There is no simpler or more reliable way to catch a stocked trout than a floating dough bait fished on the bottom. Hatchery-raised rainbows are used to pellet food, and a bright, scented, buoyant bait sitting just off the bottom is something they eat readily. It is inexpensive, it is easy, and it is one of the best ways to put a first-timer or a kid onto fish.
Why it works
Stocked trout, especially freshly released rainbows, feed by smell and sight on small, easy morsels, exactly what a scented dough bait imitates. The trick is that the bait must float up off the bottom into the trout's line of sight, which is why the rig is built around a floating bait and a bottom sinker.
The floating bottom rig
- Slide an egg sinker onto your main line, then tie on a small swivel to stop it.
- Add a leader, a couple of feet of light line, to a small treble or bait hook.
- Mold floating dough bait around the hook so it fully covers the point and, crucially, floats the hook up off the bottom above the sinker.
- Cast out, reel up the slack, and wait, keep a slightly tight line or watch the rod tip, and give a cruising trout time to find the scent.
Tip Make sure your bait actually floats. If the hook and dough sink into the weeds or muck, no trout will see it. Test buoyancy at your feet, and use enough dough (or a buoyant bait) to lift the hook off the bottom every cast.
Tips for more fish
- Fish fresh stockings. Check the state stocking reports and target recently stocked water, the fish are concentrated and eager.
- Use light line, stocked trout in clear ponds can be leader-shy.
- Vary your leader length to change how high the bait floats until you find the fish.