Almost any fisherman you talk to has a confidence bait. Give them two hours to catch a fish on a lake they have never fished and usually, the first thing they throw will be the confidence bait. I have one. It’s a four inch soft plastic from Hag’s Tornado Baits, the F4. People who have fished with me know I throw this bait a lot. I really like two colors but the bait is the same (Watermelon/Chartreuse and Purple Haze for those wanting to know). I fish it on a split shot rig and have caught fish just about everywhere doing so. When conditions are tough I’ll throw it and of course even when they aren’t I’ll throw it.
This year and last I have branched out some and started fishing baits and styles I had been hesitant to try in the past. All three of them have produced fish for me and I find myself using them more and more often. I am now of the opinion that everyone should give these a go if they haven’t. With a little patience and time on the water, these three techniques will put fish in your kayak.
#1 Jigs
Lots of people fish jigs already but I am always surprised by how many don’t. It takes some research, some patience and time on the water but jigs can produce big fish year round. There are several different types of jigs designed for different types of structure. For reference you can check out this article: Jig Styles
Find a good trailer that will help slow the descent in the water or cause a disruptance/gain attention. I use the Hag’s Jr Undertaker with great success. It stands on end when submerged to imitate an attack stance of a crayfish. Others use similar craw imitations. If you are going to be swimming it, more like a spinnerbait, add a paddle tailed trailer.
What I have learned is to find an area that has good structure, right temp and depth for that time of year and bang your jig on every single stick, rock and piling in the area. Usually the fish will hit it on the fall or the first twitch. Don’t lose faith. Keep practicing. You will catch fish.
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| Warbaits Slayer Swim Jig |
#2 Drop Shot
Not too far removed from split shot rigs, this was an easy one for me to pick up. It is more finesse than a lot of people fish and if you are a cast and burn type of fisherman, this will take some getting used to. Put the weight below the hook, tie a special knot, add a small plastic and cast. Keep your line tight and either dead stick or lightly twitch. That’s it. We could talk about it for days but in all actuality, look at the diagram below and give it a shot. Chances are you’ve got most of the stuff already.
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| Courtesy of netknots.com |
#3 Swimbaits
When I say swimbaits, I am NOT referring to those little four inch, paddle tailed, hollow bodied soft plastics. While technically those are swimbaits, it’s not what I am referring too. The swimbaits I am talking about are big, heavy and catch monsters. Well, at least they don’t catch dinks as often (though they still can). It takes a special discipline to throw swimbaits. They range from $10-$400 in price, require special rods and reels to handle them and you could go weeks without a single bite. Some popular baits are the Huddleston Trout, 3:16 Wake Jr, MS Slammer, 21st Century Triple Trout, Spro BBZ, and Mike Bucca’s Bull Shad. Of course there are others but most of these are very well known. Forums of people talking about nothing but swimbaits are becoming more and more abundant. The bait looks so big in your hand you wonder how some bass would ever eat it. You’d be surprised at what a bass will try to inhale. In the video below you’ll see one of my first swimbait fish. I was throwing a white 7″ MS Slammer. The bass crushed it after the first big twitch. It was only 13″ long. I had reservations about throwing big baits until this happened. I found this creek on Lake Belton that wound way back and the only access was by foot. I decided to try it and bam! Fish on. Here is the video:
Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone a little bit. Try new things. Keep your confidence baits at home. One day one of these three may become your confidence bait!
Have another technique you think others should try? Tell them! Spread the love!