Catching Your Own bait

Bait- Catching your own

When it comes to live bait for fishing you’re going to either need
a teeny tiny little fishing rod with a teeny tiny hook with a little zooplankton or maybe some phytoplankton or a few special pieces of equipment and some easily learned skills. Some of the most popular lives bait that is relatively easy to come across are crabs, minnows, shrimp, squid and sand fleas.

SHRIMP
What you’ll need:
A shrimp net I’d recommend a net with 8′-12′ long rope and about 30-36″ hoop, an LED light that will light up green and an appropriate size water proof battery. And 12- 15′ of lead wire depending how far away your battery will be from the water. 12v car or deep cycle battery is a good choice but if it gets in the water don’t try to pick it up. It will give you a little tingle if you try to pick it up underwater before it has fully discharged.

Where you need to be:
Find a tributary or creek and look for a bottleneck or constriction where the water flow narrows.

When you’ll need to be there:
When the tide is going out or a “falling tide” is the best time for shrimpin.

How to:
Face so you are looking into the tide. So the water is flowing to you. DO NOT cut your light on before you put it into the water. Put it in the water and then cut it on. If you put a hot light into cooler water it may explode. Now put your net in the water and scoop the shrimp up as they swim with the current towards you.

MINNOWS

Chubs, fatties, minnows, mud minnows, killies, tuffies whatever you call them everybody likes to catch them. Most fish that are caught in-shore like to feed on them.

What you’ll need:
You can use a cast net, or a minnow trap. The cast net is going to take some practice to learn the skills it takes to cast a cast net.

But a minnow trap is the absolute easiest may to catch them. Get a minnow trap and a piece of rope about 25’ish feet long and some sort of bait/food. Anything from bread to hotdogs to cut bait will work.

Where you’ll need to be:
Near the shore in shallow water, sand bars, near grassy flats, just off a shallow pier or marina… Where you can see minnows swimming in shallow water thats were you want to throw your trap.

When you’ll need to be there:
When the tide is low and falling. You’ll normally be able to see the minnows swimming around.

What you’ll need to do: (minnows trap)
Open your trap toss the bait inside and close the trap and install the clasp. Tie one end of the rope to the clasp and tie the other off somewhere on shore. To the pier, a piling, a boat anchor on the shore, a tree limb etc. Now give it a toss in the direction of the minnows and
Thats it. Just let it sit until the tide changes direction. After the tide has changed you should be able to pull the trap in using the rope and have a few minnows for fishing.

How to: (cast net)
Throwing a cast net takes some skill. It’s not necessarily hard but it does take practice…practice, practice, practice.

CRABS

Crabs nature’s clean up crew. Crabs spend there days cleaning up dead and decaying stuff. They are plentiful and many in-shore fish eat crab.

What you’re gonna need
A roll of thick string or twine, and a piece of chicken or cut bait or some type of meat and a net.

Where you’ll need to be:
Any where there is a place to be. Crabs are scavengers and scavenge anywhere they might find food.

When youll need to be there:
Anytime you can. Crabs are active most anytime there is something around to eat.

What you’ll need to do:
Tie the bait onto the string and give it a little toss and wait. When you feel the string start to tighten up or move to the side. When you feel the tension begin to pull the line in slow and steady. When you can see the crab just under the surface gently put the net into the water and scoop up from under the crab. And walla! Bait.

SAND FLEAS

Sand fleas or mole crabs are plentiful and pretty easy and fun to catch. You can use your hands or a sand flea rake.

What you’ll need:
A beach, a hand or Sandler rake and a wave or two.

Where you’ll need to be:
On the beach where the wave washes the beach.

When you’ll need to be there:
Anytime

What you’ll need to do:
Watch as the waves wash back down the sand. Look for little “V” created in the wash. Go to that spot and wait for the next wave to come in and as it washes out scoop the sand with your hand or the rake and you should pick up at least on mole crab.

Filed under: Blog • Pier Fishing • Saltwater Blog • Surf Fishing