BY JOE BALOG
March brings a transition in the West Volusia outdoors, as we cycle into stable weather and the return of the heat. It’s a great time to fish for bass, as the shallows still hold a number of fish finishing up their rigorous spawning duties. Big female bass now feed heavily to regain their strength and weight.
For me, this is shiner season, a fishing technique relatively unique to Florida. While anglers across the country occasionally rely on live bait for bass, nowhere is the use of wild golden shiners so common as here. A historical hand-me-down, it’s the best way to catch a monster largemouth.
“Shiner fishing” confuses many anglers, as they assume there’s no skill involved and the magic baitfish do all the work themselves. It’s understandable considering the price of bait. Large wild shiners regularly cost a couple of bucks apiece.
You see, only wild-caught bait will do, driving up the price compared to farm-raised minnows. An engrained sense of fear for bass keeps these native shiners jittery, making for a terrific game of cat and mouse.
Bait shops purchase wild shiners from local “shiner-men.” A trade as old as any in the Florida outdoors, bait collection is frequently a handed-down enterprise, generations of cast-netters filling orders for shops and lodges since the early 1900s.
COLLECTING SHINERS — Joe Balog throws a cast net to collect shiners for bait.
Once caught, the bait must be cured and handled correctly. Curing is a process where shiners expel their waste products. This keeps them frisky. Holding tanks must maintain cool water with high oxygen levels and be large enough for the shiners to swim continuously. Round tanks won’t work; neither will “city water,” unless it’s meticulously treated. Regardless, the captive bait still has a reasonable chance of dying before it’s ready to sell. Shiners, you see, are a lot of work.
For a while, I caught wild shiners and kept them at my home in a large, custom-made tank. It was like having a farm. The work detail never ended, and results frequently disappointed.
When things go right, however, fishing with wild shiners is unlike anything in freshwater. Many times, I’ve seen shiners jump out of the water — up on the shoreline — to avoid a big bass. A natural instinct brings the baitfish to the top when trying to outrun predators, making for exciting strikes from giant fish. I still have nightmares about some.
In 2021, while fishing a remote lake in the Ocala National Forest, a bass tracked my shiner for some time before attempting to eat it. The explosion compared to a horse jumping off a bridge. I hooked the fish, only to have it immediately break my heavy line. Afterward, lying in bed, I questioned if it really was a bass, or perhaps another type of fish or even an alligator. I can still see the massive disturbance today.
Others got away after a fight. Last season, my father hooked a massive bass in the Ocklawaha River, only to have it jump off boat-side. Hardly a word was spoken in the boat afterward. We’d had a similar monster throw the hook at Rodman Reservoir the year before, just inches from the net.
THESE ARE BEST — Strong, quality hooks, like this Hall’s Hook, are essential tools for catching trophy bass.
Several shiner-caught brutes have made it over the gunnels of my little boat, too, where they’ve been carefully measured and released. The largest weighed nearly 13 pounds, and was taken the same day as 9- and 11-pound bass. That was a heck of a day of shiner fishing.
Success in shiner fishing is just like any other form of angling. There are a few tricks, and the rest comes down to practice and time on the water.
First, as we mentioned earlier, it’s imperative that the bait be lively. The best way to ensure this is to keep live shiners in a big cooler with an aquarium-type pump fulfilling the oxygen duties. Standard boat livewells and aerators are terrible on shiners, as they simply recycle and dump lake water onto the fragile bait. Choose a bubbler, instead, and keep the water cool.
Use heavy tackle, including braided lines. These thinner-diameter fishing lines allow the shiner to move naturally, helping to seal the deal to interested bass. In order to get a strike, a shiner must be free to move and try to get away. Remember that when your bait gets bogged down in the weeds or hides in the lily pads.
Long rods are a must when shiner fishing, helping to steer the bait around heavy cover and hooking more fish. Couple them with quality components; custom-made “Hall’s Hooks” are available online and built specifically for the job.
Shiner-fishing techniques revolve around two concepts: still fishing and trolling. Trolling is easy, and just what you’d think. Hook a shiner in the lips, let 75-100 feet of line out, and pull the bait around likely looking targets. This is a great method for fishing vast weedbeds. Try to maintain a speed around 1 mph, and repeat trolling passes in areas where shiners get especially active.
Still fishing involves using a large float, and placing the shiner near a big bass hideout. That could be floating plants or downed trees. Shallow, shady places are where giant bass like to hunt and ambush prey. Often, it’s tough to convince a shiner to swim to the honey hole, with the baitfish aware of the impending danger. Here, practice makes perfect in the form of productive casts.
COME AND GO — This 10-pound bass is measured before its release.
Fishing with large, wild golden shiners is unquestionably an art form. The best anglers have perfected methods to increase their chances of hooking and landing a giant bass, knowing that perfectly presented bait is the key component.
You’ll get the hang of it and, when you do, you’ll know it. When the stars align and a behemoth is intent on eating your shiner, nothing compares, and a giant bass feeding frenzy is possible at any time.
I hope you get a chance to experience this uniquely Floridian pursuit, which hooked me the first time I visited our wild interior. If so, I’ll probably see you out there.
