Bait question - why don't you use .....

[Newt]

Insects don't seem to be among the bait choices in the UK. I've asked before but never really gotten a good reason why not.

For instance, crickets are a top bait for some species in weather where they are naturally found. Took my sweetie out today and the bait shop was low on crickets (only had about 100 left and we took em all) so we got a container of lobworms and another of red worms just to have enough bait.

Worms - did OK I guess. Some fish anyway. Crickets though - fish went crazy. Bite a chuck and even a small piece would do the job.

I've had the same luck with cock roaches. Especially love the ones with an egg sack hanging off. And grasshoppers for larger fish.

For those who were around when we posted about Trev Manning's trip over here, he'd never used crickets before but had great luck with them.

In fact, pretty much any insect will do a nice job on whatever species considers it large enough to be a good meal. Crickets, roaches, grasshoppers are all large enough to put directly on a hook. Smaller ones like ants do fine with BaitStick or a similar goo to hold bait to hook.

You folks can do more with maggots than I'd ever imagined. So why the non-use of other similar larva or grown insects?

Newt Vail, Concord, NC. USA

 

[norm]

uuuugggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

newt i will stick to my new found bait pellets

ps please tell me what others are doing with there maggots lol

 

[Beebs]

Used to use grasshoppers in the summer on my local trout river back in Wales- drop them gently on top of the water with no weights. The trout used to go mad for them.

 

[Dervaig]

Bl**dy hell Newt, it's bad enough when the maggots escape.
I can't imagine the reaction from my beloved if the lid came off a box of cockroaches.
Fastest way to become a single man again lol lol lol.

Mike
Everybody believes in something - I believe I'll have another beer.

 

[ray]

i think it is just a sign of the times, years ago when i was a lad (not to many years though) myself and mates used to use grasshoppers, caddis, catapillars etc, we all caught plenty of fish including some biggies.

nowadays it is far easier to pop into the tackle shop, pick up a bag/pint/tin of whatever and away ya go, allmost guarenteed to catch fish.

even though it costs money its the conveniance thing??

ray.







prepare your meat at home and bin the tin.
"clean banks campaign"

 

[lee cole]

ill stick to boilies as i have had sucksess recently with them.

lee

 

[Newt]

From Ray - "nowadays it is far easier to pop into the tackle shop, pick up a bag/pint/tin of whatever and away ya go, allmost guarenteed to catch fish."

Maybe that's it. Where I've lived in the US, you can easily buy live crickets except in winter. Also several varieties of worms, leaches, and of course various sizes of minnows. But not a maggot to be had. Have to grow your own. There are a few areas in the US where you can buy them but very few. And most of the other bait items like boilies can't be bought except via mail order from 1 place in the US or from the UK.

Still and all, with all the youngsters trying to fish on a very tight budget, looks like insects would still be among their baits. Maybe just no one to tell em that fish love insects??


Newt Vail, Concord, NC. USA

 

[The percher]

newt, i think insects would get a really good reaction from fish if we used them, me and joe last summer found some caterpillars under some leaves at alocal lake, we hooked them and they outfished anything else on the day, the fish would take them with much more aggresion than anything else!
The problem is, tackle shops do not sell things like these, apart from maggots and worms, people won't intentionally go out and collect 'creepy crawlies' such as crickets, caterpillars etc partly coz most of us can't b bothered, partly because they are not recognised as a popular bait so we won't have much faith in them.


J.Tolley

 

[The23rdMan]

I think this is certainly worth loking into further. You can buy crickets and meal worms and god knows what else from exotic pet shops. you know, the sort of place that sells lizards and big hairy spiders *shudders*[}]

May all your lines be tight ones, and may all your tales be tall ones.

Deano

 

[piperpilot]

Anyone ever tried wasp grub's,

Ron

 

[Del-J]

Wasp grubs used to be a very popular bait especially for chub.

They seem hard to obtain nowadays for some reason.

As Ray says it seems to be a sign of the times that people would rather buy their bait from the tackle shop than use a bit of effort to collect their own.

Del

I DO believe it.

 

[Newt]

If you do decide to use larger insects for bait, see the "grasshopper/fungus" thread for a simple container to hold them. Ideal for any that don't fly.

And a second pic of the wife's catch yesterday on crickets. BTW - we only took pics of the two smallest fish she got since she wanted to tease a cousin with them. Cricket on #8 hook. Just to show that these things make fish get delusions of grandure.

Newt Vail, Concord, NC. USA

 

[Peter]

So really the answer is that we're too damn lazy. [][][][]

Peter.

Make Friends,Go Maggotdrowning.

 

[alan edmonds]

Great reading......it's all about time Newt..years ago I certainly fished with more natural baits...in natural waters where anglers were in the minority and real swimming flapping fish had a say in what they digested...things have changed..possibly more here than in USA..we have natural waters obviously but you are looking at a fishing culture that accepts that fish eat things like ..pellets,,bollies,and man made foods...this is a recent phenonimum......last twenty years...get yourself onto a remote stretch of any one of our rivers,,and yeah you'll find fish take natural baits all day long cos that's what they're about..they wont even know what a pellet is but they'll know a mayfly or a blackberry or whatever falls there way and has done for the last hundred years or so,,and they'll go crazy for it the same now as they always have..anyway Newt,,I bet it's the same there now Bill Clinton's given up his day job and taken to fishing....................


reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeel emin.....Alan

 

[mike s]

Newt, I think a lot of it is down to cost-a pint of maggots(about 4000)costs roughly 2. Crickets, mealworms etc. cost a whole lot more & are a lot harder to source. Worms are getting cheaper but at 12-15 a Kilo still aren't cheap.

Cumbria Angling Centre

 

[ray]

quote:So really the answer is that we're too damn lazy

dont think thats quite the case?

i'm 30 something years old and when i was a teenager, i would come home from school and what was there to do??

homework.

no sky, so telly was poo
no computor
no games machines

we had lots of time on our hands which enabled us to collect bait.

nowadays, it seems as though there are'nt enough hours in the day??

so the only option is to use a convieniance bait???

after all, how many of us still collect our own worms??



ray.






prepare your meat at home and bin the tin.
"clean banks campaign"

 

[Lid]

Newt, I'm well impressed with that small float your wife was using!!!

And by the way is that a whole cane rod?

Lid []

 

[norm]

quote(Anyone ever tried wasp grub's,)

yup used it all the time a few year back
won a match 1 day 3 chub for 11lb 9 oz

1st chub = 1lb
2nd chub = 5 lb
3rd chub = 5lb 9 oz

that was the and still is the club chub record

i love wasp grub and at one time had 7 nests in the freezer

my lass was going mad as there was no were to put the food lol

 

[Newt]

quote:Originally posted by Lid

Newt, I'm well impressed with that small float your wife was using!!!

And by the way is that a whole cane rod?

Lid - easier for her to see and the sunfish she targets are fearless. Not unusual for one just a smidgen larger than the pictured one to make that float dive out of sight,

Rod is e-glass. 5ft long and very, very limber. Ringed for a multiplier or spin-cast reel. To make the tiddlers fun but to handle the occaaionsl larger fish she gets on. I was using a 4'6" spinning rod with a Mitchell 308X (a great small reel BTW). Graphite and not as limber as hers but I was targeting a larger species.

Newt Vail, Concord, NC. USA