All the above will work Jeff, but the key with all methods is to keep them slightly damp, but above all
cool. NEVER leave them where the sun can get on the container. I use a large plastic tub (the size that have a carrying handle and are big and strong enough to use as a makeshift seat....which is doubly handy
). Punch lots of small (2mm or so) holes in the lid, then two thirds fill it with sphagnum moss, or if you can't get that, shredded and lightly dampened newspaper....or a mixture of both.
Place the worms on top of the media and let them wriggle through, and again, make sure that whatever you use stays very slightly damp, NOT saturated. While storing, place the tub somewhere cool, the concrete floor of a garage or other brick built outbuilding is ideal. The worms usually migrate to the bottom of the media, so turn the tub upside down occasionally so that they have to work their way back through the media, and then the next day turn it back up the right way. This cleans them and turns them into tough, mean wriggle machines
Lastly, turn the media by hand occasionally and remove any dead or dying worms, as decaying worms can kill the whole tub. If you use the excellent 'red torchlight on a damp night' collection method to get stock, discard any that snap or are otherwise damaged during collection (it happens). Alternatively, if you are going fishing soon after collection, place the damaged ones in a separate tub and use them first, and discard any of that lot that are left after your trip.
Kept in this way, they will last for weeks, even months. Let them get warm though, or completely dry out, and they will be dead in hours.
Good luck,
Dave.
