Is live bait skillless?

[BluegillsTightlines]

I catch 90% of my bass on live bluegill about 4 inches or so long. I've had some people tell me that since the fish is doing all the movement, that's not much skill to it. But at the same time I have seen people use livebream but not catch anything because they didn't know where to look. I pitch live bream in open pockets between weed beds and that's been highly effective for me this year. Someone said I need to change to artificial lures to be a true bass fisherman. But why should I abandon something I know they are biting, especially when I know precisely where to pitch em in at? I mean probably when the pattern changes and the fish become a little more finicky and less aggressive, I'll switch to artificial, but since live bream is bringing great results right now, I feel like it would be foolish to abandon something that's been basically a slam dunk in my lake just to satiate the opinion of someone else.

[king fisher]

If you are enjoying your time on the water, than don't change a thing.  The Bait Monkey has plenty of places he can stay to keep out of the weather, he doesn't have to go to your house if you are happy keeping fishing simple.  I tried fishing live bait for bass and wasn't even able to catch my live bait.  A good bait fisherman is just as skilled as any angler using artificial lures.  Some lure fisherman are highly skilled, and some aren't.  Same goes for bait fisherman.  A skilled fisherman is a skilled fisherman no matter what gear they use.

[WRB]

Just about every bass angler started out using a live worm under a bobber, little skill needed.

What usually happens is the entry level angler witnessed a bass being caught on a lure and change to lure fishing.

Some anglers don’t change and develop thier live bait techniques to higher skill level. Other bass anglers use both live bait and lures using higher level skill sets for both.

Tom

[Bazoo]

Sounds like you're using some serious bassin skills to go along with live bait.

 

I prefer to use artificial bait because of the challenge associated with it.

 

I think that there is less skill involved in using live bait overall, but also different skills that are used too. Catching live bait, and knowing how to keep it alive, as well as being able to hook it properly are skills that I don't have currently.

 

I can hook minnows and worms. I can dig worms... and buy minnows. I supposed I could catch minnows if I really wanted to, but I haven't done so for bait use. I caught some the other day with my kid, but that is pretty variable. I just so happened to be where they were, and made a trap out of a bottle. In wintertime, I'd have no idea where to look for them.

 

Do I think you ain't fishing right? No. If you enjoy the way you do it, go for it.

 

I enjoy fishing a plastic worm, and feeling the nibble. I do fish with real worms occasionally to break things up.

 

I'd love to go out with someone that fished live bream and learn how to do it. Don't suppose you could put together a fishing bream 101 post?

[TnRiver46]

9 hours ago, BluegillsTightlines said:

 I've had some people tell me that since the fish is doing all the movement, that's not much skill to it.
 

 Someone said I need to change to artificial lures to be a true bass fisherman. .

I think these people are full of crap and condescending and should mind their own business and I wouldn’t listen to their nonsense 

 

who goes around telling other people what their fishing experience should be? Theres one such guy on YouTube that makes 3 videos a day doing just that 😂 

[gim]

It sounds like the way the OP is fishing it there is definitely some skill invovled, especially if he is casting to specific targets.

 

Certainly the use of live bait CAN require a lot less skill though.  When I use it, its usually under a bobber.  I kick my feet up, drink beer, and wait.  There is zero skill involved.  I generally find it to be pretty boring to be honest.  Plus the simple fact of buying it and trying to keep it alive isn't worth it for me.

 

Also keep in mind that live bait usually results in higher mortality too, especially in warm water.  Which is partially why its banned in bass tournaments.  And right now, its midsummer, so its very warm water.  If the intention is to release fish fully alive, live bait is going to inhibit those chances.

 

Some states have very strict laws on the use of live bait (like here).  Using a sunfish isn't legal.

[Spankey]

Keep doing what you are doing. It works great for you. I find fishing different live baits for bass is difficult. 

[Scott F]

It doesn’t take a lot of skill to chunk and wind baits along a shoreline. To me, the skill is knowing where and when to throw whatever bait you choose. People who criticize others for throwing live bait are just showing how little they really know about fishing.

[Skunkmaster-k]

Hey man , rubbin is racin. Everbody got their own fishin stahl. 

[gim]

31 minutes ago, Scott F said:

It doesn’t take a lot of skill to chunk and wind baits along a shoreline.

 

Depends on the target.  Accuracy comes into play in many of these scenarios.  If there is a field of pads, you can't just chuck and wind into the pads.  You need openings and you need accuracy.  Same with docks.

 

I know a lot of walleye anglers and they almost exclusively use live bait.  Their casting skills are borderline pathetic.  There is very little skill just dragging around live bait either in their case.

[Fishlegs]

Is your objective to have fun catching fish, or to please this other person? If you're not doing anything illegal/wrong then I say fish the way you want. Don't worry about what others say.

 

If you found the fish, you used skill. It doesn't matter what kind of bait you use if there are no fish around to bite it. Good luck!

[Scott F]

2 minutes ago, gimruis said:

 

Depends on the target.  Accuracy comes into play in many of these scenarios.  If there is a field of pads, you can't just chuck and wind into the pads.  You need openings and you need accuracy.  Same with docks.

 

I know a lot of walleye anglers and they almost exclusively use live bait.  Their casting skills are borderline pathetic.  There is very little skill just dragging around live bait either in their case.

My point was that anyone can chunk and wind. Just doing that doesn’t take any skill but doing it correctly, in the right place and time with accuracy does. 

[Zcoker]

Nothing says you have to change your ways. Fishing with live bait can get the biggest fish. Down here in Florida at world-class Headwaters Lake, many trophy fish have been taken on live bait. Most all the fishing charters use live bait and catch hundreds of bass. Just logical for them. A sure thing, so to speak. When I was using live bait for saltwater surf fishing, there was a ton of skill involved in hunting down the right bait and then catching it, not to mention keeping it alive. Sometimes I spent half the day hunting down the bait. Sometimes I would have to get the bait the day before to use the next day, like sand fleas for Pompano. Need to rake them up, and the skill involved is in timing the waves just right and then keeping them alive in a special container. So there's plenty of skill involved in a lot of things. Casting all day can get just as boring and tiring as sitting and waiting for a bobber to disappear. So do what you like to do and to heck with what anyone says, would be my take on the matter. 

[J Francho]

Like anything else, it can be.  Or, you can apply knowledge, wisdom gained through experience to make it a skill.

[Swamp Girl]

Anglers who assert that live bait requires no skill are silly geese. I have caught thousands of smallies with live bait because on some days, live bait outfishes lures and I like a busy boat, but to catch all those bass, I had to have a nose for where bass hang and a feel for a hit and the ability to play those strong, leaping fish. A smallie can hit a leech ever so slightly. Many times, I've told my leech-fishing partner, "You have a hit." They were oblivious because the hits are wee. 

[Bluebasser86]

Is there less skill involved? IMO, yes. To say there is no skill involved is foolish though. I still fish live bait occasionally, especially when I take my boys fishing. I enjoy it, they have about as much fun playing with the bait as catching fish, so it's a win-win. Toss a live crawdad on a barren flat and see how many fish bite though. Or fish one that is improperly hooked or rigged so it dies quickly or isn't allowed to move freely and give the main benefit of a livebait, natural movement. You still have to know where the fish are and you still have to know how to present your bait of choice, or the fish are going to be few and far between. 

[BluegillsTightlines]

14 hours ago, ol'crickety said:

Anglers who assert that live bait requires no skill are silly geese. I have caught thousands of smallies with live bait because on some days, live bait outfishes lures and I like a busy boat, but to catch all those bass, I had to have a nose for where bass hang and a feel for a hit and the ability to play those strong, leaping fish. A smallie can hit a leech ever so slightly. Many times, I've told my leech-fishing partner, "You have a hit." They were oblivious because the hits are wee. 

Sounds very similar to large crappie bites on jigs. I've slow rolled little bass assassin minnows on 1/32 oz jigheads and the ONLY indication id have of a bit was a VERY subtle and easy to miss quick twitch of the line, most of those times wouldn't even feel it. 

[BluegillsTightlines]

On 7/14/2024 at 11:17 PM, Bazoo said:

Sounds like you're using some serious bassin skills to go along with live bait.

 

I prefer to use artificial bait because of the challenge associated with it.

 

I think that there is less skill involved in using live bait overall, but also different skills that are used too. Catching live bait, and knowing how to keep it alive, as well as being able to hook it properly are skills that I don't have currently.

 

I can hook minnows and worms. I can dig worms... and buy minnows. I supposed I could catch minnows if I really wanted to, but I haven't done so for bait use. I caught some the other day with my kid, but that is pretty variable. I just so happened to be where they were, and made a trap out of a bottle. In wintertime, I'd have no idea where to look for them.

 

Do I think you ain't fishing right? No. If you enjoy the way you do it, go for it.

 

I enjoy fishing a plastic worm, and feeling the nibble. I do fish with real worms occasionally to break things up.

 

I'd love to go out with someone that fished live bream and learn how to do it. Don't suppose you could put together a fishing bream 101 post?

I usually just catch em one at a time so that way I don't have to worry about them dying. Where I fish at and where my current honey hole is, there is a tree overhanging the water next to a rock and I can pitch a red wiggler in there and those bream go nuts over it. Catch one , walk about 40 feet to the weed bed where the bass have been hanging out and thread a bream on my baitcaster-- hooking it just below the back of the dorsal fin has been my go to. And then I'll either pitch it along the edge of the weeds, or into a pocket if the surrounding grass isn't just absurdly dense, and I also like to target breaks in the weed beds as well. I also listen and watch for splashes and ambushes. The second bass I caught Sunday was giving some small bluegill some absolute heck, could hear it splashing and popping the top of the water, saw the wake, went over there and pitched a fresh caught bluegill and it hit it pretty much immediately. I also like to look if possible to see if the bass has got it sufficiently in its mouth before setting the hook. If I can't see it, I'll give it some slack to run and when I see that line to, I'll set the hook then too.

 

What got me into using live bream was just a few years ago I was fishing nightcrawler for eating size bluegill, and I caught a medium size 6 incher reeled it in and about 2 feet before I got it to the dock, a bass came out of Hades and absolutely annhilated it and stole it from my hook. At that point I had never had such a thing happen. And after reading the state rules and regulations and confirming live bream is legal to use for bait, I started bringing a bluegill set up with me in case I couldn't get anything to offer at an artificial. Caught bluegill, put it on my baitcaster, and that's really when I seen my bass catches go up by A LOT.  I haven't updated it yet, but my PB is a 7lber off of a live bluegill.

1 hour ago, Bluebasser86 said:

Is there less skill involved? IMO, yes. To say there is no skill involved is foolish though. I still fish live bait occasionally, especially when I take my boys fishing. I enjoy it, they have about as much fun playing with the bait as catching fish, so it's a win-win. Toss a live crawdad on a barren flat and see how many fish bite though. Or fish one that is improperly hooked or rigged so it dies quickly or isn't allowed to move freely and give the main benefit of a livebait, natural movement. You still have to know where the fish are and you still have to know how to present your bait of choice, or the fish are going to be few and far between. 

Definitely agree there. If ya can't find the fish, or know where to look, it doesn't matter what ya use if you ain't where the bass are. Less skill cuz the bream is doing the movement. But knowing the size and where to hook it is important. Gotta know the best place to allow it the kind of motion to attract bass. Which for me has been just under the the back of the dorsal fin. And if I see a bass that is looking interested but undecided, I'll downsize and catch a smaller bream, and that will often result in a committed strike instead of a uncertain follow because the bass isn't sure if it can swallow the bait or not.

[thediscochef]

On 7/14/2024 at 9:58 PM, BluegillsTightlines said:

I catch 90% of my bass on live bluegill about 4 inches or so long. I've had some people tell me that since the fish is doing all the movement, that's not much skill to it. But at the same time I have seen people use livebream but not catch anything because they didn't know where to look. I pitch live bream in open pockets between weed beds and that's been highly effective for me this year. Someone said I need to change to artificial lures to be a true bass fisherman. But why should I abandon something I know they are biting, especially when I know precisely where to pitch em in at? I mean probably when the pattern changes and the fish become a little more finicky and less aggressive, I'll switch to artificial, but since live bream is bringing great results right now, I feel like it would be foolish to abandon something that's been basically a slam dunk in my lake just to satiate the opinion of someone else.

I used to think it was less skill but it's really just different skill. Some of the largest bass in the world have come from live bait fishing. There are no guarantees, even with live bait. Knowing where to catch the bait, hook the bait, where to throw it, how to rig it, making sure it doesn't die first, and then still fighting the fish and knowing how to set the hook to avoid a gullet. Those are all skills. Choosing a bait is a skill. I would probably do it more if I didn't drive a sedan lol lures except powerbait smell "better"

[bowhunter63]

Read the old book Lunkers love Nightcrawlers. It was a whole system back in the day . Still use it today . Check it out ,A lot of fun 

[TOXIC]

There’s a reason 99% of the guides on Headwaters use live bait.  Take a look at a lot of their clients, they are not seasoned fisherpeople and yet they are landing trophy fish.  The skill is throwing the live bait where the fish are, not necessarily in the anglers skill.  I say that not as a jab to live bait fishermen but just to point out a fact.  I used live minnows in my guide service for crappie because most of my clients didn’t know which end of the rod to hold.  When I personally fish for crappie, it’s all artificial.  There is a definite difference. 

[Susky River Rat]

This is a yes/ no answer. Do I think there is skill to live bait fishing? Yes, I know some catfish guys who kill it and some who don’t. Do I think it everyone who does it is skilled? 100% not.

 

you can also argue this with lures.

 

it comes down to know where, when, and why. 

[Bazoo]

The converse side... is my boy who is 4 will catch bass on a texas rigged worm... with no skill. He throws it out hard as he can, rips it back a few times and reels like crazy. He will get one occasionally.

 

But he often misses fish when fishing with worms, they pick the hook and spit it back out. 

 

Now... imagine how much skill I have to have in order to catch fish with a partner like that! LOL!

[Tennessee Boy]

Of course it takes skill.  My question is who cares?  If you enjoy fishing with live bait then do it.   If you feel artificial bait requires more skill and you enjoy a challenge then use lures.   If that not enough of a challenge then wear a blindfold while you fish.  Personally, I always use lures and don’t really know how to use live bait.  I’m confident I could learn if I wanted to.

[Swamp Girl]

Skill is using both live bait and artificial lures. Let me explain: I used to fish for white bass on the Mississippi. I'd drift with two rods and minnows. Both rods would go down, I'd set the hooks, and then I'd immediately cast a jig and set that hook. Where's the skill? Well, it isn't easy to land three bass on three rods and especially when they're zig-zagging white bass.