The Reliable Tactic To Find Fish Like The Pros

written by james knicely

Picture yourself on your next fishing expedition, whether it’s the big trip you’ve been planning all year, or just another day on the water a few minutes from your house. You’re on the boat, you just cast off a few minutes ago, you’ve got everything you need for an awesome day on the water. You’ve planned for the weather, you know the conditions, you’ve done your research and you know your prey; you’ve got the right bait, the right gear, and the right attitude as you head out to find the fish.

One problem: where do you head to first? And if that spot doesn’t pan out, where do you go next? And if you’re still not finding any activity, what then? Do you wait it out, and trust the advice you picked up from the locals? Or, do you stay on the move, and hope that you don’t burn up too much gas during the first half of the day?

These are logistical decisions that can, at times, feel like they are detracting from what we love about fishing. To be fair, finding the fish is part of the greater challenge that makes fishing attractive to so many competitive anglers, but no one sets out in the morning hoping to burn up their full tank of gas jetting from spot to spot while they try to find the action. On the other hand, it feels like the best fisherman always manage to find the action. They may still come up empty handed from time to time, but they always end up on the fish. The anticipation you feel as you cast out into waters that are teeming with activity is the opportunity we are all hoping for each time we head out on the water. So how do the pros find those pockets of oases teeming with marine life in the middle of an otherwise (seemingly) empty ocean?

They follow the birds.

It’s a trick as old as time, and yet many have not learned to rely on this tactic in the way that experienced fisherman do. Even just one bird might be enough to indicate where your next trophy catch is lurking beneath the water, but in most cases where one bird has found activity, many will follow. More often than not, the best indicator will be a group of birds, circling, tracking, and diving into the water.

This activity is helpful for two main reasons. One, birds flying high off the horizon represent some of the only landmarks out on the water, making them easy to see at reasonable distances and acting as a metaphorical pin drop on the water. Two, this activity in the air is a key indicator of activity below the surface. Most commonly it means that there are schools of baitfish, which are staples in the diet of many sea fowl. More importantly, where there are baitfish, there are gamefish. Following bird activity on the water is how expert anglers are able to put themselves in the best possible position to land their next big catch.

@SE Multimedia

Birds use their height advantage and their excellent eyesight, to peer deep into the water below the surface, and, like experienced anglers, birds also look for activity of other birds on the water. This is why it is so common to find a frenzy of bird activity on top of schools of baitfish. When one or two birds start diving, other birds see this activity from miles away and flock to the fish. From miles away, this may look like a small cyndrillical cloud on the surface; the birds are equipped to see this clearly but many times it is not visible to the human eye. Humans lack the height and eyesight advantages of the seabirds, so it is essential to have the right gear with you take advantage of this natural beacon.

If you watch a lot of fishing shows (and you know we do), you’ll start to notice that the professionals all have binoculars on the boat. This is why. If they aren’t casting, they are scanning the horizon with their Nikons, looking at the sky for bird activity. High quality binoculars with clear vision and strong magnification will change the way you fish; the ability to cover miles of water in a few seconds of scanning saves you hours of wasted time and effort (not to mention gallons of wasted gas). If you’re looking for a pair, we like the 7x50 OceanPro’s by Nikon. They are waterproof, fog proof, and they have a built in compass so the mate can quickly get a bearing on a bird, relay it to the Captain who can head in that direction. This is crucial because these birds are not always easy to see at great distances. The ability to relay a direction without taking your eyes off the bird is incredibly effective.

It might seem like high expense at first glance, but there is a reason every pro uses them, same as every pro uses a rod. If you want to be on the fish you need to be able to find the birds. So when you are planning your next trip, make sure you’ve got a pair of binoculars on your gear list, and don’t waste time driving blind.

Featured