Hi Guys,

What do you guys think of this synthetic Gulp Alive stuff? Do you really think it's as good as live bait? If so, specifically which Gulp minnow or bait have you had good luck with?

Seeing is believing. I'm done bringing live bait on my spring trips.
GULP! 3-inch leeches and minnows.

It's a real close second in my experience. Nothing beats live, though.

I think it is like any bait. Sometimes they prefer minnows, crawlers, leeches----sometimes you can do better on plastics like GULP. I've also had times where just a twister tail out produced live bait and GULP.

I don't think it is a slam dunk, but definitely in my arsenal.

T

quote Southpa: "It's a real close second in my experience. Nothing beats live, though."

Very true, but screw the weight and hassle of live bait on a long canoe trip. Gulp is great.

I take both. I think live bait is the most reliable in all weather patterns. Gulp works best for me when I am moving the bait around.

I personally don't think its close. Live bait kills Gulp. I have made several trips to the Quetico since "the Ban" hoping to prove myself wrong and it aint gonna happen. Now I am strickly talking walleyes.

quote BWVet: "I personally don't think its close. Live bait kills Gulp. I have made several trips to the Quetico since "the Ban" hoping to prove myself wrong and it aint gonna happen. Now I am strickly talking walleyes. "

Had the opposite finding in the Quetico last year. We were in Brent, Conmee, and William, and absolutely killed the walleyes. We drift/trolled Gulp leeches and rainbow shiners on spinner rigs.

I believe the bite is dependent, among other things, on the number of fish in the area of the jig. If there is competition for an offering, the artificial can work pretty good. If the number of fish is less, they may be a little more picky, just 'cause they're not afraid that a nearby fish will grab it first. I relate this to a sort of "boarding house dinner table" scenario. When the seats are all full around the table, everyone may be quick to fill their plate, whereas a person seated alone might be more picky about what looks good.

On a Gulp note, I have found that Gulp has worked better than some other similar plastics in situations where the fish are plentiful. The good looking stuff around the table probably will still be what is taken first.

Watch your Aquaview while sitting over a hot hole. You could drop down a plain hook with a piece of leaf and catch them if there's competition.

Griswold that is a great analogy. When the fish are plentiful and biting and conditions are right everything seems to work. When conditions are tough live bait seems to outproduce the artificial. You just have to decide for yourself is it worth the extra work involved in bringing live bait. Good fishing all!!!

The angler has a lot to do with success of artificials vs live bait. Anyone can let a minnow/leech swim under a float but working an artificial takes some real practice an experimentation to get good at it... Not difficult to figure out just more practice.