How Do You Prepare Fresh Herring For Bait?
Fresh herring is a popular bait when fishing for salmon, sea trout, halibut and other species. Herring are a natural food source of predatory fish and produce a strong, oily smell in the water, which serves as an attractant. Preparing fresh herring for bait depends on your planned fishing technique. Still-fishing requires different preparation than trolling deep water, for example. However you slice it, keeping the bait fresh is vital to the effectiveness of herring in the water. Step 1 Rig live herring for fishing in lakes and rivers by hooking the fish through the lips with the barbed of the hook pointed downward. As a variation, hook the herring through the meat just ahead of its tail and allow the fish to swim with the current. Step 2 Preserve the freshness of dead herring by making an incision with the fishing knife in the belly of the fish, cutting lengthwise from the anal fin to the center of the belly and removing the entrails. The stomach and intestines of a dead herring conta
