WOW, seems like we have a real "we/they" on the bait question and a few are kinda nasty, reminds me of the old days when a "purist" was one who used garden worms for trout rather than Salmon Eggs or hardware..
Guess I'll throw my log on the fire, I guess it's what you have more condfidence in or feel you personally are better at. From my own experience and from what others say, hardware will catch more fish on any given day, while bait will get more bites but less hookups. On the other hand, rumor has it live bait will catch bigger fish, guess it must be harder to fool a bigger fish, that's how he got big..
Myself, I stink at live bait and have no patience for it, I might throw one on, fish for a while and switch. Taking the guess work out of what to use has it's advantages, what should I use today, "a smelt or a smelt", a no brainer (not the fisherman but the
question).
I like taking the credit for picking the right spoon, or the right fly and better yet, have it be one of your own creations.
So I guess using hardware can be more of a challenge for some of us, while using live has it's own challenges for others too, not to mention the cost savings using live.
What is better ? I say what ever works best for you, may not be best for others..
Hey I read all those posts and no one answered his question. Be very careful of using a trap to catch small fish for bait. I think it is against the law to use some types (perch?).
Smelt are by fare the best for salmon and trout but are hard to keep for a long time. I use a single hook through both lips with a little spinner in front or a bait rig that has a sliding hook for the lips and a treble that you put in the anus. I like the ones with red beeds. Make sure it doesn't spin. A trick I use with live bait when trolling is to go slow and when you get a hit pay out the line towards the fish. Most good bait shops have three types of bait fish, smelt, arkansas shiners and emerald shiners. The emeralds look like smelt, live longer but they don't tast/smell the same as smelt so they're not as good. It's fun to try different things when fishing.
An other way to rig a live bait for trolling is to sew the bait on. Many different ways but I've used an aberdeen (thin wire long shank) hook size 6 put it through both lips (from the top) twice like a sowing needle leave two big loops in the lips (to tighten later) hook through the belly about a half inch in front of and come out the anus, then push the knot and shank back in so only the hook point sticks out the anus, then pull the lines tight up to the loops and make them tight to the lips. Make sure they don't spin. As you can read, using a hook harnes is easier and keeps your fingers clean. Don't do this in front of someone squimish as it may be their last time fishing.
If it comes down to cost, one lure might last the whole summer and you can buy two for the price of a dozen smelt.
When it comes to fishing, it is supposed to be fun and anyway you do it as long as you don't (waist?) or hurt the resource is okay by me. Don't be greedy or rude, share the lake, have fun and be friendly to other fishermen.
This is my first post, but I have been religously reading this board for over a year. The rookie comment to me was rude, out of line, and out of character for this board. It is the first time I have seen this kind of post here. This is a great site, great board, and I can't say how much the information shared here has helped me and my son improve out there. Let's keep it positive! Thanks to all.
Fishing on our boat it's all about the kids. My kid loves live bait. Well I would to if I won boat @ 10 yrs. old on old faithful. Generations of live bait used in this family. We must be ROOKIES. we'll se you at the awards on Fri,Sat & Sun.
To each his own I guess.... I believe there is time and place for both..
When I troll in the spring I use Smelts faithfully... I do not use the sliding rig, I sew mine on so I do get them to roll... NOT SPIN. It took me years of practice to get it right.
As mentioned earlier if you are using bait and get a hit and miss it, just strip 15' of line off your reel and 9 times out of 10 the fish will be there when everything comes tight!!!
If you need some real good sewing hooks contact Dumondflies.com and he could probably ship them to you before the derby!!!
Thanks so much. Somone FINALLY answered my questions. I have been fishing with hardware for a long time so it is bait that is new to me, not fishing...
This board has been good to me, I just ignore the negative stuff!
Thanks to all for the responses. Im going to try some Smelt.... Never done it before, why not...
