Eels

[JohnR]

Originally Posted by Rockfish9

it's a loaded question.... a lot of factors need to be determined....

a shoe string eel in a mixed school of large, mediums and small will most likely catch the little guy's.. big bait is the order here... as big as your tackle can handle.. I draw the line at 2' ...... take that same shoe string on a night when the water is full of fire and it will out perform the big "snake" 10:1...

heavy water and fast currents require a bigger stronger bait... again tailor it to your tackle...

Trolling with an electric motor requires smaller eels...no larger than 12"...lest they cause and unnatural appearance while in tow ....

casting into the wind... the little guy's just don't go far( not that you always need the distance)... larger specimens are needed. If your tackle can handle it... go with a anaconda sized serpent...

Each extreme in the spectrum has their own problems...

Large eels require large hooks.. heavy leaders a rod with a lot of back bone...( not to mention a strong grip)

little eels are not with out their own set of issues... first and foremost.. they LOVE to tie knots... they are good at it.. quick too.. so keep an eye on your leader.... they also are more fragile... it's hard to catch more than one fish with a little guy.. big ones can catch several.. then be skinned to make skin rigs, or plugs..

I trap and keep my own eels and have done so for over 40 years.. I keep a variety because no one size is perfect for every condition...

My largest( officially weighed) bass to date (61lbs) took a tiny shoe string eel on a night as dark as an editors heart.. with enough fire in the water to light my way home... last Labor day I took another outsized specimen on a eel as thick around as my arm... the tide was running hard and the bait needed to hit the back side of the bar quickly as a 5 knot current pushed the boat past.. a shoe string wouldn't have done the job.. point is.. you need variety... so I like anything between 10" and 24"...and on a given night I may need a combination of all of them...selecting one size only puts you at a severe disadvantage...

This.

My preference from shore is 14-16" which gets the best overall cast - a little more at the canal doesn't hurt