LIP GRIPPER HUNGRY FISH LOVE THE SMELL
OF FISH ATTRACTANTS. PHOTO: RIC BURNLEY
ADDING SCENT TO YOUR LURES IS LIKE RINGING THE DINNER BELL [M U LTI-S P ECI E S]
STINKY BAITS
What is that smell? Fish slime may stink to landlubbers but it is the sweet smell of success for kayak anglers. Now, anglers have a new reason to embrace the stench. Modern fish attractants employ high-tech scents and flavors to bring fish to the lure and keep them hooked. Here are a few pro favorites for adding some stink to the bait. DREW HAERER
MATT FRAZIER
North Carolina guide Matt Frazier (www.face-
book.com/livingwaterout- fitters) uses Hog Tonic by PowerTeam lures for largemouth and small- mouth bass. “You may lose friends because it
really stinks,” he jokes. In addition to giving off garlic scent (a proven fish-favorite), Hog Tonic is made with amino acids that fish need to survive. When a bass bites Frazier’s lure, the fish senses the amino acids and won’t let go. Frazier, a Na- tive Kayaks pro, sprays the trailer and skirt of his jigs with Hog Tonic. The scent will last for hours before it needs to be reapplied. He even squirts scent on the bottom of his favorite topwater popper, which he claims results in a 100-per- cent hook-up ratio.
30…KAYAK ANGLER NICK DOUMEL
Hobie Fishing team mem- ber Nick Doumel (www.
brookfieldangler.com)
can
be found searching Lake Michigan for king salmon and brown trout. To fire up the bite, Doumel jigs scent- ed plastics. "The scented
bait keeps a brown trout hanging on long enough for me to get the hook buried,” he explains. He rigs a 3.5- inch StankX Damsel and Swimz baits with a 1/2- to 1/4–ounce darter head to jig on 14-pound-test fluo- rocarbon line. When salmon are tight-lipped, Doumel turns to a four-inch Fishing Physics swimbait soaked in herring cure. “The scent is made from real amino acids and worm enzymes, herring, squid, salmon eggs and shrimp.” The solution is water-based, so it mixes with water instead of floating to the surface like an oil-based scent.
CHAD BRITTON Chad Britton of Deep 6 Fishing Team uses a vari- ety of scents, cures, gels and brines to add scent to natural and artificial baits when bottom fishing off of the California coast. “Ling- cod and rockfish can’t re-
sist Butt Juice Super Gel,” he says. He even adds artificial scent to natural squid and anchovies to bring in halibut and sea bass. "The artificial scent adds to the bait's natural smell and taste," he ex- plains, "and I can add scent as the bait washes out." Britton fills a sealable bag with a day’s worth of nickel-size squid chunks and Butt Juice, then freezes the marinade overnight. He tips his swim jigs with a chunk of juiced squid. “The fro- zen squid absorbs gel as it thaws and releases the scent longer.”
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