Learning about fish in general is crucial to making you a better angler.

Most fish are cold-bloded vertibrates (meaning their temperature is regulated by their environment and they have a backbone.) They lives in either fresh or saltwater (sometimes both.)

Fish have gills during every part of their life cycle. They can breathe by pulling oxygen out of the water when the water flows through their gills as they swim.

If a fish has has any limbs (because believe it or not some don’t) they are shaped like fins. The body of a fish is, for the most part, covered with scales. Fish reproduce in different ways, but most female fish lay hundreds of small egss that are then fertilized by the male. The body of a fish is covered in a protective slime that serves to help it move more easly through water and protects it from parasites and disease.

General Terms

Fishing with lures has many advantages:

• Lures are less messy than bait.
• Lures gut hook fewer fish (gut hooking is when the fish takes the hook deeply, or even completely swallows the hook).
• Lures allow you to cover more water, even from shore or a pier.
• You can target the species you are after more efficiently with lures.
• Lures are easy to change out.

As far as disadvantages go, they are mostly related to cost:

• Lures can be expensive compared to bait.
• Lures can be snagged on underwater obstacles or in trees, and the price of them makes it especially painful to lose.

There are 7 main types of lures: jigs, spinners, spoons, soft plastic baits, plugs, spinerbaits, and flies. When you finish reading this, you will be able to recognize each of these lures on sight and have an idea of how to fish them (in fishing lingo this is called “Presentation.”)

Jigs









Of all lures, I would say that jigs are the most versatile. A jig can catch about every game fish there is, and are inexpensive to boot. They have a weighted lead head and come in every size and color and can be “dressed” (think of it like a tail or skirt) in feathers, hair, a soft plastic grub, or with the bait of your choice.

Presentation

Jig fishing takes a lot of concentration, unlike spinners, all the “action” (how a lure moves in the water) comes from you. If you don’t do anything the jig just sinks. The classic way to fish a jig is to cast it out, wait until it hits the bottom (you will know it has hit bottom when your line goes slack), then retrieve it in a series of hops. You make it hop by lifting the rod tip, lowering it, and retrieving your line. Try different speeds, big lifts, little hops, twitching until you find what works. Pay attention, though. Detecting the strike is the hardest thing about jigging.

Spinners









Spinners are a great beginner lure because they are so easy to use. They are essentially a metal shaft with spinning blade. The hook can be bare or dressed. Dragging a spinner through water causes the blade to spin. The spinning motion of the blade creates sound and vibration that can be picked up by fish through their lateral line (you’ll learn more about this in the fish section.) This makes spinners an excellent choice for stained or murky water.

Presentation

Simple as can be. Cast and retrieve, that’s it. As long as the blade is spinning, its working. You can try speeding up or slowing down your retrieve for variety.

Spoons










Spoons are curved metal lures. The first spoons were just that, spoons with the handle broken off. Today, spoons can be had (like all other lures) in any color and size. There is a spoon for every fishing situation. The shape of this lure gives it its distinctive action. Spoons move through water with a side-to-side wobble that simulates an injured baitfish, and game fish just love injured baitfish.

Presentation

Some spoons are made to be cast, others to be trolled, and some even to be jigged. As a beginner you will most likely be using the most common type; the casting spoon. Casting spoons are easy to use. Like spinners, just cast and retrieve. You can vary your speed as long as it’s wobbling. If the spoon begins to spin, slow down your retrieve. Add a split ring to the eye of the lure for better action.

Soft Plastic Baits









Soft plastic baits encompass a variety of different lures, mostly used for bass fishing. The classic soft plastic bait is the worm. These type of baits are created by pouring liquid plastic into a mould and adding dyes, metallic flakes, or even scent. They can resemble the natural forage of fish, like worms, crawfish, lizards or frogs, but some plastic baits don’t resemble anything you might find in or out of the water; these are referred to as creature baits or “critters.” The soft plastic bodies of these lures, encourage fish to hold on to them a little longer before they spit them out, giving the angler a better chance to set the hook.

Presentation

Presentation for soft plastic baits depends on the type of bait. For the classic worm, the most popular technique is the Texas Rig. To rig your worm this way, you use a bullet weight (read the section on sinkers in theterminal tackle post if you don’t know what a bullet weight is). Thread the bullet weight on the the line above your hook, and then insert the hook through the top of the worm’s head, then bury the barb into the body of the worm to make it “weedless” (meaning it will not get hung up on underwater foliage.) Now cast it into a likely fish holding area and let it fall to the bottom. Twitch your rod tip a few times. If you still don’t have a bite, hop it back to you in short twitchy hops.

Plugs










Plugs are constructed from hollow plastic or wood to resemble baitfish, frogs or other prey. They usually sport two or three treble hooks. These hard bodied lures can be fished at almost any depth, as some are made to float or dive or both. Depending on the design, a plug will wobble, rattle or gurgle. They come in all sizes, and most of them have some sort of plastic lip that allows them to dive when you pull them through the water. Different kind of plugs include: crankbaits, jerkbaits, surface plugs, floating/diving plugs, and poppers,

Presentation

One of the most effective (and one of the first plugs you should add to your tackle box) is the long, narrow minnow imitation in three to four inch length, the original is made by Rapala. It floats when its not moving and dives shallowly when it’s retrieved. Add a split ring to the eye if it doesn’t have one. Cast it out and wait until the rings on the surface of the water dissipate, then retrieve it slowly or fast, stopping suddenly and maybe throwing in an occasional twitch.

Spinnerbaits/Buzzbaits










Spinnerbaits and buzzbaits are awkward looking looking lures, consisting of a safety-pin like wire attached to a lead head body. The body usually is dressed with a rubber skirt and the arm with one or two metallic blades like those seen on spinners.

Presentation

The most common way to fish a spinnerbait is what is called “Chuck-N-Wind,” simply cast it out and retrieve it at a moderate speed, keeping the lure at a depth between the surface and five feet. It is a popular technique because it is effective.

Flies












Flies are traditionally used with fly fishing equipment, but with the addition of a clear bubble float, spinning gear will cast flies too. Flies are very light lures that imitate insects in various stages of their life cycle, or other natural prey such as baitfish, leeches, hoppers or even mice and frogs. They are usually constructed of fur and and feathers, though some patterns make use of new materials like foam and rubber.

Presentation

Dry flies are intended to float on the surface of the water, to this end they are dressed with some kind of floatant to aid in their buoyancy. Wet flies, like nymphs and streamers are designed to be fished below the surface of the water. Fly fishing is a difficult but rewarding area of the fishing universe.

Now that you know the basic lures and how they are used, you should have an easier time starting your own collection. Buy only a few at a time, and take the time to learn to fish them. If you know anyone that fishes the same water you do, ask them what kind of lures they like to use and what they recommend.

Besides live bait, there are various prepared baits you can use. Some of them are commercial baits and others you can prepare yourself with some experimentation. Let’s go over some of these baits and how you can use them.

Dough Bait

One of the most famous commercially available dough bait you will run into is power bait (sometimes referred to as PB). Used to catch trout, power bait is a scented, floating putty that comes in small glass jars. It is available in almost every color imaginable, and if you use this kind of bait it’s a good idea to have at least a few jars of different colors, because fish can be selective about what color they will go for, depending on the time of day, water clarity, and mood. The chartreuse (looks like day glow green) and rainbow colors are good ones to start with.

How to Put Dough Bait on a Hook

Traditionally, you would use a small treble hook with something like power bait. But, if you want to be able to release the fish if its too small or for whatever reason, then it would be a better idea to use a single hook instead. All you do is mold the bait around the hook. To keep the bait on the hook longer you can wrap some very thin wire around the hook shank before you apply the putty, or purchase special dough bait hooks that come that way.

You can purchase real, preserved salmon eggs or you can buy some salmon egg imitations like Power Eggs. Both real and imitation salmon eggs come in different colors and flavors. Take your pick.

How to Hook Salmon Eggs

If you are using a single salmon egg, use a very small wire hook. Thread the egg onto the hook a little off center, the turn the egg and bury the barb back into the egg.

Otherwise you can simple put one egg on each point of a treble hook, like this:

Pork Rinds

Pork rinds are made from the skin of a hog, and come preserved in small glass jars. They are dyed in almost every color, and cut into various shapes. While they can be used by themselves, people often use them as “trailers”, by attaching them to the hook of whatever lure, spinner or jig they are using.

How to Hook a Pork Rind

Pork Rind is very tough, and pushing a hook through it is difficult. Most manufacturers cut a small slit in the strip to make it easy for you to attach your hook. Look for the slit on the colored side of the bait. You may have to dry it a little to see it. If your pork rind doesn’t come with a slit, you might want to cut one yourself.

This should get you started with prepared baits. You can also try using what people call “picnic baits”, things like corn, pieces of bread or hotdogs. Experiment and have fun!