27 May Secrets For Finding Best Places For Urban Fishing
Don’t be frightened away from fishing holes just because they’re surrounded by factories and not forests; urban waterways are often teaming with fish.
Urban water systems are often narrower and deeper than what’s found in nature, and they run faster, but other than that they’re much the same. People still need a license to fish there.
USE NEW MAPS TO FIND FORGOTTEN FISHING HOLES
Most authors on this subject are fond of telling readers to get outside and explore their city with their own two feet, but that is terrible advice. In most cases it’s impossible. It’s definitely not recommended to try to follow an urban water course for any length, through any metropolitan center as it disappears in and out of concrete drains and culverts en route to a larger water body.
Google Maps on the other hand, has revolutionized the search for urban fishing holes because it allows enthusiasts to easily see what’s on the other side of buildings and streets without physically spelunking through drainage channels.
AUTOMOBILE DASHBOARD GPS MAPS SHOW URBAN WATER SYSTEMS
Another recent breakthrough that benefits urban fishermen is the handy GPS map displays on new cars and trucks, and how they always show detailed overlays of water systems. These are brilliant for fishermen exploring a region for the first time, following a river or stream through populated areas; the dashboard display details hidden ponds and tributaries that even locals don’t know about. And bonus, the research is done from inside a motor vehicle, so the explorer can literally drive around probing the terrain for real life access points.
Hidden rivers and water systems deep in the concrete jungle can be especially dangerous because they run fast and deep and nobody will hear you scream if you fall in at night, especially near hydro dams. But of course these same lonely water streams that nobody visits probably have the most and biggest fish, and so that dangerous solitude is what most urban fishermen seek– the harder the fishing spot is to find and access, the better it is!
One thing Google maps doesn’t show is the terrain under the surface of the water, but there’s a sonar add-on for the iPhone or Android called FishHunter for that research.
PORTABLE FISHFINDER IS PERFECT FOR URBAN FISHING
Mobile phones displaying Google Maps are essential for scouting above ground, and iphone Fishfinder with military grade sonar attachment, FishHunter connects via Bluetooth and accurately maps the underside of dark water to expose any fish hiding under the waves, right on phone’s display screen.
FishHunter™ device floats in the water and sends high resolution images back to an iPhone or Android device with speed and precision.
So this innovation is perfect for fishermen exploring waterways when they want to see under the waves to know where to cast, and what they might hope to catch. FishHunter app is stocked with all sorts of fishing information too, and profiles several common fish species, bait and habitat preferences.
DON’T OVERLOOK NEW HOUSING DEVELOPMENTS, SHOPPING MALLS
Landscape architects like to engineer water systems around big box parking lots, retirement homes and new housing developments. Ponds are comforting for people to look at and the growing popularity of ice hockey in northern climate cities is making ponds a more frequent landscape amenity. Shopping malls, racetracks and golf courses are three more examples of big properties that have engineered water systems which are worth examining, especially during high water season.
BRING A SHORT FISHING ROD, AND A GARBAGE BAG
It’s recommended to carry a short six foot fishing rod only. Urban fishermen don’t need a long rod because they don’t need to execute long distance casts – they seek instead a simple accuracy and ease of movement. Long rods get fouled up in trees and power lines. Also exploring urban fishermen should carry a garbage bag they can hold up if anyone asks what they’re doing on the other side of the fence. “Just picking up trash” is the best answer. These enthusiasts should restrict their tackle box to a knife with a serrated edge, and an eight chamber plastic pillbook filled with hooks and lures. Eight compartments allows the sportsman enough bait variations for most fishing contingencies while still being compact enough for rapid transit in and out of secure areas.
Good luck.