Alternative Baits For Dem Big Sturgies

[TMF89]

Well I've got my flat of crawlers on order, but I'm just wondering if anyone's had any success with anything else. I know some guys throw a few fatheads on there as well, but crawlers are such a heavily used bait that I gotta imagine there are some alternatives the John Q. Fisherman doesn't know about. Cut bait? Dead smelt/herring? Dough baits/dip baits? I mean thanks to that video Dtro posted I'm definitely buying some [PoorWordUsage] to put on everything before I head up, but there have gotta be more options! Now If you want to go into great detail on your secret bait, fine, but I'm not asking for hand-outs. I'm just trying to maximize my couple weekends up there this spring, so I'd love to know beforehand if a certain bait is worth trying out or not. Can't wait to see you guys up there in a few weeks!

[JacobG]

shiners, pickeled herring, chunks of cheese, chunks of brats.....Corned beef lunch meat...... its all worked, we spend too much time in the boat. But seriously, the pickeled herring is a good alternative.

[DTro]

The guys out West use a lot of Ghost/Sand Shrimp, salmon, anchovies, etc.

 

As with all regions and species, match the bait to the system you are fishing on to maximize your success.  One of best baits you can have in the boat on the St Croix each fall is fresh Shad.  They absolutely love em and I’m sure it has everything to do with that the St Croix is chock full of huge schools of shad. But funny, the Rainy fish won’t even touch em.  Think about all the bait in that system heading up that river out of the lake, that is what you want to be using.   Shiners, rainbows, fatheads, suckers, redhorse, etc.

 

Believe it or not, a Sturgeons main source of food is crustaceans and invertebrates, so I bet crayfish would make a great bait, and you know what, I’m sure if I could sack up some walleye eggs on a hook those would work great too. 

 

The secret isn’t really a secret at all, it’s just determining what is swimming in the water below you.  A perfect example is the big craze down south fishing for Blue Cats.  All these monster 100lb fish in the past few years are mostly all being caught on fresh cut Asian Carp. 

 

Unfortunately the MN laws are so stinking confusing and strict that most everything you want to use….you legally can’t. 

[fishuhalik]

My cousin studied sturg fr 3 years with the Canadian dnr & pretty much got their feeding patterns down to a science. In the spring, they eat anything they can find. Mid-summer its almost exclusively crawfish & other crustaceans with some fish mixed in. In the fall it's back to fish. He follows that pattern & does good. I almost exclusively use crawlers & do just fine. I'd like to find some craws to try some time but have never taken the time to do it. If youever do try craws make sure you kill em first or theyll just crawl under the first snag they land next to. I think the taste for craws is why we see em so shallow sometimes when fishing smallies in the summer on the croix.