Are the Days of Trolling Plug-Cut Herring and/or Anchovy Over? - Tony Amato

August 15, 2025

For how many years or thousands of years have humans fished with live or dead bait? There is probably no definitive answer to that question. But in recent years people seem to be leaving herring and anchovies in the freezer. And I’m not saying that you shouldn’t use bait. Let’s take a look at the decline.

RJ Ruckteschler from Clackacraft Drift Boats displays some effective stuffer baits and in-line spinner rigs.

Back in the 1992 STS published an article about fishing with plug-cut herring by Phil Pirone and Gary “Gilly” Gilchrist. It was the most popular article we ever published and we had more requests for back-issue copies than any other issue—EVER. And fishing with herring or anchovies was nothing new but Phil and Gary were experts and they laid it out in plain English with some nice illustrations, cutting angles, hook placement options and best trolling practices. You can read the article in the Aug./Sept. 2025 issue of Salmon Trout Steelheader. If you are not a subscriber you can get instant access at this link: https://salmontroutsteelheader.com/products/subscription

The entire premise of a plug-cut herring, or any trolled baitfish for that matter, is to make it look and act like it’s injured but still alive and on its last leg. Looking like easy pickings for a salmon or any other predator in the immediate area to make an easy meal of. It’s not rocket science. Let’s take a look at these key herring/anchovy factors.

It’s a real baitfish and smells as such
It’s still looks alive
It moves erratically
The color and shape look right
It’s the right size
It’s an easy meal

In general these six thoughts are what enter a salmons brain when it makes the quick decision to attack and feed. These are the factors that have sent tackle manufactures down a path to successfully create hard or “stuffer-baits” that are amazingly effective. If you look at the list, the only thing that these new artificial lures are not is a real baitfish.

My first encounter with a stuffer-bait was Brad’s Super Bait. It looks like a small bent banana. But you can open it up and stuff real meat into it, preferably tuna, and has vents to slowly release the scent.

Now let’s take a look at what most fisherman consider to be optimum when trolling for salmon.

Am I using the right bait/lure?
Is the shape, size and color correct?
Is the natural scent enough or should I add scents to it?
Is it still spinning correctly?
If I get a takedown should I check it?

Obviously there are other factors like leader weight/length, hook size(s)/placement and trolling speed but we’re just covering the bait itself. Setting up pre-tied stuffer baits lets you change your color, scent and size of your presentation with just one clip on a duolock snap. Plus you can run a different setup on each rod until you determine which stuffer bait is getting the most bites and you can easily switch your rods to that particular size color and scent as you check them individually.

When using herring or anchovies you don’t get that kind of feedback from your baits. And when your rod gets a hard takedown you don’t know if your bait is still there or if it tuned into a free meal. This is the most detrimental problem running real bait. If a salmon missed your presentation there is a very good chance it will hit it again. But if your bait is gone, that second bite is not going to happen. And the famous words “I better check it” come out of your mouth. With a stuffer bait checking your presentation is not necessary and you may very well get that same fish or one close to it to hit again.

I have seen a few ways to attach herring and anchovies that do seem better than others. Using a threader is very popular in southern Oregon and Tom Nelson showed me a great way to put a half hitched around the entire head of a whole herring. You can also use a helmet with a peg or a rubber band that squeezes the helmet to the head with cerated edges. These rigging techniques make it much harder for a salmon to steal your bait without getting hooked. You can watch these two popular videos to see in detail how it’s done on our Salmon Trout Steelheader YouTube page.

Patrick Hollinger owner of Eagle Bay Lodging and Fishing demonstrates how to use a wire threader to rig a whole anchovy. Starts at 9:56 in this video:

Tom Nelson rigs a whole herring with two half hitches around its head to hold and bend the head over for spinning action using a whole herring. Starts at 55:08 in this video:

ALSO, never count out hardware! Spinners and spoons like the ones made in the USA by Silver Horde “don’t come off” with a bite. They stay on and you can leave them out. You can also scent your hardware lures with sticky liquids before deploying them to the depths. After a bite you can also change your trolling speed to lift or drop your offerings. On the turn bites happen because you suddenly change speed. And how many times have you or someone on your boat stood up took a few cranks on the reel and wham you hook into a fish? Salmon will often follow your presentation and if it makes a sudden move to escape they hit it. It’s basic cat and mouse.

Now am I saying that you should never use herring or anchovies again? Of course not. But considering the effectiveness of the newer artificial stuffer baits it can be a decision that may be more difficult to make. And sometimes real bait is the only thing that may be working.

I would like to hear as many comments on this as possible. I’m sure that there are some particulars that I may have not brought up.