Lures/ bait for trout

[Gordon Gray]

I typically use a spin rod with powerbait or rooster tails and have had pretty good luck with the brookies here in the high elevation lakes of Colorado. Other than flys and a fly rod, what else has worked well for you? I just wanna add some additonal tools to my arsenal.

Thanks!

(here is my daughter with her first fish a couple years ago)

[David Thomas]

Great photo. Great technique (put the fish IN FRONT of the person, include some colors).

For Rainbows in Sierra Lakes, the most successful fisherman I knew would start his day filling his mosquito head net with grasshoppers / crickets. On days that others would get one or two bites, he'd catch&release 60 fish. Part of that was lively bait, but he could also "think like a fish" regarding cover, food, sunlight, etc. He'd seek out the inlet and outlet of lakes where fish hang out and wait for food to wash by. And then target the covered / shaded areas (near logs, boulders) within reach of those opportunistic feeding areas.

He also was an agile little guy, and would rock-hop around a large lake if one idea didn't work to try another theory / spot.

He and a superb fisherman I knew in Puget Sound both kept a list (albeit a mental list) of what worked when and where. And what didn't work. The plural of "datum" is "experience" and "skill".

[Marc Shea]

Trailblazers in Washington have a good thread on high lakes lures.

http://watrailblazers.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=222&hilit=best+hi+lake+lures

One thing I like to do is bring a casting bubble and flies so that I can fly fish with my spin rod. It gives you more options and is easier to cast especially if the lake is surrounded by a lot of brush.

[James Marco]

"One thing I like to do is bring a casting bubble and flies so that I can fly fish with my spin rod. It gives you more options and is easier to cast especially if the lake is surrounded by a lot of brush."

Thats what I use, too. There are two ways to fish this with drys. First is on a drop leader above the bubble. This lets you apply a bit of tension and dance a fly on the water. Brown Caddis is prettiy good, elk hair too. The other is the more traditional dead drift. However, you cannot get two small because of the drag of the bubble. Usually size 14 is about it. Never really tried a smaller bubble, just switched to a fly line (4wt) for smaller (16-22)

I have a couple spinners I use and a set of bait hooks for hoppers, red worms, beetles, etc. Mostly, they fit in a superglue container. A piece of sinker a longer 4-5' leader makes a fair set up for muddlers.

[Mark Ries]

Years back when I never had much luck fishing I met an old man in the snowy range who gave me a "Super Duper" the next lake I hit was my best fishing and its gotten even better I highly recommend them.

[Darren Graff]

My go to lure for trout is a Panther Martin. 1/4 oz. is good for lakes because you can make long casts. If they won't hit the 1/4 oz. Try the 1/8 oz. My second choice would have to be a Kastmaster lure. Worms are my best producer by far. Extra large night crawlers. Rigged on a egg sinker & snap n swivel. With a hand tied leader 12" to 18" long. I use fluorocarbon line and eagle claw hooks. Size 6,8 and 10 for mountain lakes. I always use a worm blower when fishing on the bottom. Berkley fish attractant on a fresh worm that you've just inflated can't hurt either. Worm and a bobber is hard to beat it's just to much fun. My bobber of choice is a crappie bobber. They are balsa wood. About 6" long. There is a spring at one end to attach to the line. The other end has bright paint. I use the green, orange or pink. The old red and white bobbers work great too. That is a pretty nice first brookie your daughter is showing off. Happy fishing, God Bless

One more trick is to put a salmon egg on the tip of your hook with the worm.

[brian H]

"For Rainbows in Sierra Lakes, the most successful fisherman I knew would start his day filling his mosquito head net with grasshoppers / crickets. On days that others would get one or two bites, he'd catch n release 60 fish"

Yea and the next day 45 of them would be belly-up!

This has been a gripe of mine for 30 years. If you are trout fishing, esp wild trout fishing, and you intend to release most or all of your catch, DO NOT USE BAIT.
Most bait-caught fish have swallowed the bait, and removing the hook tears them up inside, very often fatally.

Most trout hooked on flies and lures, esp w/ single hooks, are hooked on the lip, & sometimes in the mouth, causing FAR less damage.

If your intent is catch n release, you ought to respect the object of your desire, and do as little harm as possible. This means use single hooks, preferably barbless. And this pretty much rules out bait fishing. Also, spend a little time learning how to resuscitate a tired fish, and NEVER touch a wild trout with dry hands. Always wet your hands first as skin oils are detrimental to their protective slimy coating.

(I'm sure you know this David, as an Alaskan angler, but this is a topic that has really frosted my chaps for a long time).

[Anonymous]

"Yea and the next day 45 of them would be belly-up!

This has been a gripe of mine for 30 years. If you are trout fishing, esp wild trout fishing, and you intend to release most or all of your catch, DO NOT USE BAIT.
Most bait-caught fish have swallowed the bait, and removing the hook tears them up inside, very often fatally."

A big +1

It's why they forbid bait on C&R only streams.

The only time bait makes sense is when you're fishing for food.

[Dave T]

"The only time bait makes sense is when you're fishing for food."

How about the only time fishing makes sense (i.e. is perhaps justifiable) is when you are fishing for food?

Hooking an animal in the mouth/throat/face, fighting it for a while, and letting it go, injured to some degree, perhaps fatally, solely to entertain yourself?

[Glenn S]

CnR isn't just an option, it's also a law. The DNR only allow fish from various species in certain size slots to be kept from certain lakes. Many times each lake will have its own independent size slot. If it's not the right size, you have to let it go back.

[Pete Staehling]

I agree that returning fish you don't want to keep in good condition is a good thing. That said I'll skip the catch and release waters as well.

BTW: The emphasis on lakes kind of baffles me. I tend to skip the lakes and fish the creeks.

[Anonymous]

"How about the only time fishing makes sense (i.e. is perhaps justifiable) is when you are fishing for food?"

Thanks for taking it to its logical conclusion. I'm getting sort of gun shy lately in the current atmosphere of "enhanced" moderation.

[Darren Graff]

You can't buy a Jackson Meadows rainbow trout at the grocery store. There is nothing like seeing the look on your kids face when they hook into a big one.
It's priceless!cherish these momentsthat's my daughter wearing my shirt. She helped clean and eat this one. GOD BLESS

[TahoeJeff]

God never did make a more calm, quiet, innocent recreation than angling.

Izaak Walton

[brian H]

Is angling more innocent than say…gardening?
LOL.

[David Thomas]

>"(I'm sure you know this David, as an Alaskan angler, but this is a topic that has really frosted my chaps for a long time)."

I wasn't saying I approved, and the guy I saw doing that did it over a generation ago. And, seeing how much of other people's litter he hauled out and his LNT ethics, I pretty sure he was as gentle as he could be and revived them in the current ASAP.

But, yes, my understanding is that fish tend to swallow bait deeper than lures and so CnR, if done, should be done without bait.

Alaskans have a term for CnR: "Playing with your food."

And your mother always told you not to do that.

I've never thrown bait (or any hook) in the water if I wasn't planning to eat what I caught.

Now that I've figured out how to prepare skate in a reasonably tasty way, my only remaining dilemmas are 1) Dogfish (sand sharks) and 2) Irish Lords.

If everyone practiced: "Only hook/shoot what you will plan to eat.", many thousands of trout, crows, groundhogs, pink salmon and humans would still be alive today.

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