JIGS FOR MORE FISH
By Bob Jensen
Fish like to eat jigs. Spring, summer, fall and winter, fish
like to eat
jigs. It doesn’t matter if you’re chasing walleyes, panfish,
bass, pike
or muskies, they will all readily inhale a jig. However, if you want to
up your success with jigs, there are a few things you can do to put the
odds in your favor.
A plain leadhead jig tipped with a minnow will catch fish
every day. If
you want to catch panfish, try a 1/32nd or sixteenth ounce head with a
small minnow.
For walleyes, smallmouth and largemouth bass, a sixteenth,
eighth, or
quarter ounce jig with a three or four inch minnow will be good, and for
pike or muskies try a half ounce or larger jig with a larger minnow.
There are times when we will want to increase or decrease
the jig weight
or minnow size, but those weights and sizes are good starting points. Day-in
and day-out an eighth ounce Fire-Ball jig with a minnow, leech,
or crawler will be the ticket to success. However, in the past couple of
years, more anglers are going to plastic baits on their jigs with
excellent success. Plastic enables an angler to experiment with
different colors, lure actions, and sizes.
When using plastic on jigs, mix the color of the jig and
the bait.
Sometimes the fish want a particular color. If we use a jig that is
orange and a body that is chartreuse, we are showing the fish two
different colors, which increases the odds of showing the fish the color
they want on that day. Orange/chartreuse is a very good color
combination for walleyes, as is pink/white. Experiment with color
combinations to increase your jigging success.
How the jig is retrieved is important. Sometimes when using
live bait a
dragging retrieve is best. If the fish are not real aggressive, a
dragging retrieve with plenty of stops will be better.
When using plastic, it usually works very well to employ
a swimming
retrieve. Cast the bait out, let it sink toward the bottom, and start a
straight retrieve. Use a jig that is light enough so you can reel slowly
without having the jig sink all the way to the bottom. Keep your rod
straight out, at about the nine o’clock position, and just reel slowly.
You don’t want a lot of lifting and dropping of the
rod when using this
swimming technique. Smallmouth and largemouth bass especially like this
retrieve, as do crappies at times.
For walleyes, swim the bait a little closer to the bottom,
for bass a
little higher off the bottom.
For plastic baits, it is really hard to beat a Power Grub.
The three
inch size is good for walleyes; four inchers are a great choice for
bass. Gulp! Minnow Grubs are also top-notch producers.
No matter what you want to catch this year, and no matter
where you are,
a jig will do the job. There might be better choices from time to time,
but a jig will almost always catch some fish, and any bait that will do
that is a bait you need in your tacklebox.
For more fish-catching information, visit fishingthemidwest.com
| |
|
 |
|
