When it rains it pours – two outdoor magazines both had great coverage of using plastic lures for trout. Last summer, I tried using a small bass bait – a Gulp! Powerbait grub for trout to shake things up. After reading these two articles, I understand what I did wrong.

The articles both endorse using a small 3 inch long worm – both quoted the Berkley Gulp! brand made for trout (which I have never seen on a shelf) – or a naturally flavored grub or other small plastic bait like the Creme Angel Worm. Before using these, you should validate that it is legal to use a scented lure in the trout water you are targeting. If illegal, then use an unflavored variety like a Creme worm. You can even "match the hatch" with your selection - pick the type of grub looking thing that exists naturally in the environment

Rigging is the secret I missed last summer. All I did was hook a 2 inch black grub on a small bass hook and went for it. Turns out, you need to use a small number 8 hook and a small split shot. Thread the worm onto the hook so the point comes out in the lower third of the worm. The body of the worm will extend above the hook unto the line itself. Attach the split shot about 12 inches up from the worm and you are ready to go.   Looking at the pictures in the magazines, the hook is not texas rigged – it’s hanging out there waiting to get caught on a rock. The trick is that the Berkley Pwerbait worm should float a bit and the split shot will bounce off the bottom of the stream – keeping things pretty much in order.    According to the article, this rig will work just fine with spinning gear.

Where legal, you can also attach a power egg or other trout bait to the hook – and that will help to make it less likely to snag on a rock. Fish this thing just like you normally would – around rocks, into still pools, flows, stream junctions, downed trees – you get the picture. According to the articles, you should be able to feel the shot tap across the bottom (and they seem to imply that the noise it makes is a good thing) while a strike will feel like a gentle pull or a rapid tap, tap, tap. In any case, gently set the hook when you feel anything different.

I tried this out on a small stream - you can see how I rigged this up to the left.  I used a Gulp! 3 inch crawler - which was too big so I cut off an inch from the front.  Here's the guidance - don't use this on a small stream as it is too hard to cast with a spinning real and it gets hung everywhere.  Use it on larger pockets.  I did not catch any fish using this on Little Stony Creek - but that was a bad place for spin fisherman.  Maybe the stream is bigger with more pocket water farther up than I walked, but I did not see anything worth going back for on that body of water.

For more details, refer to the articles in the April issue of Outdoor Life (Tricking Trout) or the April-May In-Fisherman.(Trout Delights).