This Years Bait Trapping Thread

[tip up boss]

well got the skunk i did have a turtle swiming around my trap i think that has something to do with it also arnt bait fish more active at night ?

[nbourque]

well got the skunk i did have a turtle swiming around my trap i think that has something to do with it also arnt bait fish more active at night ?

I like to set my traps then check em the next day.

[mainefisherman4992]

what types of water do diffrent types of bait come from...i trapped a bogish place last year and got only dace....just wondering where i need to look for shiners and such?

[Snowfun]

@captmorgan- the pond at work is full of minnows.  small but you can't kill em and they work great- just gonna try to get some bigger stuff too
I have animals and have stock heaters in the troughs work well and I'll go that route if I have to, but they aren't real cheap to run.  Just a trial run this winter, maybe by next winter I'll have a big barn all built, and they can go right in there

pick up a submersible aquarium heater at wallyworld(~$15). I have been using the same one for three years now. I run it on a timer, early season maybe 5 hours a day, in the dead of winter I get up to 12-18 hours a day. I adjust as needed to keep the tank open. They barely make a dent on your power bill. I run two tanks in an unheated uninsulated shed. They are both straight glass with no insulation. I get a little ice in the corners but the filter, heater and bubbler do the trick. I only see a $5 increase a month. Bait is very easy to keep, you will have a hang of it by the end of the first month. Good luck and let me know if you have any questions.

[nbourque]

what types of water do diffrent types of bait come from...i trapped a bogish place last year and got only dace....just wondering where i need to look for shiners and such?

nothin wrong with dace.

[. Ron]

I'm looking for advice.  I had a huge bait kill-off tonight in my traps and want to avoid it happening again.  Let me give you some particulars. 

The pond that I am trapping is a private pond, about 30' by 20' and 12' deep at its deepest.  It is spring fed, with no inlets or outlets.  I had trapped a few hundred earlier in the fall, and they are all still doing fine in my holding tank.  The pond is full of dace, redfins, and golden shiners, as well as a few suckers.  The shiners are anywhere between 3/4" and 5" long.

I threw three traps in on Saturday night (two galvanized and one black) with a bit of dog food in each.  When I pulled them tonight, I was tickled to find each of them loaded with bait.  Unfortunately, there were a bunch of floaters, but I figured that there was nothing to be worried about, even though I had never had dead bait in my trap here before.  When I dumped them into my transport bucket, very few moved.  It wasn't until I got them home that I found out that the dead bait outnumbered the live bait by at least 3-1.  Long story short (too late, I know), I want to know how I killed these bait.  I was left with somewhere between 150 and 200 live bait, but the dead ones are in a bucket and look like a mass grave in their pile, four inches high. 

I guess that I was under the impression that, even though they were captive in the traps, they would still have enough oxygen to survive.  Now, I wonder if there were too many in the traps and there wasn't enough oxygen in the localized area to support them. 

An obvious way to avoid this would be to check the traps every day, but that's just not feasible.  I had thought that I would be fine with the traps soaking for two days.  I was wrong.  Any thoughts?

-Ron

[mainefisherman4992]

nothin wrong with dace.

yeah we caught a touge or two on dace last year but i only got 1 dozen or so. in one set late last year like end of jan. im looking for some shiners cause i need them for a spot i go to early on in dec. so just looking for tips to finding them

[nbourque]

Too many fish in an enclosed Space for too long=alot of dead bait. I would check your traps every day if possible.

[nbourque]

yeah we caught a touge or two on dace last year but i only got 1 dozen or so. in one set late last year like end of jan. im looking for some shiners cause i need them for a spot i go to early on in dec. so just looking for tips to finding them

keep searching til you find em. I've caught shiners in spots where I get dace.

[mainefisherman4992]

i always set my traps for overnight hauls...set before supper and get them in the morning just after sunup....this was a stream that was at a boggy spot. do they mostly come from farm ponds or what?

[HardwaterFish]

go to the dump and get a small chest freezer mine doesn't freeze its in a portable garage i actually have to turn the freezer on with a timer this time of year it gets to warm,(southern exposier)

I just planted mine today, first year trying out a freezer, my father in-law has been doing it for years.

Right under the back deck:

[HardwaterFish]

Too many fish in an enclosed Space for too long=alot of dead bait. I would check your traps every day if possible.

X2.

[HardwaterFish]

i always set my traps for overnight hauls...set before supper and get them in the morning just after sunup....this was a stream that was at a boggy spot. do they mostly come from farm ponds or what?

Some private ponds hold great bait, but a lot of public places do as well. Check out G. Earth in your area and look for streams/ bogs, small ponds. if your doing this, keep critters in mind as well. Look for otter sign, they will have a field day with a trap full of bait.  Trial and error.

If you can find a private pond that holds good bait, that is your best bet, but they can be hard to come by.

[StingingLips]

alright guys, im farely new to trapping my bait as many others are, I used to trap one pond but not very hard. I would throw a trap in from time to time and catch anywhere between one dozen to three dozen. a commercial guy cleaned the place out last year before I could trap it but I found a new pond the other day with shinners in it. I hauled my trap on a one night soak and saw that there were a couple shinners in there but it was right full of horn pout. will elevating my trap off of the bottom prevent some of the horn pout from getting in?

[HardwaterFish]

alright guys, im farely new to trapping my bait as many others are, I used to trap one pond but not very hard. I would throw a trap in from time to time and catch anywhere between one dozen to three dozen. a commercial guy cleaned the place out last year before I could trap it but I found a new pond the other day with shinners in it. I hauled my trap on a one night soak and saw that there were a couple shinners in there but it was right full of horn pout. will elevating my trap off of the bottom prevent some of the horn pout from getting in?

Maybe. But chances are if the pout are in there, a good shiner population is not long for the world. Get 'em while you can.

[StingingLips]

Thanks, Ill try lifting it tomorrow, I want it to freeze over so I can set the traps out a little deeper. I have another pond that my dad told me about today that im gonna try if this ones a bust.

[skybuster20ga]

dont know how many traps you have to use but i run two some times three on a line at diff. depths if the ewater is that deep. i always run two on a line at the very least even if they are at the same depth once i find where they are running. this season im not even gona trap i dont think. wont have the time but i have a buddy who will sell to me in bulk for hardly anything. much easier lol

[nbourque]

alright guys, im farely new to trapping my bait as many others are, I used to trap one pond but not very hard. I would throw a trap in from time to time and catch anywhere between one dozen to three dozen. a commercial guy cleaned the place out last year before I could trap it but I found a new pond the other day with shinners in it. I hauled my trap on a one night soak and saw that there were a couple shinners in there but it was right full of horn pout. will elevating my trap off of the bottom prevent some of the horn pout from getting in?

  elevating your trap off bottom will make a huge difference as long as there is a good population of shiners. When there was no ice I would use a milk jug to suspend my traps 3-4 feet from the surface.

[LostOne]

alright guys, im farely new to trapping my bait as many others are, I used to trap one pond but not very hard. I would throw a trap in from time to time and catch anywhere between one dozen to three dozen. a commercial guy cleaned the place out last year before I could trap it but I found a new pond the other day with shinners in it. I hauled my trap on a one night soak and saw that there were a couple shinners in there but it was right full of horn pout. will elevating my trap off of the bottom prevent some of the horn pout from getting in?

I used to have the same problem with hornpout, then a wise man told me to try not leaving them in the dark (overnight)...It made all the difference. I still let them sit overnight sometimes, but then I have to clean out the pout and the pieces of shiners that the pout didn't finish. Maybe try setting them in the morning and pulling them just before dusk. I bet it will help.

[Sinnian]

alright guys, im farely new to trapping my bait as many others are, I used to trap one pond but not very hard. I would throw a trap in from time to time and catch anywhere between one dozen to three dozen. a commercial guy cleaned the place out last year before I could trap it but I found a new pond the other day with shinners in it. I hauled my trap on a one night soak and saw that there were a couple shinners in there but it was right full of horn pout. will elevating my trap off of the bottom prevent some of the horn pout from getting in?

Put a plastic soda bottle in the trap, it will keep it off the bottom ~ and really doesn't take up that much room.

[mainefisherman4992]

so you guys set traps on bottom for shiners?

[HardwaterFish]

so you guys set traps on bottom for shiners?

You can, it works. The pics I posted to start this thread, were from a trap thrown on bottom. Try bottom first, if that doesn't work, try suspending it.

[boydlakemonster]

anybody like/use fathead  minnows?

[Sawyerjosh]

fatheads are hard to beat.  They are almost all I use for everything except pike.  my buddy caught a 7lb largemouth on a 2" fathead last year

[mainefisherman4992]

anybody like/use fathead  minnows?

i lost the biggest brook trout i ever had on my line once. I was using a 1" fathead minnow....havent been able to trap them since that year

[Sawyerjosh]

And you can't kill em.  I take em off the hook at the end of the day and re-use them next time out

[tip up boss]

well didnt get the skunk this morning caught 1 golden shiner in my trap its a start least my tank isnt empty i tryed a new method on bait i made a bait bag and thew a brown n serve roll in their along with a couple pinches of dog food im hooked on trapping your own bait it adds to the fun of ice fishing     

[Keptafew]

im hooked on trapping your own bait it adds to the fun of ice fishing     

It is a lot of fun.... I like checking google maps seeking out new places to try trapping, its addicting. I pulled a clover trap last night from a 24 hour soak at a new spot that was just filthy with bait Dace, Emeralds and Golden's. Mostly inch to inch and a half in size but I did keep about a dozen large Golden Shiners to add to my bait tank.

Try Cheetos or Cheese balls for bait, thats all I use now and have great success

[APJ]

It is a lot of fun.... I like checking google maps seeking out new places to try trapping, its addicting. I pulled a clover trap last night from a 24 hour soak at a new spot that was just filthy with bait Dace, Emeralds and Golden's. Mostly inch to inch and a half in size but I did keep about a dozen large Golden Shiners to add to my bait tank.

Try Cheetos or Cheese balls for bait, thats all I use now and have great success

Just got to love the Cheese balls!  They do work well..

[The Rusty Crab]

Is it possible to get a trap full of small brook trout.  Cause today my trap was loaded with fish but I put them all back they looked like real small brookies to me.