Tips for Catching Live Bait

Here are three of my methods for catching sardines, shrimp, herring, goggle eye, etc. The most difficult way is to use a cast net.

This requires at least two people, one to manage the boat and one to cast the net. The cast net should be sized according to the size of the fish. This method is useful in shallow water or when the fish are near the surface.

Have you ever heard of a Sabiki rig? This is approximately four feet of leader with six small feathered flys and a small sinker attached to the end. Hopefully you will cast into a small school of fish and they will bite the flys.

Sabiki rigs can be purchased at Basspro.com and other saltwater tackle shops.

The third method is by using a very small hook with a piece of shrimp. This could be the least effective if you need lots of bait since you will only get one at a time.

Once you have captured the live bait it must be stored in an aerated live well. It is recommended about five bait for every gallon of water.

Check out the links below to learn more about fishing with live bait.

Trolling with Ballyhoo Fishing with Mullet Best Baits for catching fish

Deep Sea Jigging Fishing with Squid

Here is Bruce with a sabiki rig catching pichard. Remember to match the size rig to the size bait you are catching. We use #4 or #6 size rig. Depending on the amount of current you will need to add appropriate weight to the bottom of the rig. There are different techniques to working this rig depending on what type of bait and how deep in the water column they are. Some baits will hit the bait on the way down and some will hit when the weight hits the bottom. The tactic I use to attract the bait to the rig is to bounce the rig through the water column up and down until you feel one or multiple strikes then reel up. Store the bait in the live well. As I was trolling down through the Boca Inlet I noticed snook preying on pilchard.