Fishing live eels is an exciting and effective ways of landing big striped bass up to and above the 40 lb (18 kg) mark. On Cape Cod Bay in particular, live eels account for many big striped bass each spring, summer and fall.  Live eels can be used to fish for bass in deep water. They can help you to catch larger fish, as the biggest striper fish tend to lurk near the bottom. Live eels can be fished many different ways. One of the most popular and easiest methods is to fish live eels with a medium-light or medium-action rod. Place the eels in a cooler with a plastic ice block and a damp burlap sack.   This keeps the eels moist and cool. The ice also has the advantage of slowing down the eel's metabolism, which makes them easier to handle. Don't submerge the eels in water, as they will deplete the oxygen levels and eventually drown. When fishing from a boat, use your sonar to first locate an area where striped bass have congregated.  When cruising at a higher speeds, striped bass will appear as small orange blotches on most sonar screens. It's easy to miss these marks so be sure to keep a keen eye on the sonar. Depending on the wind and tide, setup a drift that will bring the boat through the area in which striped bass have gathered. Eels are slithering, squirming creatures, so they can be difficult to handle and hook.  Use a burlap sack or even a cotton sock to hold the eel, as this will give you a better grip. Hold the eel around its neck in order to hook it. Use circle hooks to avoid gut hooking bass. Hook the eel in one of two ways—either pass the hook through the top of the eel's mouth and out one of its eyes, or place the hook as deeply into the eel's mouth as possible and pass it through the bottom of its throat. The former method hooks the eel more securely but runs the risk of accidentally killing it, which the latter method is less secure but keeps the eel alive for longer and makes the hook appear less obvious. When casting your eel out, go easily at first until you find the sweet spot -- you don't want to rip out the hook.  Give the eel a few seconds to reach the bottom—depending on the strength of the current and depth of the water—before you start to slowly reel it in. You may need to add up to 1/2 ounce of weight in the form of a rubber core sinker if the tide and wind is particularly strong. Start reeling at a very slow rate of 3 to 5 seconds per revolution—you want the eel to do most of the work for you. As soon as you feel the bass grab the eel, bow the fishing rod til it's parallel with the water.  This will prevent the striper from feeling the tension in the eel and becoming spooked. However, if you’re using circle hooks, you should reel the line in at a constant rate in order to hook the fish. You can set the hook as soon as the line goes taut and reel the fish in immediately, or you can allow the fish to run for 5 to 10 seconds (keeping the line slack) before setting the hook.

Summary:
Consider why you should use live eels. Make sure to store the eels under the right conditions. Locate the bass. Hook the eels. Cast the eel out. Reel in the striped bass.