Peculiarities of predator fishing in snags

Predatory fish is the main target of any fan of spinning fishing. It is much more cunning than its “vegetarian” brethren and spends most of its life in various hiding places, camouflaging its presence.

Types of these underwater “invisible cloaks” for predators can vary – it is stones, berms, dumps, uneven bottom, all kinds of vegetation and even traces of human civilization in the form of various debris. But the main from the point of view of fishing shelter for predators – of course, snags.

They can be thin twigs that have fallen from trees, flooded bushes, even the trees themselves, stumps, etc. and so on.

All of them are united by a high probability of a predator bite and no less high snagging and loss of bait.

The presence of snags in the reservoir significantly increases confidence in success and narrows the circle of search for predators. Often your fishing should begin with the snags!

But what bait is best to choose for this purpose and how to reduce the likelihood of its snagging will try to understand below.

For fishing in snags you can use the three most popular types of spinning baits: rubber, wobblers and blades.

Rubber

The first and most popular type is rubber. It has several obvious advantages – the lowest price of all, high unhookability, softness, the possibility of using bottom wiring.

Its main advantage, in my opinion, is financial. From the point of view of hitting the fisherman’s pocket silicone lures out of competition. The cost of an average equipped jig bait is often times 5 times lower than even cheap Chinese blades and 10 of these wobblers.

This is a consumable material and the loss of rubber affects the least. But you still don’t want to tear it off… And to avoid unintentional losses, you should approach the choice of baits and their rigging wisely.

The main rule of jig fishing in snags is an offset hook and only it! It sounds unappealing, but in my experience it is superior to all others.

Options for rigging silicone bait for fishing in snags largely depend on its shape and structure.

The most suitable type of rubber for such purposes – “fluted” wobbletails (there are few other types of rubber), ie they have a part of the body or its entire length protrude silicone spurs.

The most striking examples are different variations of Swing Impact and Awaruna from different manufacturers. They are the standard of baits of the described type.

The point in their use is that the sting of the offset hook is fixed in the silicone spurs of the rubber and, thus, is protected from snags.

The next no less successful type of rubber is its “edible” representatives. Such silicone should have a very high softness. Leaders – Japanese brands Keitech and Sawamura, but many others will do.

High softness provides good results of hookups, so such baits can be equipped with offset hooks of small sizes: less than we usually put with rubber of similar size.

In this case, the protection is the body of the rubber, tightly wrapped around the sting of the hook.

In this case, some silicone makes it possible to even hide the stinger inside, without a big loss in the effectiveness of hooking. Most often these are various worms with a thin body (for example, Tsuribito Toshiki) and when jerking the stinger has to pass a couple or three millimeters to go outside, to sink into the mouth of the fish.

A similar way to increase unhookability is possible with ordinary edible rubber. To do this, you should slightly hook the stinger of the hook part of the silicone body of the bait.

And another excellent way of protection – the use of rubber with special grooves in the body for offset hooks. They can be located at the bottom (e.g. Bass Assassin Die Depper), at the top(Pontoon 21 / Kosadaka Awaruna) or on both sides(Keitech Easy Shiner).

With the jigs, in general, finished, but what about the method of fishing and wiring?

In my opinion, jig is out of competition! Leash jigs can also be used, but hooks will be much more, what form of weights do not apply … Tested more than once, the weight, the bait will periodically get stuck in the branches and deprive the fisherman of valuable time and no less valuable nerves.

But here rig-jig is quite suitable for these purposes. It is also an offset hook with bait, but instead of coupling them directly with the load, we cling them together with a clasp.

The weight can be of any shape, but the least number of hooks with shapes like “pear” and “banana”.

Such a mounting loses in the throwing range, but when fishing in snags it is rarely necessary, more often the fishing is localized.

Applied to the jig, everything is similar, the load – collapsible “cheburashka”, better flattened shape, like “fish head” or “passerby”.

Conduct such baits can be different ways. The rule is one – slowly. Shoals suggest a lot of dangers, so any sudden movement with a high probability will lead to a fiasco.

The most effective wiring I consider the slow dragging of the bait on snags with pauses and tapping on them.

Wobblers

Despite the fact that outwardly wobblers look like a dream of any snags, expecting to replenish their collection, they are also applicable in such fishing.

But unlike rubber, fishing with wobblers is not in direct contact with them, but near and around, and the purpose of their use is to lure the predator out of them both at close range and at a certain distance.

In this, the fisherman is helped by the noise emitted by wobblers, the peculiarities of their game, vibration.

The sound component is very important in wobbler fishing. It can make the fish come out of its lair even a few meters away.

Most often these are jerk wobblers of the class “minnow” and “shad”. For successful fishing with them is used jerk wiring with pauses, maximally close to snags.

The brightest representatives of “noise” wobblers – Deps Balisong Minnow 100 and 130, O.S.P. Asura Rudra Jerkbait 130 and Varuna 110, Jackall Mag Squad 115 and 128, Lucky Craft Pointer 100 and 128, Evergreen Sidestep 95 and 117 and others.

Features of the game can be different, such as pronounced residual oscillations (rolling), neutral buoyancy (ability to hang in the water column), the lack of sound produced (quiet wobblers).

Rolling and neutral buoyancy (SP) combine perfectly and bring the highest results in “snag” fishing.

In addition to noise and residual vibrations when fishing in snags, between branches can help small and medium-sized wobblers with not sprawling game. Among them I would single out:

– “shads” (for example, ZipBaits Khamsin 70, Kosadaka Inborn XS 60, Pontoon Greedy-Guts 77, etc.), having a very active game, which can be animated almost on the spot, more often jerk wires and pauses;

– “cranky” (as an option, Itumo Samba 100F, Strike Pro Cranky X-50, Megabass Griffon), with a bright game and the possibility of using jerk wiring, when the jerks wobbler turns almost 180 degrees – wiring is very slow and tempting for the predator;

– “compound / swimbaits” (for example, Savage Gear 4Play Liplure, Jackall Giron, Strike Pro Glider), the essence of which dying wiring in one point to lure fish out of snags, as wiring – single jerks with long pauses;

– “dips” (suitable Tsuribito Deep Diver Minnow 60, Strike Pro Archback 60DL, ZipBaits Orbit 65MR-S), which at the expense of its shovel beat off falling knots and branches, and most importantly quickly deepen and a couple of jerks are enough for the predator to show itself.

Catching in snags described wobblers more often passes a little closer than “noise”. There are also among them “rattles”, but here in the first place is the game, animation of the bait in close proximity to snags, sometimes even in contact with them.

To improve the unhookability of wobblers without losing the effectiveness of nibbles can be applied one way: replace the tees on doubles. We do this without the help of crown rings, and directly put the doubles on the loop wobbler stinger back and fix them with a thread (you can braid), and fix the top paint, varnish or glue. When striking branches in front of the wobbler, it will be perfectly protected.

Blades

Of course, it will not do without good old classics. Blades can be no less effective when fishing in snags.

First of all, specialized “unhooked” from the clan of oscillating blades are suitable for this purpose. This is a classic “oscillating”, only not with the usual tee, separated from the bling itself by a crown ring, but on the contrary with a tightly soldered to the body of the bling hook – single or double.

In this case, the main point is to protect the hooks with wire or thick flurocarbon, which are pressed through at the bite, and the fish is caught.

Wiring of such blades takes the best of both jigs and wobblers. That is, it is possible to throw baits in the very “wilds”, knock on snags, slow dragging (jig), as well as their active animation along snags, the use of jerk wobblers (wobblers).

Such blades can be purchased ready-made (eg, Rapala Minnow Spoon, Strike Pro Killer Pike), and build your own.

To do this is not difficult, for this you can use various versions of inexpensive blades from Russian and Chinese manufacturers and connect them with a pre-cut hook with the help of a soldering iron.

Spinning blades can also help us in such fishing.

Firstly, vibration – blades with a large petal like Mepps Aglia of large sizes create a killing vibration and lure predators from a distance, in addition, additionally protecting the tee.

To increase the passability of the bait can replace it with a single hook, put a silicone bait on it or put a fly.

These simple methods are great for fishing in snagged areas and will help to facilitate fishing in such difficult conditions, and most importantly – to catch the coveted trophy!