To start my frozen chum bag, I stuff an empty mesh onion bag into an empty one-gallon milk jug, so that the opening of the onion bag is at the opening of the jug. After each day of fishing, I stuff all the leftover bait, such as shrimp and mullet, into the bag. I keep the jug in the freezer and continuously add my unused bait with a little tap water. If I’m cleaning fish, I also add the leftover fins, tails and other parts to the bag. I also add other things, such as chicken skin, which provides a good amount of oil. When the bag and jug are full of frozen chum, I bring it fishing and cut slits in the plastic jug. I’m careful not to cut the onion bag, which keeps the melting chum together – and working – longer. I tie the drawstrings on the onion bag to a line and hang it over the side, using a sinker to bring it down to the depth I want. When it begins to melt, all that old bait brings in the fish, rather than just being tossed out at the end of the fishing day.
James Stearns, Charlotte, North Carolina
