Downrigger fishermen surely have their favorite target species. If you don’t move fast the trout will often shake the hook because it is essentially fighting on a slack line. When kokanee and kings are the target you can shorten your lines considerably. This movement should attract the attention of specific fish such as tuna, salmon, walleye, marlin, some bass species (check our fishing rods for bass), and trout. But what about if you don’t have downriggers? But I have heard as high as 4 mph on the Great Lakes. For best results, you should use specific lures and baits. Trolling for Salmon Without Downriggers: Beginners Guide. As mentioned earlier, downriggers allow the angler to use the same tackle regardless of depth. My goal is to help you catch fish in deeper water all season long with a simple trolling setup that does not involve spending a pretty penny on downriggers. An angler that has a basic grasp of trolling tactics both with and without downriggers will catch plenty of trout and salmon throughout the course of the season, yet there are advanced tactics and tricks that can help elevate your success rate to a whole new level, sometimes! Trust me – it is worth the few minutes it takes to rig the high-vis braid and long leader.Always try to adjust your rod holders so the tips of your rods are close to the surface of the water – I know this is not possible with some holders, but having the rods low does two important things. Trolling Speed for Salmon. It’s basically a plainer board that runs up and down the downrigger cable. It’s surprising how well you can judge an effective trolling speed just by watching the way your lure is making the rod work. For trout, you’ll want to run your offering from 50 to 200 feet behind the downrigger weight depending on the depth you are fishing. They put you at the exact depth you require, and with downriggers, you can fish multiple rods and lures. When it does, it catches the current and is forced back up to the surface. Most of the time small low drag spoons like Needlefish and Dick Nites are used on cheater leaders, but there are other options. Maybe I am just not big on theories, but I do know one thing about trout – where there is one, there will be others! Trout trolling equipment. Downriggers are pretty simple: they sink your salmon trolling rig and lure down to a specified depth by connecting your rig to a main weighted line. In the extreme you could cover a 60-foot span of the water column by spreading out a total of six lines using two downriggers. If you know how, it is possible to succeed with some old fashioned flat line trolling. Whenever I fish with dodgers the most important thing to do is to slow down your trolling speed. I started my 2017 trout season in July this year and the trout were at 45'. If you have crank downriggers these devices are real labor savers. By Fishing World - February 2010 | 21 July 2010. This rig is set back behind the boat 10 to 20 feet, attached to the downrigger line release and lowered until the downrigger weight is just skipping on the bottom. The bottom line is that you should realise that the big lakes are potentially dangerous and you have to be bloody careful not to fall in or capsize.Well, I guess that is about it – you really don’t have to be a rocket scientist to bring home a few trout to go in the smoker, and you don’t need a heap of complicated gear either. Set up a rod with a lure, perhaps teamed with a dodger, spool the rig out behind the boat, attach your line to a downrigger clip and lower the rig to the desired depth. You can always count on the cheater stopping at the halfway point between the surface and the primary rig. From downriggers to flashy attractors, trolling light for trout has never been more popular and productive. Having said that, if I had to bet a heap of money on which lure was going to be belted next, I would still pick the one furthest from the boat! They are unquestionably the least costly devices and the easiest to use. While the cheater will often pick up trout as you troll it will also pick up the occasional bonus fish. Intro to Trolling. Many new trollers don’t realize more than one line can be trolled off a downrigger using a method known as “stacking”, as in stacking multiple lines on a single downrigger cable. ... For this, I like to use downriggers. Trolling for salmon with downriggers is the most common technique. For example, Flatfish need to be trolled dead slow while Tassie Devil style lures can handle a bit more speed. The basic parts of a downrigger setup include: the downrigger, downrigger cable, downrigger weights or balls, downrigger releases, and rod holders. There is a school of thought that any style of waders should not be worn in boats on the big lakes, and that is probably a fair call. Speed replication to me is what is the most important. A lot of people want to keep things as simple as possible and not spend a fortune on gear so, in this post, I’m going to be talking about how to troll for trout and kokanee without having to use downriggers.. Trolling rods and reels; Line for trolling; Trolling lures for trout; Downriggers, divers and weights; Dodgers, flashers and trolls; Fish finders; Final thoughts; Two Types of Trout. Trolling through summer's heat can be the best way to connect with more fish more often. Halibut, rockfish, and lingcod are not targeted with a downrigger but frequently get caught when trolling baits near the bottom. There is another method of probing different depths with only a single rod. I mainly vary my distances to avoid tangles and to cover as wide an area as possible with the lures just to increase the chances of a fish seeing one of them. Trolling speed for flat lining can vary a lot from 1.3 to 3-plus mph. You can be sure he has weighed up the choices and made an informed decision. Do not underestimate this little trick – if your lure has just been eaten by a fish, it’s very likely to be eaten by another fish if you can return it to exactly the same distance from the boat, because this will make the lure run at the exact same depth and have the exact same action as it did before. Trolling is when a fisher drags the bait through the water. When I was up at Reindeer Lake trolling for trout, I simply put an 8-ounce keel sinker eight or nine feet ahead of my spoon and then let out 150-feet of 10-pound test Fireline. Trolling is a great way to cover lots of water and find more fish, but getting outfitted to catch “the big one” in deep water can seem like a daunting task. Most anglers fish no more than two fishing lines off a single cable, but if you have multiple people on your boat it is possible to use three or more stackers on each downrigger, trolling a line off each of them. When trout are wary due to clear water or fishing pressure, try trolling … Undoubtedly, you’ve been reeling in a trout only to look down in the water and see another fish swimming along with it. Generally, for salmon you’ll want your offering working from 10 to 50 feet behind the weight. An 18 - 24 inch leader is added to the back of the dodger and terminated with a trolling fly, spin-n-glo or spoon. I do tend to use my GPS as a guide to how fast I am trolling, but before I owned one I seemed to do well enough with a bit of gut feel and by taking note of the way my rod tip was vibrating. Try double rigs like you use for flounder. If you catch a fish, run the line back out until the braid is just touching the water again, and the lure just has to be positioned at the same distance from the boat as it was when you caught the fish. This can be a lot of work in situations where you need to raise and lower the downrigger often. Other fish people frequently target with downriggers include steelhead, brown trout, and striped bass. I have had fish take lures as close as three metres from the boat so maybe they don’t worry too much about boats or motors anyway. This is true when using a dodger as well. I know what you’re thinking. We have been trolling for trout for a few years now. I’m not speaking species here such as rainbow, brown and so on, but types. I try to stay between 1.5 – 2.0 mph when I am using a dodger. When a trout hits, the lure trailing behind the plainer and pulls the line out of the clip, the rolling weight in the plainer moves to the rear, causing its nose to tilt upward. Set up a rod with a lure, perhaps teamed with a dodger, spool the rig out behind the boat, attach your line to a downrigger clip and lower the rig to the desired depth. I run an Evinrude E-TEC 90 on my boat and it will troll all day at speeds as slow as 1.7 knots. Apart from the GPS, my boat also has the luxury of a Minn Kota electric trolling motor which I use for trolling Flatfish really slowly, and occasionally when fish retreat into the depths, for trolling with Ford Fenders. Sign-up to receive the twice-weekly email newsletter. At sea, downriggers have been shown at times to be by far the most effective trolling option, for the conditions and target species! Common species of fish caught by downriggers include in no particular order: trout, lake trout, walleye, salmon, grouper, halibut, stripers, and swordfish. I’m really fussy about getting the lures back in the right position, so I rig my lines with braid which is easy to see, and then tie quite a long length of leader (around 15m) to it. Trout Fishing With Downriggers – Scotty Lake Troller. The downrigger is mounted on the right (starboard) side of the transom as far away from the propeller as possible. The basics of downrigger trolling for trout and landlocked salmon are pretty simple and straight forward. Using lures that are made for faster trolling applications tend to yield greater results in mid to late fall. You can also add a inline slim cork in shallow areas to keep it … If you do manage to catch a fish, don’t be in a hurry to leave the area. Many times, I use my Shuttle Hawk even when I’m only using one rod per downrigger since it saves me from constantly raising and lowering my downrigger. One way is to use wire clips, known as stackers. You see, when a trout grabs a lure, gets hooked and pulls the line from its release the fish tends to fall straight back initially because of the forward momentum of the boat. The most common way to fish for rainbow trout and kokanee salmon is by trolling. If you are trolling too fast your dodger will start rotating which will twist up your line and you will lose the ideal motion on your lure. Attach a 12- to 24-inch leader to the snap at the terminal end of the cowbell. The basics of downrigger trolling for trout and landlocked salmon are pretty simple and straight forward. I refer to this as using a cheater, it works like this. The fishing line attached to the plainer causes it to tip forward and dig into the current created by the movement of the boat. Most types of leadcore line are metered so that fishermen can estimate the depth of their offering. The deeper you fish the shorter your line can be. There are many opinions out there on what speed to troll. All the stuff you read in serious trout articles does work – weedbeds, rocks, drop-offs, plankton clouds and all sorts of other features are good spots to try, but I catch a hell of a lot of fish way out in the depths when I am just snooping along. When you want to run a lure closer to the boat, just run it out until only a few feet of braid shows outside the rod tip. By early October this year, I was fishing down to 125'. Downriggers are obviously the most proficient way to work the thermocline effectively. Porta-Bote fitted with a Scotty Lake Troller. Make absolutely sure your boat and you as skipper can handle the conditions if a sudden blow comes up, because the penalty for a mistake on mountain water is usually death. At that point, all you need to do is loosen the drag on your rod all the way and the plainer will be forced down to the plastic stop you put on the cable. These techniques definitely play out in other regions as well. Denis Isbister of Wild Fish Wild Places TV gives us some inside advice and tips on how he stays successful while on the troll for giant cutthroat trout on Pyramid Lake in Nevada. The cheater leader will slide down the line to the center of the arch. The use of downriggers during this time of the year is absolutely essential. The body of water dictates this I’ve found. There are a couple different approaches to stacking lines. Trolling these zones with a lure that mimics a Kokanee can produce excellent results. Lake trout spread throughout the water column in the winter, so be sure to set baits at a variety of depths. If I head into the wind then it will troll even slower! However, for those of you with small boats … Firstly it allows your lures to run just a bit deeper, and secondly the wind will not blow your lines all over the place and cause tangles.After a lot of trial and error I am satisfied that light leaders make a big difference to the numbers of fish you catch. Tie good knots and you can get away with a maximum of six pound test leader. You attach a small plastic stop to the cable 10 to 15 feet above the ball. Once it is all the way down, tighten the reel’s drag and go about your business. Trout trolling can be a bit like rocket science with downriggers, side planers and lead lines, but BUSHY likes to keep it simple. Trolling with downriggers to catch Salmon and Trout is one of the most popular trolling techniques used on the great lakes. If there is a second trout following the hooked fish it will often grab the cheater and you’ll have a double header on your hands. I just set a good trap, wander about the place in a nice relaxed fashion – and then flog the area to death wherever I hook a fish. Since the trout are aggressively feeding trolling speeds can be much faster than when fishing in the summer months. This way of fishing is just to have an extra attractant to help the fish locate where your lure is if you are having a hard time getting any bites. Downriggers can be as simple or as sophisticated as you’re prepared to fork the cash out for. If you fall in or capsize – you will probably die of hypothermia within a few minutes. Best Ice Fishing Lures For Trout - 7 Of The Deadliest Trout Lures - on Ice Fishing for Rainbow Trout Using Weed Lines; Top 5 Tactics for Trolling Rainbow Trout in Dirty Water - BC Fishn on TIPS – HOW TO RECOGNIZE MATURE (SOON-TO-SPAWN) FEMALE TROUT; Ice Fishing Kokanee in British Columbia on Ice Fishing Tackle for Kokanee One thing we need to address is the two types of trout. Big Catfish and Stripers Highlight Los Vaqueros Reservoir Reopening, Lake Camanche Trophy Trout, Bass Lurk Above Ruins of Lancha Plana. In that situation, the second trout hears the struggle of the hooked fish, assumes it is feeding and moves in hoping for an easy meal. Start out slower 1.5 to 1.8 mph and work your way faster if the fish are not responding. Trolling for salmon is one of the most effective ways to catch them. Anywhere from 1.8 to 3 mph is the best. A downrigger is a device used to achieve this aim. Instead you’ll see the fight of the trout telegraphed to the rod. What you will need is a good white wine, some salty crackers, a couple of lemons and some cracked pepper, You might need a smug smile as well because the trout from these big lakes are every bit as good as imported smoked salmon and you just might have to eat some if you just drag a few lures around! Apex style lures work well as do Wiggle Hoochies. 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