Live Bait Fishing:
Dispelling the Myths
by "Fish Chris"

  myth #1  Live bait fishing is a giveaway
       Right from the start I must say, If I did not think that live bait offered me distinct advantages, in many situations, I would not use it. But big fish, and lots of fish, on every trip, under any circumstances ? Oh how I wish ! I can not tell you how many times, probably thousands though, that I have had big bass cruise right up to my crawdad or night crawler, only to inspect it, and then turn there nose up, and swim away. Often this happens many times on a single trip. Talk about frustrating ! Maybe there were other red flags involved. Maybe the fish was thrown off by my presence. Maybe it saw the line or the hook. Maybe that fish was as full as it could be, and quite simply was not in the feeding mode. In any case, the fact remains, if that fish does not want to eat, you are not going to "force" it to eat, regardless of the live bait, or artificial lure tied to the end of your line.

  myth #2  Live bait will always out fish artificials
  In the sport of angling there are few, if any absolutes. Even as great as I believe live bait can be, and as much as I enjoy fishing with it, I have come to realize that there are always  exceptions. (see my article:  When Are Artificial Lures a Better Choice )
  Several cases in point come to mind. On one night time trip with my good buddy and night fishing pro, Dee Cowgill, about two years ago, I was very determined to catch a fish on a live dad. Meanwhile, Dee gave me the worst whipping I had ever had while he was fishing plastics ! The final count: Me, 1 bass of about 3 lbs....... Dee, 14 bass, with the biggest 5 going 39 lbs 10 ounces ! Why didn't I switch to plastics you will certainly ask ? Mostly because of my own stubbornness. I eventually did make the switch, but by that point the bite was pretty much over. I chalk that trip up as a tough lesson well learned.
  Then on at least a couple of other occasions, during day trips, I had hammered an area hard for at least a few hours straight, putting few or no bass in the boat, only to have Dee pull up to the same spot in his boat, and proceed to stick a fish on the first or second cast with a soft plastic bait ! Keep in mind that Dee is awesome with soft plastics, and simply switching to soft plastics myself, would not guarantee me the same results. Still, there must be something to all of this.
  Myth #3  Only novices or "non-pro" anglers use live bait
  On the contrary, many, if not most of the big names in trophy bass hunting, have used live bait as a large part of there angling practices. One of my long time fishing idols, Bob Crupi, predominately uses live bait, namely crawdads, and is the only man alive to have caught two Largemouths over 20 lbs ! Another huge name in trophy bass fishing is Bill Murphy. Although Murphy uses all types of artificial lures, as well as live baits, he certainly advocates the use of live crawdads as a very strong tool. Of course everyone knows about Doug Hannon, "The Big Bass Professor". He has also used all types of artificial lures, but has caught many of his biggest bass on live shiners. Then there is Mike Long, the big bass king from So cal. Although Mike caught the largest bass in the last 10 years, a 20 lb 12 oz behemoth on an artificial lure, he has fished, and continues to fish with live bait for certain situations. By the way, all four of these bass fishing greats are strong advocates of the "Catch and Release of Trophy Bass".
  Many people simply overlook the fact that with live bait fishing, just as with any other technique, there is a lot to learn. The anglers who know this, and who put in the time and effort required, will always be the ones who excel.

  Myth #4  Live bait fishing kills more fish, and therefor is not a good choice for the "catch and release" angler
  This is quite simply not true. A very large percentage (somewhere near 95%) of the fish that I hook with a live dad, are perfectly hooked in the top lip, or towards the front of the roof of the mouth.
  I find that more fish will be deeply hooked with shiners and crawlers, or with tiny dads and more aggressive bass. Education is the key here. For starters, it helps to set the hook quicker if you are having a problem with deeply hooked fish. Maybe the most important thing to keep in mind is that if you cannot quickly, and easily remove a hook, without causing further damage to the fish, it should be quickly released, as digging around in the fishes throat, and keeping it out of the water while doing so, will almost certainly result in the death of that fish. One nice thing to remember is that a very large percentage of the fish released with a hook still in them, will be able to expel that hook later, as long as it has not damaged any vital organs. Contrary to popular belief, the hook will not usually rust or corrode out, but rather, the tissue surrounding the point of penetration will soften, allowing the hook to simply fall out. Keep in mind, the hooks used for live bait fishing are much smaller, and of much lighter wire (usually anywhere from a size 6 to a size 1) than those used for soft plastic artificial lures. The fact that I have caught numerous bass which were successfully dealing with huge worm hooks of 5/0 or more, or in the process of expelling one of these giant hooks from the rectum, leaves me with much confidence, that if I should happen to leave one of my tiny hooks in a fish, it will probably not be much of a problem.
  You must remember that bass have evolved to be able to handle having the spines of a fish, or claws of a crawdad, broke off in the mouth or throat.  Generally speaking, this, or a hook, is not usually fatal to the bass.

  So where do these myths originate ?
  I think an angler must realize that the sales of artificial lures are a multi-million dollar business ! Of course these manufactures want you to believe all of the myths previously  mentioned here. These companies also spend millions of dollars promoting the use of there lures, and also in the sponsoring of tournaments, which of course, do not allow live bait. There lively hood depends on "your" money !
  An interesting divide among anglers
  I have found that there are two major groups, and one very small one, concerning the thoughts and attitudes towards live bait:
  The first group are the victims of the "corporate brainwashing" that I mentioned above. These anglers have little, if any, firsthand knowledge or experience with the use of live bait, but rather, choose to base there thoughts and decisions on hearsay and propaganda.
  The second fairly large group are the anglers who did believe, at one time, that live bait was in fact "a giveaway" ! So they went into it with unreal expectations. These guys hit any ol' water, at any ol' time, with any ol' live bait, just knowing that they couldn't possibly miss ! But nearly all of these guys end up walking away sadly disillusioned.
  So what about that final, tiny group ? ...........

  The bottom line
  There is a very small group of anglers who realize that live bait is just another tool, albeit, a strong one at the right time and place. These guys put in the time and effort required to learn how to use live bait to the fullest extent. And finally, this group is not concerned with "looking cool" or "hanging with the in-crowd", but rather there concern lies, in catching the biggest fish, and the most big fish that they possibly can !
  Until you give live bait a solid shot, you won't know what your missing ! Always keeping an open mind is the key.
Catch and Release a Trophy Bass !
"Fish Chris"