In most soft lure fishing, after casting, you want to make contact with the bottom at least once. To best achieve this manoeuvre and avoid snagging immediately, you need to keep your streamer taut, but there are different methods depending on depth.
Moreover, bites can occur during this descent phase. Obviously, you need to be able to detect them, but you also need to be able to strike them effectively. The position of your rod is therefore crucial.
At shallow depths
When the bottom does not exceed 5 m, the method is simple:
- After casting your lure, keep your banner taut and your rod at 45° until you feel the characteristic "toc" indicating that your lure has reached the bottom.
In the event of a hit, the 45° position allows you to strike effectively and capture the opportunistic predator.
In the middle depths
At greater depths, between 5 and 10 m, if you keep your rod fixed throughout the lure's descent, it will arc towards you and you will lose a significant prospecting distance.
The aim is to reduce this arc and gain in prospecting distance.
- So, once your lure has touched the surface of the water, stretch out your banner and set your rod at 80°.
- Wait until you feel the weight of the lure "pull" your streamer towards the bottom and follow its descent to an angle of 10-20°.
Your rod positions won't always be optimal for a perfect strike, but your lure will be taut and you'll feel the contact with the bottom and the bites. What's more, your lure will have a more vertical descent, giving you greater fishing distance.
In the deep
When you're fishing on 20 m of water or more and you cast your lure at 40 m, if you let your lure come down with the banner taut, the arc will be very wide and you'll lose more than half your fishing distance... If the wind is unfavorable, contact with the bottom may even occur very close to you, or you may find it difficult to reach the bottom.
To overcome this problem, you need to master a specific gesture:
- Once your lure has landed, tension your banner, then position your rod at 80°, pick up open. Lock your braid in your index finger.
- You should then feel the weight of the lure pulling your streamer towards the bottom. You accompany it by lowering the rod to the rhythm of your lure up to an angle of 10-20°.
- At this point, release the braid from your index finger and quickly reposition your rod at 80°.
- Take up the braid in your index finger, pick up open and repeat the operation until you feel contact with the bottom or a touch.
This means your lure will have an almost vertical descent, allowing you to lose very little prospecting distance.
Animation in progress
When you animate your lure using low weights and in windy conditions, you regularly lose contact with the bottom. You can then use the same methodology to let your lure sink to the right depth.
