If you've done much saltwater fishing, you know how expensive bait is. Even when the fish aren't biting much, you lose a lot of fresh and live bait to crabs and catfish. You also have to change your bait frequently to keep it fresh enough to entice desirable fish.

You don't have to spend a lot of cash or make numerous trips to the bait store, however. Invest a little time in catching your own bait. It's easy, and it's actually kind of fun. You can also assign this job to your kids, who will have a ball with the job.

Minnows: Minnows are a good all-around bait. With them, you can catch flounder, reds, trout, blues, sharks, and even large whiting. Minnows are numerous in the surf. If you can throw a cast net, you'll get a bucket of live minnows in no time. Kids can even catch them with small dip nets from the dollar store or from a beach shop. Almost any type minnow will work, but finger mullet are probably the best. Another way to catch minnows easily is to purchase a minnow trap. Put some bread in it and leave it in a tidal creek or other body of salt water. Check it in a few hours.

Fiddler crabs: Fiddlers are great bait for sheepshead, drum, reds, and pompano. Look for piles of debris near the waterline. Stacks of rotting wood or piles of rocks are favorite habitats for the tiny crabs. When you find their home, you'll see them crawling everywhere, but when you try to catch them, they disappear down the multitude of little escape holes. You have to be quick to catch them. There's an easier way, however. Spread a white sheet on the sand where you've seen the crabs. Place a piece of fish or meat in the center of the sheet, then walk away. Bring a pal to help with the next step. Once there are a good number of fiddlers on the sheet, each person needs to lift two corners. The crabs will be trapped with no escape route.

Sand fleas: Also called mole crabs, sand fleas are excellent bait for pompano, drum, reds, and sheepshead. They come in on the tide and quickly burrow into the sand. You or the kids can dig them up with a plastic shovel where you see a little round hole. Another way to catch them is to partially bury a square of hardware cloth in the sand as a wave comes in, or make a "snad flea trap" by drilling holes in a plastice bucket. Scoop up wet sand where you see a hole with a "V" at the bottom.

Cut bait: Almost every fish in the ocean will hit cut bait. USe your cast net in the surf or from a pier or bridge for schools of mullet - one of the best cut baits of all because of their smelly oil that attracts fish. Watch for irregular chops or ripples on the surface to indicate the presence of mullet. If you watch closely, you'll probably see a silver flash every once in a while as individual fish break the surface. Large mullet can be cut into chunks or fillets for cut bait, or if you're after a really big fish like a shark, hook a big live mullet on your line.