Brook and river trouting / A manual of modern north country methods, with coloured illustrations of flies and fly-dressing materials

by Harfield H. Edmonds; Norman N. Lee

When fish begin to come somewhat shyly at the worm during July and August—fished in the method previously described—they are frequently in the right mood for a minnow. At such times the waters are usually low and clear; it therefore requires considerable dexterity to achieve success, and there is no doubt that the minnow, fished under such conditions, is a sporting method of angling; although it is a greater pleasure to land a pound trout on a 00 hook than to kill a two pounder on the heavier tackle required for minnow fishing.

With the evolution of the casting reel—its yearly improvements and new inventions, all in aid of long distance casting—there is reason to think that minnow fishing has been popularized at the expense of the skill shown by the old-fashioned school, which, using a short line and possessed of a good knowledge of the habits of its quarry, lured many an old cannibal from under the tree roots, from behind some boulder, or from the depths of an eddy, old villains that had battened for years upon the young stock of the river.

One sees now, not without regrets, little of the old manner of fishing the minnow, but far more of the method in which the minnow is thrown as far as possible across stream, and then worked back to the angler with very little idea of its being properly presented. The modern method appears to require but little skill, knowledge or ingenuity, and it is by a long way the nearest approach to “chuck and chance it” of any of the methods of fishing described.

The long-distance casting reel has its uses, but in minnow fishing, as in all other branches of angling, the man must adapt himself to circumstances, and if he does so he will find that it is not always necessary to throw a long way.

Out of all the reels on the market it would be presumptuous to say that such and such a reel is best. Each has its advocates, and while one man will swear by a certain make, the next may swear at it.

The rod should be short, 8 ft. 6 ins. or 9 feet, and fairly stiff, though not too stiff. If a preference may be expressed, it is for a rod that just gives slightly as a minnow is drawn across the current, and for light spinning the split-cane fly rod frequently serves very well.

The line to use with the majority of reels is made of fine waterproof silk, as it does not kink so readily as an undressed one, but there are certain reels on the market with which it is an absolute necessity to use undressed lines, and for many it is claimed that their mechanism can be so adjusted as to do away entirely with kinking.

Out of the many varieties of mount for the natural minnow there is none so popular in the North (and deservedly so) as the “Ariel.” It is easily baited; the lead (which can be had in various weights) is pushed into the body of the bait, the bottom hook is put through the back just above the tail, and the gut is then drawn tight until a slight bend is imparted to the minnow; the other hooks are then put into either side so as to hold the bait in position. There is one point of importance which must be carefully watched in baiting the tackle. The fore part of the minnow must be perfectly straight; if this is not so and there is a curve in that part of the body, instead of spinning cleanly, the minnow will come towards the angler with an intoxicated wobble, which is fatal to good results.

The variety of artificial minnows offered to fishermen is truly bewildering, and life is far too short for the writers to have tested even a tithe of them; but there is one which has invariably proved a killer in a coloured water, and that is the “Devon.” It is sold in all sizes from one inch upwards and in a variety of colours. The virtues of this minnow lie, in all probability, in its particularly brilliant spin, and it is the writers’ practice always to have two or three sizes handy, in gold, brown and blue.

To them it is a proven fact that the artificial is never so good as the natural; for a trout if he once runs at an artificial, but is not hooked, will seldom come again. Whereas with a natural minnow, once the trout has tasted blood, he often cannot resist the temptation to have a second go, unless he has been badly scratched; and in some instances, he will come again and again until finally hooked. There are, however, times when natural minnows seem more difficult to get than trout; and for a clear water on such occasions, a light Phantom, or one of the many excellent reproductions of the minnow sold by fishing tackle houses can be used.