Deep Water Bait Fishing: How To Pick The Right Hook For The Job
We’re pretty lucky here in New Zealand. We’ve got an abundance of fishing options on our doorstep, whether it’s land-based, in-shore, or off-shore fishing, you generally don’t have to go far to find what you’re looking for.
Deep water fishing offers the opportunity for big meaty fish in abundance, but this style of fishing does differ in several ways, and if you’re not prepared your trip will be over before it begins.
As we’re a hook company, we’ll be deep-diving the details on the hooks you’ll typically encounter with this style of fishing. If you’re looking for a more general guide, this one probably isn’t for you, but if you’ve already read up on deep water fishing bait fishing and want to know more about hook selection, you’re in the right place!
Part 1. Hook Options
Selecting the right hook For The Job.
At the depths we’re talking here, you will have to deal with a few factors that you otherwise wouldn’t if fishing shallower water.
Things like water resistance, line stretch, and your target species will behave entirely differently at hundreds of meters down.
For bait fishing at this depth you’ll predominantly be using circle hooks. The reason for this is simple - they allow the fish to hook itself without requiring the angler to strike. The in-turned hook point on a circle also acts as an extra layer of protection against the catch freeing itself - ideal when you’re limited on reaction speed.
Line stretch over several hundreds of meters means that you won’t have the same sensitivity as you would in shallow water, and by the time your strike reaches the business end, it may be too late.
We make a few types of circles but due to the size and weight of the fish at these depths, the Monster Circle is the hook to go for.
Something around size 12/0 for Bluenose should be enough, while a 14/0 - 16/0 would be suitable for Hapuka & Bass
The wide gap and deep belly on these hooks are what make them ideal for this style of fishing.
Part 2. Rig For The Big Ones
How To Rig Your Hook.
Rigging is one of the biggest factors in your success on the water. Get it wrong, and you’ll be dealing with tangles and lost fish. In shallow water this doesn’t matter so much, but when you have to crank your line up several hundreds of meters to check your rig it becomes much more important. There’s only really one rig you’ll need to know here and that’s the humble dropper rig.
Dropper Rig
The dropper rig is strong, easy to tie, and incredibly reliable. Most of the time these are rigged with two hooks, but there’s nothing to stop you rigging with three or more.
Here’s what it looks like:
There are a large amount of tutorials to tie these rigs online, and you’ll find each one does things a little bit differently. Don’t get too stuck in the details here, the important part is that you get the general structure right. Twisting your dropper loops adds stiffness and holds the hook out from the main leader, making hook ups more consistent and reducing tangles. You can then attach your hook easily by feeding the loop through the eye of the hook and creating a girth-hitch type attachment.
Dropper Rig Components
A simple rig such as the one above requires the following:
2x heavy-gauge circle hooks (BKK Monster Circle)
2x Lumo beads (you can use more than two if you prefer)
1x Heavy-duty swivel clips
200lb Mono
Aluminium crimps
21oz - 32oz deep drop sinker
Knots
If you choose to crimp your top end into a loop for easy connection to your main-line clip, then the only knots you will need to know is a dropper loop and a girth-hitch
The bottom connection to the sinker can be easily crimped into a loop, or you can tie a loop. Some anglers (including us), like to attach a short section of 100lb mono here as a breaking point if the sinker get snagged. You’re generally better off losing just a sinker over your rig and potentially braid.
Part 3. Suitable Baits
We’ve found Squid and Barracuda tend to work well as bait for the fish at these depths.
You don’t need to do anything too fancy here, just slip the hook through the bait a couple of times and ensure she’s not going to fall off on the way down (remember, it’s a long way to wind it back up!)
As with other bait fishing, you’ll want your hook point exposed so it can easily find the lip when it gets inhaled.
There’s a lot that goes into a deep-water fishing trip. The fuel, the organisation, the food, the gear - it’s all pretty serious.
With so much at stake, you want to make sure you’re giving yourself the best chances of success on the water. Gear failure is the worst, and most of the time it’s easily avoidable, that’s why we urge anglers to use the best tackle they can and write these articles so you can go equipped with the knowledge you need to get the job done.
Your local tackle store should have the Monster Circle range available and be able to offer any advice based on your location and local fishery.
If you want some in-depth knowledge on how to target Bluenose specifically, including how to find them and how to spot them on a sounder, you can view our Bluenose article here.
