The term short floating may sound somewhat alien to some, but it actually derived a very simple technique that most of us have used before. If you have been fishing since you were a little kid, more than likely you have tried float fishing at least once in this lifetime. Float fishing basically consists of a float, a balance weight and a hook where your bait dangles. When a fish bites the hook, it pulls down the float, which acts as a bite indicator. When the float is pulled under the water, it alarms you that a fish is near your hook, and that's when you set the hook to bring the fish in. The technique is simplistic, but there are modifications that you can make to increase your catch rate. Short floating basically uses this idea, on a piece of moving water.

The term "short" is used to described the length between the float and the hook. Most anglers believe that in order to get a salmonid to bite, you have to throw the bait right in front of their faces. That's not really the case. When short floating, your bait is always suspended between one to two feet above the river bed. As the bait drifts by, fish will swim up to grab your offering. This has many advantages. All salmon lie on the river bed when resting, whether they are fresh, or old. By suspending your hook above this school of fish, you prevent yourself from foulhooking older fish that are usually undesirable. Instead, you entice the fresher ones that will most likely be the only fish that are interested in your bait.

The setup is extremely simple. In the next few sections, we will look at what specific rod, reel and terminal tackle that you need for short floating.

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