Perch Fishing Tips

When it comes to fishing, you might have a pretty good idea of what you need to do and what you should bring with you on your trip. However, if you are going after a certain type of fish, then it is important that you make sure you know all about that particular fish, so you have a better chance of catching them. When it comes to perch, you’re going to find everything that you need to find when it comes to this particular type of fish. You’re going to learn about the fish itself as well as perch fishing tips and tricks you can use to catch perch on your next fishing trip. By the time you’re through with this article, you’ll be ready to hit the water and start catching some perch.

About Perch

While the appearance and characteristics of the fish are going to vary from species to species, there are some particular facts about perch that remain the same. For example, each of the fish grows to an average size of about 10 to 20 inches in length, but the color is going to depend on the breed of the fish, some of which are designated by their names such as yellow perch or white perch. Yellow perch is the most easily distinguishable thanks to 6-8 dark bands on their side and the black over yellow color on their body.

Perch Fishing Tips, Tricks, and Techniques

Artificial Lures

If you’re going to use artificial lures, it’s important to make sure that you are buying the right ones to prevent yourself from wasting time. Lightweight jigs and poppers are always great choices, especially when it comes to perch.

Live Bait

While how you fish for perch may have changed over the year, the love of food has not changed for perch. Live bait is going to be more effective than artificial bait for obvious reasons, and some of the soft shells like crawfish are the best bait to use. If not, you could try minnow in cool water or nightcrawlers in warmer water.

Crappie Rig

A crappie rig is not only a great way to catch perch, but it is also a great way to find out what else might be biting in the area. You can rig up a couple of different types of bait to see which is most popular. Once you determine that, you can double it up and wait for a bite. If not a crappie rig, you could always you a simple slip bobber setup.

Watch Your Bait

As annoying as it can be, perch are well known for stealing bait right off of the hooks without ever getting caught. To try and prevent this and make sure you aren’t a victim of theft, try and use a small hook that will prevent them from getting away. Additionally, you can try and keep your bait on the very tip of the hook to help improve the chances of setting a hook once they try to grab the bait.

Move Quickly

If you happen to get a bite on your line and you can reel in the fish, you need to remove the hook and add more bait if necessary as quickly as possible and get the bait back in the water. Perch very rarely move on their own and then tend to hunt in packs. If you catch one, the chances are good that there are more in the area and you can act quickly to get them.

Sheltered Area

If you aren’t having any luck in some of the more open areas and you want to improve your chances, you should try a sheltered area on the water because perch tend to hand out here so that they can ambush their food. If you are on a lake or a pond, try and look for tree roots or lilies or overhanging trees along with wooden platforms. You have a much better chance of finding perch in these areas.

Try Dusk

If you are trying to catch perch, then sunlight is going to be one of the last things you want when you are out on the water. The best thing you can do to increase your chances of catching perch is to pinpoint their feeding times, usually around dusk, so that you can have the best chance at catching them.

Red Maggots

For whatever reason, perch love red maggots more than anything else and more than any other color as well. If you are struggling to get perch in the area, try feeding some red maggots into the water to try and get the perch to you. Once they are there, you can pull back the red maggots and then present the worm on the hook. Be careful not to use too many red maggots, or you will fill up the perch.

Things to Bring on Your Perch Fishing Trip

Fishing Rod and Reel

This should go without saying, but it is obviously going to be crucially important to make sure that you bring your fishing rod and best fishing reel with you on your fishing trip. Unless you plan on strictly using a net or something else, your rod and reel will be your main method of catching fish.

Fishing Hook

Similar to the fishing rod and reel, the fishing hook is going to be important because you want to make sure that you have the proper hook you need to catch the fish. As mentioned before, you should try and get a smaller hook for perch so that they don’t take your bait and run.

Hook Remover

Sometimes when you hook a fish, the hook is going to go way deeper into the fish than you would have expected it to go into the fish. If this happens, a hook remover can come in handy. It is specifically designed to remove deep set hooks from your catch.

Fish Finder

If you’re looking for the best way to find fish and ensure that you are going to be in an area populated by fish, then a fish finder is a great way to do that. Most fish finders use sonar to figure out where fish are in the water. The only problem with this is that it does not distinguish the types of fish, so it might not be great if you are only looking for perch.

Best Bait

It should come as no surprise, but if you want to catch fish, you need the best bait. For perch, you could use artificial lures, but live bait is going to be best. Soft shell animals are preferred but minnows or night crawlers would work.

First Aid Kit

You never know what might happen when you are out on the water, so you always want to be prepared. Make sure you have a first aid kit with all of the supplies you need in case of an accident when you are on the water.

Knives

If you need to cut a line or do a lot of different tasks that might come up, it’s important for you to have a fillet knife on you at all times. It’s important always to carry a knife because if you find you need a knife, you will be stuck until you are off the water.

Fishing Gear

Every time you go out, you should bring fishing gear such as a hat and gloves. The hat is going to help keep the sun away from your face, and the gloves will help protect your hands when you are handling the fish, bait and everything else.

Waterproof Bag

If you are bringing important belongings onto your boat, then you need to make sure that you have a waterproof bag. Since you’re on water, everything is going to get wet at some point, and you don’t want to lose your belongings because of it. A waterproof bag will help keep everything safe.

Map

You should always bring a map with you when you are out on the water because unless you are very familiar with the area, it’s possible that you could get turned around. Having a map will at least give you a fighting chance to find your way back.

Final Verdict

As with just about all types of fishing, it’s not hard to see and understand that there is a certain art to perch fishing. If you have done it before and you want to improve your luck, or you have never done it before, and you’re looking for some pointers, all of the information above is going to help you accomplish your goal and catch more perch. You will not only know all of the different tips and techniques that you can use to get them, but you’ll also know exactly what you should bring when you head out on the water for your fishing trip!