lund1
New Member
Posts: 284
|
Post by lund1 on Jul 30, 2015 17:05:23 GMT -5
As I'm reading the threads about keeping bait healthy I keep pondering the following;
I know we take great lengths to keep our bait frisky, lively, healthy...as naturally robust as possible. Yet, there's a multi-million ( billion?) dollar business focused around creating artificial baits that mimic wounded, unhealthy, failing baitfish as realistically as possible. So why doesn't the "real thing" work?
I guess the key word here may be "unhealthy"...and I get a gamefish not wanting unhealthy prey...but doesn't it seem like a contradiction?
I've been stuck in Raleigh held hostage by that damn day job....no lake time for me for the last 2 weeks...so I find myself thinking about stuff like that.
|
|
Brian
New Member
Posts: 611
|
Post by Brian on Jul 30, 2015 17:41:39 GMT -5
So why doesn't the "real thing" work? I does. There's a thread here where we were talking about that and I shared an anecdote about a time when bait was very tough to find, so I had a dead gizzard that was corkscrewing in my spread... |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2015 20:50:04 GMT -5
Lund1, I have thought the exact same as you. My conclusion is I like healthy, lively bait because they makes me feel good. A challenge of sorts...something to be proud of.
Survival of the fittest tells us to mangle them to pieces to induce more strikes.
|
|
lund1
New Member
Posts: 284
|
Post by lund1 on Jul 30, 2015 22:02:45 GMT -5
Exactly Yam...when I reel in to check my bait and I see that poor fellow barely able to move his fins I can't help but to think...ah...perfect!
Yet I've been on enough Guide boats where they scorn anything but the liveliest of offerings. Weird....
|
|
Gator
New Member
Posts: 1,534
|
Post by Gator on Jul 31, 2015 9:51:46 GMT -5
Healthy bait will stay alive longer thus more time fishing and less time chasing bait. Right?? When I use artificial baits I don't always work the lure as a wounded bait. Sometimes I do both, a very alive presentation followed with a wounded presentation to provoke a strike. We have much more control over the artificial lure than we do live bait and the live bait is what it is. I remember catching tons (300 baits) of goggle eyes for sail fishing in FL and using them as live chum. We always used the stressed bait (red nosed or losing their color). We would bounce them off the gunnel and let them swim away in a daze and the dolphin (mahi mahi) would crush them. I have also seen guys trim the fins of bait fish to change the way it was presenting itself.
Hope I see you at the lake this weekend. I will be there.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2015 10:25:17 GMT -5
As I'm reading the threads about keeping bait healthy I keep pondering the following; I know we take great lengths to keep our bait frisky, lively, healthy...as naturally robust as possible. Yet, there's a multi-million ( billion?) dollar business focused around creating artificial baits that mimic wounded, unhealthy, failing baitfish as realistically as possible. So why doesn't the "real thing" work? I guess the key word here may be "unhealthy"...and I get a gamefish not wanting unhealthy prey...but doesn't it seem like a contradiction? I've been stuck in Raleigh held hostage by that damn day job....no lake time for me for the last 2 weeks...so I find myself thinking about stuff like that. Very good thought provoking post lund!!!!  if we stop and think about it.... how many times have we all thrown dead or dying bait out of our tank and see the fish swirling around and gulping it down?? I'm sure I'm not the only one who jigs flukes in the summer.... how many times have you just put your rod down to net a fish or do something else and a fish hook up on the DEAD still fluke ??..... and even though, at certain times of the year, dead or cut bait fished off the bottom will produce, like yam, very lively bait makes me happy.....just can't bring myself to fish with dead or almost dead bait. |
|
|
|
Post by mwardncsu on Jul 31, 2015 10:49:33 GMT -5
Have nothing to back this up other than intuition, but my guess is it has to do with presentation. Does a mostly dead bait swim along at 0.5 to 1.3 mph? Or is a bait moving at that speed going to be a lively, frisky bait? So would a mostly dead bait "look right" when moving forward like that?
Now, a bait fluttering to the bottom in more or less a straight down direction - that looks like a dead/injured bait that is an easy meal - every try "power reeling" a bait- reel it up and then drop it straight back down......
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2015 10:59:09 GMT -5
Your thoughts sound good to me...... I need some of this intuition you speak of. |
|
lund1
New Member
Posts: 284
|
Post by lund1 on Jul 31, 2015 12:54:21 GMT -5
Mike - that's the most logical answer to date...unhealthy bait doesn't cruise along in a healthy fashion.
I remember the first time I thought of this was when I was fishing wake baits...doing my very best to make that plug switch back and forth to look like it was on it's last legs...then I threw a spook and walked it in too...slow and injured like.
Next day I was bait fishing and changing up every time the bait was looking tired...never mind having taken a few hits from marauding stripes.
After watching Yam's most recent Wolf camera production I was fascinated with the way the stripes would hit the shad, another would hit it again...and a third would finally eat it. It really looked like they were wounding it first.
Then again...maybe I'm just trying to justify leaving 'em on longer...and tell myself I'm fishing smart.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2015 18:06:28 GMT -5
I have been thinking.
Perhaps the fact that we stick a sword through their noses and drag them around in a tortuous manner, creates the need for lively bait. Maybe the goal is an injured bait that is in fact achieved via a lively bait before the sticking and dragging commence.
It could also be that bigger shad are more hardy and robust. Thus a good hooking followed by some type of small beating might be a good strategy before we drag them to their deaths.
In terms of speed, fish can swim fast. Gizzards are quick bastards. I am thinking they can swim well over 10 mph. If this is true, then 1 mph seems slow to me especially if they are being stalked by a school.
|
|
|
|
Post by mwardncsu on Jul 31, 2015 19:21:16 GMT -5
Thus a good hooking followed by some type of small beating might be a good strategy before we drag them to their deaths. Alright now - we won't allow this to turn into justification for your need to take out anger from your students...... Now just take a deep breath and think "happy, healthy, frisky bait"!  |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2015 20:09:42 GMT -5
Thus a good hooking followed by some type of small beating might be a good strategy before we drag them to their deaths. Alright now - we won't allow this to turn into justification for your need to take out anger from your students...... Now just take a deep breath and think "happy, healthy, frisky bait"! Ahhhhh....thanks. |
|
|
|
Post by mwardncsu on Jul 31, 2015 20:32:13 GMT -5
This may be even more relaxing and therapeutic.
|
|
