Fishing Terminology

This column is designed to take a light-hearted look at living with a fisherman - or, as some prefer to be called, a “tournament angler.” And that is the subject of this first column - fishing terminology. This may be more than you ever wanted to know, but it may make living with your angler easier.

Equipment. Defined as “necessary items: the tools, clothing, or other items needed for a particular purpose or activity.” At least one of the following is required in order to participate in the sport of fishing. For the tournament angler, a minimum of six rods and reels of various combinations are required on the boat. But let’s not forget the dozens waiting in the garage at home…

Fishing rod - used to be called a fishing pole. Now fishing pole refers only to a bamboo pole with fishing line tied to one end. Fishing rods come in several lengths, strengths (called “action”), and can be affordable or almost obscenely expensive.

Reel - the mechanical device mounted to the handle end of the fishing rod onto which the line is wound. Comes in two basic types (further defined below), with more speeds and ball bearings than most sane people know about, much less worry about. The most important point - when you turn the handle, it must feel “smooth.” Again, price ranges from affordable to obscenely expensive.

Spinning reel - This is mounted to the bottom of a spinning rod (a rod with large guides -- what the line goes through - attached to the underside of the rod). Because the reel is suspended sideways on the rod, the line comes off the reel sideways, too (like a big slinky - hence the big guides) and there is danger of line twist after repeated casts. This is most noticeable at the tip end of the rod, where twisted line has been known to wrap itself around the rod and start working its way back to the handle. This phenomenon will frustrate your angler, especially if he doesn’t notice this before he casts.

Bait caster - a reel that mounts to the top of a bait casting rod (this has smaller guides attached to the top side of the rod). According to my expert, this has more uses than the spinning combo - but requires more coordination to use. The line comes off these reels from the top, so it doesn’t twist, however, the angler’s thumb is used to help control the speed the line unwinds off the reel when casting. Basically, if you forget to put your thumb down over the line on the reel, or don’t use enough pressure, the reel spins faster than the line can go through the guides, so it creates a big mess of snarled, tangled line called a backlash, or a “woof” or various other descriptive names. A really good comparison is what happens to a lot of necklaces thrown into a jewelry box and shaken. Imagine that mess all tangled together with only two ends, one safely hidden by feet of unused line on the reel, and the other at least six feet away, threaded through the rod, with a very sharp object tied to the end. Backlashes are a calculated risk when using a bait caster, and your angler may use many colorful metaphors if one occurs on his favorite reel. My angler brings his backlashes home for me to unravel. Joy.

Fishing line - comes in lots of brands, several colors, but only two basic types - monofilament (mono), one long continuous length, or braided, which is multiple strands of the stuff, literally braided together to make a fishing line that is supposed to be stronger than mono but smaller in diameter. Fishing line comes in something called “lb test.” This means how many pounds of stress can be applied to the line before it breaks, whether it's the weight of the fish, or the stress applied by the angler in trying to get the fish out of wherever he might be hiding. The different lines have different uses. Monofilament lines can stretch and can be cut without special tools. Braided lines don’t stretch, but need really sharp tools to cut.

Hooks -- the most dangerous part of the equipment. At least one of these is tied to the end of the line, or is attached to a lure. There are more brands, types and sizes than anyone could ever use, but all anglers have dozens of them. Some can be sharpened, some can’t. But they all get dull, or bent, and have to be replaced more frequently than razor blades.

Next time - Lures. It’s only bait if it’s alive…

-Linda Morton

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