There are many ways that we as fishermen enjoy our favorite hobby. Many of us spend thousands of dollars on boats and equipment while chasing bass on large impoundments all over the country. Others prefer to grab a fly rod and go to a remote location and get pleasure from the scenery as much as they do from the thrill of the catch. The following is one way that anglers can enjoy their sport without emptying their wallet, and they will still get the same excitement as the aforementioned types of fishing.

One of the most popular species of fish that are targeted each year is the panfish family. This includes bluegill, shellcrackers, crappie, sungrannies and other varieties in this class. Not only are they fun to catch, but they make excellent dishes on your dinner table. There are several different ways to target these fish. You can make a bait run to your tackle shop and pick up some live bait and go out and catch them from dusk till dawn. You can grab a few inline spinners or other artificial lures and fill your daily limit as well. My favorite way to fish for these fish is to grab some bubble floats and small poppers and head to your favorite body of water.

Bubble float fishing is a technique that is generally underutilized. I don’t use them as much as I should. But if you do use them, you will cash in on their fish catching ability. To get started in this type of fishing you will need some bubble floats, poppers, bobber stoppers or rubberbands, beads, and light line.

The first step in the rigging process is to slide the clear bubble float onto your line. You will then want to place a bead and then a bobber stopper to your line. If a stopper is unavailable, a sturdy rubber band will work just fine. This is actually a reverse rigging technique of the slip floater. Instead of setting your stopper above the float to determine the depth, you are placing it so that it will not go near the lure. Allow yourself about a foot or so on the tag end coming from the stopper. On the business end of the rig you will want to tie on a small popper. These are available in an array of colors and styles. One of these easiest ways to get set up without breaking the bank is to purchase a spinwheel package of them that are made of wood. You will get several colors and they will last all season long.

Once you are tied on, it is time to go test out your rig. You can fish this popper and float system on virtually any type of water system. If you like to wade streams, you can have a blast with it this summer. If you are a lake fisherman, your possibilities are endless. And of course, if you like pond fishing you have found a technique that will give you nonstop action all year.

Areas that I like to look for when throwing this rig is to laydowns that are in the six to eight foot depth range. You will do better if you can throw these poppers on banks that have a slow taper to them with wood cover. Toss the bait near the bank and then begin working the popper back to you. The bubble float will clack against the bead each time you jerk the rod tip. The stopper is in place to keep the bead and float from going down onto the bait. You need to experiment with different types of retrieves. I have found that they work best with a long pause between each twitch.

Don’t be afraid to test this rig out this year. If you don’t like it, you are only out about ten dollars. That’s not too bad to have an exciting fishing season along with food on the table. Just don’t worry about trying out the different poppers and retrieves. You just never know what combination will be deadly.

Any comments, questions or ideas for future articles are welcomed and may be directed to me at briangood44@hotmail.com. Thanks for reading, keep those lines wet and I’ll see you on the water!