| I have been a fisherman for over 50 | | | | a Crippled Herring jig or some other |
| years and a charter boat captain since | | | | lead jig to the bottom. Allow the jig to |
| 1977. No matter how often I go fishing I | | | | flutter to the bottom then rip the bait |
| can never accept fish are not biting. | | | | up sharply and allow it to fall again. |
| Every fisherman knows that fish | | | | Maintain this action while watching your |
| especially bottom feeders like grouper | | | | line as your bait falls. Invariably a |
| and halibut seem to refuse to feed on | | | | fish will become aggravated and strike |
| certain days or on certain tides. When | | | | the falling bait. Often when I get a |
| these days or times occur I start | | | | hookup I will allow the fish to remain |
| emptying my tackle cabinet for some | | | | close to the bottom for a short period |
| magic bait. While the magic bait is yet | | | | of time and often other fish will get |
| to be discovered I have found a few | | | | interested and start to bite for fear |
| techniques that will produce at times | | | | all the food may be eaten by others. |
| cut bait or even live bait fail. | | | | Grouper, snapper and halibut can all go |
| My favorite way of catching fish like | | | | from lockjaw to biting everything in |
| grouper, halibut or even large mouth | | | | site almost instantaneously. From famine |
| bass is to irritate them to the point | | | | to feast often in an instant because |
| they lash out at the annoyance. For fish | | | | jigged Crippled Herring, constantly |
| like largemouth bass a rapidly retrieved | | | | creating attention, aggravated one fish |
| rattle or spinner bait will induce a | | | | to strike. |
| strike. For bottom fish like grouper, a | | | | I like using heavy lead jigs for halibut |
| little more persistent presentation is | | | | with rubber grub tails, buck tail jigs |
| needed. Often times repeatedly banging | | | | of all sizes based on the depth but the |
| your sinker on the bottom will attract | | | | most dependable and reliable bait I have |
| fish, especially halibut. This sonic | | | | used is the Luhr Jensen Crippled Herring |
| vibration caused by the bait thumping or | | | | in all sizes. |
| banging on the bottom will cause fish to | | | | Remember when the bite gets tough, open |
| start feeding when other methods fail. | | | | up the tackle box for something, like a |
| An even more effective method of | | | | lead head jig or Crippled Herring, to |
| catching finicky bottom fish is to drop | | | | incite those finicky fish into biting. |