You can find fish by trolling with rapalas, swim baits, surface iron, and heavy irons, all without using live bait. There is no doubt that using live bait when fishing increases your chances of success.
Here are some tips for getting live bait, keeping it alive, and using it. Common baits include sardines, anchovies, smelt, squid, queenfish, lizardfish, Spanish and greenback mackerel, as well as other brown baits. Do not be afraid to use large amounts of bait when pursuing large fish. Big WSB will eat an even bigger mackerel, and 12-pound YTs have been known to consume small pencil-sized barracudas. Big baits eliminate unwanted by catch.
This means that after casting a cast net, you should immediately lower the loaded net into the livewell and shake out the ballyhoo, mullet, or pilchards. If that isn’t feasible, submerge the net in a bucket of water for five gallons, shake it out, and then swiftly and gently pour the bait into the well.
Adding a second livewell by plumbing an insole locker, typically one in the cockpit, is another way to increase bait capacity. On the West Coast, these below-deck livewells are referred to as slammers. The hatch must be gasketed and equipped with a compression latch in order to prevent water and bait from bubbling up onto the deck during choppy seas. Additionally, from a safety standpoint, it’s best to only use this tank to replenish the main livewell rather than to fish from it as doing so could result in a busted ankle.
This was first discovered by West Coast bait operators, and savvy boating anglers tend to favor the barges that sell cured bait. Today’s savvy anglers who keep their boats in the water frequently cure their own by catching bait in advance, leaving it in running bait tanks or in floating pens, and feeding it to the fish until it’s time to go fishing.
Face it: Whether you’re pursuing snook in Charlotte Harbor, sailfish off the Keys, striped bass in Long Island Sound, or yellowfin tuna off California, a lively live bait typically outperforms an artificial or dead bait.
Dead baits should be removed from the livewell as soon as possible after they pass away because their decomposing bodies release pollutants like ammonia that contaminate the water. From Mr. From Pilchard’s perspective, that’s pretty disgusting and potentially harmful to his health. However, take caution not to strike or unintentionally scoop up any live baits with the dip net if the dead baits are at the bottom of the tank. Remove the dead baits by hand from the tank if it is not too deep.
Preparation:
Fishing reports from earlier days will help me determine what I need. I will work harder to get a full tank of bait if fish are being caught on bait and there appears to be a lot of by catch or sea lion bait stealers. Another factor is the length of time I intend to spend fishing.
Make sure the battery is charged if using a bait tank or Kayatank, and check your connections as well as the switch—the switch frequently seems to be my point of failure. When I remember, I flip the switch before taking off to test the connection since it is much simpler to fix a connection on land than in the water. Just grab the buckets or bait tubes and head out. The trade-off is between ease and efficiency on the water or simplicity in coming and going.
For chumming, a can of cat food can be very effective at luring them in or inspiring an appetite. Purchase four packs of flip-top cans for quick access to the water. Squid pieces on the hook are very helpful when there is little or no light. I’ve tried purchasing a pound of squid, cutting it up into small pieces, and refreezing it in a number of bags to take with me on each excursion. In this manner, if it is unnecessary, I will only have wasted a small amount and not the entire pound. Another way to keep an additional attractant without it ever spoiling is to break up a package of GULP into tiny pieces to hang on the sabiki hooks. Does anything smell worse than a forgotten package of squid?.
How to Keep Blue Crabs Alive
Keeping blue crabs alive is relatively easy. They thrive in aerated bait tanks and small buckets used for fishing that are placed overboard.
Crabs should be stored in a cooler with a damp cloth or rag thrown over them for overnight storage, as well as a bag of sealed ice or ice packs set aside to the side. Keep the cooler ajar to allow for airflow, and keep it between 40 and 50 degrees. If you’re outside, store your cooler in the shade without any water.
Redfish, permit, black drum, sheepshead, pompano, tautog, and other fish love fiddler crabs as bait. Hundreds of tiny fiddler crabs can be seen scurrying around on exposed mudflats along the South Atlantic Coast inshore areas during warm weather at low tides. They create tiny, precisely defined holes in the sand and mud.
Don’t waste time trying to run them down. As an alternative, obtain a quart-sized bucket, dig a hole in a potential mud or sandbank, and bury the bucket so that the top is flush with the soil surface. Wait 15 to 30 minutes after baiting the bucket with fish viscera, tails, or squid. The bait will attract crabs, which will then enter the bucket.
FAQ
How do you keep live bait alive longer?
“Keeping oxygen flowing and the water in the baitwells cooler than the lake is the key to keeping the bait healthy during hot weather. Duckworth advises placing a two-liter soft drink bottle filled with frozen water in the baitwell. Adding crushed ice to the tank is an option.
How do you keep a spot fish alive?
Spot can be moved a short distance in just a bucket of water; however, if the run will last longer than 15 minutes, an aerator can help. After that, the water needs to be changed thoroughly for the bait to remain alive. Spot can be kept under a dock for weeks in a holding pen the size of a trashcan if it is not overcrowded.
How do you keep bait alive on a boat?
The Water Temperature Should Be Taken Into Account The Less Bait You Want to Pack Inside The Warmer The Water Temperature In Your Well However, you can add more bait to the well when the water is cooler to keep it alive. More dissolved oxygen will be present in colder water, allowing more bait to flourish in the well.
How do you keep perches alive?
Re: How do you keep perch alive? A 5-gallon bucket filled with lake water works for me. Keep it from freezing, and everything will be fine. The water in the bucket will work because perch can survive for a very long time without water.
