After learning about how picky the fish could be, it wasn’t a giant step to learn that I could over feed them and they would quit biting. I found out that the key was to first get their attention, second hold their attention while catching a few, and third make sure that I didn’t over feed them and loose the bite. Another thing I learned about the same time was some folks don’t pay attention. The Bluegills all but told me what it was going to take to catch them. Lots of guys caught only little ones where I took home only the biggest. When I showed my barber how I caught the big ones, he must’ve told everybody in town because the really big ones got harder and harder to catch. All of the adults were catching the biggun’s too. Some time you can talk too much. That was life (fishin’ life) lesson #4 I learned when I was about 8 or so.

Chumming for saltwater fish is not much different. Basically you are advertising a free meal. Bread will work with some saltwater species, especially Mullet. Bread mixed with canned Jack Mackerel, Menhaden oil, or canned cat food works for most baitfish species and sometimes turns on Spanish Mackerel when it gets baitfish congregated. For the most part, the chum you should use is dictated by species, location, and available prey species/food supply. It makes good sense to me to offer the food that the species I am seeking likes best so that is what I try to do. I’ll break this down by species and tell you the chum I like to use and how I use the chum.

Pelagic species like Spanish Mackerel, some Sharks, Kingfish, Bonitas and other Tunas respond well to Menhaden oil (also called Bunker oil, Pogey oil and Moss Bunker oil) to get their attention over a long distance. I usually use a drip bottle to deploy the oil because it is easily regulated and needs little attention once it is started. I often augment this with commercial frozen chum blocks.

For larger species, I add chunks of Menhaden or other fish to the chum line. Some bait shops sell frozen Glass Minnows and they really spice up a chum line for Mackerel and Bluefish as well as various Snapper species. A few crippled live minnows in the chum line often gets Mackerel and Kingfish going. Chunks, dead minnows and livies all make great bait here. There should be a lot of baitfish in your chum line very soon after you start chumming. PAY ATTENTION. Unless you get an absolute feeding frenzy going and a wide open bite, you can expect to catch more fish with light hooks and leaders that allow the bait to sink at the same rate as the chum.

Demersal species like Grouper, and to some extent, Snapper, require a different approach. Both fish are, to a large extent, non specific in their diets, eating most anything that will fit into their mouths. I use a chum basket made of 1/2" mesh "Hardware Cloth" that will hold a commercial chum block. This wire mesh basket prevents Sharks and Jewfish from eating it in one bite. I lower it on a heavy rod mounted in a rod holder as far forward as possible. I use a dive weight to hold it down. Basically, I am not chumming Grouper as much as I am chumming the prey species in the area. Tomtates, White Grunts, Seabass, Pinfish, Snapper, Beeliners, Squirrel Fish and others flock to the chum. The Grouper and Snapper get caught up in the feeding frenzy, excited by both the action and the scent. The chum is in particles that are too small to be of much interest to decent Grouper but the feeding baitfish ! loose a little caution and are picked off by Grouper. Snapper will readily feed on the small particles though. A live bait sent down into the chum will catch Grouper, Snapper and any Cobia that passes by.

Fish that feed on crustaceans and mollusks require the same for chum. Sheepshead do not respond to Menhaden oil at all. Offshore, crushed barnacles and ‘Coon Oysters really attract both Sheepshead and Hogfish.(Hog Snapper) These mollusks are not as easily picked off by small fish. This same chum works for Sheepshead, Drum, Whiting, and Redfish inshore. Crushed Crabs and Shrimp attract these fish both inshore and offshore but are eaten on sight or scent by most other fish. I deploy my chum bag for Shrimp and crushed Crab offshore. Redfish and Drum are absolute suckers for crushed Crab chum as well as chopped fresh Shrimp. Fresh Shrimp or a small crab will be my bait of choice. Ever chum while wade fishing in the surf? This is my favorite chumming of all. Every time I get to the Panhandle I use this method at least once. I catch Coquinas and Sand Fleas with a basket/rake made for this purpose. I! crush them in a 4" pipe cap with a piece of 3/4" pipe for a pestle. I put the resulting mess in a small chum bag weighted with a half brick and drag this about 10’ behind me as I wade. A small jig or a hook baited with a Sand Flea will catch all of the Whiting you can eat in addition to an occasional Pompano, Sheepshead and Drum. Four to eight pound line on a small spinning rig will assure you of a good catch and fine sport with these smaller fish. A 3# Pompano will give you a run for your money though.

When I clean fish, I chop the remains into small enough pieces to be eaten by the Tarpon that come into the marina. Larger carcasses attract too many Gators and Sharks. What am I doing? Chumming. Tarpon respond to chum like most other fish. Great way to get them interested. Advertise your baits by using a little chum to invite the Tarpon to dinner.

One last item: Current speed is a great concern. If the current is too strong, it will move your chunks so far and so fast that fish may eat them all without ever getting in range of your hook. If there is no current, all of your chum falls right under the boat where it has little effect except for bottom fish.

Chumming works for darn near all fish. It is a potent additional to your fishing arsenal. Chumming will definitely spice up your fishing.

Capt. Ken