THE ZOMBIE THE ZOMBIE

Flicking Line

MMY FIRST INTRODUCTION to using expired baitfish was decades ago, sitting in a tin boat on a weedy back bay with my great-grandfather. He first started chasing muskies long before the sportfishing industry began producing specialized tackle specifically designed for the species. He used the heaviest rod and line he had, with a big single hook hanging under a red-andwhite spring bobber. His bait of choice? A hefty sucker minnow, dead or alive. In fact, he’d boated more muskies than he could count on dead bait. That blew my 10-year-old mind! If you could fool the king of our freshwater lakes and rivers with a dead minnow, I wondered, what other fish could you catch with them? I’ve been finding out ever since.

Most freshwater anglers know that soaking large dead baits such as ciscoes and suckers can be an effective static presentation for pike and muskies, or when targeting large bottom-feeders such as channel cats or sturgeon. Once you downsize your dead minnow offerings, however, you can also catch a wide variety of other sportfish, including bass, walleye and trout. After all, those dead shiners in your bait bucket already have an enticing scent and profile—they just need a little help in the action department to catch fish consistently. Here’s how to put those pesky (and expensive) floaters to good use.

Iheads Or Tails

IF YOU HAVEN’T tried it, it’s hard to believe how little action you need to impart on a dead minnow to elicit a strike. With just a few flicks of your finger against the taut line between your reel and the first eye of the rod, you can make those boring floaters jump to life in a vertical presentation. Short, fast tugs on the line with your trigger finger produce the same effect. Hooking a minnow through the lip on a standard jig, for example, allows it to move freely and respond to even the lightest flick of the line.

I’ve used this technique to great effect jigging for walleye, sauger, perch, panfish and all species of stocked trout. It’s even worked for deepwater summer lakers when the trusty old white tube jig wasn’t producing over marked fish. Similarly, the flick trick works gangbusters with a dead floater hooked through the lip when drop-shotting for smallmouth bass and other species. Pick a flick pattern, repeat it, then change it up from time to time, just as you would when normally jigging.

ICE ANGLERS OFTEN skewer severed minnow heads or tails to Jigging Rap-style baits and small spoons for added scent. Heads and tails are also great for open-water presentations, so don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty hooking them onto any number of baits for jigging, trolling or chucking.