Live bait and 'crawlers still tops in my repertoire

Angling legend Ron Lindner has a lot on his mind. Every time I have him on my outdoors radio talk show Lindner weaves dozens of thoughts and issues together like a finely sewn quilt.

"The reason night crawlers have lost their sheen for anglers, so to speak," he declared, "is because there isn't a night crawler grower in the country that sponsors tournaments. The professional fishermen get some big bucks every year to wear a sponsor's colors or brand name."

So with that profound statement left hanging out there to dry, I say the night crawler still is probably the most effective piece of live bait around.

Why do you think Pure Fishing (Berkley, et al) invested millions of bucks on research and product development to come up with the company's now famous Power and Gulp Baits? The answer is easy.

Pure Fishing and dozens of other plastic lure makers try to copy the timeless night crawler and a host of other critters that usually are found on the fast-food menus of bass and walleyes. Toss in the other species such as bluegill, crappie, catfish, trout and pike, and then sit back and watch the cash registers jingle away.

I have been preaching the use of night crawlers for well more than 30 years. And because the "old" Fishing Facts magazine built its early reputation on the backs of two now-deceased angling educators, Bill Binkelman and George Pazik, thousands of true believers continue to this day with their dedication in the use of live conditioned 'crawlers.

It was the original Lindy Rig that set fishermen back on their ears in the mid-60s. It was the barnstorming approach to on-the-spot fishing education for brothers Ron and Al Lindner. And to this day the present owners of Lindy Little-Joe in Brainerd, Minn., design product lines around the use of night crawlers and minnows.

Lake Geneva Fishing Club member Ken Abraham doesn't leave the dock on that lake without a good supply of the squiggly ones. Walleyes Unlimited legendary angler and founder Jim Wrolstad showed me night crawler tricks on Rock Lake east of Madison, Wis., that I still use.

It all goes back to Binkelman's Nightcrawler secrets and his obsession over No. 8 and No. 10 hooks pierced through the noses of 'crawlers so big one would have to hide behind a tree to rig them.

The trouble with many of today's hotshot anglers is that they pay more attention to the glitzy ads in fishing magazines and on outdoor television shows instead of going with tried and true, live-bait techniques that have worked like a charm.

Of course I always hear the excuse, "I don't want to get my hands dirty by using crawlers."

If you want to know how to condition night crawlers for upcoming trips, I suggest you hunt for a copy of Binkelman's book, "Nightcrawler Secrets," or Pazik's "Walleyes Love Nightcrawlers."

Then go out and knock 'em dead.