Steelhead

Learn to Tie Epic Ontario Spawn Bags

By: Bojan “Bojangles” Zivkovic

Spring has just about sprung in Southwestern Ontario and we all know what that means: March Madness! March is the best time to catch aggressive steelhead before they settle on their spawning grounds. The weather is warming, the bite is improving and anglers are finding steelhead throughout GTA rivers and in Lake Ontario. It’s a great time to catch a personal best steelhead.

Some anglers use plastics, flies and hardware, but roe is always effective. Pautzke’s new Premium and Natural Trout Eggs have been working well for my friends and I, and other anglers I know that have used them. In my opinion these are the best hatchery eggs I’ve ever seen! Whether using these eggs under a float or bottom bouncing I assure you they put fish on the bank.​

In this FireBlog! I’m going to show you the fastest and most effective way to tie roe bags. All you need you need is your two hands, a sealable container, Atlas Mikes spawn netting, Magic Thread and roe, whether it be your own or the new Trout Eggs. If you intend to tie up all of your eggs in one sitting the Trout Eggs jar is perfect for the roe bags. I prefer Magic Thread to tie roe bags with Atlas Mike’s spawn mesh because it is the most soft and supple material out there.​

By following these few simple steps you’ll be tying roe bags with ease!​

  1. The first thing I do is set up a ‘tying station’. A tying station is a work surface area made with newspaper or paper towels to keep your table clean. Because they are preserved Trout Eggs aren’t as gooey and sticky compared to regular salmon or trout eggs in either loose or scraped skein form. These eggs are clean and easy to handle.
  2. Once you have your tying station set-up proceed by selecting the spawn mesh colour of choice. A general rule of thumb is to fish big roe bags and bright colours in high and dirty water and smaller more natural colours in clearer water conditions.

  1. Once you have the square in your hand choose either the Premium or Natural Trout Eggs. I like the Premium Trout Eggs because they tie much cleaner. However, the Natural Eggs milk more and put out more scent then the Premium. Grab your desired amount of trout eggs and place them into the centre of the spawn mesh square.​

  1. After placing your desired amount of Trout Eggs in the centre of the square, grab the spawn mesh and fold it in half over the eggs. Once you have done the first fold, grab the two other corners of the spawn and join them together with the first two that are folded.​

  1. Once you have all four corners together use your first two fingers and thumb to tighten the Trout Eggs in the spawn mesh. Make sure the eggs are being held tight before proceeding with tight Magic Thread wraps. Twisting the mesh in my opinion can cause the eggs to loosen up in the mesh and can ruin your roe bags after you bait them on your hook.

 

  1. Now it’s time to use your Magic Thread. Start twisting the Magic Thread around the spawn mesh (just above the eggs). I like to finish off by forming a knot before snapping the Magic Thread off the mesh.​

 

  1. Once you have snapped the thread off cut off any left over thread dangling off the mesh by pulling the loose ends tightly until they snap off. Then cut the remaining spawn mesh material above the twisted Magic Thread. Do not cut the mesh too close to the thread or you compromise the thread and the sac will unravel. Depending on water clarity, some anglers prefer to leave thicker tag ends of mesh on in dirtier water to increase the visibility of your roe bag.​

  1. You can now put your first roe bag into your container of choice. I like to line whatever container I may be using with paper towel to soak up any extra juices. The paper towel also cushions your roe bags.​

  1. Repeat the last eight steps 20 to 100 plus times!​

 

The new Premium and Natural Trout Eggs are certainly a game changer! They are simple to tie the eggs, save stress and will stop people from killing more fish. Talk about promoting conservation. From one jar of Premium Eggs expect to tie over 75 nickel sized roe bags. The price is certainly right as well. These eggs do not only hunt steelhead well in moving water, but are ideal for bottom bouncing. If you haven’t given these trout eggs a shot I highly suggest purchasing a few jars. You will be beyond impressed!​

​Special Note: We’ve received hundreds of emails and Instagram and Facebook messages from Ontario anglers who mentioned they couldn’t find Trout Eggs. Most tackle shops in Southern Ontario have ordered them and have them now. None of the chains have them yet (that means don’t go to Sail, Cabelas, Bass Pro, Canadian Tire). We hope these outlets add them, but they haven’t yet. If you go to your local tackle shop and they are sold out they can order more for you and have them in a day. Some of the larger tackle shops in the GTA ordered 144 jars of each so there is product out there. Unfortunately, Pautzke.com does not ship to Canada. You’ll have to find Trout Eggs locally or order them online from FishUSA.com. We called FishUSA.com and they mentioned it cost roughly $10 to ship them anywhere in Ontario.