Hog line success - what makes a winner spot?

[NoLimit]

I am new to hogline fishing. This morning in the dark and the fog I set up on one of the old timers who used his GPS to duplicate as closely as possible the same location as yesterday, when he caught fish. Frenchmans' Bar, 1/4 mile above marker 33, first line above the anchored ship, 48' of water, near mid stream Washington side. The old timer who set up the line with his GPS got skunked, but the boat next to him went 2/3. I noticed that of the other boats that took fish off of that line on both sides of me, most of them took more than one fish, and the rest of us did not get bit. My question is, once the line is established, how do you choose where to set up in the line so as to intercept fish. I am assuming for this discussion you have your pick on spots. Based on my experience today I would say the fish are using several lanes (4 today) , and the lanes are narrow, perhaps a boat width or so. How do you find those lanes prior to dropping anchor?

Note: fish on activity came late in the ebb tide, really starting about 2 hours before slack.

[Small Fry]

NoLimit It was nice to meet you today. I can tell you why the wife and I chosse our spot next to you this morning. (FOG PUCKER FACTO 8 1/2) Other wise I probably would have gone up above a few hundred yards. Seemed like a good spot yesterday. But for some reason no one was in there today.

I did get one today. 10 Pound Silver missing a fin.

[SureSet]

All I can say is don't spend too much time thinking about it. You'll drive yourself nuts trying to figure out what/where is hot and why it's that way one day and not the next. That line you were in is typical. The guy next to you does well, and the guy four boats down does well, but you go dry. You anchor in that spot after they limit and you still can't touch a fish. Other days, you end up where you didn't want to be because your anchor job stunk and end up slaughtering them with everyone else wondering why. Some day you watch the bite move from one end of the line to the other and just wait your turn. Just accept the fact that it's a mystery and work it!

My 2c

SureSet

[Nanook]

[ 11-25-2002, 10:01 AM: Message edited by: ****** ]

[AnglersRental]

Uhhhhh.... I thought the fish swam all under the river...

UG.

[Nanook]

[ 11-25-2002, 10:02 AM: Message edited by: ****** ]

[Fishalot]

One thing that is for sure they are not swimming on dry land.

Fishalot :wink:

[Chris Nordling]

After boating our second fish yesterday, a fellow I've seen many times asked me " Hey, what are you guys catching all those fish off of ?"

I looked at my buddy, smiled and replied to the guys obvious question and said

" THE BOTTOM " :grin: :grin: :grin:

True story . Rick, it was the '57 chevy boat guy that asked. :smile:

Chris :cool:

[brshooter]

NoLimit,
Listen to Sureset. He gives good advise. It is a coin toss at Frenchmen's. One day the bite will be inside, the next day it will be outside. I haven't found any real pattern to it. The only thing I can tell you is that if you see my blue North River (with ifish stickers on both sides) out there, don't anchor next to me. Most of the fish seem to be caught several boats to one side or the other from me. I never hit the right slot.
The area around the mouth of the Kalama is different. There seem to be certain slots that consistantly produce down there.

[WaterDog]

Nolimit,
Welcome to my world. :rolleyes: I have more days like yours than I care to report when chasing URB’s. SureSet is absolutely right. I fished the same line as him on Saturday and boats on either side of us hit fish. We got nothing. OK well I did cracker as steelie on a handoff :rolleyes: early in the day but then never touched anything. Boats were catching fish all over the place and I just watched. Frustrating as heck. Just keep at it.

[Sturgeon 42]

Sureset is right, I try to anchor at the same spot every day, sometimes I don't get there in time so I just slide in where the right depth is and slide my lure out farther than anyone else....... :sleep: :sleep: :sleep:

[Fish Hawk Adventures]

Not to sound to rude but I am not a total believer on the exact spot in ony one hogline. I get aced out of my spots very regular and I still put on a clinic for the people that are in the so called good spots. I really believe that it is not always the spot, you must present your offering the correct way for the water conditions and stick with a good thing even if it is slow. I went 8 for 15 on Sat and left the water by 11:30 and 6 for 10 on Sunday. Both days I was not in the spots that I like to be in. However with persistance you can catch fish. I believe that running double riggins or too light of lead, or a kwick fish in the fast water will decrease you chances for sucess. I fish next to people with double riggins or spinners all the time and it seems that the fish avoid the rods that are even close to thier poles at times. Who knows, and good luck

[Chris Nordling]

WORD :cheers: :cheers:

[Tilla]

The fish seem to not make up their mind with my double riggin....top or bottom...bottom or top...which is it gonna be? Pretty exciting stuff! :rolleyes:
I'll go back to a single when they make up their minds.
It was 50/50 yesterday.

[BottomFeeder]

NoLimit,

Try moving to a spot of working depth (the same depth people are catching fish) away from everyone else. I have boated several fish doing that when I wasn't in "the spot"

TPM

[NoLimit]

for you it is rigging over location. Can you suggest a few alternative rigging strategies that you go to. I was fishing a Luhr Jensen Manistee wobbler on a 5' drop and 5' lead, with relatively heavy lead so as to maintain less line in the water. My thinking is that gives me better contact with my gear, and I have a better idea of the height of the wobbler off of the bottom. The successful boat 2 boats over toward the Washington side was fishing an Alvin on similar dropper/leader length, but was back bouncing a little farther out. The guy next to him had very similar rigging and similar back bounce distance (i.e. lure height off the bottom). As I understand it, these fish are not feeding this far upriver. It seems to me that they have to swim into the wobbler to strike. I don't know if they go out of their way to do this. Have you seen video of an upriver chinook striking a stationary wobbler? I would like to know that process.

[NoLimit]

Talons, that post got cut off. It said, Talons, thank you for the reply. It looks like you favor presentation over location....

[Fish Hawk Adventures]

That is correct,
I went 11 for 16 today and limited the boat out today.......... All Nooks gotta love that

[NoLimit]

Joe, thank you for the reply. If you could please revisit the thread, as I have a question as to presentation when you are locked in to a position on the line.
My strategy at this point is to take note of the boats that are hooking up, and do what they do. I am real curious as to how an upriver chinook interacts with an Alvin or a spinner, or what ever else the fish bumps into on the way upriver. I would like to hear the marine biologists on this topic, and to see footage of an actual URB dealing with a lure. What puzzles me is that the fish are not feeding at this point in their journey (at least that is my understanding - would you agree with this?), so what makes them mouth a lure? What roles do action, size, color, speed, and depth play in hooking an upriver chinook? I have read an excellent series on freshwater fishing written by Buck Perry (you can find material on him on the web, at www.google.com, (http://www.google.com,) search "Buck Perry". He says it is all depth, and speed, with action and color playing support roles. He is talking primarily about largemouth bass, but his approach is worth considering: he is logical and disciplined, and often contrarian to conventional wisdom.

I know this is an old question, but it is one that in my view has not been adequately addressed. We could learn a lot by doing our own video on our own hogline on the Columbia. I think that technology is coming into the range of the sport fisherman. I am not sure of visibility at 48'. Just a few feet would do. Anchor the camera on the bottom of the river under the boat. The camera has some sort of bracket to rig the Alvin, sort of like a downrigger. Drop the Alvin down a foot in front of the lens, and watch/shoot video. Even if it were just shadows we could see the fish approach the lure. That would be interesting.

Anyway, thanks for your help.
Regards,
Ray Brown, NoLimit on the Ifish board, new to the hogline.

[Charlie]

My friend and I fished today at Longview using
wablers had 8 takes 6 hooked up and four landed, largest 34lbs.
Our guide had us set the hook once the rod
was down in the holder, my one mistake was
not keeping the line tight and with a little slack
lost a large fish at the boat....I learned a good
lesson.
It was a beautiful day.
Charlie