Welcome to my review comparing two of the best metal body spinning reels that are available in sizes suitable for trout and steelhead. In this review, for the most part, I will be comparing the smallest sizes, these being the Penn Battle III 1000 and the Daiwa BG BG1500. While the emphasis, is on the…
The length of a leader, when targeting trout or steelhead should at a minimum be a couple of feet longer than the length of your rod. While the length of the leader when bait fishing really depends on the depth of presentation. How long should a leader be when spinning for trout? When spinning for…
Looking for some good lures for late fall trout fishing, well the year round staples such as Mepps Agila, Panther martins and Bluefox Vibrax, and Kastmasters still perform well. It is all that many fishermen ever fish, and that is fine. But in this article, I will share some less well known trout lures that…
What is the best line type when fishing for trout, how does braid compare with monofilament? Does the choice even matter? In the chart below, I have highlighted the key differences. In the next part of the article, I will discuss why each of these points may or may not matter. Braid Floats Does not…
When buying spinners of unknown brands, a lot can be learned about their likely performance and action based entirely on the blade design they used. The shape or design of the rotating blade on an inline spinner not only influences the action, and sink rate, but also the optimal speed the spinner should be fished…
Spoons and spinners must be among the most popular hard body trout lures, and the reason is simple. They catch trout and they catch them consistently. I always consider it a good idea to have both types of lures when fishing because a trout’s preference can easily change hour from to hour, day to day….
Penn is one of the biggest names in offshore reels, they built their reputation on classics like the Senator, International, and the Spinfisher. These are all heavy duty reels designed for catching powerful fighting fish in the salt. So whether you are a Penn loyalist, or just want to try something a little different, what…
The trout we see feeding at or the near the surface is usually only a tiny fraction of the total number of fish in a river. The majority of them are laying low in the water column, hugging the bottom, these trout are all but invisible from the surface. In most rivers and ponds, a…
Most fishermen will claim you need to fish low visibility or clear lines when targeting trout. Is this true, or just confirmation bias? Do the trout actually care? For new anglers, there is no need to take risks when trout fishing. The best color fishing line for trout is clear or green. The clearer, and…
I can not say that a Mepps spinner was the first lure I caught a trout on, but it was close. To save money, I actually started my trout fishing journey assembling my own inline spinners. Then one day, I discovered a little Mepps Black fury hanging from some overhead willow branches, and being 6’4”…
