Powerbait- PowerGREAT

This post pains me to write. I've said before that using powerbait is my least favorite way to catch trout. If I had my way trout would only hit flies on either a fly rod or spinning rod with a casting bubble. Catching a trout on flies even in a put and take fishery makes you feel like you caught a wild fish no different than a largemouth or striped bass. Catching a trout on powerbait makes you remember the fish you just caught was in a hatchery living on corn meal and vitamins a couple of weeks ago.

That said, I would rather catch fish than not catch fish. If catching fish means using powerbait, then so be it. Usually I use one rod with powerbait on the bottom and I cast lures with the other rod. Occasionally, the lures will catch more trout than the powerbait, but not often. I will usually start the lure rod with casting bubble/ fly. I will always catch more species with this set up, but usually less trout.

So I am giving credit where it is due ( this is painful) and saying that in general powerbait may be the best trout catching thing out there. This includes live bait such as worms and shiners. The problem with worms is they sit on the bottom. Powerbait floats. If you use the powerbait with an egg sinker and an 18 inch leader, it floats off the bottom and above early spring weeds. This makes it deadly for trout cruising along the bottom. I believe it also easily outfishes shiners for trout. Trout brought up in a hatchery never hunted before, so given the choice of chasing a shiner or eating a pellet that smells a lot like what they are used too, its a no brainer.

The main negative to powerbait is- a trout is almost certainly going to swallow the hook. If you do not plan on keeping ( eating) what you catch it is a terrible idea to use it. Almost every trout I have hooked using powerbait has been gut hooked. If I plan on keeping some fish for the table I will use powerbait. Once I have reached my limit ( 3 trout in Mass, 5 in Rhode Island- although I never keep 5) I put the powerbait rod away. If I still feel like fishing, I will use the lure rod and let go everything else I catch. So I beg you not to use powerbait unless you plan on eating the fish. There is no reason to kill anything if it is only going to waste. No matter if you are holding the rod feeling for a bite or standing next to it, if the trout wants to inhale it, you won't be able to stop it. It may be interesting to experiment with a circle hook, however since most of the hook is covered, it may be a moot point. Can't hurt to try.

There are many types of powerbait out there. There is paste you mold around the hook. There's power eggs, which are molded to the size of salmon eggs. There are also nuggets. These are cylinder shaped baits about 1/2 an inch. For the record, I use the chartreuse power nuggets. I have hits almost every time I use them. I see no need to clutter my box with other flavors/ colors.

An example of how effective the power nuggetts are was this morning. I went down to Falls Pond. As usually I set up one rod with power nuggets. With the other I was using an olive hares ear below my casting bubble. Within one hour I caught three trout on the powerbait. At that point I hadn't a hit on the fly. All three fish were gut hooked so all three will become fish tacos in my near future. I put the three trout in the car and I put the powerbait away. I did not want to go over my limit and kill anymore fish. I kept fishing the fly and was determined to either catch fish with it or strike out swinging. I wasn't changing to a different lure.

After I put the other rod away, fishing got really good on the fly in the next 90 minutes I managed 5 fish. ONLY ONE WAS A TROUT. I caught 3 sunfish a calico bass and one trout about 12 inches long. So I caught more fish on the fly. If specifically fishing for trout however, powerbait won 3-1. and I put it away after an hour. I am sure I would have caught more trout if I didn't put it away.I had a lot more hits on the fly than I caught, the wind picked up. It was a cross breeze so setting the hook was a challenge. I do not think I had any other trout hits. A trout will hit a fly like a rocket, where as a sunfish hits the same as it hits a worm ,it feels like a sharp nibble.

The morale of the story, if you are looking for trout this weekend, put some powerbait on and watch your rod.