I'm wondering what you all think the best all-around fishing lure is and what colors. I am leaning towards rooster tails and jigs, and chartreuse, as red turns grey a few feet deep.

Mepps Black Fury, #3 or #4.

The best lure is a hook and a worm.

Field and Stream did an article on the 50 best lures of all time; check out their website.
The only thing I disagreed on was how they rated the Acme Kastmaster which is definitely a great all rounder. I have caught bass, trout, bluegill in fresh water and bluefish and stripers in salt water. Just depends on size. There are a lot of other colors but I am kind of old school I just use silver and gold mostly.

If you are thinking of using it in a survival kit remember that a lot of lures require you reel it in to create the right action. Since in a survival situation you will be most likely be improvising a fishing set up without a reel; spoons and spinners are not ideal. Instead use flys and jigs; these do not require a reeling action. Jigs are probably easier to fish than a fly.

Or whatever crawly things you happen to find under a rock at streak/lake side...

plastic worms, crankbaits

The best lure is the one you have with you <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I'm somewhat confused by some of the choices. Assuming one does not have a reel, how does one draw in a spinner quickly enough to impart the necessary action? You could possibly haul the line in hand over hand, but I'm assuming you'll foul your line pretty quickly.

My emergency kit contains jigs, a few flies, and some jigging spoons. Without some means of quickly reeling in line, most crank baits, stick baits, spinners, top waters, etc. will be useless. These baits require angler manipulation via rod, reel or a combination of both, to impart the action required to obtain a strike.

IMHO, lures that make a vertical presentation, i.e jigs, flies, plastic worms, make the most sense for an emergency kit. They can be hopped, swam, or drug along the bottom.

Just my 2 cents.

For inland freshwater sport fishing I too would go with one of the various Mepps spinners. But for survival I would have to echo the plastic worm or jig. Much easier to maintain the proper action with a minimum of tackle.

I agree. I'd rather use the space in my kit for more hooks & line than for lures. Even in my larger kits I've not really included any type of lures. It seems to me it's a waste of survial energy to cast and retrieve a lure. I want to use as little energy as possible.

Also, think about what the fish are eating. Best to match the hatch when fishing.

Adam

I used to do a lot of fishing when I was in my late teens - early 20's, For Bass no doubt give me a pumkinseed 6-7" plastic worm (Berkely Power worm) every day ending in Y. But for an "all around" lure I have had Much Luck with the Johnsons Beetle spin. I like the Yellow with black stripe, here is a pic of the green/black.
I have caught, Bass, Crappie, Bluegill, ShellCracker, Chain Pickerel, White Perch, Yellow Perch, and probably a few I don't remember on this lure. Versitle, and doesn't snag as bad as a mepps spinner.

In a survival situation though, give me a hook and some grubs (best) earth worms (next best), or crickets, grasshoppers, etc. If I can find those, I will have fish for dinner. So I agree with what the others have said. Get some #4-#6 hooks & some light fishing line 8lb test, in your survival gear, and leave the Lures for your tackle box. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Put it in a current, things will come along and bite anything shiny that moves. Even if your spinner is a crude propeller made out of aluminum foil. I didn't belive it woudl work, but I tried it and, dang, it works and you can leave it on a yo-yo or trotline if you place it right.

The best lure is the one you have with you

That can't be true. The best lure is the one the fish are biting, and that's always one that you don't have!

Seriously, what fish will bite seems to vary from summer to summer, and even from day to day. Better have a couple of very different options.

You folks would seriously laugh if you saw the size of the fishing kit in my PSK. I'm betting it's bigger than a good portion of your entire PSKs.

However, in my defense, I like fishing and have been known to just decide to go fishing on a whim when I see a spot that looks good, I drive past a park or lake where public fishing is allowed and so on. And when I do stop, I'll generally use my PSK fishing kit. It requires a lot more maintenance than the rest of the PSK of course, but it amuses me so I do it.

People that see me fish with it are sometimes stunned when I land something.

Don't get me wrong, I have a cheap rod and reel in the trunk of my car too...

Anyway, I like using small soft grub baits and keep a number of them in my kit. I have one hard bait in there, a small Rebel Crawfish. I can set that in a slow moving patch of water, leave it, and it generally does the trick, or I can just fling it, and reel it in, wrapping the line around one hand without much hassle. In some of the worst fishing conditions I've caught fish with that thing. I think they lace the lure with crack or something.

Other than that, catching a cricket, grasshopper, beetle, grub or worm isn't hard to do either if you know where to look provided it's the right season (depending on area), and those are tried and true fish catchers.

Now that I know how to make cordage, some day when I have a load of time with nothing to do I might try to make a line, fashion a hook out of natural materials, find an insect or worm, and try my luck.

after some past discussion here on the boards, several things came up of import.

1. plastics will not last long in a survival kit.
2. depends on whether you are fresh or salt fishing.
3. usually you will end up bait fishing or realistically jigging
4. ergo I would have to side with special forces - White Bucktail Jig.

Dupont spinners, of course. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Hey, you didn't say it had to be legal.

A gill net ain't too bad either.

If you're lookiing for legitimate fishing using a line, I've used worms and hooks in just about every fishing scenario imaginable with some measure of success.