Top 5 Tips for Fishing with Maggots

This entry was posted on 6th January, 2021 by Anna Cooper

Many anglers cannot help but agree that those little wrigglers, also known as maggots are just so effective. There are many freshwater species that love a maggot - or two or three... making them a great live or imitation bait to use when at the bankside. Here are just a few tips to make the most out of your maggots and to help beginner anglers to think a little outside the box when next picking up a pint of wrigglers.

1. Give Your Maggots a Boost

Maggots are used by many anglers so what can you do to make the fish come to your swim instead of theirs There are so many different ways you can boost the maggots that help get the fish noticing your maggots over the rest and these bait attractants not only adds to your maggots attraction but allows you to make your bait individual to you. A great booster flavour is to add krill meal to them, as well as turmeric powder and any other powder-based groundbait you can think of. 

TOP TIP: You can also try boosting fishing maggots with a bait spray or pouring liquid on them overnight. Just add a small amount of spray, and don’t forget to close your bait tub well to seal in all the flavour! The maggots then suck up and flavour themselves so it is not just a coating of attractant but they are oozing with flavour, which carp cannot resist! 

2. Make your Maggots into a Ball

By using Sticky Mag or other available products to bind maggots together to form a ball is a great technique when fishing longer range. A fall formed of maggots works great for distance as the weight of the ball will allow you to catapult it up to 70 yards in some cases. The balls of maggots then break down on the bottom, levelling little areas of maggots all over an area. This is perfect for fishing a maggot feeder or solid PVA bag of maggots over as it mimics the presentation on the bottom.

3. Don't Neglect Dead Maggots

When riddling through the more lively maggots you may be tempted to completely disregard the dead maggots but this is not only a waste of money but bait opportunity too! With your dead or inactive maggots, pour boiling water over them and drain them. Careful there no domestic accidents caused by boiling water! This ensures the maggots will no longer wriggle, you can then head out on the bank and give them a go or pop them in the freezer for a future session. Dead maggots are great at creating a carpet of bait for bottom feeders such as carp to nibble at as they can’t wriggle away on the bottom. Also, dead maggots are a little less together in the skin which makes them great for the hook!

4. What Colour Maggot is Best for Fishing Bait?

Red, white, green, bronze and even blue, it’s not just a case of catching the angler’s eye; there are certainly times at which one colour is way more effective than others. For example, bronze maggots tend to be great on the river, while red maggots work brilliantly for specimen carp fishing. It is important to not limit yourself: have a selection of colours, and see what works best on the day!

5. Using Maggots for Winter Fishing

Winter is the time of year that many anglers turn to the wrigglers. You can slowly and consistently feed them on the river and get all manner of silverfish, chub and barbel feeding, as they don’t get as full as they would if you stuck to pellets and boilies. Maggots come into their own in specimen carp fishing, bringing anglers bites on days where lakes have been almost totally frozen. The natural attraction mixed with their tantalising wriggle is irresistible, even to fish that wouldn’t normally be feeding.

For more maggot and bait tips, check out the video below on 3 ways to use maggots or pop over to Angling Direct's Youtube. The AD blog also covers Tips for Winter Carp fishing with maggots and plenty of beginner guides!