Bait

Bait is one of the most important elements in fishing, the conditions and the choice of the bait will determine the outcome of your fishing session. Make it a habit to match the bait you are using with the location and the species you intend to target. Before starting to fish have a look at the natural bait present in the area such a tiny shrimps or clams and this will give you a hint of what will be the right choice for that location. 

Rag Worms

Rag worms is by far one the best bait an angler can use when shore fishing. Most fish cannot resist to the temptation of live worm properly presented on the hook. The frantic motion of the worm and the scent it releases in the water makes it an irresistible attraction for all bottom dwelling species  driving them to attack your bait without any hesitation.

Live Shrimps & Yabbies

Live shrimps and yabbies give the best results when fishing close to the bottom because it is there that they are more likely to be found in nature.

Being delicate bait, special care has to be taken when casting so as not to damage the bait with violent casts and or heavy weights.

Prawn

Prawn is very versatile as it can be put whole for big bait presentations or else cut (with the use of a knife or clippers) into smaller pieces to match the size of the hooks.

Squid

Squid has thougher flesh than prawn and is mostly used for deeper waters or in combination with other baits. There are two main ways how to present squid as hook bait:

1) it can be hooked whole on large hooks targeting species such as Grouper, Scorpionfish and Moray eels or,

2)It can be cut into smaller pieces or strips, for bottom dwelling species for smaller hook presentations.

Clams

This bait is mostly used on sandy beaches where they are the natural diet for many species such as Marmora, Bream, and Pandora. Good results are also obtained when fishing on rocky bottoms having a chance to target most of the bottom dwelling species.

Ground Bait

Ground bait is used to attract fish and bring them closer into the area you are fishing. This also drives the different species to compete for food eventually making it more easy to disguise your hook bait and eventually get more bites. It is not necessary to use ground bait always, but when fishing for shoal fish this becomes an important part of the fishing action.

Live White Bait

For most predotory species the best bait remains the good old live fish. This can be anything from a sardine, to a shad, to a little mullet. Hungry Barracuda and Bonito simply cannot resist to the sight of an injured fish that cannot get away. It might sound like a paradox but it is not uncommon that it’s actually harder to catch the bait fish than it is to catch the large fish.

Artificial Bait

Artificial bait can be anything from minnow lure, to squid and flashing spinners resembling bait fish. In most cases this category of bait is more effective from boat even if in recent years spinning (a technique used when fishing with artificial lures) has led to good results when fishing for Barracuda and Skipjack.

Another type of artificial lures are small jigs used for Squid. During the winter months large shoals of squid (also known as Calamari) migrate to the shallow coastal waters making it possible to catch this elusive species also from shore.