The Ultimate Fishing Baits: What Exactly Are Jigs?

For all of you who are new in the world of fishing – newsflash – when no other bait seems to help you catch your desired fish, jigs will certainly help you succeed. Now you’re probably thinking that jigs are expensive and look quite complex. But, you’re wrong. Resembling something of a hook, these small pieces are great for helping you to end your fishing trip happy and satisfied with the catch.

A jig is a type of fishing lure. As opposed to a living bait, a jig lure can attract many different species of fish. The thing that makes it so effective is that it creates a vertical jerky motion which lures fish and does not scare them away like lures that float horizontally do. The fact that it attracts different species makes it highly versatile for both salt and fresh water. Plus, it can certainly help you catch the pesky fish that hide on the bottom.

A jighead made particularly to attract sea bottomfish can weight up to half a kilogram. The head of a jig comes in an wide array of shapes, colours and sizes. There are flipping jigheads, football jigheads, grass jigheads and many others. The most commonly used one is the round jighead due to its smooth surface that does not disturb the water when sinking in and does not scare away fish.

As a body, you can attach to your jig whatever you think will best mimic the prey of the fish you want to catch. Jig bodies come in many shapes designed to resemble frogs, prey fish, lizards, grubs or insects. Their colour ranges from transparent to fluorescent yellow. Interchange your baits’ colours from bright ones in the summer, to dark shades in the winter. When it comes to bait types, beside plastic lures, you can even attach live bait such as worms, grasshoppers or snails to them. Try different types and find out what works best.

Jigs got their name by the fishing technique they are used for. As the name implies, jigging is the rhythmical moving up and down of the fish bait. Just like the dance that carries the same name, jigging consists of a few simple steps:

1. Cast your jig in the water and let it sink
2. Wait until you feel it hit the bottom
3. Snap your rod up for a few centimetres while wiggling it
4. Let it hit the bottom again
5. Continue to jig it up and down until you feel something biting
6. Reel in your catch
7. Repeat until you fill your buckets with loads of fish

When compared to other baits, jigs may seem pretty basic. However, if you just give them a chance, I’m certain you will not want to go back to using anything else again. Now go and get jiggy with it!