Starlo’s: Freshwater bait fishing

NSW STH COAST Steve Starling

www.fishotopia.com

Don’t be shy! Getting your hands dirty while gathering and soaking a few natural baits in the fresh will teach you so much about our inland waterways and their inhabitants.

I caught my first Australian bass on a bunch of wriggling earthworms cast close to a bridge pylon dozen or so times since, but it remains a supereffective way of catching these Aussie natives, along with most of our other freshwater species: both indigenous and introduced. These days, the vast bulk of magazine articles, YouTube clips and TV segments devoted to freshwater fishing tend to concentrate almost exclusively on lure and fly-fishing strategies. That’s fine, and I love my fly and lure fishing. But When they’re hooked in the lip like this yellowbelly, it’s easy to release anything you don’t want to keep and eat.

Starlo with an eel-tailed catfish or tandan. This fascinating species is much more commonly taken on bait than it is on lure or fly.

in a little creek on the far south coast of NSW. That was almost 50 years ago, and I must admit that I’ve only deliberately fished for bass with bait half a

Scan this QR code or go to the Starlo Gets Reel channel on YouTube to watch a short how-to video about catching yellowbelly on bait.

Scan this QR code or go to the Starlo Gets Reel channel on YouTube to watch a short how-to video about catching trout on bait. the fishing process itself, especially as obtaining the best baits usually involves some sort of advance effort in the form of catching, gathering or harvesting. This could be as simple as digging a few worms out of the home compost heap, or a little more involved when it takes the form of trapping shrimps and yabbies, collecting mudeyes (dragonfly larvae), or even extracting bardi grubs from their deep bank-side burrows using Rigging two live shrimp on a hook creates a bigger, more attractive offering, and the two crustaceans will click and rattle against each other to add an audible element to the bait.

we should never forget the importance or the immense popularity of bait fishing, nor the fact that it bait can be a game changer. Apart from anything else, there’s typically a bit more to bait soaking than

A lovely golden perch perfectly pinned… although actually, if you catch them on bait, you should probably call ’em yellowbelly! One potential drawback of bait fishing is the increased likelihood of deep-hooking fish you’d prefer to release. However, if you hold your rod and strike fairly quickly, deep-hooking is less likely, even on smash-and-grab customers like Australian bass.

all manner of innovative methods. Sometimes these pursuits will become even more fun-filled and rewarding pastimes than the fish catching part!

All manner of baits will tempt freshwater fish, and the humble garden worm makes a great starting

teaches us so much about the absolute basics of our passionate pursuit.

With the summer holidays fast approaching, bait fishing in freshwater is also well worth considering as an extremely viable option for kids, other non-fishing family members, and more casual fishing friends who may tend to quickly become bored with fruitlessly flicking or trolling a lure hour after hour for little of no result. Getting them onto point. But for better and more consistent results on many species, it’s much better to use naturally occurring local organisms that comprise a significant part of the target species’ daily diet. That might mean mudeyes or grasshoppers for trout at this time of year, shrimp for yellowbelly and bass, or yabbies for Murray cod.

Don’t rule out oddball, non-natural offerings like cheese, chicken and even boiled eggs, too! You can also use various saltwater baits in the fresh, but as a rule, it’s better not to translocate organisms from one environment to another. It may even be illegal to do so in your jurisdiction. Carefully check the rules first, and never use imported seafoods and marine baits in our freshwater environments, as they could potentially introduce exotic diseases.

Sitting in delicious anticipation alongside an inland waterway clutching a baited rod, eyes fixed on its quivering tip or a bobbing float, is an Aussie rite of passage that every kid – big or small – should experience at least a few times in their lives. It’s almost guaranteed to reconnect you with your childhood and evoke some great memories. If you’d like to learn more, scan the two QR codes accompanying this column, or go to my “Starlo Gets Reel” YouTube channel to watch my how-to clips on bait fishing for yellowbelly and trout. Tight Lines!