When people talk about how to catch trout, in most cases they are referring to the most popular trout species in the world and that species of trout is known as the rainbow trout. I have been fishing for and catching these beautiful fish for more than twenty years and in that time have learned that the most important factor to catching trout and not catching trout is the type of bait that is used. In this article I will outline some of the most effective types of rainbow trout bait so that you can use this information to your advantage the next time that you head out in search of the beautiful fish known as the rainbow trout.
No article concerning how to catch these fish would be complete with mentioning the fact that there are two different kinds of rainbow trout. I’m not referring to many different biological strains of these fish, I’m referring to the two different kinds of trout known as stocked or native rainbow trout. The reason that this fact is important is that “stocked” trout and “native” trout tend to bite on very different things. You see trout that have been “stocked” are used to being fed imitation food, whereas “native” trout (which means a trout that was born naturally in a body of water or has survived two to three seasons in a body of water) have to hunt for their food as any predatory fish does. Therefore trout that have been “stocked” tend to bite (or eat) different types of bait than a “native” trout does.
With that being said, let’s get down to the various rainbow trout baits so that you can determine the best type of bait for your favorite fishing style and the kind of rainbow trout that you are fishing for.
Synthetic Trout Bait – Synthetic trout baits would include any manifestation of manufactured trout bait such as Powerbait. As you can probably imagine, this type of bait is most effective when used for trout that have been “stocked”. Most trout fishermen like to use this type of bait while “bottom fishing” with a basic still fishing rig. The point of the matter is that synthetic baits are a very effective bait when used for trout that have been stocked. Artificial Flies – If you have any knowledge at all of these beautiful fish you are undoubtedly aware of the fact that they love to eat insects and thus artificial flies are an excellent bait choice. There are two ways to fish with artificial flies. The first is by “fly fishing”, which is the most well known way to fish with artificial flies and the second is by using something called a “fly fishing bubble”, which is a way for traditional spin fishermen to fish with artificial flies. Either way there is little doubt that artificial flies are among the best rainbow trout bait that a trout fisherman can employ whether they are fishing for “stocked” or “native” rainbow trout. In-line Spinners – In-line spinners, such as rooster tails or panther martins, mimic small bait fish very well, and the vibration and flash that in-line spinners emit are difficult for hungry trout to resist. In-line spinners are an excellent bait choice for both stocked and native rainbow trout, and tend to be most effective when fished in the flowing waters of a small river or stream.
The bottom line is that when it comes to learning how to catch trout any of the aforementioned bait choices are an excellent way to go. If any of them aren’t a part of your trout fishing arsenal they should be added sooner rather than later, there’s no doubt about it.