Fishing has become my favorite hobby in the last decade of my life. I have been fishing, specifically Lake Conroe, since the age of 9 and I have found myself on the Lake more and more these past years. I believe fishing to a social sport. We all know that fishing is relaxing being out in nature during the quiet hours of the morning. And we know that fishing can be exciting when you get to hook in to said fish. But what you may have not thought of is, fishing is a time when two or more people get to share a fun exciting experience when you are both working towards a goal together.
Even when one may be teaching a “guppy” how to fish there is nothing like sharing the experience with them. The look in their eyes as they hold their first fish and the satisfaction of knowing one helped that goal be reached is not something an individual can create every day. Fishing is an art in many fishermens eyes and wither fisherman are using a bobber or a bass lure the basics must be covered. Every lake has different ways of landing a fish and for now we will stick to Lake Conroe.
Conroe has an abundance of Catfish and some record holding bass, gar and carp have been landed in this very lake. But every fish has their preference on bait, location, weather, and time. I will cover the many fishes and the poles, reels, bait, technique, and weather that is preferred to give the best chance needed to land the target game fish. Catfish, one of the most common seafood in the USA and one of the most frequently caught non-game fish. Lake Conroe is filled with this tasty fish and the size can range from 3 inches to the same proportions of a large dog.
Catfish are very accessible to any fisherman in the lake due to the fact catfish can be caught with many rods, reels, bait, and are found in almost any location. Their appetite ranges from crickets, bread, liver, worms, stink bait, shrimp, hotdogs, minnows, or even other small fish. Fishing for such a fish is done many ways but the most successful and common way is using a medium to large pole with a spinning reel over humps where the bait fish are pushed over the swellings and the catfish can snatch an easy meal.
Catfish are bottom feeder with sensitive whiskers they use to feel and smell in the dark water. Using a stink bait or chicken liver soaked in fish oil catches their attention in any part of the day. Most fish hide when the barometric pressure drops (usually indicating rain is on its way) but the catfish energy spikes and the bottom feeder becomes very active making the odds of landing the prized fish even greater, that is if the fisherman can handle fishing in the rain. Catfish give a great meal and an experienced fish man can easily bag 20-80 fish in a good days fishing.
But the most hunted after game fish up next can give even a professional fisherman the slip. This fight of the bass can give man dreams of the catch. The thought of a trophy sized bass can make a man spend thousands of hours on the lake and even more money on equipment. Bass fishing is one the most complex styles of fishing and understanding every style of fishing for bass would make even the most intelligent man’s mind spin. Maybe that’s what makes bass such a popular fish. Bass have a different schedule every season and a different menu every day.
The most popular time for bass fishing is the spring when the bass are now trying to spawn. The males are very active eating what they can to have as much energy as possible so they can take care of their female’s eggs by spraying sperm and fighting other males to pass their genes on. The females, who are generally larger, are stockpiling food and are always protecting their nest. The nest are in the safer, warmer, waters next to the bank in 3 to 6 feet of water and can be caught by fishing with a highly sensitive rod with an open reel sporting soft baits as the lure.
Slowly dragging a worm, lizard, or snake style soft bait over the nest will drive a female to attempt an attack upon the intruder. While males being very active you will want to use a stiffer shorter rod using a spinning reel while casting out spinner bait and reeling in the lure at a quick speed. Carp and Gar could be called the trash men of the lake. They spend their time eating grass, trash at the bottom of the lake, and young, small fish. Because of this unusual diet catching them on a rod is very uncommon and almost never the target fish you had your bait in for.
Carp and gar are hated in Lake Conroe. The ugly inedible fish singlehandedly killed off the grass in the lake making bass fishing extremely hard and making the survival of young bass slim. The fishing method is gruesome and always fatal. The two non-native fish sleep at night but sleep about 2-3 feet under the water. This means with a powerful flashlight, in theory, you would be able to see the fishes shadow at night under the water. Using a bow rigged with a special tipped arrow with line attached to the end of the arrow means a fisherman could bow-fish the sleeping fish.
This fishing is always fatal and is a great way to eliminate a pest. Fishing has a reputation for being a boring past time for beer drinking old men. On the contrary, imagine being in a serene calm lake surrounded by soft chirps of early morning birds. How about a dark orange, red reflection of the water during the morning sunrise surrondiing your boat as you make soft ripples in a still by casting your lures. Then all of a sudden your rod bends and a largemouthed bass jumps out the water with your lure in his mouth. This is the situation one may be in when fishing.