smerchly Posted March 27 Report Share Posted March 27 Way back in the 50's most of us used worms for bait . We like to find the red "leaf worms" for the local brook/brown/rainbow trout and 'dewies' for most other fish like perch , cats, carp , drum ect. For pike we used a chub under a float mostly and minnows or spinners like a Shyster for silver bass , and yellow Sallies with a worm for eyes and crayfish for bass . Things have really "evolved" ! We had no electronics until the invention of the scroll paper 'fish finders" and we thought that was incredible ! Look where we are now ! I'm posting this since I just let our dog out to water the grass and the worms are like a plate of spaghetti on the grass & you could not take a step without squashing a worm . At $5 per dozen I could get rich overnight ! lol BTW , my backyard never gets chemicals spread on it ,only mulched grass and finely mulched leaves in the fall . I'll soon be out there tossing my own home made and Ugli Boys harnesses for some local eyes in April since pike will be closed for about 6 weeks. Memories ! Bubba14 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisb Posted March 27 Report Share Posted March 27 I haven't heard 'yellow sallies' anywhere before except from my long gone old fishing partner for yellows and blues on Lake Erie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted March 27 Report Share Posted March 27 Sorry “port d” I deleted your post. It was double posted but both posts got deleted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted March 27 Report Share Posted March 27 Remember when tackle shops sold frogs?🐸 🐸 Might have to give some live bait a go this season. honeyv 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 27 Author Report Share Posted March 27 1 hour ago, Tyler0420 said: Remember when tackle shops sold frogs?🐸 🐸 Might have to give some live bait a go this season. Frogs , leeches , maggots , grubs , and we used live hellgrammites (dobsonfly) for trout that could bite I also tried the white June bug larva but no luck with them ....maybe carp would take with with a little hot sauce added .... At one time there was a NICE trout stream just east of GM and west of the old canal (Gate 12) .It was stocked with browns and also had pike, carp & pannies . We used spoons & chubs(floats) for pike and leaf(manure) worms and grasshoppers for trout . It was sad to see that little stream filled over with the Haulage Rd. I have 20 fat 'dewies' waiting for a bath when Ms.Nature gets over her hissy fit . Fish Farmer 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Port_D_Guy Posted March 27 Report Share Posted March 27 8 hours ago, Tyler0420 said: Sorry “port d” I deleted your post. It was double posted but both posts got deleted. It was an FYI to Smerchly about walleye not being open on Lake O until 1st Saturday in May, but open year round on Lake E. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 27 Author Report Share Posted March 27 32 minutes ago, Port_D_Guy said: It was an FYI to Smerchly about walleye not being open on Lake O until 1st Saturday in May, but open year round on Lake E. Thanks for the heads up PDG , I haven't got the 2024 reg.book but I check the regs for zone 16 and 20 on line before getting my gear ready for the next fish to target . When I use my 3 way harnesses with worms I have caught cats ,drum and trout as well ,and the occasional oos bass . I love the fight with my 10' Okuma rod . Port_D_Guy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted March 27 Report Share Posted March 27 16 minutes ago, smerchly said: Thanks for the heads up PDG , I haven't got the 2024 reg.book but I check the regs for zone 16 and 20 on line before getting my gear ready for the next fish to target . When I use my 3 way harnesses with worms I have caught cats ,drum and trout as well ,and the occasional oos bass . I love the fight with my 10' Okuma rod . I can’t wait to get the harnesses out for some Walter’s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Farmer Posted March 28 Report Share Posted March 28 19 hours ago, Tyler0420 said: Remember when tackle shops sold frogs?🐸 🐸 Might have to give some live bait a go this season. 17 hours ago, smerchly said: Frogs , leeches , maggots , grubs , and we used live hellgrammites (dobsonfly) for trout that could bite I also tried the white June bug larva but no luck with them ....maybe carp would take with with a little hot sauce added .... At one time there was a NICE trout stream just east of GM and west of the old canal (Gate 12) .It was stocked with browns and also had pike, carp & pannies . We used spoons & chubs(floats) for pike and leaf(manure) worms and grasshoppers for trout . It was sad to see that little stream filled over with the Haulage Rd. I have 20 fat 'dewies' waiting for a bath when Ms.Nature gets over her hissy fit . One not on your list of passed baits was Soft Shelled Crabs. Funny you mention Bill about the Yellow Sally, that was my dad's favorite bait fishing Erie Pickeral out of Port Maitland and rented a steel boat there From Clays Bait and boat rentals and he sold Snapping Turtles to people that ate them. 👍😃 OOOHHH the Good Old Days.👍😃 Tyler0420 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 28 Author Report Share Posted March 28 Oh yes Dave the 'crayfish' ! We had a few spots to easily catch dozens of them , like a local pond just down the street , and at beside the old canal beside GM Glendale there was a long strip of ponds that were loaded with soft crayfish . The bass loved them , and now we use tubes and Senkos ,ect. And one day we caught 3 snappers in a stinky pond ,took them to a Chinese restaurant on St. Paul St. and he gave us $1.50 !! That was good money then (1955) as we were paid $7.50 per thousand dew worms from a dealer on Cushman Rd. At 15 two of us picked worms all night , hence I'm now a pro-dewie picker. As the song says "Those were the days my friend , those days will never end ( in our minds) 18 hours ago, Tyler0420 said: I can’t wait to get the harnesses out for some Walter’s. When fishing for eyes at Deseronto we had good luck using the floating Gum Drops . We used half a dew worm for scent and rigged them on a 3 way with a small spinner in front of Gum Drop . It is a very light rig and easy to fish water 35 ft. deep or more and we also used bottom bouncers for weights . We used twice as many worms with a regular worm harness as the pesky perch would rob you in seconds . The Gum Drops would catch those little perch and save your worms. I think trout would hit them too. They come in various sizes . Fish Farmer 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted March 28 Report Share Posted March 28 9 minutes ago, smerchly said: Oh yes Dave the 'crayfish' ! We had a few spots to easily catch dozens of them , like a local pond just down the street , and at beside the old canal beside GM Glendale there was a long strip of ponds that were loaded with soft crayfish . The bass loved them , and now we use tubes and Senkos ,ect. And one day we caught 3 snappers in a stinky pond ,took them to a Chinese restaurant on St. Paul St. and he gave us $1.50 !! That was good money then (1955) as we were paid $7.50 per thousand dew worms from a dealer on Cushman Rd. At 15 two of us picked worms all night , hence I'm now a pro-dewie picker. As the song says "Those were the days my friend , those days will never end ( in our minds) When fishing for eyes at Deseronto we had good luck using the floating Gum Drops . We used half a dew worm for scent and rigged them on a 3 way with a small spinner in front of Gum Drop . It is a very light rig and easy to fish water 35 ft. deep or more and we also used bottom bouncers for weights . We used twice as many worms with a regular worm harness as the pesky perch would rob you in seconds . The Gum Drops would catch those little perch and save your worms. I think trout would hit them too. They come in various sizes . I’ll try them out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyotehunter Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 Yellow Sally on a Junebug Spinner and a worm was the bait in the 50's and 60's for yellows and blues when my father trolled Lake Erie in a rowboat back then. For me dead frogs were the bait du Jour for pike and channel cats in the Welland River during the day and bowfins and channel cats after dark. Cubes of boiled potato with a leathery skin from sitting in the fridge were the bait of choice as a kid when fishing the Welland Canal in Port Robinson on the "Island". When a boat went through there would be a mad scramble to turn over rocks to catch crayfish for bass bait. Red worms from my grandmother's manure pile were for panfish. Now I have one tackle bag for livebait/panfish and another for the rest full of lures. Guess which one gets used the most........the first one! smerchly 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyotehunter Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 First post in a long time. Fell off a ladder at home last June 24th...broke left collarbone, 6 ribs and had a burst fracture of the L1 vertabrae. Didn't do much but hospital and therapy until Late December. Fishing and hunting didn't happen. Just finished 9 weeks doing contract work at Pickering and Darlington nuclear plants and this post has given me the itch to get out fishing. smerchly and Fish Farmer 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba14 Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 Sorry to hear about your mishap but glad that you've recovered and are getting back at it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smerchly Posted March 29 Author Report Share Posted March 29 Good to see you have recovered from those serious injuries . I remember the June Bug Spinner well and blues were plentiful locally . We caught bowfins locally during the day at various places , mostly on worms and some on lures, and Pointe au Baril for BIG bowfins which hit J-13 Raps ! One of our moose hunting members worked at the Darlington plant (Ozzie M.) There was 6 of us and I am the last man still kicking as the brother of Oz just passed last week . It seems like yesterday we were hunting the bush and having a great time together . BTW ...I have a big pile of clay that came from 10" post holes last year . I added some mulch and dirt and its now loaded with red worms . Be CAREFUL on those ladders ! My ladder went side ways while I was 15 ft. up in my huge apple tree . The ladder went left and I went right but managed to grab a branch as I fell down . I'm sure my daily banana helped save my hide ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyler0420 Posted March 29 Report Share Posted March 29 11 hours ago, coyotehunter said: First post in a long time. Fell off a ladder at home last June 24th...broke left collarbone, 6 ribs and had a burst fracture of the L1 vertabrae. Didn't do much but hospital and therapy until Late December. Fishing and hunting didn't happen. Just finished 9 weeks doing contract work at Pickering and Darlington nuclear plants and this post has given me the itch to get out fishing. Hoping to see some fish pics soon. I’m glad you recovered from the injuries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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