Every fisherman knows that the key to catching more and bigger fish is using the right bait! Unfortunately, many fishermen never truly master this aspect of fishing. Well, take the right tackle and these few handy tips about fishing bait with you in your tackle box next time you go fishing, and you'll come home with more fish.
Best Bait for Any Type of Fish
The best bait to catch nearly any type of fish in fresh water is the worm. Live worms do work on just about any species of fish. From bass or crappie, trout to musky, they all can't get enough of worms. The reason is they are plentiful, live in nearly every lake and pond and are packed with proteins. The second best bait to use is minnows. Not all minnows work in every situation, but in most cases, you can land a nice fish using a minnow. But there are more baits to use when fishing and they fall into two main categories: live and artificial baits.
Live and Artificial Baits
Live baits include anything that is or was once alive. This includes worms, minnows, crickets or any other living thing. You will find that your basic night crawler is one of the most versatile live baits. Among the fish live baits include minnows, shad, herring, sucker fish and smelt. Suckers are mainly used for ice fishing, shad and smelts are ideal for trout, bass or other species in spring to summer.
Artificial baits include anything man made like spinning lures, swimming lures, spoons, crankbaits and plastic baits. Today, plastic baits are very popular because they are more lifelike and easily customizable. This means they can be used with different types of jig heads, hooks and rigs.
How to Catch Certain Types of Fish
If you are after a particular type of fish, be aware that each one likes certain types of baits and lives in specific areas. Bass, for instance, prefer cover and often hide near submerged tree stumps or logs. They live in shallow areas and often eat worms, minnows or plastic baits. You can also use swimming lures to imitate a wounded minnow since bass are great hunters and often eat wounded minnows.
Trout, on the other hand, eat more bugs and tiny insects called nymphs, than minnows--but they will eat a minnow like a bass. Larger predators, like musky, also eat minnows and attack the same types of lures bass will favor. You can also catch trout with spinning lures, spoons and jigs, since these imitate smaller, swimming fish. Crappie and perch also eat live minnows, but they are smaller fish compared to others. Typically, they will strike a smaller jig that imitates either a minnow or a small hatching insect. They also favor shallow areas with cover like the bass.
With these tips and general knowledge about fish habits and preferences, you can start to catch more and bigger fish. Talk to the experts at Norton Sporting Goods for more insight, fishing tips and supplies. We are currently running a special on minnows: get a dozen minnows free with any live bait or tackle purchase over $5. Come on down before this offer is gone for good!
