

Whats the take on barbed or barbless hooks? Or does it depend on the rules of the water?

 

[Alreetmiowdmuka]

If your just after wippong a few small trout out too impress the little one yer can't go wrong with a cheapo telescopic rod n reel set up.ive never been massively into fishing but do enjoy catching a few small trout down the local streams.i only use minimal tackle rod,reel, 3lb line,small .4g Bb split shot weights n some size 16 barbless hooks.i take a small garden trowel n dig up worms from the river banks for bait.i just add a few bb weights too the line about 12 inches up from the hook and put a big wiggly worm on the end.i never use a float as a bite indicator as I prefer too keep the line taught with my finger when I cast out.when the fish bites you can feel the vibrations up your finger.with this type of fishing it's all about location.look for fast flowing water running into still water.the trout tend too hang round these ares waiting for bugs n such washing down stream.i'm probably making it sound easy but am just trying too help ha.remember too take a disgorger for removing awkward hooks and be very gentle when reeling in the fish.theirs no need to be maim them for life.hope I've helped


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[Polecatsteve]

Hi there, I think he meant number 2 spinners not hooks. Number 2 hooks are as you say huge. Iv
No idea why flys and spinners use different sizes!

Anyway. For fishing wild browns in the river with a spinning rig I'd suggest buying a selection of Mepps Agila between sizes 00, 0 and 1. Anything bigger is more salmon sized. A small hook can catch a big fish, a big hook can catch a big person!

A basic spinning rod (Daiwa are nice for a budget) and a super light tackle of about 3lbs is all you need. You will also need a quantity of small swivels (not snap swivels, cause problems with line spinning freely and light weights).

That's it, a nice rig will set you back about 70 or so if you don't skimp on the reel(nice for a beginner). Go for a rod that breaks down to about 4-5 parts at about 9-10 ft long. More parts makes
It easier to get in the boot of the car or carry and doesn't effect performance at all.

Fishing a basic Carolina rig is just main line, swivel, about 3-4 ft of trace (can be same as main line if it's light 3lb line) then lure.

Basic setup for trout and will do you very well until you get back into it.

 

[Polecatsteve]

If your going to bait fish, yep worms are your bay bet, specially in hot days when trout lie in shade and deep down (no eye lids so sun doesn't agree with them). A basic stick float or bauble and let it lie in the pools. What a way to chill out!

Remember, if fish are not rising to show where they are "edges, ledges, pools and eddies" follow the foam, trout are lazy, they don't want to swim far for food, the will only go a few feet for a Tasty meal.

 

[Pete E]

Thanks again for all the advice...As a teenager, I remember going camping with a friend on his uncles farm in mid Wales. We camped along side a tiny stream that wasn't much more than a drainage ditch. I won't dwell on the methods used, but by breakfast we had caught a handful of small trout. These end up in a mess tin, and served with new potatoes covered in butter. I've eaten trout plenty of times since, but none will match the taste of those first pan fried ones, and that, in due course, is what I want my grandson to experience and appreciate..

 

[george47]

I have don exactly what you are talking about in many places, over 50 years, and agree with the telescoping rod. I would use the 0 mepps, silver. If you can get them the 0 'Rooster-tail' brand spinner, yellow with silver blade, has been very good.

A small clear bubble and fly are very effective sometimes, mostly in slow water or lakes. When using a fly with spinning tackle in flowing water dig around in the water for caddis fly larva, or anything, and unpeel them and put it on the fly - that will drive the fish wild. Use a split shot and have it drift through pools behind snags or rocks - any deeper bit.

I would think of 6 lb line with spinners is good because they twist the line so badly - 4 is better but needs changing more often, and is what I always used. Trout caught fresh curl when you cook them and are best left overnight to relax the meat. I lived out of a backpack many years and always fished everywhere - for pleasure and food. Because the trout curl in the pan, and stick to bare metal pan - I would remove head and tail and drop them into a pot of boiling water (small ones, bigger ones cut in half) for a couple minutes. Then take the meat off the bones and use it - just melted marg or butter, or anything.

For dappling flies into pools the fly with a bit of insect on it is absolutely effective.

 

[Pete E]

Thanks again for the suggestions..

Re the Mepps, should I use the treble hooks they come with or switch out to singles? I ask because many people claim trebles cause too much damage to the fishes mouth?

 

[Uilleachan]

Use the trebles that come fitted. Barbless if you're looking to release all the fish, barbed otherwise, I'd just go with Barbed as you can flatten the Barbs down with pliers making them Barbless or a little less Barbed if in about small fish

One of the benefits of fly fishing (fly rod or bubble n fly) is that the fly is almost always logged in the mouth so allows ready release with little damage if you're so inclined.

For fish welfare, have a small set of thin pliers with you to get into small mouths where fingers are too big to fit and don't be shy to snip the barbed end off completely where you think pulling a hook may cause avoidable damage, e.g. where the hook is right through the face lip etc. on a small trout. Flys are cheap and the more trout you put back in as good a conditions you can the more will be there next time, so don't fill the freezer just take what you'll eat.

Always wet your hands before handling trout you intend to put back.