Most anglers are interested in two things. Getting out into nature and/or catching more fish. There is no disputing these two reasons to fish. No matter what type of fishing you engage in, the reason that you fish boils down to one or both of those things. In this article I'm going to give you a few tips that will help you catch more fish. There's nothing I can do about the "being in nature" aspect of fishing, I think God has that handled; all we have to do is partake. If you would like to catch more fish, simply begin using one all of the tips and/or techniques the next time you go fishing.

• Pay Attention To Your Hands - Many anglers pay no attention to what they've been handling before they bait up. It's always a good idea to make sure any foreign smells are off of your hands before baiting up. Many species of fish have very sensitive senses of smell and can smell foreign substances on your bait. If the do, the fish are much less apt to bite. The thing I do before beginning my fishing expedition is to grab a handful of dirt or grass and rub it in my hands for 30-45 seconds. Then I wash my hands in the water. This eliminates any foreign smells on my hands. If you think I'm nuts, what's the worst that can happen by following this tip?
• Live Bait Needs Top Look Natural - If you use live bait (such as worms) it needs to look natural. What do I mean by natural? I mean that it needs to look like a worm looks, the way God intended, and not like a "worm ball". A "worm ball" is what's created when a live worm is threaded onto a single large hook or hooked over and over again onto a single hook. A set of gang hooks is simply a pair of small hooks tied in tandem, thus enabling you to present a worm in a completely natural manner. You don't think a "worm ball" looks the least bit natural do you?
• What Size Line Do You Use - In my experience, many anglers use fishing line that's much too heavy. Match your fishing line to what you're fishing for. The smaller your line is, the less visible it will be to the fish. The less visible it is to the fish, the more bites you will receive, it's as simple as that. Remember, whatever pound test you happen to be using can stand up to that amount of dead weight at it's weakest point without breaking. This means if you're using 10-pound test, you should be catching 5 to 10 pound fish. If they fish you're fishing for are smaller than that, use a lighter line.
• Clean Your Reel Once A Year - Cleaning and greasing your fishing reel is fairly easy and should be done once a year to keep your reel working properly. You need to have confidence in the fact that your fishing reel will perform, and the best way to ensure this is by cleaning and greasing it once a year. The last thing you need is for you drag to stop working while your fighting a large fish. Believe me, this is no fun at all, and is avoided by taking an hour of time, once a year, and cleaning and greasing your fishing reel.

The bottom line is that if you employ one or all of these tips, you will catch more fish, today. They are all simple and easy, and no one should have a problem doing any of them. Remember what Steven Wright said of us anglers, "There's a fine line between fishing and standing on the shore, looking like an idiot". How true that is, and hopefully by following any or all of these steps, you can avoid the latter part of that quote.

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