What To Do When The Bite Slows Down
- By: Richard Thomas
- on
What should you do when the bite slows down??
Do you pick up and leave to go fish somewhere else?
Or should you stick around and try a different tactic?
Learn the answers and more in the video right here!
What To Do When The Bite Slows Down [VIDEO]
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My favorite days out on the water are when the fish are trapped in low-tide areas and forced to feed in smaller bodies of water.
These fish will stay hungry and try to actively feed on bait even in skinny water.
Paddletails and shrimp imitation lures perform extremely well during this time.
But after you reel in a few fish from one small area using the same artificial lure, the bite tends to slow down after a while.
To combat this, you can change over to a different style lure, and lots of times that will work.
But in the case that the fish get spooked and become skittish, my favorite thing to do is fish with Mud Minnows.
On a recent trip, I had the Slam Shady 2.0 rigged up on a 1/4 oz. Z-Man Trout Eye jighead and after reeling in a few fish, the bite died down.
But I knew the fish hadn’t moved and were still there.
So all I did was take off the Slam Shady paddletail and replaced it with a live mud minnow right on the jighead.
Casting out a mud minnow on a jighead and letting it sit on the bottom is less intrusive and is incredibly hard for redfish to resist.
Also, you don’t have to waste any time by using the same jighead you’ve already got tied on.
When it comes to rigging the mud minnows, simply slide the hook through the bottom lip and out the top lip.
Cast it out and wait for a bite!
Mud minnows are excellent bait for inshore fish and only need to be kept in water to last the whole day of fishing.
Conclusion
Especially when you are fishing in low tide areas, the fish don’t have an escape route and can feel pressured.
They’ll get spooked by seeing the same lure over and over again in front of them.
All you need is some mud minnows to shake things up!!
What is your go-to rig for fishing with mud minnows?
Was there anything else you had a question about?
Please share with me down below in the comments section!!
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I’ve never fished with mud minnows. What’s the best way to get them, and where? Trap? Cast net?
They’re definitely a great bait, and a trap is the easiest way to catch a lot of them. I typically leave the grab around culvert pipes and shallow marsh areas
Keepin’ it simple!- Minnows and a jig head! Love it man good stuff!
You know it man!
Great tip Richard! That’s a great strategy when the bite shuts down on artificials!
It’s definitely a trick up
The sleeve Pat! Thanks man!
Nice tip Richard. I have used mud minnows a lot on the Eastern Shore of Virginia for flounder. After fishing the day I wound lay a wet paper towel down on ice, put the minnows on and cover with a wet paper towel. They were good to go next day, just put them back in bait bucket.
Man I knew those minnows were tough, but haven’t tried that before! Thanks for the tip Harold!
Oooo! good tip. Good way to rig so the fish doesn’t get it stuck deep down! Thanks!
Definitely a direct connection that leads to quick hook sets!
When I lived right near a saltwater river I used to trap these and use them for bait. Using a jig is the most versatile way to fish and transition between lures and bait, but the best way to fish mud minnows or bait alone is a Carolina rig.
Many times I have caught blue crabs as well and cut pieces off and threw them back out on a jighead — works great!
Here in Virginia, I have adopted a Southern California light tackle surf fishing style that utilizes essentially freshwater rods, smaller reels, light mono, and the Carolina rig. 6-8 lb. mono, bead, swivel, leader, then a small hook, a circle hook being my hook of choice.
If you wanted to switch between Berkeley Gulp sandworms or curl tail grubs and bait, use a small dropshot or splitshot bass fishing hook. Make the swivels small and in black to keep them from standing out in clear water.
I have caught fish from the beach and in the rivers from VA to FL with this setup.
That’s an Awesome tip Casey! The Carolina rig is definitely a staple for any inshore angler and can be used in so many different scenarios.
Good video, Richard. When I do bait fish I love a big mud minnow although I free line him with a barrel weight which works great in south Texas. Gonna have to try the jig head method and compare.
That’s also a great technique Ruben! Especially when the current is minimal
Thanks Richard. Great video!!
Appreciate it Frank!
Well being a no bait kinda guy this would not work for me besides I don’t believe in carrying extra equipment if I’m not using it that much like aerators to keep bait alive and live bait hooks sounds like alot of trouble to me I never really caught much on bait when I first started fishing inshore back 20 years ago and had guys tell me how to do it first of all one needs to have alot of patience with bait its a waiting game well I’m not that patient when I fish I’m like a bass angler always on the move covering alot of water that’s how I at least find the fish if I tried your tactic I probably would fall asleep by boredom but like I always say that’s me I do t speak for others I once knew a guy that swore by using only finger mullet on a fishfinder rig for flounder and he loved to brag about all the big flounder he caught with it well I never saw him catch one fish on it and he never had the pictures to prove it either but I do and I don’t use bait my favorite lure for both reds and flounder (after the topwater bite has shut down for reds) is a spinnerbait mainly the zman ones because I found the zmans are far superior to the redfish magic the wire frame is much stronger on the zman slow rolled on the bottom by scattered oysters and pitched under docks or into grassline pockets will get you bit for sure and I tip them with a piece of fishbites for scent also adding procure infused with dr juice scent unless I’m using a gulp grub anyways I’m not a bait guy and besides I could never throw a cast net worth a crap either no ill stick to my tried and true methods because they have worked for many years for me and yes if an area doesn’t produce fish for me in a reasonable time frame then yes I do move elsewhere but like I said that’s me thanks for the info and all you do👍😉
Awesome tips Steven! Good luck next time you’re out in Jax!
Thanks Richard……….another great video….
Awesome Richard, glad it was of value to you!