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Top 4 Shoreline Fishing Techniques


Increase your chances of catching fish in ponds and lakes this summer with these helpful techniques.

#1 Chumming: Many anglers associate chumming with offshore fishing, but it can do wonders for land-bound anglers fishing in ponds and lakes too. Simply take a fish basket or a commercially sold chum bag, tie it off to something on a pier or the bank and throw it out to draw-in fish to the area. Mashed-up shad, shrimp or any other kind of aquatic life will work, but canned tuna or mackerel is hard to beat. Punch some holes in the cans and throw them in your chum bag.

#2 Catch Live Bait: By learning to throw a cast net to catch live bait, you can greatly increase your odds of catching big fish. Use live shad and perch, which you can easily catch in local ponds and lakes with a cast net.

#3 Circle Hooks: Circle hooks do not look as if they would be effective at catching anything, but the polar opposite is true. Circle hooks were developed by commercial fisherman who needed something that would hook a fish in the corner of the mouth where it will stay lodged. The reason circle hooks work great for land-bound anglers using live or cut bait is that you really do not have to set the hook; the fish hook themselves. Just grab the rod when you have a bite, pull back with a sweeping motion and start reeling in your catch!

#4 Corks: Many anglers might think of fishing with corks as child’s play because their first experiences fishing where sitting watching a red and white bobber in a farm pond, but corks are a tool used by the savviest of anglers, too. Because the structure in ponds and lakes can be heavy along the shorelines and anglers are casting from the shore, they get snagged a lot, especially when fishing on the bottom. Consider using a popping cork in areas with lots of tangles. Adjust the depth of your bait so your hook floats above any areas that might snag your line. You can also quickly pull or jerk the line occasionally “popping the cork” which simulates fish feeding and attracts fish to the area.

Use Fish Feeders to Grow Bigger Fish Faster. Growing big fish in ponds and lakes requires an effective fish feeding program. Utilizing a reliable fish feeder to accurately dispense your fish feed is the foundation of a successful fish feeding program. Texas Hunter fish feeders utilize a high velocity air stream to project fish feed pellets up to 45 feet into the water in a wedge-shaped pattern, with a 20-foot wide spread.Texas Hunter Fish Feeders are available in three different capacities, from 70 lbs to 250 lbs of fish feed. Available in your choice of straight ‘dock’ legs for mounting on piers or docks or angled adjustable legs for leveling the feeder on a sloping bank on your pond or lake. The premium digital timer feeds 1 to 9 times per day and includes a built-in battery tester and 5-year limited warranty. See the full line of Texas Hunter fish feeders at http://www.texashunterproducts.com/fish-feeders/ and be sure to read the blog “How to Catch Fun Fish in your Pond or Lake” http://www.texashunterproducts.com/blog/how-to-catch-fun-fish-in-your-pond-or-lake/#.VSQfi_nF98E