LEECH TRAPPING

[pikestabber]

I seine my share of minnows, but leech trapping is something I have always wanted to try. I am familiar with coffee can traps and gunny sack traps...are there others traps that work better in anyone's opinion? Liver as bait?

What constitutes a good leech pond, and when should a person start trapping (soon, I'd think)...

[JewellOutdoors]

Yep - Liver is going to be your best bait. Although, in your coffee can traps you can use a fresh fish head sometimes. Maybe two of them if they are small.

We use a flat trap - which is a piece of aluminum about two feet long and 2.5 feet wide. Fold it like a paper accordion (or a paper airplane before you fold the wings down). You should end up with three folds to put bait in. Hog ring one end together, tie a string to it - with a bobber of some kind. Also try paper clipping the open end.

[carpmanjake]

a coffee can with the top crimped has worked well for me. put a little bait in it for extra attraction,

also a burlap sack with fresh meat in it works. the leeches squeeze through the burlap to get to the meat. once chunk of meat can usually last for 2 to 4 days (checking traps everyday)

[french_lake_kid]

I heard of an even simpler way and thats soaking an untreated piece of 2*4 in some sort of blood or fish oil and then throwing that out and I guess the leaches will attach to the bottom...who knows hto

[L_Cappo]

the best way is what jewell said.i have done this way for yrs.get some beef liver out a little bit in each slot.once you put the bait in there use papaer clips to close the front side and top and bottom.very fast and easy to get the leeches out of this type of trap.that board thing does work but you will get more leeches in the aluminum traps.i have used my ore from my boat when i ran out of leeches camping.just put some bacon greese on there and go find a pond.trapping leeches is very easy but very time comsuming.1 more week im going ot start setting my traps.

[JewellOutdoors]

Never heard of using bacon grease before! We'll have to give that a try this year! If you want to save money on purchasing leeches this year - check out my new site. Just finished. www.jewelloutdoors.com

[bull_head]

Jewell,

Did I read your site correctly? $84 for 3lbs of leeches. Its a great idea but that price seems awfully steep. If I remember right I normally pay around $20lb for jumbos. Maybe a few bucks more later in the year.

[Jim Uran]

It depends on where you are at I guess, I usually pay $12-15 for a pound of Jumbo's

[JewellOutdoors]

Yup - you got the price right, shipping is included. We're actually a bit cheaper than most that sell online. If you're getting them at $12-$15 bucks, you're getting a steal! Keep buying them there!

[JewellOutdoors]

If you take a look at the price break out on this page: http://www.jewelloutdoors.com/leeches.html

You'll see what the real cost per dozen is. We find that outside of MN average cost per a dozen of Jumbos is up ove $3.25. Believe it or not, most of our leeches don't get sold in Minnesota (not that we don't sell them there). If you're in MN, you're closest to the source of the most abundant leech supply in the world. So yes, prices are generally cheaper in MN. Not always the cost the further away you go.

[Jim Uran]

Around my neck of the woods, there are a TON of leechers, that's why I get them at that price I believe.

Also, if anyone has access to beef kidneys, that's what everyone uses and swears by up this way. I'm not a leech trapper but I've been out quite a few times. The trap jewelloutdoors is talking about seems to work the best, throw a chunk of beef kidney in and put a clothes pin on it so the bait doesn't fall out. Don't leave your bait in the trap more than a day though, especially if you are scoring leeches, they'll suck the bait dry and be out of there before you come back to pick up the traps. It's also best to check them as early as you can get out in the AM, especially in the summer when the water temp is up because that bait will spoil quick... Just a few more tips.

[JewellOutdoors]

If you have beef liver or kidneys for bait, we recommend curing it with Ag Salt (get it at the local coop or fleet). That will keep it preserved better during the warmer months as water temps rise.

[Jim Uran]

The guys I know buy the kidneys for trapping from the people they sell the leeches to. Usually in a 20 pound frozen box. I can see the reason for high cost of leeches, it's the work it takes to get them, to keep them alive while storing them, and to ship them. It's a lot of work for the guys that go out leeching. They don't do a few traps, they usually bait up a couple hundred or more traps on a lake, and go back the next morning to check them. Most guys do more than one lake a night also.

[south_metro_fish]

So I am assuming that you put the traps out in the evening? Do you ever leave them out during the day?

[Jim Uran]

Everyone I know does it as an overnight thing. Not sure on the reasoning for it but it works really well.

[JewellOutdoors]

The guys who do this for a living will run them once a day, every day, letting them sit for about 24 hours at a time.