All About Fishing: Part - I of III

In the mid 1980’s I was absolutely fanatical about fishing – even more than photography. I was so keen on it that I never attended office after lunch – afternoon was reserved for fishing – every day, all year round. In order that I could go fishing, my day would start at 4AM in the morning. By lunchtime I would end my day’s work. Without fail I would then head for the riverbanks – for fishing.

Some of the friends from those days remember my romance with fishing --- so they have been asking me to show them my gear. Thus, instead of bothering them to come over to my home – I decided to show them here – so that other readers may get to see my collection of fishing gear – that is second to none.

Before I get to my gear list, I believe that it is important for readers to understand a little about what fishing is all about.

The Fundamental Differences

There are few dozen ways in which to do fishing – but in game fishing the three most popular are: spinning, bait casting and fly-fishing. Fly-fishing is a truly graceful form of fishing – some contend that it is for the nose-in-the-air types – but not very productive. For sheer productivity, it has been my experience that bait casting is the true jawbreaker – so bait-casting form of fishing is my choice.

But it is not easy to master bait casting – in fact it is difficult – that is why most shun it. Spin casting is lot easier by comparison. It is my belief that there are less than 10 people in whole of Bhutan who have mastered the art of bait casting form of fishing.

Different Types Of Fishing Reels

While the spinning reel is fixed to the under part of the rod handle, the bait casting reel is mounted on top of the rod handle. Thus, given the manner in which the rods are constructed to suite the choice of reel, the rod's "spine" or "backbone" is on the opposing sides of the rod blank.

Types of Rods & Reels

How the spinning/casting reels are mounted on the fishing rod handle

Bait casting and spin casting employ two completely opposing ways in which they deliver the bait. In the case of the spinning reel, it is the weight of the bait that pulls the fishing line out of the reel’s line spool, as it travels through the air. The reel’s line spool remains static – it does not spin. Thus the moment the bait stops traveling through the air or lands on the water, the line’s motion stops. Thus there is very little chance of a bird’s nest being formed on the reel.

The bait casting reel on the other hand works completely differently. In this case, it is the reel’s line spool that spins and throws out the line as the bait shoots through the air, upon casting. Thus, even if there is the slightest of mismatch between the speed at which the bait travels through the air, and the timing of your release of the line and angle of the rod that will control the line flow, you are in for a serious case of bird’s nest. Also, unlike in the case of the spinning reel, in the case of the bait casting reel, the spinning of the reel’s line spool does not stop even when the bait has stopped traveling – thereby causing a huge bird’s nest.

Tangled line – called a Bird’s Nest

Being able to master the precision and timing takes months – thus not many are tempted to take up bait casting form of fishing. But if you have the tenacity and patience to master the art, you will be rewarded with a number of advantages (too numerous to list here) over the spinning reel.