Three Must Have Crappie Baits

When it comes to fishing for crappie, there are three basic baits to choose from no matter where you are fishing. As long as you have the three of these options ready to go for your crappie fishing trip, you are sure to have a successful adventure.

Live Baits

Hands down the best live crappie fishing bait that you can choose to offer to the fish is the live minnow. Make sure that these baitfish are no longer than 2 inches in length and no shorter than one. The trick here is to keep them as hyped up as you can. This can easily be accomplished with an inexpensive aerator that can be purchased at a local outdoor store.

As you rig up for your minnows, be sure that you are using small hooks. Take your hook and hook the minnow up through its bottom lip and out through its top lip. This will ensure that your minnow can swim as naturally as possible once he is in the water. One of the best crappie fishing tips you can ever pass along is that the bait must look natural.

Jigs

If you have rather limited experience with lures used for crappie fishing, you may want to begin instead with marabou jigs. These lures are very inexpensive at just pennies a piece. They are extremely popular lures as well which means they produce results. Be sure to purchase them in sizes between 1/32 and 1/16 ounces and stay with the light colors such as yellows, greens and whites when just starting out.

Haul these pieces of fishing gear out to your fishing location and drop them to the bottom while bouncing them off the floor. After a few seconds, reel in a little bit and then start the entire process over again until you have succeeded in reeling in all of your fishing line. This will give you the advantage of working multiple levels so that you can better determine at what depth the fish are actually holding at.

Soft Plastic Lures

If you would prefer, soft plastic baits such as the plastic worm are extremely effective as well. However, the lure needs to be rather small which means no longer than three inches. Combine that with a 1/8 ounce jig head, that means it needs to be even less than three inches. Choose from styles such as sassy shad, small worm or grubs. As long as the lure somewhat looks like a minnow or shad, you are headed in the right direction. Stick with lighter colors here as well.

What you Need to Start Fishing

Many people are confused as to what sort of equipment they will need to have on hand for their first initial introduction into the world of fishing. Fishing gear is an important part of the sport as the quality and types of pieces of equipment can directly lead correlate with your success as an angler.

The first step in acquiring the right kind of fishing gear is knowing what kind of fish you will be fishing for or at least a group. If you are deep sea fishing for large tuna, you will certainly need different equipment than if you are fishing in lakes for trout. However, for now we will assume you are beginning with smaller fish such as trout. In this case, you will want to look at rod and reel combinations such as the Zebco 33. This is a rather inexpensive set that will get you accustomed to your new sport without breaking the bank. This set also comes with some 10 lb test fishing line and this will be appropriate for smaller fish up to around 7 pounds.

The next items you will need to acquire are some fishing hooks. Choose live bait hooks in sizes #8 to #6 along with some rigs, and weights between 3/8 of an ounce and ¼ of and ounce. These pieces along with some live bait such as nightcrawlers should have you in rather good shape for some beginning fishing.

If you would prefer to start out using artificial bait, you will also want to begin with a set of 1/0 hooks as well as some 3/16 weights. If it is crappie, bass fishing or perch that you are looking to reel in, then start out with some smaller chartreuse and white jig heads that are similar in color to grubs.

Over time, as you become more familiar with the processes and procedures of fishing, you will find that your choices in lures and other equipment will evolve. However, for now, these pieces will get you accustomed to your new hobby. In the mean time, you will also find it beneficial to read as many books, articles and magazines pertaining to fishing as you can get your hands on. Learning about a sport that is new to you whenever you can will help you become more efficient, faster. In no time at all, you will impress your friends with your new skills.