5 Awesome Live Bait Alternatives That Every Ice Angler Should Know!

[@WeckerleOutdoors]

Another good livebait alternative that you don’t have to keep alive is raw or cooked shrimp 🍤 🦐 ! Perch, Panfish, Walleye, Pike, and Trout love it. 👍🏼 Nice video, good luck fishing and stay safe on the ice!

[@calebwistad]

I’ll have to try em!

[@robertanderson3802]

Final went out today. 6 inches in the dells area. 2 man limit of crappie. Great start

[@calebwistad]

Awesome!

[@nickmiresse7755]

What lake delton? Those white crappies are so soft I couldn't even flip them in the pan without out falling apart. Went out to long L and stacked the gills today

[@ThuDuongCanadaChannel]

Thank you for sharing 5 live bait for ice fish so good ❤

[@calebwistad]

You bet!

[@BrianFerguson-z1r]

I used to take a eyeball out of the first fish I was going to eat. It would stay on a Swedish pimple all day!!

[@calebwistad]

Fish eyes are definitely a good tipping bait. Not legal everywhere though.

[@hotramen5952]

adding that feathered hook and hitting with scent is really thinking outside the box. gonna try that.

[@calebwistad]

It’s a great combo!

[@irkjustice5600]

One of my favorites is Gulp Fish Fry. They come in a little jar, and you can buy them in Chartreuse, or Pink colors (haven't seen any other colors). I've always had really good luck tipping ice jigs with those for Crappie, Perch, and Bluegill. They have that traditional Gulp scent, and the little tail adds just a hint of action when jigging. They're also pretty tough little baits.

[@calebwistad]

I bet those work great!

[@dougiemac8417]

New subscriber. Really enjoying your content. Thank you. 👍🏾👍🏾

[@calebwistad]

Thanks so much!

[@musc1esman]

I tried those beaver tail baits after seeing the presentation at last year’s ice fishing show. I had no luck on them each time I tried them. It bummed me out. They do stay on the hook very well and seem to hold scent good.

[@calebwistad]

Hmm, I’ve definitely done good on them. Maybe not for extremely finicky fish but definitely do the job in most conditions.

[@ballislifeali6985]

W video I needed this gonna try and hit the ice for the first time ever this season. Love from Minnesota

[@calebwistad]

Awesome and good luck!

[@lyinglowmovingslow]

I've used beaver tails before. Not much luck, but that was probably me, lol. I'm definitely going to check out the others, too. Thanks for the informative video.

[@calebwistad]

They definitely work!

[@lyinglowmovingslow]

​@calebwistad I found a guy on ebay from Wisconsin that makes a version. Guess he soaks them in anise scent. I'm going to try them out!

[@lowspeedhighdrag566]

Great video as usual.

[@calebwistad]

Thank you!

[@bloodlineadventures]

Great video! Thanks for sharing

[@calebwistad]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.

[@diamondmetalworks13]

Thanks for the tips. I always hate buying meals for one afternoon of fishing, knowing that I’m not getting back out again till the next weekend

[@calebwistad]

You bet! 👍

[@codybertram6122]

Clam silkies work good too but they can be pulled out of the rubber ball fairly easily. And the rubber ball is pretty tough so using it on a short or small shank hook makes it interfere with the hookup. I use it on vertical jigs and catch everything on it. The lenders tungsten shrimp is 🔥for trout no need to tip it they will eat it deadsticked

[@calebwistad]

Yes. I’ve used silkies before on vertical spoons as well. I mentioned that one in another video I uploaded earlier this year specifically for crappies.

[@markpalmer1112]

I will try a few of these options in the U.P next week

[@calebwistad]

Let me know how they work!

[@larrylefebvre2237]

I would add popcorn shrimp. At the end of the day if the fish are not hungry, you can always eat them yourself.

[@calebwistad]

Haha. True.

[@Bass_Fishing_101]

An infomercial I am very happy to find

[@calebwistad]

An “infomercial” might be a stretch as you are suggesting that I profit off the sales of all these lures. I do not. I happen to like good lures and showing people how to use them. I also definitely like to support small businesses that are run by good people. I know all of the owners of these companies personally and they all make great products.

[@Woodstock271]

That’s very cool. I’ve never ice fished even though I grew up in Wisconsin, but I remember live baits always being the best and most easily stolen off the hook. I graduated to lures in my teens, much to the disappointment of my mom, who stayed true to her cane pole and worms or live minnows. In California fishing saltwater, we’d use live grass shrimp or pile worms available at any bait shop. And again, you’d lose a lot more bait than the amount of fish you catch. Plus, the bait was more expensive than most anything you caught with it from shore. Still fun of course, but nobody was fishing with lures. I’d dragged my tackle box full of lures from Wisconsin all the way to California, just to be told they were useless unless you’re fishing freshwater. So live bait on a double hook drop shot rig was the way to go. Bummer. At least my Mepps spinners and Rapalas and Castmasters wouldn’t get rusty in the salt, so I kept them dry. I lived on boats in San Francisco Bay for 6 years and my lures from Wisconsin remained in pristine condition the whole time. Frustrating but kinda cool at the same time. Maybe they’ll be worth a lot as antiques since I couldn’t see using them in the foreseeable future. Then me and dad sailed his 30 foot Tahiti Ketch to Hawaii, and my tackle box from Wisconsin went along for the cruise. That’s about 4500 miles from Oshkosh now. To my surprise and delight, the Hawaiians used mostly lures from shore. Reef fish hit mostly top water baits or “squiggly tail” jigs running as fast as you can reel them. I showed my new fishing partner my lures from Wisconsin and he’d never seen anything like a Mepps spinner but assured me they would work. “Brah, deez fish hit anything you throw at dem. Day aggressive buggahs.” And yep, they nailed my Mepps and Rapalas and pretty much everything in my Wisconsin tackle box. (So much for keeping my Wisconsin lures as future antiques), as the hooks quickly went rusty. They use all stainless steel wire and hooks out there. All my Wisconsin lures were trashed within a couple weeks. The spinners wouldn’t spin after a while and the hooks were not even hooks anymore. So I replaced them with Hawaiian stainless lures but what we did was exactly like you’re doing in this video. Add a tough dead bait to the lures. Usually strips of squid for that scent trail and action but almost impossible for any reef fish to tear off the hook. 35 years of fishing lures in Hawaii and now I’m in Seattle. My Hawaiian lures won’t work here since these saltwater fish are cold and deep and it’s back to live bait again. Jigs work off the piers but you ain’t casting lures like in Hawaii or Wisconsin. Strange that Hawaii and Wisconsin style fishing has more in common than Washington in the salt. My new Seattle fishing buddy grew up here and showed me around all the lakes and ocean piers and I’d accumulated a bunch of lures in a new tackle box for freshwater and jigs for salt. I carried all this gear around but my buddy would only fish with night crawlers on a drop shot rig no matter if it was a lake or Puget Sound. He had one broken pole and crappy reel and a ziplock bag with a couple hooks, weights, and snap swivels. And a fresh carton of night crawlers. He didn’t have a clue how to fish with a lure and owned none. I’m outfitted for anything anywhere and he’d ask why I carried all my gear around? “Night crawlers work no matter what! You don’t need to lug around all that stuff.” And in freshwater he caught more trout on worms than I did on lures. And at the piers in the saltwater he caught everything on his damn worms! When he first cast a night crawler into the ocean I said, “How many saltwater fish have ever seen a worm before?” He shrugged, “Probably none, but that’s what I’m going with.” I shook my head. And he got the first bite, landed a 2 pound Rockfish. That’s a great eating fish and the whole pier of fishermen were curious because they haven’t caught a rockfish and asked what he was using? He shrugged, “Worms”. On his second cast with a fresh worm in the ocean, his rod tip started bouncing but slowly, like a steady tugging back and forth. He decided to set the hook and reeled in a keeper Dungeness crab! On a frigging worm! His hook went through one of the legs and it was all over. Nobody, I mean nobody, fishes with night crawlers in the ocean but he did better than anyone by far that night! It’s just too stupid to believe and no fisherman would copy his strange technique, including me. I’ve caught tons of crabs the proper way, I just can’t bring myself to throw a night crawler out there. It seems wrong. But, it worked. Anyway, your using tough dead bait like beaver tail on a lure while ice fishing just reminded me of pretty much everything in my life of fishing. Thanks so much for that, my fellow Wisconsinite. Aloha from Seattle. 🤙🏼

[@calebwistad]

Haha. That’s good stuff! I’ve definitely transferred a lot of my lure fishing techniques to fishing the Gulf of Mexico in Florida and found that they work excellent for redfish, snook, trout etc. I even caught a barracuda offshore on a figure 8 just like we do for Muskies here in WI. It followed my lure to the boat without striking and I just went straight into the fastest figure 8 I could possibly muster and that thing just annihilated the bait right at my rod tip. 😂

[@Woodstock271]

@ , Yeah man! Barracudas are nuts! I told my friend they were just saltwater Muskies and showed him old pictures of my pike and musky catches and he was amazed. “Wow brah, they look just like barracudas, and probably as crazy!” But nobody targeted barracuda since they were notorious for ciguatera toxin. Yet they’d hit anything you threw in the ocean, right there at the side of the boat. Not shy at all, and you’d see them follow a lure patiently to the boat. And like muskie, just mess around with the figure eight thing and they’d nail it right in front of you. Great times, and it’s cool that you were using Wisconsin-style techniques down in Florida. I always considered myself a professional fisherman because in Wisconsin, we had all these elaborate rigs and techniques. Yet in Hawaii, you’d catch fish on a length of surgical tubing with a couple hooks dangling behind it. Fishing is supposed be hard and involved but it sure wasn’t over there. When I was a surfer in Hawaii, we were of course wary of Tiger Sharks but really it was more common to be attacked by a barracuda. The rule was, don’t wear anything shiny while surfing. No rings or bracelets or silver necklaces. A barracuda will see that sparkle and bite your damn hand off! Saltwater Muskie. Thanks for sharing that, Caleb. You can take the boy out of Wisconsin but you can never take the Wisconsin out of the boy. Love your channel and learning things I’ll probably never use. Fishing is a lifelong passion no matter where you do it. Have fun and tight lines always my friend. 🤙🏼

[@Woodstock271]

@ , That’s exactly what I did in Hawaii. And yep barracudas are basically saltwater muskie. Caught tons of the monsters right at the boat because they act like muskie. Follow your lure right up to the boat and stare at it. Like, that thing is kinda boring. So you go crazy with it and then they’ll take it right in front of you like a muskie. Good times.

[@timothybyers]

Enjoyed the video. I worked with a woman years ago and she was fond of saying-""Fishing, one jerk on a line, waiting for a jerk, on the other end of the line".

[@calebwistad]

Haha. Classic!

[@TheNewMediaoftheDawn]

I make my own salted minnows, works 100% as well as fresh minnow pierces, I’ve done the same catching as a friend using live. I tip spoons and raps.

[@calebwistad]

That’s good to know. Might have to try it!

[@williampritchett9173]

How do you go about sorting your minnows

[@TheNewMediaoftheDawn]

@@williampritchett9173 I’m not sure what you mean by the word sorting?

[@woodsandwater123]

I think he meant "salting"

[@TheNewMediaoftheDawn]

@@woodsandwater123 ahh, place the minnows in an open faced bowl on a bed of salt, sea or kosher or picking, then add more salt on top and leave in the fridge for 5 days, or until dried, about 5 days. Then place minnows and some salt in a ziplock or small plastic jar to store at room temp. Then cut and use to tip. Lasts 1-3 years. Very cheap too, because you only use what you need, and don’t have to keep minnows alive.

[@colremy]

Are these scents good for walleye or sauger? And which ones do you recommend? thanks

[@calebwistad]

Yes. I really like the emerald shiner and nightcrawler for walleye and sauger.

[@mtcoiner7994]

You got me looking at beavers different now.

[@calebwistad]

😂

[@kurtiswilke2867]

What inline reel is that

[@calebwistad]

It’s my favorite one, the Clam Ice Spooler Elite.

[@patricklancour1196]

When we were kids grandpa would give us a can of corn for ice fishing. A jig tipped with a piece of corn and we would catch panfish all day.

[@calebwistad]

Interesting! Never tried corn.

[@DennisBorchardt]

We would use corn all the time when I was growing up on the Milwaukee River and it worked great, but I think we just used it for carp, I'll have to give it a try for panfish.

[@Steelheadwalleyemusky]

Minnow head rulez

[@calebwistad]

They work.

[@thefishfin-atic7106]

The problem with using scented products is that if the fish don't like the scent, you now have it on your fingers and everything you touch will have that scent on it too. Sometimes I wonder if that's why guys get skunked while everyone around them caught.

[@calebwistad]

It’s definitely trial and error on the scent. There are certain ones you learn to trust over time though.

[@johnhelms8226]

It seems that dressed trebles with Billy Rub would be a good combination. Thanks for the ideas!

[@calebwistad]

Yes. I’ve done that too! The only thing is that the paste scent almost completely stops the action of the feathers because they get gummed up. Still works though.

[@lloydeduncan3861]

Gulp has a lot of good fake bait as well

[@calebwistad]

For sure!

[@OetkenOutdoors]

What's your favorite of the 6 options?

[@calebwistad]

Boy, that’s a tough one. Depends on what species I’m targeting I guess. Panfish I’d have to say beaver tail. Gamefish Id say the double eye.

[@OetkenOutdoors]

@calebwistad I'll have to check them out.

[@sotaboy8040]

I've cut the tongue out of a fish before. Looks allot like a pork frog and works great

[@calebwistad]

Ha! That’s a new one. I’ve never heard of anyone using a fish tongue for bait. Cool!

[@mattress2331]

Boom!

[@calebwistad]

👏

[@BrianErisch]

Great commercial, fisheyes are free !

[@calebwistad]

Well, they are, but you have to catch that first fish somehow. 😂 Also, there are quite a few states/provinces where it is 100% illegal to use gamefish or panfish eyes for bait.

[@GT_Racer347]

What!? Heresy! lol. Try em all.

[@calebwistad]

😂

[@Steelheadwalleyemusky]

Cheena

[@calebwistad]

👍

[@kevinkaple3615]

I always tell anyone that will listen,too ALWAYS bring crawlers with you on the ice…saved the day too many times not to bring them

[@calebwistad]

I’ve never tried crawlers ice fishing. I really should though.

[@kevinkaple3615]

@ they don’t always work,but sometimes they work like magic,especially for perch and gills

[@freshandsaltyjohnny]

Live bait is for people who want fishing on easy mode. Real anglers use artificial only #Alo tackle Artificial Lures Only.

[@calebwistad]

I’ve definitely switched to primarily artificial lures these days but I still love to have some set lines out with live bait on them.

[@SteveStevens-h4v]

aaaaannnnddddddd they are out of stock

[@calebwistad]

Which one?