herring and bobber fishing

[Fishslayer]

this year i am thinking about using herring for salmon fishing off the shore. how much weight should i use and what type of bobber.

[Deleted User]

FS - It really varies with the water depths your fishing in and the tidal currents up around Puget Sound. Use plug cuts with good sized banana sinkers and a large torpedo shaped float for long castability. The depth you set your bobber stop at depends on the water and whether your fishing for Kings or silvers. Ask some local fishers you see out there or tackle shops for area advice. Let us know how it goes if you try it. - RT

[Deleted User]

Howdy,
Before big #72 (Abraham Lincoln) moved into E-town we were allowed to fish and crab off pier 1. This is where I learned the effectivness of the free-floating herring method. Using light spinning gear my friends and I had a ball C&R little Blackmouth (18-20in. avg.) One important thing I stressed with anyone on their first trip, was to leave the bail open while the unweighted bait drifted around. The little spunkers would hit the bait at fullspeed, and a couple times a day a keeper King was hooked. Without pole holders a flipped bail could mean disaster. The look on Steve's face(now my business partner) as we took shelter from a squall, 20ft. from his wildly bucking pole is forever etched in my memory. Twice I had warned him, the fish spit his herring saving his gear/pride. Not one to panic, he let it float and scored a 5lb. King.
Years later I made my first trip to Bush pt. to fish the surf for Silvers. All day with two friends, and a beach full of other anglers, I was not impressed. Buzzbombs sailed by the dozens all down the beach, without any chrome explosion. Knowing of the fledgling live herring/bobber fishery on the S.E. corner of the Is.(Bait Box) and reminiscing of Pier 1. I bought some fresh-kill at the boat launch. Without a doubt that decision was the biggest impact my technique has made on the local sport fishing scene.
Heres what we did, 8lb.line on med.spinning, to which a single 3/0 hook tied. The fresh Herring was rigged by running the hook through the head, then through the back a couple times basically like a thread and needle sewing it on the line, with the hook left dangling near the tail. A 6in. herring casts a long way with this set-up. Now the kicker, as the bait drifted under a couple ft. I reeled or jigged until a visable flash emitted from the Herring. Soon a couple taps alerted us to flip the bail over so when the Silver grabbed line would spill off the spool at warp speed (awesome) Then when the salmon stopped to finish his meal, we'd reel down tight and strike hard. You can imagine this rig isn't that efficient hooking up, but getting smashed 2-3 times until the hook found the mark is a beauty way to go.
We proudly walked down the beach 90 min. later with limits. As we passed the launch, Dennis the owner(cool guy) excitedly called us over amazed. He then took our picture. It took me 4-5 more trips over there, enduring the ribbing from the locals(Are you fishing for seagulls?) before I noticed another angler using bait.(the elaborate bobber/mooching sinker set-up used at Bait Box) The next trip another handful were, and by the seasons end the whole beach was drifting Herring.
Tuning up a car that winter, Dennis walked into the shop beaming, called me by name and thanked me for single-handedly increasing his bait sales by 1,000% that summer.(only the boaters purchased Herring) Now when I fish Bush Pt. I use a Buzzbomb and do fine giving the fish something different than Herring.

[Deleted User]

Great story Humpy! That must have been a good feeling when you discovered a new "angle" on catching fish that became a popular method, especially being likely that you couldn't have kept it secret under the circumstances. You probably run into "Bobber Down" from Bob's BB? He posted a good peice on the herring and bobber tech there and gave me permission to use it in my book. If you don't mind can I use this interesting story as a prelude to it? Thanks for enlightening us. Tight lines. - Steve