How to Bait a Fishing Line

Photo by the author

There are many different ways to place bait on a fishing hook. It is important to present bait on a hook so that fish will see it as a potential meal. Anglers must know how to get baits such as night crawlers, crayfish, leeches, insects and shiners onto a hook so that they will remain on the hook and attract fish.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

Fishing hook Bait (various types)
Fishing hook
Bait (various types)

Step 1

Thread a night crawler or earthworm onto your hook. Pierce the worm at its thickest end with the hook and push the hook back through the worm onto the hook every half inch or so until the worm is securely on the hook. Break off a small chunk of the worm and pierce it through 2 or 3 times for smaller fish such as bluegills and crappies.

Step 2

Grip a crayfish at the midpoint of its body and hook it through the meatiest part of its tail. Drive the point of the hook up through the under part of the tail between the tail's end and where it begins to extend from the body. Crayfish are excellent bait for fish such as smallmouth bass. Be sure to avoid the pincers of this creature.

Step 3

Hold a leech and place the point of the hook through either end. Push in the hook as close to the end as you can so that the leech dangles off it.

Step 4

Stick the point of the hook through the head of large insects such as crickets and grasshoppers. Shove the hook through as you hold the bug by its head to avoid pulling the head off the insect.

Step 5

Hook a shiner behind its dorsal fin in the spot that lies between the fin and the tail. Be careful not to stick the hook too close to the fin as this could kill or cripple the shiner by breaking its back. Hold the shiner between your first two fingers and your thumb and jam the hook in about half an inch from the top of its back.

Step 6

Ease the hook up through one end of a grub and make it come out the other. Gently push the hook through the length of the grub so that you completely impale it on 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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