chunking
02-04-2004, 03:33 PM
Newer doesn't always mean better. Plastic has put a lot of wood out of business. For minnows this isn't exactly a good thing.
Tho old minnow boxes we used to get when we rented a boat were the best. The wood absorbed the water and kept the minnows cool and moist when you had it in the boat. The top of the box hept the sunlight off the minnows again keeping them cool.
Now everyone uses the plastic minnow keepers with the swing hinged door. Works but not as good as the old box. In fact the plastic minnow keepers have probably killed more minnows than fish caught using them.
Buy a pint or quart and you have bait for a day. We fall into the trap that a minnow in water is doing fine. They aren't. Stick a pint or more into a small container like that with some water and you can sufficate them real fast.
In a matter of a few minutes the minnows will have used up all the oxygen in the water. You can see them at the surface gulping for air. Leave them that way too long and they die. Then the bait shops get blamed for bad bait.
I know a few fisherman who left the dock for a run out to Delaware Bay. When they arrived all their minnows were dead. Floating in the live minnow keeper.
The minnows would do better in the holder with no water and just damp. A shaded damp wooden minnow box is the ticket.
I know someone will jump in here about keeping minnows on damp paper with ice underneath. This way also works but has one drawback. Minnows like all fish are cold blooded. They can take extremes but not sudden changes. Take a minnow that is near ice and on cold wet paper then throw it into 70 degree water. The shock can kill it or at least do a number on its nerves so it can barely swim.
I do use the plastic minnow holder with one variation. I take a drill and poke about thirty holes through the bottom. Has two advantages.
First. It allows the water to drain out after I lift it into the boat. After a long run to the bay I can guarantee that a minnow left in a holder with water won't be as healthy as mine that are damp.
Second. When I finish fishing that day I tie the holder to the boat and drop it over. Now because I have drilled the holes I get a real good flow through of water. This keeps a constant supply of oxygenated water flowing past the minnows.
This season I am making a nice wooden box to hold about a quart of minnows. Not that difficult to do and I know it's the best way to keep them healthy. No better way to attract a flounder than having a real healthy and excited minnow jumping all over the place when it hits the bottom.
If you use a livewell here is a little trick for live bait. I like to throw a few chips of ice in with the bait. Nothing like what I was talking about with the damp paper and ice. Live bait in any confined area like a livewell will be stressed out. Suddenly their world got real small and it's bouncing all over the place. A few pieces of ice will drop the water a degree or two and take the edge off. It almost acts like a sedative.
Another tip is that minnows can to a degree lighten and darken in color. I always keep about seven in a whits bucket with just a little water. Once out of the holder, box or livewell they will be dark. After a short time in the white bucket exposed to sunlight they will loose that dark color.
Now you have just what you want. The brightest looking minnow sticking out on a dark bottom. Just like the Slim Jim it's screaming "EAT ME"
Tho old minnow boxes we used to get when we rented a boat were the best. The wood absorbed the water and kept the minnows cool and moist when you had it in the boat. The top of the box hept the sunlight off the minnows again keeping them cool.
Now everyone uses the plastic minnow keepers with the swing hinged door. Works but not as good as the old box. In fact the plastic minnow keepers have probably killed more minnows than fish caught using them.
Buy a pint or quart and you have bait for a day. We fall into the trap that a minnow in water is doing fine. They aren't. Stick a pint or more into a small container like that with some water and you can sufficate them real fast.
In a matter of a few minutes the minnows will have used up all the oxygen in the water. You can see them at the surface gulping for air. Leave them that way too long and they die. Then the bait shops get blamed for bad bait.
I know a few fisherman who left the dock for a run out to Delaware Bay. When they arrived all their minnows were dead. Floating in the live minnow keeper.
The minnows would do better in the holder with no water and just damp. A shaded damp wooden minnow box is the ticket.
I know someone will jump in here about keeping minnows on damp paper with ice underneath. This way also works but has one drawback. Minnows like all fish are cold blooded. They can take extremes but not sudden changes. Take a minnow that is near ice and on cold wet paper then throw it into 70 degree water. The shock can kill it or at least do a number on its nerves so it can barely swim.
I do use the plastic minnow holder with one variation. I take a drill and poke about thirty holes through the bottom. Has two advantages.
First. It allows the water to drain out after I lift it into the boat. After a long run to the bay I can guarantee that a minnow left in a holder with water won't be as healthy as mine that are damp.
Second. When I finish fishing that day I tie the holder to the boat and drop it over. Now because I have drilled the holes I get a real good flow through of water. This keeps a constant supply of oxygenated water flowing past the minnows.
This season I am making a nice wooden box to hold about a quart of minnows. Not that difficult to do and I know it's the best way to keep them healthy. No better way to attract a flounder than having a real healthy and excited minnow jumping all over the place when it hits the bottom.
If you use a livewell here is a little trick for live bait. I like to throw a few chips of ice in with the bait. Nothing like what I was talking about with the damp paper and ice. Live bait in any confined area like a livewell will be stressed out. Suddenly their world got real small and it's bouncing all over the place. A few pieces of ice will drop the water a degree or two and take the edge off. It almost acts like a sedative.
Another tip is that minnows can to a degree lighten and darken in color. I always keep about seven in a whits bucket with just a little water. Once out of the holder, box or livewell they will be dark. After a short time in the white bucket exposed to sunlight they will loose that dark color.
Now you have just what you want. The brightest looking minnow sticking out on a dark bottom. Just like the Slim Jim it's screaming "EAT ME"