Trolling for Beginners
This post is aimed at people are beginners, and want to learn trolling. It is a simple technique, and you don't have to break the bank to do it. Even if you don't have a big boat, you can still troll. I use a Sevylor inflateable. Usually I row. You don't even need a motor. In fact, for under $100, you can get a smaller Sevylor raft, oars, and a lifejacket, and start trolling, but you will need to limit yourself to smaller lakes or stay near shore, and only go when the lake is calm or has only light waves.
This time of year the lakes in the Cascades have lots of willing trout. If you go, the fish aren't very deep. I had considerable success trolling frog pattern flatfish, frog pattern or black Triple Teasers, silver triple teasers, and silver Fjiord spoons near the surface. About 20 bucks will set you up with all the lures you need for the summer, provided you troll near the surface so you don't snag the bottom and lose the lures. No weight, just the lure, with about sixty feet of line out. Troll as slowly as you can, in an S-pattern. Most of your strikes will come as you are turning. If you go five minutes without a strike, try increasing your speed as you turn. That leads to strikes as well. The reason for this is that turning changes the speed of the lure, and it will rise and fall in the water, giving it a more natural presentation. This is especially deadly during the evening, when you see rising trout. The water is still cool, and the fish are near the surface in many lakes. In the afternoons, try trolling along the shade line, where shadows of the trees and hills ends. Those fish are hungry, and will usually be less than ten feet below the surface. If the weather is warm and sunny, add some split shot to your line to get it down further during the heat of the day. A lake troll or a dodger is not generally necessary for trout, but if you aren't getting bites you may want to consider adding a troll ( the kind with all the spinners) or a dodger. I prefer a small dodger because it imparts more action on the lure. I've invested a total of $150 in basic gear that I'm still using after two years. Even if you don't have a lot of money to spend, or can't afford much of a boat, you can still troll and catch fish. After all, it isn't the boat that catches the fish. I've heard other fishermen make snide remarks about "the guy in the rubber raft" that they didn't realize would carry across the lake, then gotten to the boat ramp and had two or three times as many fish as them, plus released many more. It's the technique that catches the fish, not the money you spend on the gear and the boat.
happybrew
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