S-h-h-h! Ya Gotta Be Quiet

Justin's "No. 1 fishin' buddy," his son, Payton, holds up a bass he caught during a trip to West Neck back in mid-January this year.

                                               



My brother and I heard those words in the headline a lot when we were young boys going fishing with Pop. When we asked why, his response always was, "Because the fish can hear you, and you'll scare them away if you make a lot of noise."

I'm not sure we either one really believed what he said, but we knew what would happen if we didn't obey, so it was in our best interests to do as he said--without making him repeat himself. Perhaps the real reason for shushing us was along the lines of a comment I recently read from another fisherman. "I think they just wanted some peace and quiet," he wrote, adding, "I feel like I've heard just about every rule, secret and myth about fishing. Many have merit, but some, I believe, are just tall tales passed down from one generation to the next."

Even now, I'm not as certain as some of the pros seem to be that noises have a major effect on bass and their feeding habits. I don't intentionally create a lot of racket when I'm on the water, but I also don't object to carrying on a conversation with anyone who happens to be sharing my boat. There are some occasions when I can see justification for at least reducing or perhaps eliminating all noise--most notably, in short-range presentations, such as pitching and flipping. But when I'm sitting a good distance off the shoreline, chunking and winding spinnerbaits or crankbaits, I see no reason not to carry on a normal conversation. And, evidently, most other anglers feel the same way, 'cause I can't remember an occasion when someone ever has shushed me.

Outboards, of course, are another source of noise, as are trolling motors, but they're generally accepted as "the cost of doing business." Nevertheless, steps are taken to limit their effects. In the case of outboards, anglers usually come off step and idle to the spots they plan to start fishing well before reaching the chosen areas. Once they lower the trolling motor, a common practice among some is to run it at a constant setting, which supposedly lessens the amount of noise created.

I also read about one pro angler who is of the opinion that "a noisy reel even can produce a disturbing tone to bass." The same man thinks the sound of braided line rubbing against rod guides repels fish. I'll admit it can get old listening to some braided line passing through a rod's guides all day long, but I know of at least one solution to that problem. I've started spooling up some of my reels with Power Pro Super 8 Slick, which glides through rod guides with only a whisper.

Before closing, I want to get back to the same topic I started this article with: father-son, or as portrayed in this photo, grandfather-father-son fishing experiences. My friend, Jerry, took the accompanying photo this past summer on a fishing trip with his son, Tom, and grandson, Cole, while they were visiting locally from the West Coast.

I feel sure most fathers would agree it's important to take their sons--and yes, sometimes daughters, too--fishing. However, it's equally important that fathers understand their wee ones only have a limited amount of patience with anything they do, and it simply isn't reasonable to plan a fishing trip with them that runs from dawn to dusk. Even when the young ones are catching fish like Cole is smiling about in the accompanying picture, their interest is apt to fade in an hour or two, so make your plans accordingly. Take it from someone who learned his lesson the hard way--you'll do more harm than good if you take your little ones on all-day fishing trips.