trolling help please

[bait-n-wait]

went to get some springers today. got out there and DOH!!! no current, tide was actually almost comming in. the slough was like glass, so I decide to try trolling, I mean how hard can it be? just make my own current. well.. I don't think I was doing some right. I was running 6 oz of weight on a 18in drop and a K 15 on about 24in leader. seemed right but I could feel the weight drag bottom. switched to 2 oz and couldn't get it deap enough... what else do I need to do? any advice will be welcomed... thanks

[Silver Hilton]

Try four ounces?

I'd use whatever weight will keep your lines at about a 40 degree angle off the back of your boat at the speed you want to use. At that angle, every 2 feet of line out will get you about one foot down. So, fifteen pulls will get you about fifteen feet down. Some trig jockey will argue, but this is about right.

Then pick your depth, and troll someplace where you think fish are. What depth that should be, where that would be, others know far more than I. But you could do worse than 12 to 15 feet around Freds.

[ANDYCOHO]

A lot of people troll the Willy and Channel with 4oz at 12 to 14 pulls (24-28' of line out).

I have a friend that trolls his k-14's with 4oz at 12 pulls and does better than most people do anchored...

[brdkdg]

Silver Hilton has it right. Watch your depth finder.

[blacktail519]

YES. try 4 ounces, and cut off the kwikie, and tie on a moochin rig with cut plug herring :grin:

[Fishfaced]

Trollers Rule! Keep on trolling. You will get the hang of it. When the tide rips out, troll down stream,then run back up and start over. Follow Blacktails advice. Cut plug herring all the way. Trollers will out fish the anchor boys all day long in the lower river. Good luck!

[ANDYCOHO]

I'm a fan of a Cut-Plug any day...BUT...I have seen first hand a trolled Kwik-Fish out fish any Dead-Fish-On-A-String :grin:

Don't get too hung up on following the Masses :tongue:

[blacktail519]

To each his own i Guess. Lets see.... PLASTIC FISH ON ONE HAND< REAL FISH ON THE OTHER>>>>>> HUUUUMMMMMM :grin:

[WheresMyBobber]

Yeah, what Silver Hilton said. "Most" springers will be between 12 and 17 feet when trolling in deep water. With that said, you can also catch them in 6' of water. But time after time, year after year if you're trolling between 12 and 17 feet you're fishing with confidence.

Of course this doesn't take into account fishing along the edges and on top of shelves, but is a general rule that you can bank on in deeper water.

[happybrew]

Any one try a diving sinker, like a Deep Six for this? It would put it at about the 15 feet with 15 pulls too.

happybrew

[blacktail519]

Happy brew!! That would work fine in deeper water, but when your fishing say a 20' depth, you want that bait bouncin the bottom... Keep it in the strike zone

[Silver Hilton]

Happy, I use a pink lady all the time. Works great. The risk is, it snags more easily in bumpy terrain. I use them in the lower river. They work better than sinkers, because they stay at a constant depth, even if your speed varies. But the snagging can be expensive.

[bait-n-wait]

thanks for the advice... I will definatly use it the next time I find myself in the river with no current. Next question, how do you troll out going? wouldn't you potentially be going about 10 miles an hour? thanks again

[Steelin Steel]

When trolling with the current, try staying just a little faster then the current, but not to fast. Just enough for whatever you are using to gets its action. :smile:

[Space]

Are you going crazy with all the different choices yet? If not, then here's another one. Use 4oz. of lead on a 18" to 24" dropper. Then get rid of that short leader and use a 5' leader from a bead chain to your Chartruse bill with a silver bodied "KWICK FISH". Make sure you wrap it with some sardine and maybe even throw on some sardine sent if the water is a little off color. I'll bet you'll notice a difference. You try this method and let your buddies use theirs. Just make sure you tell them it's a buck for the first fish.

SPACE

It might sound lame but try trolling a sardine wrapped Kwickfish with the front hook over your line. The Kwickfish has an excelent roll and catches fish.

[Mojo]

Keta, I've done that accidentally :grin: but I hear it's deadly on silvers.

bait-n-wait, If you are trolling down stream on the outgoing your ground speed might be 10 mph, but your water speed would be 1.5 or so. Remember the fish don't relate to shore the way we do, they relate to the flow of the current. You will cover a lot of ground trolling down-current.

[FishinTechnician]

Blacktail is right on. I fish the slough down around Scappoose Bay and you must fish the bottom there. 5oz usually on a 24-30" lead line w/herring. Longest lead line with clearer water, shorter w/muddier water. The depth varies so stay in touch with it but don't drag the bottom with your sinker. Pretty much snag free, but stay away from the pilings as there is some wire and logs still in there from when the log rafts were tied along there. Can fish the same way at the mouth of the Gilbert and Coon Island. Let them chew on that herring awhile. Don't set that hook until the line is going off the reel. Good Luck!

[bait-n-wait]

WOW!! you guys are great.. Its nice to see people helping out a fellow fisherman. I have see lots of great ideas and advice.. but answers and advice spawn more questions... what is a mooching rig, cut plug herring and with sardine on the K lure, how much of what size sardine do I use? Thanks for helping a new troller out.

[brdkdg]

When you troll down stream, you are trolling against the fish which are headed up stream. That puts your bait in the face of more fish and when they see it they have to choose to chase it or leave it, which can trigger their agressive nature.

As for using bait, plugs or spinners... the one that works best for you is the one to use. I prefer to use herring (usually cut plug) or spinner prawns.

[slabhunter]

Go to www.luhrjensen.com and look through the tech tips in the lefthand column. There is a lot of good information there. Have fun!