JACK WOLLITZ Little streams can offer big tips

Indeed, sometimes fishing comes down to just teasing a bite in difficult conditions. Not always, but sometimes, it means just persuading a perch to nip the bait.
Warm-up: As local anglers await the all-out action on their favorite game fish, they might consider warming up with a game that has as its target stream fishlike perch, sunfish, chubs and suckers.
The idea behind this game is similar to shooters' plinking. You're out there for practice, to blow off a little steam. There is no championship on the line, no trophy buck in your sights. It's just you and your simple objective.
An angler, in fact, can learn a lot about presentation and location by downsizing tackle and baits and fishing for the little fish that live in creeks throughout our area. They typically are willing to bite, so the challenge is to get the bait in their particular zone enticingly--not at all unlike what's required to hook walleyes, muskies or bass.
A successful session of stream "plinking" will teach a fisherman about reading the water, getting the bait to the right depth, selecting the proper-sized lure, and working the productive locations in a particularpool.
Practice spot: For practice, you might try the tail race below Mosquito dam. While the creek sometimes yields nice-sized walleyes, it's better known as a panfish spot, especially when the flow is as light as it has been in recent weeks.
A fairly good population of small crappies, bluegills and yellow perch live in the Mosquito tail race. The trick to consistently catching the little specimens is to find where they are feeding and getting the bait where they want it.
It isn't as easy as you might guess. It's more complicated than baiting a hook, setting it under a float, lobbing the offering out and waiting for a bite. You might go hours without a take.
On any given day, the fish may be lurking at a specific depth, and that is determined by the same factors that affect big fish on a big lake. The sun, the water temperature and the wind all determine where the fish are holding.
Once you've staked out a place, you'll need to consider the factors above,and rig up accordingly. Make your presentation and soak the bait for a few minutes. If you get a bite, consider all of the circumstances that led to success.
Duplicate cast: The depth, the location, the size of the bait, and then duplicate everything on the next cast.
On the other hand, if nothing happens after five minutes, you'll need to start changing the variables. Set the bait deeper or shallower, and try the same location. If you still are not successful, try another spot. In a smallstream, good spots can be just a few feet from dry holes.
Soon you will gain valuable knowledge about fish behavior. You'll begin to understand whether the fish are bunched tightly or roaming a wider area.
You'll figure out how the wind that ruffles the surface has a decided positive effect on the action. You'll notice that sometimes the fish want just one maggot on the hook and other times they want a cluster. And sometimes they respond better to a jiggled offering while other times they want it absolutely still.
What the fish say: What stream plinking teaches anglers is to pay attention to what the fish are telling them. All of this essentially adds up to what is known as pattern fishing. That'sa fancy term for learning the details and applying them.
And no place can an angler learn that technique faster than in a little stream.