Take the Reins

Take the Reins

When you hook a fish, the thing most people (rightly) think about is keeping that rod tip high. Good. But if you’re in or near heavy current, you also want to steer that fish toward the bank.

If you let a strong trout play you out in heavy current, even with a high rod tip, the trout is at an advantage, unless you are able to exert some will and influence its direction.

Watch a good angler work a hooked trout, and you’ll notice it doesn’t take all that long for him to land it. That’s good for both the angler, who will ultimately land more fish, and the trout, which will be subjected to lower levels of stress and exhaustion.

The key is to dip the rod toward the bank and force the fish toward slack water. It’s like steering a horse with reins. Tip the rod right, turn the fish right; tip the rod left, turn him left.

When the fish is ready for the net, that’s when you go back high with the rod tip. Start and end the fight with a high tip. In between, you dictate the action by steering side to side.