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One of a brace tempted to seek out a sardine hook bait by adding mackerel oil flavouring
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FLAVOURING
If the bait is really fresh then adding a flavour can be detrimental as it may mask the natural attractiveness of the baits release of natural oils and juices. Flavours really come into play when the bait needs an additional boost if it has been allowed to dry out or has been used in water for some time and the addition of some flavours or oils may extend it use by restoring some attraction. This may be particularly worthwhile if you are wobbling or sink and draw fishing with dead baits. The best way and the most practical way to introduce the flavour is by way of a syringe, this should have a large bore needle. This gets the flavour or oil deep into the flesh and will slowly seep out over a period of time. When presented like this, a dead bait lying on the bottom of the lake will be surrounded by a haze of flavour or oil. In moving water with and undertow or in a river the pikes great sense of smell will pick up on this very quickly and move in on the bait. Oils and flavours can be added to a bait by soaking a foam insert with them and this can be pushed into the mouth or body cavity of the bait. A good tip is to combine an
oil and a colour, especially red in deep water. This will act as a double attractant and can bring good results. Piercing or cutting the flanks of the bait to open the flesh up will result in a quicker release of flavours, which is an option worth considering if you are looking a quick response. Oils and flavours can also be soaked into the bait and the best way of doing this is to soak your baits in the relevant oil or flavour and then freeze them. Many natural oils that match the fish in use are available.
A personal favourite is Richworth Natural Mackerel oil which is quite light and easy to load into a small syringe and has excellent attraction to get those bigger pike on the hunt for a meal. Likened to smelling bacon cooking on a Sunday morning, enough to get even the most stubborn of us out of bed and on the prowl for a tasty bacon sarny, mmmmm!
Caution is advised when using a hypodermic syringe- avoid piercing your skin and injecting the flavouring or air into yourself - this could in certain circumstances prove fatal! Junior anglers should seek the assistance of an adult before using a syringe.
