You dont often hear of anglers talking of using natural bait or artificial bait especially when fishing inshore. What you dont hear much about is using a combination of artificial and natural baits on the same rod. The offshore crowd has been doing this for years when they take a ballyhoo and run it behind a nice flashy skrit. Not only can they provide more color, but they can also provide different movement and actions with the artificial skirts.
The same can be done with inshore fishing. Taking a live mudminnow or finger mullet and attaching it to a grub can be a great combination in certain situations. You are able to combine the scent and appearance of the live bait, while also providing the color and action of an artificial lure. This method will allow you to give many different types of presentation and give you more options than fishing a plain mudminnow or finger mullet by itself.
This combination does not always work with all natural baits. If you are using a live shrimp while repeatedly casting, you will more than likely end up pulling the shrimp off of the hook. You can however take a piece of shrimp and sweeten the hook with it. his is very effective especially with a artificial lure with plenty of action, like a curly tail grub. This method also works very well if you are using an artificial under a popping cork.
When you head out on the water keep in mind that trying different combinations can offer some surprising results and as the old saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Andy Pickett
CharlestonFishing.Com</font id=“blue”>