By Rodney Hsu

One of the best techniques for those who are trying to learn fishing is float fishing. It is an ideal method to use because it is easier to recognize a bite by using a float, and it is very exciting. It is also relaxing because you don't need to hold the rod still to spot those bites, perfect for the little kids who often don't have the patience to keep still and wait for the fish. Once you try out float fishing, you will be completely hooked. Seeing that float sink into the water at 100 miles per hour, your will stop breathing, your heart rate will certainly rise and if all goes well, you will yell, "Fish on!"

All of my featured articles in this month will be about float fishing. To begin, we need to understand what they are, what types there are, when and where they are used. As the name implies, a float is basically a bite indicator that floats on the surface of the water. When the fish bites your bait, the float will sink and pop up and down the water surface. When this occurs, it is the time to strike and hook the fish. Float fishing is used world wide, and it is primarily used to target pelagic species (fish that swims near the surface). In Europe, Asia and parts of North America, people float fish for river coarse species such as carp, bream, perch, dace and chub. In Australia, float fishing is widely used when targeting saltwater species such as garfish, mackerel, mullet, trevally and yellowtail. In the Pacific Northwest, we use floats when drifting for salmon and steelheads in streams, and we also use them to catch trout in lakes. Personally, I have also used floats to catch peamouth chub, northern squawfish, dolly varden, bull trout, surfperch, shiners and whitefish.

Types of float

There are basically two types of float in the market. Within each type, it is classified into many groups based on different sizes and shapes. The two main types are fixed floats and running floats. A fixed float is attached to the line and it can not be moved on the line unless you decide to adjust the depth. On the other hand, a running float can slide freely on the fishing line. A stopper is tied or inserted on the line somewhere above the float to prevent it from sliding any further up when it is in the water. A fixed float is usually used with a long rod, and it is ideal for shallow waters. A running float is good for a short rod and deeper water as the stopper can be adjusted as deep as you want without interfering your casting.

Shapes and sizes

Like all other terminal tackles you find in the market, floats come in thousands of shapes and sizes! They can be long, short, fat, thin, round.... Just exactly which ones do you need??? Well, it really is personal preference. Like buying lures, buying floats is always a joy, it is like Christmas picking out little toys from the department store. Generally, in still water condition, you wanna use a skinny, long float. A skinny float reduces friction, therefore it is more sensitive. This is ideal for still, calm water where it will simply stand without moving an inch in any direction if no fish is touching your bait. However, when you are fishing in moving waters such as a stream or the ocean shoreline, a fatter, shorter float is much more suitable than a long, skinny float. A thin float in fast moving water is not stable at all, it'll tilt or sink due to the strong current. On the other hand, a rounder, heavier float is more stable because it requires more weight to balance.

Drift fishing, BC style!

In British Columbia, one common method that is used to catch salmon or steelhead in streams is by drifting with a float. The floats used are cheap, foam-made stick floats that are made by a Vancouver-based company Gibbs. These floats can be used as either fixed floats or running floats. Usually when drifting in streams, they are fixed onto the line at a particular depth, followed by some split shots and a long leader to a large steelhead hook that is baited with yarn, shrimp or roe. They come in different sizes, as shown in the photo on the right. To fix the float onto the line, you can either use rubber bands (A) or toothpicks (B). The length of the floats can also be modified by cutting, if you want to use less weights to balance it. When balancing these floats, you should add enough weight until only the top coloured part is staying above the water surface. This way, when the elusive salmon or trout suddenly bite the hook, the whole float will be submerge under water and it is then you strike and scream fish on! Drift fishing is a fun way to catch salmon, make sure you try out different sizes of these floats until you feel comfortable with them. In the upcoming months, there will be more information on this unique fishing technique!

Float fishing in still waters

Float fishing is most commonly used in still waters such as lakes, ponds, sloughs, canals and large rivers. Fishing with a float is often more effective than bottom fishing because the large weight used for bottom fishing may scare the fish away. By using a float and minimal amount of weight, the fish can pick up the bait without feeling the resistance of the line. Once it feels that something is wrong, it will be too late. As mentioned earlier, common floats that are used in this type of waters are long, thin floats, as shown in the photo. These floats should be balanced with enough weights that the water surface lies on the widest part of the float, leaving a long thin tip out of the water. This is perfect for anglers who target rainbow trout, carp, chub and other minnow species. A note of caution, make sure you fish at the right depth! In most cases, these fish are feeding near the bottom. If your bait is not reaching the depth where the fish are, then you will be staring at a useless stick for the rest of that fishing day.

Float fishing for marine pelagic species

Float fishing can also be used in the ocean. However unlike freshwater fishing, instead of targeting bottom fishes with a float, float fishing is usually used to catch fish that patrol the oceanic surface. In Southeast Asia, floats are used to catch tropical fish. In Japan and Taiwan, floats are always used when rockfishing for species such as silver drummer (Kyphosus sydneyanus) and hairtail (Trichiurus lepturus). When fishing for tuna, yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi), small marlin or sharks, the Australians love to use a balloon as a float followed a live small mackerel as bait! Here on the west coast of Canada, float fishing can also be used in tidal waters. When fishing on piers, try using a float to catch perch that are swimming around the pylons. A float will allow you to fish in waters that are often unfishable with a bottom rig.

The above article is simply a generic summary of float fishing. Hopefully after reading this, you are itching to go out and try this fun, easy technique. Be sure to come back next week and find out the proper way of balancing a float. Good luck when you are out fishing next time, be safe and conserve your catches.