Advanced Float Tubing Techniques: Don’t Try This at Home!

One of the issues when fishing from a belly boat or float tube is simply getting into and out of it.

Just putting on the flippers when wearing waders can be a performance worthy of the Cirque du Soleil.

Then there is that whole backwards, duck-walk to get into deep enough water to float your tube. It is a pain, but worth it once you are floating along like the King of Podunk in your La-Z-Boy Recliner picking off fish no one else can reach.
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It really is idyllic floating along, enjoying the day and the fishing; well, that is until you have to pee. That means kicking to a secluded spot with an easy place to land.

Sometimes you need to compromise; secluded but not so easy to land or, easy to land but not so secluded. It is a tough choice, made tougher the longer you wait to make the decision.

I thought I had it licked a while ago while floating one of the nearby urban lakes. I had a big bottle of Gatorade with me and figured once the juice was finished I could use the bottle to pee in if needed. That way I could be not only discrete but avoid a possibly hazardous landing too.
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Sure enough, not long after having this brilliant idea I had the opportunity to try it out.
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So there I was floating in deep water, just behind a little island with both arms jammed down my waders as I tried to make the arrangements for the necessary deed.
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It was a bit of a shaky start but soon everything was going according plan. I drifted there with that goofy look babies get sometimes when wearing their diapers, congratulating myself on the plan coming together, then it struck me; I had also enjoyed a Tim's double double earlier in the day, on the way to the lake.
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Maybe a Gatorade would fit back in the bottle coming out. Please, just trust me when I tell you that a Gatorade and a Tim Horton's, double double coffee sure as heck won't.
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I use float tubes that are a bit easier to get in and out of now a'days and once the waders were swabbed out with Javex , well, you know...

Catch More Bass

I took the tube out last night for the first time this year and had a great time. As I thought about writing something for the website, I remembered the article I did last year. I have corrected some typos and spruced it up. It sums up my favourite way to fish Smallmouth Bass.

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Have Fun and Catch More Bass

Well it is that time of year again. The trout have retreated from the heat but bass are still happily cruising and looking for anything they can grab. The place I live is known as The City of Lakes or as the folks down the road call it, The City of Flakes. There are dozens of lakes throughout the city all brimming with bass and trout. I went out last night to do a bit of fishing and ended up just watching the variety of anglers who had gathered on the shore of the little lake next to where I was gassing up before heading out to my Secret Spot.

It was interesting to observe the different skill levels and techniques practiced.

Bass were rising regularly within reach of most anglers. Results varied but it was a very social and pleasant evening. My feeling after watching this diverse group is simply that knowledge is power. Those that take the time to learn a bit about their quarry will have more hook-ups than the chuck it and pray anglers.

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Bass will start to move into a lake's shallower water, over gravel bars and around bushes once the water temperature reaches 60 degrees F. As the top water cools in the Fall they will go back to deeper water where its warmer, to stay within their preferred range. Somewhere between 60 and 7o degrees I think.

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During these hot July days, fishing from dawn until mid-morning and late afternoon until evening will be the most productive and pleasant.

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Concentrate on the shallows - five feet or less-and close to shore and cover. My rule of thumb is: the calmer the water, the longer the cast.
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A popper or bug is simply deadly when bass are surface feeding. If you are fishing to a rise try and hit the rings. The bass is possibly cruising and won't necessarily be in that spot for long. When the bug has landed, do not move it. Let it be still for a long count of ten. One and two and three... at about four the water will erupt beneath your bug.

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No Slack Line!

Many rises to a bug are missed because there is slack line between your rod and the bug. Line control is the secret to bass fishing success and really to all fly-fishing. Maintain positive contact between your fly and your rod to increase hook-ups. It is a thing I work on every time I am fishing.

Back to the Bug

So it has landed in the rings, you let it lie perfectly still and begin counting.
If the fish does not come when you have reached ten, give the fly a twitch and start the count again. If the cast was quick and accurate to the rise, the fish will usually come before the twitch.

Pop the Popper

To perform the twitch or pop the popper, hold your rod tip low -this will speed your ability to strike by helping to pick up any slack, quickly-give the line a short jerk with your gathering hand and flick the tip of your rod.

Let the popper or bug lie still again and start your slow count. Tidy up any slack between you and the fly -without moving the fly- and remember keep the rod tip low.

If you are not casting to a rising fish, use your knowledge of what the fish are doing to choose your target areas. When it is hot and sunny look for shadowed cover such as lily pads or brush then put the popper as close to the structure as possible, even bounce it off if you can. When it lands, remember to keep it still, count to ten - then twitch it.

There are many tricks, which start to make sense as you practice the technique.

I will often land my bug or popper on a lily pad or rock, make a slow count and then twitch it into the water.

I will cast from my belly boat into the one or two inches of water closest to the shore and retrieve towards deeper water. It always amazes me to connect with a big fish within a foot of the shoreline but it happens often.

This is the time of year when big terrestrials are available to the bass, go big and do not be subtle.
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Equation of Survival

I have always figured there is an equation of survival that applies to all hunters.
It is, “the calories burned to acquire the food must be less than the calories provided by the food”.

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That is the thought that shapes my strategy when I am stumped and trying to figure out what to try next. So, think about what the bass is doing to find the biggest, easiest meal he can get.

Have fun. I hope these ideas will help you catch a few fish. Let me know if you have any tips that work for you.