fishing question

raro

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Well, I did it, I went fishing. My 9-year-old and I had a blast, and we learned a huge bit about fishing. For one thing, bring more bait. We only caught a half-dozen tiny fish, but it was good for a first time.

My biggest issue, since I'm so new at this, is...how the #@$&!!! do you keep the bait on the hook?! I tried twisting the worm, letting it dangle, poking it a few times, everything, and all we succeeded in doing is feeding worms to the fish. Every time we got at least a nibble, and then the worm was gone. I don't know if we used too big a hook, too little, or what. Is there any fishing expert out there who can tell me how to do this?! I know there are big fishies out there, but I can't seem to get them hooked!

And man, I felt sorry for those poor little wormies. My friend suggested next time using bits of hot dogs...might be a good use for them!?!
 

JRmom

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Pan fish are notorious bait thieves! You definitely need to be using the right size hook for them. I always hook the worm 2 or 3 times, so the hook travels the length of the worm, leaving a bit hanging to "wriggle" and attract the fish. If the hook is small enough and the fish are hungry, they'll take the whole thing. Another bait for pan fish is grass shrimp. They seem to have a harder time stealing them off the hook. Of course, you can't just go out in your yard and dig up grass shrimp. :D

ETA: Depending on the size of the worms, pinch them in half, or even thirds or quarters. You don't want to use a whole large worm on a small hook for a small pan fish. Good luck!
 

Denim Deb

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Another thing that's good for pan fish is crickets. But, it's the wrong time of the year for them. I've also caught them using bread as bait.
 

Wannabefree

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the little bait stealers make me so mad :lol: I do use hotdogs for bait. they stay on much MUCH better, especially if you nuke them in the microwave long enough for them to get a little rubbery and nasty. The fish love them :hu It's hard to nibble off a tiny rubber ball :lol:
 

chud

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first use a bait holder hook, for pan fish size #6 or #8 will work great then use wax worms for bait , if you want to stay with crawlers use a slip bobber if not look in to small mister twister or betts spin nothing to intrusive for color stay with natural bug type fish the brush right know if your going after crappie minnows hooked in the back just behind the dorsal fin but not to deep if you want get on u-tube look around see whats on their to help out


good luck
 

Farmfresh

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I am just cheap. If they are that anxious to take my hook then they will bite on just a pinch of a piece of worm. ;)

By FAR worms are my favorite bait. I have caught almost every kind of fish in the lake on a worm. Other baits are only attractive to a few species, but yummy worm is like the hamburger of the fish crowd! :p
 

FarmerJamie

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I like using minnows for crappie - running the hook through the mouth and out one of the gills. With worms, I use JRMom's technique of 2 or 3 times through the worm.

Dang, now I have to add crappie fishing to the list of stuff I won't get to anytime soon.

Good luck with the 9 yr old and fishing!
 

Denim Deb

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Raro, when I first started taking my son fishing, I got permission from a farmer I knew to fish in one of the irrigation ponds. I also took my nephew. The kids had a blast! I didn't even have a chance to fish. We didn't keep any, but that pond was loaded!
 

sheaviance1

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Fishing is a blast! I'm glad you had a good time. I guess my first question is what are you trying to catch? Right now, in my area, shellcrackers are biting like crazy, nice big ones. I use a small hook for panfish, pinch the worm off, and thread it onto the hook from the pinched end, and feed it through the skin towards the bottom and let a little bit dangle. We tight line in our lake as the fish don't bite at all if you use a bobber. Our rig is placing the hook about 12 inches from the sinker with the sinker on the bottom. I fish for panfish with an ultralight rod so that I can feel what is going on. I tend to catch a good number of catfish, yellow bass and smallmouth bass on this setup too. I agree with worm being the hamburger of the lake.

We do some serious catfishing for our freezer too. My hubby goes on a three day fishing trip every year (except this one because of the flood :( ). The biggest catfish they have caught so far has been 71 pounds. Hubby and I have caught a 62 pounder together on the canoe. That was GREAT!

I'm still learning how to find crappie. We have installed a couple of crappie beds on the lake that we fish.
 
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