Northwest Fishing Reports

Has anyone tried making primitive hooks like gorge or toggle hooks that were used by fisherman in the past?

Not primitive but at one time I had some "old-timey" Sneck hooks. They used to be preferred for fishing helgrammites on the east coast as they had a flat spot on the hook for sliding under the collar of the helgrammite.

Like these? This is a collection of early hooks that the Maori people of New Zealand used. I saw these in a museum in Wellington. Very interesting culture.

Yes those are the types of hooks That I have seen in books but only diagrams of them. I am trying to make some to see how they do with trout and bass and how effective they are. Thanks for the pics it gives me a better feel of how they are made.

Ya, I took a survival class when I was much much much younger, and they taught us how to make some primitive hooks from thorns like the hawthorne and rose, from bone like mouse bones, etc.

Don't expect to do as well as with modern hooks, but they did work. We caught a couple of carp on them, and I remember catching one trout, but they tend to be bulky, not as sharp, and they just don't work as well.

Still, it was fun, and it well worth everyones time to learn how, make one, and catch at least one fish on them.

Thank you for the information. The one thing I am looking at is size for the mouth of the fish. I also have very big rosebush thorns I will try them. Do they have to be dried or green when you use them?

You might consider using the thorns on a Hawthorne bush. They are quite long, very sharp and hard as nails.

Check with a nursery. There is a plant that has very long thorns on its stems but I can't think of the name of it.

Thanks Marc
I now have three that I will try this week and see how good they work. If I catch fish on them at the lakes I hit I will post on the lakes report. I will also post here to say if they are good as modern tackle or not.

Look out Mustad, here comes Crawdad!!:cheers:

crawdad wrote: Thank you for the information. The one thing I am looking at is size for the mouth of the fish. I also have very big rosebush thorns I will try them. Do they have to be dried or green when you use them?

I suppose in a pinch a green rose thorn would work, but if I remember correctly, we looked for either dry ones or the ones that were from the oldest part of the wild rose.

The Hawthorne thrones don't seem to need drying. Those suckers will punch right through a 2 ply ATV tire even when they are green.

I also remember they talked about using cactus thorns, but I don't see too many in Washington.

crawdad wrote: Has anyone tried making primitive hooks like gorge or toggle hooks that were used by fisherman in the past?

I have some pictures of some very old alaskan indian hooks but I don't know how to post a picture.... Need some help. Thanks I figured it out...

The fish sure wouldn't be leader shy if they hooked on one of those things:cheers:

I found these antique hand made lures.... The bottom lure could be adjusted to any size you like. I have seen lures that are nothing more that piece of bone ,sharpened on each end and are about 1 inch long. You put bait on it and the fish will get it caught in there throat or stomach. I would like to see someone catch a fish on a homemade lure and post it here. Good luck!