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Author Topic: Baits for spring whitefish?  (Read 17416 times)

JimP

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Baits for spring whitefish?
« on: Mar 15, 2006, 12:18 PM »
We catch some big whitefish on occasion, here in Lake Champlain, while fishing from shore with dead smelt, fished on the bottom for lake trout. Is there a preferable bait that is traditionally used for these big lake whitefish? I know the fish are there, almost daily. Later, as the water warms some, I've seen them sipping small insects. But is there a bait I can fish on bottom for them that will work consistently? Thanks!  -Jim

fishinboy

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #1 on: Mar 17, 2006, 09:55 AM »
I have heard of and seen many people catching them off the piers using spawn.
Ryan

Neptune

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #2 on: Mar 22, 2007, 11:39 PM »
I've heard of people using nightcrawlers floated just off the bottom.  I usually use a small jig of some sort, like a Rattle Snakey and tip it with a couple maggots for taste....


Good Fishing!

JimP

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #3 on: Mar 27, 2007, 06:00 PM »
I'm referring to the big "lake whitefish" we have out here, which reach up to about 7-8 pounds or so? Same fish???? They do not occur in streams, rivers, etc., here. -Jim

Neptune

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #4 on: Mar 28, 2007, 08:16 AM »
Lake Superior Whitefish is what hes refering to MTTrout....  Not the bony little copper bullets you seem to like so much.... 8)

Here in Montana we have lake Superior Whitefish in quite a few lakes but they also occupy some of our rivers.  Now I know they are in the Flathead river, not sure if they are in the Missouri.  Some of the Whitefish that live in Flathead lake actually come up stream to spawn in the fall and you can catch them out of the river when they get on the spawning beds, also when they stage in late summer before going into the river....


Good Fishing!

Neptune

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #5 on: Mar 29, 2007, 09:00 AM »
Ya like these.... 8)




Good Fishing!

Neptune

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #6 on: Mar 29, 2007, 09:31 AM »
That looks like fun Neptune! Sweet catch, what is the average wheight/length you catch? What's a big one go?

MT,  they all ran between 3 and 4 pounds that day(took about an hour to catch 25  ;D).  We had one about 21 inches and almost 5 lbs.


Good Fishing!

Neptune

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #7 on: Mar 29, 2007, 09:43 AM »
Awesome! Sounds like a blast! Are you trolling?
Nope, jigging with little 1/4oz-1/2oz Zimmer Rattle D Zaztors or a custom little perch jig my neighbor made.  We were in about 35 feet of water on the delta in Flathead lake.  Drop the jig to the bottom and bounce it about 6-8 inches off the bottom and get ready to set the hook.  Whiteys bite really lite and you foul hook as many as you get through the lips.

We stopped fishing for Whiteys on that day because we didn't want to have to clean anymore fish!!!  We could have probably both limited if we stayed at it (200 fish in the boat would have probably almost sunk it!)....


They School up on the Delta starting about the second week in July and are there through August.



Good Fishing!

JimP

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #8 on: Apr 10, 2007, 07:54 AM »
These are the whitefish I am talking about and we seldom land one under 5 pounds. This one was over 8 pounds. -Jim

Neptune

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #9 on: Apr 10, 2007, 08:07 AM »
DANG!!!  :o :o

Thats an awesome Whitefish!  Don't see many that size around here...average is about 3-4lbs.  State record is 10.8 lbs....  How long is that bugger?  What did you catch it on?


Nice job!


Good Fishing!

JimP

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Re: Baits for spring whitefish?
« Reply #10 on: Apr 30, 2007, 01:39 AM »
We were lake trout fishing from shore, using dead smelt for bait. The fish was right around 30 inches in length.

 



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