Before going fishing, it is very important to check the weather. This helps boaters and fishermen know the type of precipitation, wind, and temperatures to expect. When going fishing offshore the wind is the most important thing to inspect as this will determine the wave height. In the marine forecast, the wave height should be listed for specific areas with expected wave heights for that day and several days in the future. Source: weather.gov When I am deciding where to fish the wind direction and tides both play a role in that decision. The average person just looks at the temperature and p ..read more

Arctic Grayling are really cool fish and are known as the sailfish of the salmon species. Native grayling are found in rivers, streams, and lakes in Alaska, Canada and Montana, and Michigan. Many other states have introduced Arctic Graying. These fish are fun to catch using light spinning tackle and fly gear. Arctic Grayling are known for rising and biting dry flies which makes them a very popular sportfish. Graying is slow-growing fish that only grows about one inch per year and can live to be over 30 years old. Arctic Grayling have soft mouths so it is important to use single barbless hooks ..read more

Fishing is a sport that involves using a large variety of different lures, rods, reels, and other gear items to give anglers every advantage they can get on the water. For hundreds of years, fishing lures have evolved from a very simple wooden plug concept to highly versatile, deep-diving baits that mimic the action of bait fish to an astounding degree. In recent decades, there has been an explosion of fishing lures as companies are increasingly producing newer and better types of lures to give anglers an edge over the competition. For anglers who are just getting into the sport, it can be to ..read more

There are 113 different species of snapper. However, there are only about 10 that are commonly caught in Florida. This article shows pictures of snappers in the water and out of the water to help anglers identify different species of snappers. Most snappers can be caught in the Atlantic Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico but I will provide more details on that when talking about each type of snapper. The photo above shows two lane snappers on ice in a fishing cooler. Lane snappers have a large black dot on its upper back between the dorsal fin and its tail. However, once the fish is on ice the dot b ..read more

My friend Ryan O and I have fished several pickerel tournaments in New Jersey and got first place in every one of them. When I first moved to New Jersey, I was not familiar with this toothy creature that kept cutting off all my expensive spinners! I quickly started to use wire leaders and target this fish because pickerel are so much fun to catch! Some bass fishermen don’t like pickerel because they compete for the same food as pickerel can take over a lake with their aggressive behavior. Pickerel do not get as large as northern pike and musky but are common at about 24 inches which is about ..read more

Grunts are a common fish to find on the reef in Florida. These fish live in the grass flats, mangroves, coral reefs, on deep wrecks, and pretty much near any type of structure. They are often in large schools. For this reason, if you catch one it is likely you are about to catch more. Grunts do not have a size limit in Florida and 100 pounds of fish can be kept per angler per day. On party boats and bottom fishing trips, it is common to catch and keep white grunts to eat. The meat is similar to mangrove snapper. If anglers have caught lots of other fish grunts will likely be released. However ..read more

Lake Michigan and Lake Ontario have large populations of king salmon and coho salmon. Lake Huron started stocking Atlantic salmon starting in 2013 and also has steelhead and lake trout. In Lake Erie, there is mostly steelhead but occasional coho salmon get caught. This article focuses on catch freshwater salmon in the great lakes. If you are looking for the best salmon lures for catching salmon in the ocean check out this article on pacific salmon. Salmon populations boomed in the Great Lakes since the early 2000s. Millions of salmon were stocked some years to combat an invasive type of herrin ..read more

There are five different types of salmon that can all be caught from a boat or from shore. The style of fishing and the type of lure to use vary depending on the location and type of salmon being targeted. Trolling for salmon, mooching for salmon, and fishing for salmon in rivers and streams will be discussed in this article. Catching salmon is very fun because they fight hard and are great fish to keep and eat. The west coast of the united state is full of wild salmon that run from the San Joaquin river system in Californian near San Francisco up to the northernmost regions of Alaska. There a ..read more

Wahoo are one of the most exciting fish to catch. During the first run after a bite wahoo peels line off the reel as if it were a giant shark. Wahoo are found in warm water from New Jersey to the Caribbean in water as shallow as 50 feet deep. Wahoo are generally scattered about and not in large schools. These fish are often found in the same waters as tuna, mahi-mahi, and sailfish and bite on similar baits. This can be problematic because wahoo have sharp teeth and typically require a steel leader to be caught. They primarily eat fish and squid. High-speed trolling for wahoo is a popular fishi ..read more

Don’t let the name  fool you, ultralight fishing is much bigger than its title leads you to believe.  The term “ultralight fishing” comes from the type, and size of the rods and reels that are used when you are out on the water.  In general, ultralight fishing rods and reels are much smaller than what you would typically see anglers using, or on the tournament circuit.  When you downsize the size of the gear that you’re using, you open yourself up to catching a lot more fish on a regular basis than you would if you were fishing with full sized medium action gear using 12lb ..read more