I lost two fish when late-night fishing with a French spinner on Sunday because I never felt the strike. Both times it felt like a snag. I felt the initial stoppage of the lure and just a heavy, ever-increasing weight on the line just like it feels when you snag a root or a rock and you keep reeling. Only this time the snag started thrashing on the water top. At that point I obviously tried to set the hook but it was of no use; the fish got off. It happened again a few minutes later. I was pissed!! That first fish was HEAVY!!

How can you tell the difference? Obviously if you are in the daylight, you might be able to see the line move to know it’s not a snag. What else? If I “set the hook” on every snag I encountered, I…for sure…would have had a couple of lures stuck in my head by now. Also, what causes a fish…especially such a big fish…to strike so “gently?”

I’m pretty new to fishing, so this was a first for me.