Looking for suggestions for fishing with my kid

[wcanyon]

I'm pretty much a rookie to this fishing thing and so is my son. He really enjoys it though. Problem is that we haven't caught anything yet. Usually we go to lakes that have been recently stocked (Lake Harriet last weekend) -- still can't seem to catch anything.

Usually I'll set him up with a bobber and some powerbait. We probably spend a lot of time tying lines etc. so we might need to just put some more time into it.

I'd like to try out some river fishing, mostly because it's closer (we live near the Hollywood District of Portland) and I'm thinking of hitting the Bull Run area this Saturday. Also because I think river fishing will be more friendly to those of us who don't have a boat or a floatie.

My questions:
- for river fishing, should we be doing powerbait with a bit of weight and a bobber about 2 feet above it (depending on depth)?
- what time should we be shooting for? it seems like getting to Lake Harriet by noon was pretty tough for us but I suspect we coulda gotten there by 8AM if we had pushed it
- any particular places that are kid friendly and we'll actually catch something?

Keep in mind I'd like to stay upriver of Portland.

Any advice appreciated.

 

[RunWithSasquatch]

I dont have any specifics as for as where when and what river or regs, but first key I caught right off the bat was "Bobber and powerbait" and its possible that your bait is floating back up near the surface of the water, and not down where the fish travel, make sure your bait is sinking when using a bobber. Split shot on your line may be an option.

River, if bait is allowed, try using earth worms under float.
Also, trout in rivers really like earthy colored spinners, so brass, black, brown, yellow, think along that line.

There will be a mad house of help on your topic, good luck!

 

[troutdude]

Welcome to OFF.

I agree with Sasquatch and his suggestions.

Usually in a lake/pond, you'll want to float your PB OFF of the bottom...with a slip sinker. A bobber/PB/splitshot set up sometimes works...but, only if the fish are near the surface.

You might want to try the Wilson River. But, be sure and check for bait restrictions. I think it's Artificial flies and lures only (spinners, spoons, etc).

When you went to Harriet Lake, did you float a worm OFF of the bottom?

 

[BobbiDollPDX]

When my kids were little and I wanted to make sure they were catching fish, I would take them to Detroit Lake or North Fork Reservoir for the evening bite. It's a bit of a drive but it made the boys happy and I've always liked both places myself. We always went simple, smallest bobber we could find, size 10 hook and a piece of worm.

At Detroit, drive through town, down to the Flats and find a spot at the right end of the parking area. Evening bite starts around 6pm and will run till the sun goes down. Bring some insect repellent cuz you will get eaten alive. Cast out as far as you can to get past the drop off (I'm 5'10" and will wade out thigh deep to get an extra couple feet on my cast) , when you see one start to play, wait till it takes it all the way down for a bit before setting your hook.

Yer gonna get stockers but you should come home with fish.

 

[mgman6000]

Did I meet you up there on Sunday? I was there with my grandson and talked to a guy with his son using bobbers. Harriet can be very good at times so it's worth the trip with your son. we caught a couple last week Stop using bobbers with powerbait ,it needs to float off the bottom and at Harriet you need a long enough leader to get the bait above the weeds. Last year on one of our first trips my Grandson caight this nice one.........]http://

 

[wcanyon]

When you went to Harriet Lake, did you float a worm OFF of the bottom?

Yeah we did at the end, but I think it was too late in the day at that point for it to be worthwhile.

 

[wcanyon]

Did I meet you up there on Sunday? I was there with my grandson and talked to a guy with his son using bobbers. Harriet can be very good at times so it's worth the trip with your son. we caught a couple last week Stop using bobbers with powerbait ,it needs to float off the bottom and at Harriet you need a long enough leader to get the bait above the weeds. Last year on one of our first trips my Grandson caight this nice one.........]http://

Hah! Yeah that was us. Wow, small world eh? You were right about floating off the bottom. Thanks for the tip.

 

[wcanyon]

Thanks for the help everyone. Last Saturday my kiddo and I went to Lake Estacada, mostly because it was close and recently stocked. My kid caught his first ever fish and he was really excited about it. We were floating PB off the bottom, about 2 feet up.

We found a really cool spot right about here (you gotta climb down about 20 feet of embankment here, but there's a rope part of the way):

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Estac...-95.677068&sspn=59.119059,114.169922&t=h&z=19

 

[troutdude]

Glad to see that your kid got his first one!

When I float bait (worms, power eggs, marshmellows, etc), I always start with about 3.5 feet of leader, to get the bait OFF of the bottom (as MGMan suggested to get above the weeds). And a sliding/slip sinker is crucial too. The Browns like worms, which is why I suggested that tactic.

 

[SinBreed]

very nice and congrats to your kid! i am still trying to help my daughter catch her 1st. what was it that you caught?

 

[rippin fish lips]

You got some pretty good help up above me. Don't forget about the chrome/silver, spinners/spoons/wobblers. We do pretty good with chrome on a bright day, another tip is to start dark colored with lures, if fish aren't hittin it try some chrome. Don't go too big at first. i start with small lures and work my way up to bigger ones. in low clear water, don't go above 1/4oz on spoons, but u can if u choose. spinners i like to stay at #3s and smaller, in the deeper pools ill bump it up to a #4 spinner. each new hole i like to start over... small to big, dark to brighter colored presentations. Cleos, thomas spoons and blue foxes are my favs, but im more of a spoon guy now. Anything will eat a worm. FAN out our casts start close, for a few casts, if u get nuthing, throw another foot or 2 out there on ur next cast and so on. If you get nothing by doing that, step down stream 2-3 feet and start over with that "FANNING" process. It's a really good way to cover all the water