CREATURE BAITS

You can buy all sorts of weird and wonderful creature lures, from some that imitate crayfish and nymphs, right up to ducks! All will catch fish, not because they fool the fish into thinking they are eating their natural food, but because they stimulate the hunting instinct.

Obviously, this means some will be more successful than others and, for me, action is always key. Forget what the lure looks like, if it has the right action it will catch fish. Action normally comes from using soft materials, so look for lures that are very flexible, often with tails and claws that move when the lure is retrieved.

Crayfish imitations are particularly good, but the ones that I favour are not the most lifelike.

Far from it, they barely resemble anything at all, but they have a great action in the water, even when fished slow and with a stop-start pattern of retrieve.