Bait vs. Lures Take II – Which is Best for Striped Bass?

Which is better when you’re trying to catch striped bass: live baits, or soft plastic lures? The bait-versus-lures debate is an old one, which we first addressed with regards to flounder fishing, in the pilot for a new series called Got Bait? And in Got Bait? The Hunt for Flounder, the results were quite surprising… but what happened in Got Bait? The Search for Stripers, is down-right shocking.

The competition included a full day of fishing with Team Bait using live spot in the four to five inch range. Team Lures was casting lead-head jigs with five-inch BKD (Bass Kandy Delight) soft-plastic tails, of various colors. The anglers fished in a multitude of different hot-spots, depths, and conditions. Now, obviously, I’m not going to tell you which won, bait or lures. That would be a massive “spoiler”. But I can tell you that it wasn’t just a mere win, it was a slam-dunk. Dozens of fish were caught before one of the teams threw in the towel, accepted defeat, and defected to the other side just to feel a bend in their rods.

You think you know which is better, bait or lures? Well, so did I. But I really learned a lot, in this one. And, I learned a lot when we hit on this species in detail; in this episode, we found out how a fish hears and senses vibrations with its lateral line, and how to apply that knowledge to fishing. Then there were the segments on how to rig a live baitfish so it swims either up or down as you choose – without adding weight. And there’s a spot on how to “hot-rod” a lure, too. Cool stuff – check it out!