How to catch trout on Powerbait dough

Powerbait trout dough is an incredibly effective and easy to use bait for trout. Manufactured by the Berkley company, this bait has been used by anglers across the United States for years.

Powerbait dough is a sort of artificial dough bait that can be molded around a hook. The bait floats so you can fish it up in the water column where trout find most of their food.

Powerbait trout dough has its detractors, and it cannot be used everywhere. Some places have restrictions against using natural or dough baits. Though can be no doubt that Powerbait dough catches trout. Especially rainbow trout that were raised in a hatchery.

We recommend Powerbait trout dough most for people fishing in "put and take" fisheries where trout are stocked for anglers to catch and eat. In this guide we will tell you how to catch trout in those places and elsewhere.

The best way to fish with Powerbait

The most effective presentation we've found for Powerbait dough is a slip sinker rig. It consists of nothing more than a sinker, a swivel and a hook. Powerbait dough is buoyant enough to float a small hook. With this rig you can keep the bait floating right in the strike zone.

For this kind of trout fishing we like using 4 pound Maxima Chameleon line. We slide a 1/8 oz egg sinker on the line. Then we tie on a Raven Micro Swivel. This keeps the sinker from sliding down to the hook. Next we tie another piece of line to the other end of the swivel.

This leader end should be set at the depth you want to fish. So if you want your bait to float two feet from the bottom, tie a two foot long leader. Depending on the situation trout can be anywhere from a foot off the bottom to right under the surface.

Next tie on your hook. Our dough holder hooks are meant to hold baits like Powerbait trout dough. Gamakatsu Trout Trebles are also popular with people who use Powerbait dough. In our experience, the best hook sizes for Powerbait trout dough are 12, 14, and 16.

Finally, you want to cover your hook with Powerbait dough. You can do this with your fingers. Though some don't want to get the dough bait on their hands. We carry the Berkley Dough Bait Mold which allows you to bait your hook without touching the dough.

Fishing with Powerbait trout dough

Once your rig is setup and baited you can cast out. Likely locations for trout in lakes include inlets, outlets, drop offs and sloped banks. These are the places you should aim for with your cast.

Trout usually cruise through the water rather than sitting in one place like bass. So you may want to try different locations until you find the fish.

Colors and scents matter too. The standard Powerbait trout dough will catch fish in most situations. Though there are times when a certain color or special scent will catch fish when others wont. We can't explain this, but we've seen it happen.

Yellow glitter Powerbait is one of the best colors to start out with in our opinion. This catches trout all over. Other good colors include marshmallow and fluorescent orange.

Berkley's Gulp! Dough Trout Bait has a stronger scent than standard trout dough. This can work when standard trout dough will not. The Gulp bait is a little more expensive and flakier than standard Powerbait dough though.

Once you've cast out your doughbait you can set your rod down in a rod holder and wait for the bite. Many people will hang a small plastic pear bobber from their line to know when they have a bite. If you hang the bobber on the line between two eyes of your pole it will move when a fish takes the bait.