How to Rig a Nightcrawler on a Fishing Hook

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Nightcrawlers rigged on a fishing hook and presented to fish will produce results in a variety of scenarios. They will catch fish in small ponds, larger lakes, streams, brooks and rivers. You must rig your nightcrawler so that it will stay securelly on the hook when you cast it and so that it will attract the attention of fish.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Step 1

Pick a nightcrawler from its container and locate its thickest end. Look for the end that has what appears to be a "collar" of ringed segments close together. This end will be noticeably thicker than the tail end of the worm.

Step 2

Grasp the fishhook with your dominant hand by the upper half of its shaft, near the hook's eye. Hold the thick end of the nightcrawler with your off hand, placing your thumb and your first two fingers around its thickest point.

Step 3

Jab the sharp point of the hook into the thick end of the nightcrawler approximately 1 inch from the end of the worm. Slide the nightcrawler all the way around the bend of the fishhook with this first action. Hold the hook firmly as you push it through the nightcrawler.

Step 4

Bring your hand down the nightcrawler's body away from the hook. Grab the nightcrawler a little farther down and bring its body back up toward the hook's point. Stick the hook into the worm's body about 1 inch from where you first pierced it. Slide this section of the nightcrawler around the bend of the hook as you did the first time.

Step 5

Repeat this pattern of piercing the worm's body about an inch from the previous spot until you have the majority of the nightcrawler's body secured upon the fishhook. Leave the tail of the nightcrawler dangling. This end will typically wriggle, making the presentation even more eye-catching for such fish as trout, bass, perch, crappie and carp.

Step 6

Slide the entire nightcrawler up the shaft of the hook when you have finishing piercing the worm. Check the rig to confirm that all of these piercings have not brought the worm back over the point. The barb on the bottom of the point will then keep the nightcrawler from slipping back off the fishhook when you cast it into the water.

Tips & Warnings

Bait holder hooks have small barbs on their shafts that help to grab and hold a worm as large as a nightcrawler, making it more difficult for it to slip off the hook.

Article Written By John Lindell

John Lindell has written articles for "The Greyhound Review" and various other online publications. A Connecticut native, his work specializes in sports, fishing and nature. Lindell worked in greyhound racing for 25 years.

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