07-17-2019, 11:49 AM
[#0000FF]I'm not a "mussel-head". Don't use them. But I know a few folks that do and have observed others fishing with them. And I do fish minnows for wipers so I suspect some of the same principles apply.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]First, you don't necessarily have to have the bait up off the bottom. When wipers are scrounging for food they will pick up food items from the bottom...and they have good olfactory (smell) senses to help them find odoriferous offerings. Back in Louisiana I was grossed out when introduced to fishing the local striped bass (half parents of wipers) with "ripe" chicken innards. I figured that was catfish bait but the stripers slurped it up just fine.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]If you want to keep the bait a bit off the bottom either the Santee rig (float between sinker and bait) or a baited floating jig head will work. And both methods also add some color attraction.
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[#0000FF]Another option is to rig "dropshot" style...with a short dropper leader tied in a couple of feet up from a sinker heavy enough to hold bottom...and then prop your rod in a holder that will keep it vertical and hold the bait up above the bottom.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Even better, in many cases, is to rig with a slip bobber...so that you don't have to cast a rig with a long line between the bobber and the bait. (See the attached brief writeup) A lot of bobber fishing anglers have discovered the advantages of using these rigs. If you are fishing baits below the slip bobber, you will have to add a split shot or two to the lower end...above the bait...to get the bait to sink and to hold if the wind is moving the bobber around.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]Fishing the mussels below a bobber can also help you present your bait over a wider area...by either moving the bobber yourself periodically...or by allowing breezes to not only move the bait but to add a little wiggle as the bobber rides the ripples.[/#0000FF]
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[#0000FF]As always, finding feeding fish is more important than how you fish the bait. Wipers move around a lot and their habits are different during different seasons. For the next few months they will be patterning on shad and are not as likely to be feeding on or near the bottom. However, early in the year, when there are no edible sized shad, wipers are reduced to foraging for whatever edibles they can find. That is when the mussels usually produce best.
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[#0000FF]First, you don't necessarily have to have the bait up off the bottom. When wipers are scrounging for food they will pick up food items from the bottom...and they have good olfactory (smell) senses to help them find odoriferous offerings. Back in Louisiana I was grossed out when introduced to fishing the local striped bass (half parents of wipers) with "ripe" chicken innards. I figured that was catfish bait but the stripers slurped it up just fine.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]If you want to keep the bait a bit off the bottom either the Santee rig (float between sinker and bait) or a baited floating jig head will work. And both methods also add some color attraction.
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]Another option is to rig "dropshot" style...with a short dropper leader tied in a couple of feet up from a sinker heavy enough to hold bottom...and then prop your rod in a holder that will keep it vertical and hold the bait up above the bottom.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]Even better, in many cases, is to rig with a slip bobber...so that you don't have to cast a rig with a long line between the bobber and the bait. (See the attached brief writeup) A lot of bobber fishing anglers have discovered the advantages of using these rigs. If you are fishing baits below the slip bobber, you will have to add a split shot or two to the lower end...above the bait...to get the bait to sink and to hold if the wind is moving the bobber around.[/#0000FF]
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[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]Fishing the mussels below a bobber can also help you present your bait over a wider area...by either moving the bobber yourself periodically...or by allowing breezes to not only move the bait but to add a little wiggle as the bobber rides the ripples.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]As always, finding feeding fish is more important than how you fish the bait. Wipers move around a lot and their habits are different during different seasons. For the next few months they will be patterning on shad and are not as likely to be feeding on or near the bottom. However, early in the year, when there are no edible sized shad, wipers are reduced to foraging for whatever edibles they can find. That is when the mussels usually produce best.
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