How to troll near the bottom

[lenok]

I know this sounds like a stupid question, what exactly does it mean to troll "on the bottom"? Do you actually drag your lead on the bottom, let it bounce, or do you just tap bottom once and reel a couple of times to get your bait a couple feet off.
Also, would it be suicide to try to fish kwikfish on the lower Willamette this early? I know herring work best early, but it's a pain for me to get them dancing right and keep them that way. I was wondering if a Kwikfish with a sponge wrapped on and soaked in herring scent might work just as well.
Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Hard Ball]

You dont want to drag the bottom unless you like tying new gear. Just tap it once in a while and keep it close. I like it to tap every 20 sec or so, but remember you dont have to be on the bottom to catch fish.

[FlyingAce]

Yes trolling on the bottom means touching bottom and reeling up a couple of cranks. Most people are trolling herring on the incoming tide and anchoring on the outgoing tide right now. Hope this helps.

[5-Cents]

Bounce the bottom then reel up a couple of cranks...

[FishinMission]

And...Yes..You can troll Kwikies. But if you do....and your rod folds..."Wait,wait, wait..." before you pick it up and set the hook!

I've seen plenty of fish get bonked after taking a Kwikie on the troll in the lower Willamette.

Don't be afraid to try a spinner, either.

Mark

[RODACTION]

Find the bottom with your weight, crank it back up a bit. Don't let your weight drag, or you will need to re-rig. Also find out how much line you reel up with one revolution of you spool. This helps to know how far your comming up, even though your line is at a angle and not staight down. I always check my gear, taking the rod out of the rod holder and letting it down again finding the bottom. Then bring it back off of the bottom again. Watch your depth gauge too, if your in 15ft of water at first, you may go into 25ft of water and need to go deeper. Then you may need to come up as you get into shallower water. Also as Hard Ball said "you don't have to be on bottom to catch fish" many a fish has been caught reeling up !

[pearl]

If I'm fishing a shelf in a depth of 20' or shallower ( is shallower a word ) I like to have my bait on the "bottom" Bottom to me is to let your lead down till you hit bottom, wait 10 to 20 seconds then find bottom again. Then come up 1 1/2 to 2 cranks. Because we fish a lot of areas that have an uneven bottom it is my responsibility as captain to call out depth changes to my passengers ( if they cant see the depth finder) to make sure all rods are in the zone.

[Tanker Man]

I agree with Pearl.....I fish most of the time in the lower Willy....fish the shelfs and flats and watch the depth finder...I also use a double herring rig...2 hooks on bottom and 1 on top....Have caught many, many fish over the years and most have been on the bottom herring. The herring is 1-2 feet from the bottom......Don't get me wrong but this is how I do it...... mainly in the shallows......7-15 feet.......When you're out in the main channel to 50'deep... then you fish anywhere from 5-30 feet....don't do that much....stay on the shelfs and herring spinning as tight as possible... good luck :smile:
Bob

[strato fisher]

Does anyone use a jet diver, or is it a strickly weight game when trolling on the bottom?

[garyk]

lenok, when fishing the MC with herring in my boat we're usually holding the rods, we like to feel the 'take' and the years have slowed our reactions enough that we don't reflexively jerk it away from sammy on his first tug. (You really want to feed the herring to these springers.)

About the bottom...

When holding the rod, if I reach back like 2-feet, I want to feel the lead touch. Then I bring the rod back to fishing position. We're typically using a 20" sliding lead line.

As mentioned above, the person on the trolling motor needs to call out the depth changes as needed -- and this can be very frequently. Once you get to know a stretch of water, it's drop-offs and shoals, the reeling-up and letting-out get to be second nature.

[The Overfishin Condition]

About trolling kwikies... My experience is it's difficult to get the action on them that I like. I guess if I was going to troll something other than herring, it'd be a prawn spinner. This way you don't have to worry so much about the action, but you still have the attraction of bait. That's my .02 TOC.

[stevo]

You guys are confusing me, last year all I heard on the board was "4oz and 12 pulls" for trolling CP herring for springers. I did that and we did so so, landed one and crackered a few. Now all the advice is to be bumping bottom while trolling.
I fished Sellwood this weekend and watched the regulars holding their rods and giving them action, almost looked like back-bouncing. Can someone explain?
Thanks

[12pulls]

It all depends on the place and the depth you are fishing. If you are at Coon Island, Davis Bar, or Sellwood, the depths are shallow so you will need to be within 5 feet of the bottom. If you are fishing the deeper depths ( 40-60 feet) then you will need to fish higher like 10 to 20 pulls depending on what the current, troll speed, and where the fish are showing on the finder. The weight is important, watch the angle of your line, I like a 45 degree angle. If it is less, reduce the lead, if it is greater, increase the weight. I use anything from 4 to 8 oz depending on the current. It is important not to long line around a bunch of boats ( makes it hard for everyone to fish). Good luck!

[Tanker Man]

Well put 12 pulls........All depends depth of water...there are people that don't like to fish the shallows and stay out deep where they don't have to wory about getting snaged or messing with reeling in and out and are fishing 10-30 ft.....they also catch fish...myself I like the lead on the bottom and watch the depth finder

Bob