While working on the North Slope, Philip Ward awoke one evening with a sudden jolt of inspiration that gave birth to a fishing lure that would revolutionize the world of halibut fishing. Being a fisherman most of his life, Philip is very familiar with the predatory instincts of fish and the three primary senses they use to detect food: sight, smell, and hearing. An idea for a stand-alone lure that would trigger all three of these senses roused Philip from his bed over five years ago, and began the formation of the Hali-Butt Cracker. The Hali-Butt Cracker is now a tried and true fishing lure designed by Phillip, with the help of his brother, and has become the backbone of Philip’s business, Fish Cracker Baits.
The essence of Fish Cracker Baits is the cracking noise of the lures made to imitate the sound of injured prey. The patented cracking noise summons the attention of halibut, known to eat just about anything, but has also successfully lured lingcod, yellow eye rockfish, red snapper, and all bottom feeding fish species. The squid imitating Fish Cracker Predator, “designed to be cast for suspended fish … will cause vicious strikes from King and Silver salmon.” The Hali-Butt Cracker was even used to catch the third largest yellow eye rockfish caught with a rod and reel.
But why does the cracking noise increase your chances of catching more fish?
At all times, the lure is able to provoke all three predatory senses of fish, especially hearing. Hearing allows fish to sense a larger amount of their surroundings than otherwise possible through sight and smell. Sight is limited because a fish will only be triggered by whatever passes within its line of vision. Similarly, smell is only useful in triggering fish that are down current of a bait’s scent, whereas sound is detected from all angles.
Some may say that jigging on the bottom of the ocean (banging a lead weight on the seafloor) is engaging a fish’s sense of hearing. This of course is true, but jigging with a standard jig limits fishermen to the bottom of the ocean when it is well known that bottom feeding fish, especially larger more mature fish, will travel varying depths in search of prey. Having the advantage of sound in more regions than the seafloor is where the cracking noise of Fish Cracker Baits product line outshines all other deep sea fishing lures.
All Fish Cracker Baits products are 100% American Made. To see for yourself the success others have had implementing the Fish Cracker Baits product line, just visit fishcrackerbaits.com. There you will find more information and a slew of images of fellow fishermen who caught the Big One.
2022 Update: Unfortunately, Fish Cracker Baits store in Wasilla has permanently closed.
While working on the North Slope, Philip Ward awoke one evening with a sudden jolt of inspiration that gave birth to a fishing lure that would revolutionize the world of halibut fishing. Being a fisherman most of his life, Philip is very familiar with the predatory instincts of fish and the three primary senses they use to detect food: sight, smell, and hearing. An idea for a stand-alone lure that would trigger all three of these senses roused Philip from his bed over five years ago, and began the formation of the Hali-Butt Cracker. The Hali-Butt Cracker is now a tried and true fishing lure designed by Phillip, with the help of his brother, and has become the backbone of Philip’s business, Fish Cracker Baits.
The essence of Fish Cracker Baits is the cracking noise of the lures made to imitate the sound of injured prey. The patented cracking noise summons the attention of halibut, known to eat just about anything, but has also successfully lured lingcod, yellow eye rockfish, red snapper, and all bottom feeding fish species. The squid imitating Fish Cracker Predator, “designed to be cast for suspended fish … will cause vicious strikes from King and Silver salmon.” The Hali-Butt Cracker was even used to catch the third largest yellow eye rockfish caught with a rod and reel.
But why does the cracking noise increase your chances of catching more fish?
At all times, the lure is able to provoke all three predatory senses of fish, especially hearing. Hearing allows fish to sense a larger amount of their surroundings than otherwise possible through sight and smell. Sight is limited because a fish will only be triggered by whatever passes within its line of vision. Similarly, smell is only useful in triggering fish that are down current of a bait’s scent, whereas sound is detected from all angles.
Some may say that jigging on the bottom of the ocean (banging a lead weight on the seafloor) is engaging a fish’s sense of hearing. This of course is true, but jigging with a standard jig limits fishermen to the bottom of the ocean when it is well known that bottom feeding fish, especially larger more mature fish, will travel varying depths in search of prey. Having the advantage of sound in more regions than the seafloor is where the cracking noise of Fish Cracker Baits product line outshines all other deep sea fishing lures.
All Fish Cracker Baits products are 100% American Made. To see for yourself the success others have had implementing the Fish Cracker Baits product line, just visit fishcrackerbaits.com. There you will find more information and a slew of images of fellow fishermen who caught the Big One.
2022 Update: Unfortunately, Fish Cracker Baits store in Wasilla has permanently closed.
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Anne Sanders was born and raised in Alaska. She graduated with a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Alaska Anchorage. With a love for the written word, she recognizes the treasure of stories and fascinating people Alaska offers. Paired with her husband Cecil who compliments her narratives with his eye for the visual, Anne is on a mission to bring her beloved home of Alaska to life on the pages of Last Frontier Magazine.
