Rainbow Trout - Effective Fishing Techniques

Rainbow Trout are one of the most enjoyable fish to catch in freshwater, especially if that water is moving. Although these beautiful fish can be found on lakes and ponds in my opinion they are meant to be caught in the flowing water of a river or stream which is what I'm going to discuss in this post. What is going to be outlined is the most effective way that I've personally ever seen for catching rainbow trout, especially when it comes to the flowing water provided by rivers and streams.

The technique is really quite simple and only requires a few simple items. Here's what you're going to need: small barrel swivels, split shot sinkers, gang hooks, and live worms (I suggest having a way to carry your worms, such as a bait bag, but this obviously isn't an integral part of the technique). Simple enough, right? I think the fact that the technique is so simple is also what makes it so effective.

The goal is to bounce your live worm off the bottom, as it flows naturally downstream. First, take the end of your line and tie on a small barrel swivel. Now tie on a set of size 8 or 10 gang hooks (you can make your gang hooks yourself or buy them from JRWfishing.com). Now add enough split shot to get you to the bottom. Start with 2 and see what happens. Some experimentation is involved until you get the correct amount of weight. Now add a live worm, and your good to go. You want to cast this rig parallel to yourself and let it flow naturally with the current as it bounces off the bottom. You will get snagged from time to time, it's inevitable. As my mentor used to say, "If you're not getting snagged, you're not fishing in the right place."

The technique described above is the most effective technique for catching rainbow trout in moving water. The same rig, with an egg sinker instead of split shot will work well for lake fishing also. The gang hooks allow you to present the live worm in a completely natural manner, the way God intended, which is a huge advantage to the angler. Using this technique will not only enable you to catch more Rainbow Trout, but trout of all kinds as well.