Does anyone have any sage advice for using bobbers and plastics or bobbers and dead bait? I have often wondered if the leech Gulps would work under a slip bobber...have never tried. Also have considered bobbers with dead preserved bait (shiners, fatheads, other).

My 9 year old daughter and I will be heading in for her maiden BWCAW voyage later this month. Figured slip bobber and artificial or dead bait would be an easy way to fish...I have a feeling I'll be dog tired most days...

Just bring leeches, they are easy if you bring a bucket style container, not those mesh bags. They can slip right though the mesh unless they are really big. I bring plenty of plastic with me, but nothing beats live. I have never tried dead bait, but always thought it was more for specific situations. I'd just stick to leeches and plastic.

Highly recommend bringing leeches. Pretty much as simple as carrying dead/preserved bait. Just throw them in a nalgene, change the water a few times a day and keep them out of the sun for prolonged periods and they will last a long time.

There are better ways to care for them but your post sounds like you want minimal added hassle.

Yep, I agree, just bring a 1/2 pound of live leeches. They are pretty hardy if you keep them out of the sun. I agree, the mesh bag is not good way to transport them but work well when fishing out of the canoe. I have a yellow screw top leech locker I use. It's old, so it the shorter version of what they sell now. The wife has tried Gulp leeches and minnows under a bobber, but you have to add some action to 'em by twitching it.

quote PikeEatPike: "Yep, I agree, just bring a 1/2 pound of live leeches. They are pretty hardy if you keep them out of the sun. I agree, the mesh bag is not good way to transport them but work well when fishing out of the canoe. I have a yellow screw top leech locker I use. It's old, so it the shorter version of what they sell now. The wife has tried Gulp leeches and minnows under a bobber, but you have to add some action to 'em by twitching it."

Well, to confuse matters, count me the odd man out. I HATE the plastic containers because too often I've had the lid come undone and lost my leeches...on top of that everytime you lift them out of the lake and into the canoe you get a cup of water in the boat. I prefer the mesh bag. Secondly, if the walleyes are biting...or pesky bass...a 1/2 pound of leeches won't last long at all. I bring a pound of jumbos for every 3 days, no less!

We actually did quite well with slip bobbers and gulp artificial leeches, but we were fishing below a set of rapids so the current added some "live" action for us.

If your fishing the BWCA don't even think abut going in with plastics or dead bait. You will realize your mistake very quickly as your daughter loses interest in fishing,...............maybe forever (what kind of Dad are you anyway? :)

Quality 6lb test, small hooks, leeches and slip bobbers will insure success and create some awesome memories.

I highly recommend real leeches.

I carry them in inside of a large yellow leech container and keep that at camp. I use a small yellow newsy bag when going out fishing.

Thanks all! I've done the leech locker in the past, but it's a pain on the portages. You have all convinced me to find a water tight carrier (nalgene, water bottle, etc.) for transport in, then transfer to the leech locker.

Thanks all!

i always bring in frozen sucker minnows(i layer them in a small 6-pack cooler) , more an early spring application , but it will catch fish year round in the bwca , a person could also add some frozen fathead minnows too.

As others have said, go with live leeches. Just make sure they are in a brightly colored container that won't get accidentally left behind at a portage. Not that anything like that has happened to me....but I hope the people that theoretically found those leeches put them to good use!

quote MOJO: "Thanks all! I've done the leech locker in the past, but it's a pain on the portages. You have all convinced me to find a water tight carrier (nalgene, water bottle, etc.) for transport in, then transfer to the leech locker.


Thanks all!"

Dump the water out of the leech locker before going across the portage, and refill it on the other side. Leeches just need to be kept damp and a 15-20 minute portage won't hurt them without water.
DO NOT FORGET to add water when getting to the other side!!!!!!

So this discussion is well-focused on leeches, for good reason. A few years backs, we brought leeches and night crawlers up for a 4 night trip over Memorial Day weekend. By the 4th day, the night crawlers had died and smelled horrendous. We went lake trout fishing on Moss Lake that day and my buddy decided to lace up one of the dead crawlers on a black jig head. We all dropped in our different rigs and drift-fished the lake. Sure enough, that stinky, dead crawler hooked the biggest lake trout of the trip!

Full disclosure...that was our first time successfully fishing for lake trout in b'dub so I'm not trying to pawn this advise off as expert. Just thought I'd share how those stinky, dead crawlers can still be very productive and shouldn't be discarded if they're the last 'live' bait available.