Bass bait
- Thread starter Rtc/tsn
- Start date
Creek chub. Aka catfish candy. Flatheads love those. Other fish eat them too.
Best saugeye bait for this time of year are shallow minnow crankbaits and swimbaits. Fish the fastest water you can find at night. Even if it's only inches deep. You'll likely find them in and around riffles this time of year. It's not uncommon to find saugeye in water so shallow their backs are out of the water. During the day, target deeper eddies with a good current break or structure. Largemouth are hitting topwater and soft plastics right now. Smallmouth are mostly on the beds currently, but after they come off of those, anything crawfish looking is killer ie pumpkin tubes. Minnow style twister tails and swimbaits are also good.
Best saugeye bait for this time of year are shallow minnow crankbaits and swimbaits. Fish the fastest water you can find at night. Even if it's only inches deep. You'll likely find them in and around riffles this time of year. It's not uncommon to find saugeye in water so shallow their backs are out of the water. During the day, target deeper eddies with a good current break or structure. Largemouth are hitting topwater and soft plastics right now. Smallmouth are mostly on the beds currently, but after they come off of those, anything crawfish looking is killer ie pumpkin tubes. Minnow style twister tails and swimbaits are also good.
Never caught flathead. Do they taste any different than channel or blue cats. How do I rig a chub for flatheads. Also don’t know if you’ve been before but east fork state park has a lake with saugeye. William H. Harsha lake or something like that. If you’ve ever fished there do you know any good saugeye spots
I'm almost exclusively a river/creek guy. I fish ponds occasionally and lakes very rarely. I've been to EF before, but never fished it. Your best bets for saugeye will be any of the Ohio River tributaries or spillways below any lake that has them. If you're willing to drive, Indian, Buckeye, and Alum lakes are some of the best in the state. All are around the Columbus area.
As for flatheads, I don't eat any fish for the most part so can't comment on that. Please consider releasing any under 24 inches though because our local waters are getting gutted by paylake people. It's becoming increasingly harder to catch one over even 30 inches. I typically use artificial lures for them too, however, I will occasionally use live bluegill or chubs. The best luck for me has been to hook it through roof of the mouth and out the nostril. The hook is attached to a roughly 18 inch leader with a barrel swivel. On the other end I'll thread the line through a flat, slip sinker. Usually 3-6 ounces depending on current. Just toss this out in the current or eddy and wait.
As for flatheads, I don't eat any fish for the most part so can't comment on that. Please consider releasing any under 24 inches though because our local waters are getting gutted by paylake people. It's becoming increasingly harder to catch one over even 30 inches. I typically use artificial lures for them too, however, I will occasionally use live bluegill or chubs. The best luck for me has been to hook it through roof of the mouth and out the nostril. The hook is attached to a roughly 18 inch leader with a barrel swivel. On the other end I'll thread the line through a flat, slip sinker. Usually 3-6 ounces depending on current. Just toss this out in the current or eddy and wait.
Speaking of creek fishing. I’m at a creek a few minutes from my house fishing for chub to use as bait in a couple days. Any creeks you recommend for smallmouth or warmmouth and pumpkin seed also this creek has thousands of really big crawfish. Do you know how to cook them I’ve been wanting to try them for a while
