How to Hook Bait for Deep Sea Fishing

Deep sea fishing often relies on live bait, which remains the ideal way to hook a deep sea fish. It can be tricky to get a hook in the right part of a wriggling anchovy, however, and you need to do it properly to keep the bait alive (dead bait is rarely a draw to big fish).

Instructions

1. Learn the type of hook you want to use for the fish you're going after. Hooks come in all shapes and sizes, varying wildly not just by the fish but by the line you're using and the precise type of deep sea fishing you'll be doing. There is a general category of live bait hooks, but specifics still vary.

2. Determine what kind of bait works best for the fish you're going after and the hook or hooks you want to use. Certain fish respond to different kinds of bait. Small bait like anchovies range from 3 to 6 inches, larger bait like sardines can measure up to 9 inches and the biggest types of bait grow to be 1 foot or longer.

3. Locate the four basic positions to hook your bait: the nose, the gills, along the back (taking care to avoid the dorsal fins) and under the belly.

4. Assess your bait's size. Determine the best place to hook it so that the bait remains alive and wriggling. Hook small bait like anchovies, through the nose or the gills; hooking it further down the body will likely kill it. Hook bigger baits on the back, though the gills and nose work well, too. Hooking the bait underneath its body will allow it to swim deeper, enabling you to land fish who don't normally stray near the surface.

5. Hook the bait firmly. Keep it connected while causing as little damage as possible to the bait. The setting depends on such things as the kind of fish you're pursuing and the size of your hook. Typically, you'll want to bait your hook right before you cast your line, though you may want to practice beforehand.