Trout Fishing Techniques - Mastering The Art of Drift Fishing

There are many different techniques that can be used when you are fishing for trout, but one of the trout fishing techniques that I have been introduced to over the years and is one that I think that every spin fishing trout angler should be aware of.  Drift fishing is, without question, the most effective of the many trout fishing techniques that I have been introduced to over the years.


On it's surface, drift fishing is a very simple way to fish for trout, just let your bait, fly, or lure drift with the current of the river that you are fishing and reel in some hungry trout, but in actuality the technique is a little more involved than this. Below, I will reveal some tips and tricks to mastering the art of drift fishing, so that your learning curve will be a little shorter than mine was. But the bottom line is that when it comes to trout finishing techniques, drift fishing (once understood) is as effective a method as there is.

The key to drift fishing is patience, mainly because the act of "getting snagged" can be a very common occurrence, especially when you are just starting out. You see, a key to this particular trout fishing technique, in most of the situations where bait (either live or synthetic) is being employed, is to keep your bait as close to the bottom as possible as it drifts. This means that ideally your bait will be bouncing or rolling along the bottom of the river or stream is it drifts, which means that until the proper amount of weight is achieved on your line, getting snagged is quite common. This simple fact can be extremely frustrating to beginning as well as experienced fishermen. The good thing is that as with most new things that you try in life, with practice and experience you become more proficient. This means that with time you tend not to get so frustrated and also tend not to get "snagged" so often.

Mastering the art of drift fishing for trout also means that you need to be flexible with the types of baits and lures that you employ. At certain times of the year, certain baits and/or lures will outperform others and the fisherman you need to be flexible enough to change baits as conditions change. For example, during the spring, salmon eggs can be a very effective bait (especially for rainbow trout) whereas during the summer salmon eggs tend to be much less effective. Trout fishing with live worms while drift fishing is extremely effective during the fall, while during the winter and spring, not quite as much so. And drift fishing with small spinners is one of the best trout fishing techniques that there is when the trout are focusing on an insect hatch. If you want to be a "master", you need to be flexible with the type of bait or lure that you use and when you use it.

As I said at the earlier, when it comes to trout fishing techniques, drift fishing is as effective a technique as there is, and once mastered will easily become your "go to" technique anytime that you are fishing for trout in the flowing waters of a river or stream.