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Downrigger Trolling for Salmon
DOWNRIGGERS ; The choice of downriggers could get to be a lengthy session all by itself, as there will be many opinions as to which is best. I have personally used Cannon manuals, Penn manuals, & Scotty manual & electrics. Each one has different features, some of a benefit over others. My suggestion is to go with a friend who has other brands & get a chance to use as many as possible before you lay out the amount of cash involved. I had never even seen a downrigger used before I purchased my Cannons & I had a very steep learning curve. The reason I got the Cannons was I knew a salesman who gave me a good deal on them. After I had a chance to see how the Scotty electrics were used by a Alaskan Salmon guide, when I sold that boat, I gave the guy a good deal on the whole package. I would not want a manual version where the handle rotated as the line was being let out. This can be an arm breaker. One boat I was on that had an old Penn manual, & this was the situation. The Cannon manual, you rotated the crank handle slightly back allowing the line to go out & by moving it farther back, it creates a cam type brake. This worked, but I was always afraid that a good jolt would brake something & it required a good cleaning & oiling frequently to keep it from seizing up if used in saltwater. The Scotty electrics are a good design, & have been constantly improved. If you take it to a repair center for any problem, like even a uneven drag, most time they will update it to the newest type of parts for no cost.. They have a 2 way switch on the upper arm control box. This box has a slot that the wire is run thru. It has a kind of pivoting door that is controlled by the switch on the top. This switch has a black outer ring, & an inner green button. To raise it, you can push this green button & as long as you hold it down the motor will bring in the wire. However if you want to have it come in automatically, you rotate the outer ring. This also sets the gate to where the "buttons" you have previously set on the wire as your stop position, a location that when they pass thru this gate, the switch is tripped off. These buttons now come in a package of both bright greenish/chartreuse & black ones. It is recommended that you put one of each color on right next to each other. This gives you a second one as a security to keep both of them from being slid out of position & the green one is easy to see when it is coming up. Scotty is one brand that will retrieve a 15# ball from deeper depths. You want to set these stops so that the ball is not pulled all the way up. As explained below in the Downrigger Weights section, I like to have the ball stop so that it is still just in the water. I have a shock cord long enough that I can now grab it & pull everything in then place the ball in a Ball Baby nest. Raising the 12 or 15# ball out of the water is asking for a dented or crashed hull side. When letting any of them out, do it in a smooth even motion. If it goes too fast, the release clip & the line may tangle around the wire. And if it goes too fast, & when you have to stop it it may be so sudden that you fray or break the wire, or have the terminal snap off. You will want to carry some spare parts for any make that you have. You can always loose some bolts, blow a fuse, fray a wire, or break a belt. I usually carry a Scotty manual unit as a backup & it mounts in the same brackets as my electric units. Simply because it is cheaper & a lot lighter than the electric units. And a spare can save the day if you have planned your outing, taken the time off, & possibly traveled some distance for your day on the water. You can then repair the bad one or replace the wire on shore later. Scotty electrics have a built in hand crank built into the unit just in case the belt breaks or something happens to the connector & you have to manually crank it up. The spools need to be washed off after usage especially if used in saltwater. The best is to wash them off with one of the salt dissolving products. One being a product called Salt Away. Wash the whole boat & internals of the motor with this product. Then rinse off with normal water. If you do not clean the downrigger wire, it can start corroding. I had one brand of replacement wire that rotted in one year. Buy a longer replacement able than they come with. This way you can shorten the terminal end as it becomes curled, or even if you snag bottom & have it broken off, you may still have enough to just replace the snap & reattach another ball. RODS
; The rods used for downrigger fishing
are usually 8' 6" & of a special design simply called "Downrigger Rods". They
need to be a stiff enough butt section, yet have a lighter tip section so that
they can be cranked down to just before the release is tripped. In use, the
rod is arched greatly. What this does is place a lot of strain on the line &
the rod, with a minimal amount of slack from the release to the rod. When you
let the line out off the downrigger & stop the ball, you probably will then have
to reel in slightly to take out all the slack in your line. I have found that
if I pull the line back in at this point with one hand & reel in the slack with
the other, I can "feel it" better. I want the slack taken completely out & have
the release pulled up to just before it releases prematurely. If you
accidentally trip it off occasionally you are getting it about right. When the
fish hits, the rod snaps up, automatically setting the hook. ROD ANGLE ; Set the rods at about a 45 degree angle rearward to achieve the desired effect described above. If your rod is pointing rearward & down lower more, it CAN NOT achieve any of this automatic hook setting action. The rod seems to work best if mounted pointing to the rear instead of to the side, as you will have a lot of side strain on the rod. However this will depend on where on your boat you have the downrigger mounted, & the DR rod holder you are using. Some west side of Vancouver Island Canadian guides seem to want to use the 10 1/2' mooching rod as an all-around rod. This is not an ideal trolling rod by any means, especially if it is placed 90 degrees to the side of the boat as an extension of the downrigger arm. They then also want to run the flasher 60' + behind the clip. What this does is, there is so much belly in the fish line & with the long "noodle rod", that if you get a hit, this limp rod does not set the hook and it may not even trip the clip. Your only hope is to, as SOON as the rod tip twitches, grab the rod & REEL VERY FAST. If you come in empty, well, then you missed the fish. On the other hand if when you get all the slack reeled in & something is wriggling on the other end, you lucked out. REELS ; The main concern is to have a reel with a good smooth drag. If you have a reel that is old & or not maintained that has a drag that is erratic that will allow the line to be only stripped off in spurts, this is an invitation to loose a GOOD fish. The smaller fish will probably not be a problem, but a larger fish, when running, will not have the same constant strain applied. This then may allow it to stop at the "hard spot". Next run will be starting with more strain, & possibly break off or pull the hooks out. Most commonly used reels will be the star drag, level wind
reel. You may not really need a large capacity reel, since you are in a boat &
do have the ability to chase the fish if need be, but read about this below.
An Ambassedeur 5500, Penn 310 GTI, Shimano Triton 200G, or Shimano Calcutta are
some of the preferred ones. The new Shimano Tekota 600 looks to be another
winner also. It is very seldom that more than 100 yards of line
is really needed. That said however, I like to run reels that I can spool with
250 yards of 25# monofilament line. I have seen big fish take out line FAST
in the opposite direction that you are trolling, by the time you realize what is
happening, you do not have time to pull the other gear in & do a chase.
Remember you are bound greatly by still having your downrigger wires in the
water. If you use a reel capable of holding 250 yards of 25# or so of line, you can use it one year, & the next year swap ends of the line on the spool for fresh line on the normally used section (top) for the next season. Do not make the mistake of using a Steelhead rod & reel with 10# line for Salmon on a downrigger if you are in an area where you may hook into a 30# plus fish. The reason is that when you are trolling with multiple lines in the water, and you hook into a hog, it may take longer than you realize just to identify what may be on the other end, as sometimes they tag along. If you are mooching, that is entirely different, as you do not have all the other semi-permanent gear (downrigger wire) in the water & you can move quickly if you have to while the other fishermen reel in. LINE ; Here is where you will get as many different ideas as there is line out there. The normally used type is monofilament. The suggestion is to find one brand that you are comfortable with & stay with it. You however need a line that is abrasion resistant enough to not be effected by repeated use of the downrigger release clip. You also need a line heavy enough to pull the flasher & rest of the gear. Some will use 15# line for the smaller winter Blackmouth, & go up a notch to 20# when the fish get larger during the summer & fall. If you are ocean fishing, the old standby is 25# monofilament. With the newer bright colored lines becoming available, there is one aspect that you may want to consider. That is use a bright green or yellow if you are fishing where there is a chance of seals trying to take your fish. If Mr. seal does take the fish, as soon as possible lighten up on the pressure so he will not have a chance to break your line off. Then chase them & keep the boat above him. This is where the bright colored line helps, as us older codgers can't see quite as well as we used to. The seal has to come to the surface to get a breath & eat the fish. When he hits the surface & takes a gulp, you can usually get the hurting or dead fish back before the seal can recover. With the advent of spectra type braided lines like Fireline, PowerPro etc. currently on the market, many fishermen have went to them. I will not argue one way or the other here, except that I have found the spectra lines, being smaller dia. do have the problem if you use the small sizes (about equal to mono poundage) as they tend to cut into the other line on the spool if a big fish starts pulling. This can create essentially the same thing as a backlash in the rest of the line on the reel & can give you the chance for the big fish to pull the hook out or break the line. Therefore many who use the newer lines go to a larger size than needed, just to keep the line from cutting into the spool. When the larger dia. line is used then part of the benefits have diminished. KNOTS ; In any fishing the knot is a very important factor, most all of the older style knots are not that effective on the new spectra type lines. Therefore it is recommended you consider using the simple little tool called "Knots for All", http://www.tie-master.com/ it is a 5" plastic tool that facilitates & makes knots on the new line possible. This simple tool was designed by fishing guide Joe Little. When the spectra type lines first came out he tested a 15# spectra with the common knots & it broke at the 15#, but using this tool & his knot, it broke at 34#. When tying leaders, the safest way to tie the leader onto the hook is to wrap it left handed, this places the leader around the solid part of the eye, and not laying on the cut end of the eye that in against the shank. With GOOD hooks it may make no difference, but many times if you get a lost fish due to a cut line at the hook, you will find that the leader was pulled into this sharp cut off end of the eye & you will have a small pig's tail at the cut. At times you will want a cut plug to only have the front hook in the bait, with the back hook trailing, with this you then need to tie your leaders appropriately. SWIVELS ; The most common swivels used for saltwater fishing will be the barrel, bead chain and ball bearing swivel. Each one has it's place. However when trolling, it is suggested that you get the best available. If you want to test the efficiency of different swivels, a simple thing is to take about 12-15" of dacron line, tie both ends to the upper end of a swivel. Then tie a mono dropper to the bottom of the swivel and then about 5 or 6" to a 2 ounce cannonball weight. The upper looped dacron will make it easy to hang onto. Now quickly spin the weight. Time the difference between each swivel before the spinning stops. You will also be amazed at the differences in bead chain, barrel, cheap ball bearing swivels & the better Sampo brand.
DODGERS & FLASHERS ; The
big difference between dodgers & flashers is the way they run in the water when
being trolled. Dodgers are usually rounded on the ends and slightly cupped both
ends, they wobble back & forth, or have a swaying side-to-side action. Dodgers
are not generally as effective below about 60’, because color is filtered out
at that depth & they do not make any noise as an attractor.
FISH
FLASH ; This rotary attractor has been
around for the past 10 years or so, & is made by Big Al's Tackle Co. It is a
plastic triangle with the rear widest wings bent so the flasher rotates. They
are made in 4 sizes, Mini ( 4"), Small ( 6" ), Medium ( 8") & Large (11").
These have proven themselves for many types of fishing, both saltwater &
freshwater. The one thing about them there is very little drag, since they spin
on their axis. They are available in many different metallic reflective & glo-in-the-dark,
the more popular colors seem to be chartreuse, chrome, red, lime green or blue
plaid, with the new purple coming in recently. OK, I KNOW THIS IS A DOWNRIGGER ARTICLE, BUT ; These Fish Flashes can also be connected about 12" behind a diver. I have tried them attached directly to a diver, but when that close, the disturbance of the diver effects the spin of the Fish Flash. When using this diver set-up, I use only a 36"- 48" leader for normal salt water fishing. One additional add on would be to add a Metric #2 spinner directly on the rear of this to increase it's effectiveness in that it does basically the same thing as the E-Chip. If using them by themselves as trolling, without a diver or downrigger, you may want to also add a rudder keel between the mainline & the Flash. The illustration below has worked well for Coho off the stern & out about 60', it will also take Chinook. You need about 12"-16" dacron line between the Deep Six diver & the Fish Flash to get rid of the turbulance of the diver. The mooching leader needs to only be about 36" & place a plastic bead on the leader between the Spi-N-Glo & the hooks as a bearing. Not scent or bait is really needed. Run your downriggers off the side & put this rig right off the stern in a rodholder & wait for the action. I like the Deep Six over all other divers in that you can adjust the trip off by the tension on the clamp. It is also a lot easier to trip from the rod, as compared to the other divers like the Pink Lady, where they need to be tripped by the fish. You are supposed to be able to trip the others from the rod by throwing slack & then picking it up again, but they don't seem to work as advertised most of the time.
In both of the illustrations below, you will see a 1 to 4 oz round lead sinker attached to a slider on the mainline resting just above the line release clip. This is an option that may gain you a fish occasionally as explained in the section below "No Attractors for Coho". A flasher or dodger could also be substituted for this Fish Flash.
ACE IN THE HOLE ; This method shown below, of trolling is using a flasher attached to the downrigger ball instead of on the mainline. The appealing thing here is that you do not use the flasher or any weight on your line or leader, just your bait or lure. Have the flasher back about 30" behind the ball & attached directly to it. No lure behind it, as it is simply an attractor for the lure close above. Now attach your release clip on the mainline far enough up so that the flasher can not raise up while descending & tangle with the leader. You want the lure to be just above & behind the flasher. With the above set up you can run a lighter rod & with the lighter rod, you can tell quickly if you have a small shaker fish hooked. This is a proven method for Blackmouth. You can use no weight or a light one as a slider just above the release as described in the following paragraph.
NO
ATTRACTORS FOR COHO ; If you are
trolling in an area that you are reasonably sure there are Coho, a simple method
may help get multiple hook-ups. When you have located a school of Coho, or even
Chinook, abandon your flasher, etc. Simply use a 4 oz. slider sinker and a
mooching leader. Instead of stacking running more rods than you really want on
the downrigger, run say one each on your downrigger & simply troll the others.
For the ones on your downrigger, snap your release on the mainline below the
sinker & the bait as far as you prefer. Now when you get a hit, raise or lower
the downrigger wire to the depth of the hit, pop off the release on the other
rod, pull the wires up, & kick your motor into neutral & you are very quickly
mooching, hopefully in the school of fish. You may want to either raise or
lower your other lines to put them into the "Fish Zone". Many times this is
more effective than trolling thru the school. Another method somewhat akin to the above, is to run the 6' mooching leader behind a rudder. Snap the main line into your downrigger release with 80-90' of line behind the release. You should be able to see the downrigger ball on the screen, now by watching the sonar fishfinder constantly, & then when you see a fish arch above or below the ball, immediately raise or lower the ball to match the fish's depth. Your bait will have enough time to move to the depth you have now set the ball by the time you have trolled to where you saw the fish. Sometimes this method of targeting a single fish will pay off better than "Flock Shooting" the whole ocean in hopes of stumbling onto a fish at the right location & depth. SNUBBERS ; Since the requirement of barbless hooks, it has been apparent that many fish are hooked, but come off before being brought to the boat. Les Davis has now come out with a 10" rubber snubber that is attached in the system, either between the mainline end and the flasher or behind the flasher. This will help maintain a more constant tension on the fish, and possibly help prevent the hook from pulling out. My thoughts here is that it does 2 things. IF you are using the new "Spectra" type braided lines & a stiff or fast rod, yes you WILL need a snubber to make up for the solid connection to the fish. However if you are still using monofilament line, the line has enough stretch in it to do the same as a snubber. There is a couple of alternatives that will improve your catching ratio. You can use the braided line, but keep the drag set to just where it does not pull off the reel when trolling, put the clicker. When you get the pop off, let your loose drag peel line when you hook up. Do this until the fish is well behind the boat. Make sure the drag is loose. Reel down on the fish to the point where the bend of the rod starts showing a definite hooked fish on it, but resist the temptation to set the hook. The speed of the troll, the bend of the rod, the setting of the drag, the sharp hooks, and the snubber should be enough to do the job. MATCH
THE HATCH ; If using a squid or spoon,
try to use a size & color of the baitfish in the area on that particular day.
As soon as you catch a fish, cut it open & examine the stomach contents. This
will give you a clue as to what bait is in the area. SCENT
; Use scent on all artificial baits,
herring. anchovy, scrimp, seem to be the best. Put Power Bait & /or scent into
a squid body. While on this & relating back to SMELL There is a new item on the market & brought out by Salmon University that is called the "Salmon Scenter". This was a specially designed PVC tube with slots in the sides that is filled with their scent nuggets & then attached to the downrigger ball. In essence, it milks out a scent trail & with your flasher/bait in this trail, it increases the percentage of strikes. The scent nuggets are the same fish food that the hatcheries feed the small fish before releasing them. This appears to work best for hatchery Coho, as it gives them something familiar to home in on, & targets the fin clipped hatchery fish as opposed to "Wild Coho" that usually have to be released. This original design has now become obsolete & has been
replaced by a nylon mesh bag pre-filled with the nuggets & sold by Silver Horde.
On all releases it has been found best to
use one that has a heavy mono attached to the large snap that has enough length
so that you can snap it onto the wire & without having to lean out over the
boat's gunnel to attach the release to the fishing line. This will also allow
you to attach it on the line more precisely each time. The most common length
seems to be about 48". Another thing to remember is that if you are stacking 2 lines on one wire, that they both will have to be set to a slightly higher trip tension, so that you don't have to be constantly bringing the wire up & reattaching the release if one trips off prematurely. HOW
LONG A RELEASE? ;
This pertains to the length of the heavy (100#) mono that
attaches the release to the wire clip. The longer the downrigger boom, the
longer the release line has to be. It has to be at least as long as your boom,
otherwise you will be leaning dangerously over the gunnel to attach the line to
the clip. I usually use a 48" length. One thing you can do if it pops off &
you have pulled the wire in, but the release is trailing in the water too far
out to grab, is to reach out with your rod tip & pick it up, then bring it in to
where you can get ahold of it from there. Some weights have a metal fin off the rear
that can be bent to allow the ball to track in one direction more than just
straight back. This can be helpful if you bend them so they tend to direct
the wires more outward. BLOW BACK ; Your trolling speed & current will make a difference here, usually you want your downrigger line angle to be about 45 degrees no matter what actual speed you are traveling. This equates to 143' of line out to reach 100' of water depth. If you are out farther than this angle, you can not reach the depth you intend to. The problem comes in if you are trying to reach say 200', the wire angle would equal 286', but your line drag may increase this length even more. You will have a belly in your fish line from where it enters the water to your release clip so much that the rod action will not set the hook like it is supposed to do if fishing shallower. And if the line is straight up & down, you are not moving at all. Most downrigger wire is only 250' long. TROLL
WITH THE CURRENT ; The fish will be
swimming into the current, if you troll with the current, the fish will see it
coming, instead of it sneaking up behind them, & you will also cover more
water. Also it allows the fish less time to scrutinize your lure, possibly
bringing on a strike, where if the fish has more time it may realize the lure is
just that & not something to be eaten. Depending on the flow, you may only be
sitting in the same position with water passing under you. PULLING IN YOUR LINE ; If you have to pull your line in to change gear or a missed hit & it did not pop off, don't try to trip it off the clip with the rod. Raise it by bringing up the downrigger wire. The reason is threefold. First, this is probably the most likely way to break a rod. Second, some clips do not trip as easily from the rod side as compared to from the lure side. And third, if the lure is even somewhat working, it may catch a fish on the upward trip. WATER
TEMPERATURE ; Fish will
try to stay in a water temperature that they find comfortable to them. This may
explain why some fish stay nearer the bottom than others, because the water will
be warmer on the upper layers.
JELLYFISH ; At times these critters can
make life miserable. If they are on your gear, it is very likely Salmon will
not be interested. Also when you pull the gear in & remove these jellyfish,
they have a composition in their bodies that feels like nettle stings. One word
of caution, WAS YOUR HANDS before you go to the
toilet facilities. One fisherman shared his method of removing this jelly off
his hands, by use rubbing alcohol. Tie terminal leaders 2 lengths, LEADER
LENGTHS FOR REGULAR TROLLING,
(Estuary rig) bait 36" - 72" USE HEAVIER LEADERS FOR SQUID BEHIND FLASHERS ; USE 40-70# TEST LEADER FOR TYING SQUIDS, HOOCHIES & FLIES. These lures, having NO built in action like a spoon & need the motion of the flasher to impart an action to the bait. This heavier leader being stiffer, imparts the action of the flasher to the lure. Whereas a lighter limper leader will bend more, minimizing the action & allowing the bait to follow the flow, & be less enticing to the fish. Some will advocate the use of the newer almost invisible Florocarbon line & leaders, it has been a practice of some to use this type of leader material for all leaders behind flashers. This larger material being harder to see in the water also has the benefit of being less susceptible to abrasion & being nicked by the fish's teeth, which in turn lasts longer between leader changes. This material is not cheap however, and is rather hard to find. If you find it, only purchase "Leader" material, as the abrasion factor is different than for the line. Using this leader may be beneficial if you are fishing in clear water & in the top 50' of the water column, but it is my contention that if you constantly troll below that depth, you are simply paying more for your leaders as compared to standard monofilament. USE DIFFERENT LEADER LENGTHS FOR DIFFERENT BAIT & TARGETED FISH ; The following dimensions regulate the rate of spin on the bait, - short = faster, longer = slower. For those of you who insist on 2 different speeds for trolling for both Chinook & Coho, you can do it from the same boat at one constant speed, by regulating the leader lengths. It is not solely the boat speed, but the action the bait has that entices the fish to hit, and this can be controlled mostly by leader lengths behind the flasher. Measure
distances from the rear of the flasher to the rear of the lure
LURES ; On most artificial lures, there is one thing you can do to up your boating percentage. Many will come with a triple hook attached. Remove this hook & install a #5 stainless split ring & a #4 barrel swivel between the lure & a new hook. Replace it with a single Siwash hook that you put a slight sideways bend in the lower part or just move the point off center by 1/8". This side angle seems to help on more hookups. By adding the swivel you are also eliminating the situation of when fighting the fish, the fish will more than likely roll numerous times putting strain on the lure & hook. In doing so this fish uses the leverage of the solidly attached hook to the lure to pull the hook out. On others metal lures like the thin Silver Horde "Coho Killer", if after catching a fish, you might want to check the lure's action before you let the gear down again. These lures are thin & narrow to imitate candlefish. They are an excellent lure for intended purposes, however they can get straightened out. On the same light, if a new one is not performing, you can put more of a bend in it to achieve more action.
APEX / STING KING (order of
preference) #1=Chrome, #2= Mother of Pearl, #3= Green/White,
#4=Black/White by itself or with a flasher.
2 LURES ON ONE LINE ;
If you look on Scotty's webpage,
www.scottyusa.com they show how to run 2 lures off one rod line using a
downrigger. Basically you attach the lure like you normally do, but then let it
down about another 15 ft or so, attach another release clip, (this one should be
short from the wire to the release). Pull slack so there will be a belly in
your line when in motion, snap another lure onto your rod's line between these
release. This 2nd lure (preferably a spoon, etc. and on a shorter leader to
help avoid tangles) will find it's way to the center of the belly & ride there.
You will now have to be alert, and when pulling the ball, to not put a electric
downrigger on automatic & forget to stop it short & remove the top release.
You will also have to use extra care when netting a fish caught on the top lure. Take your pliers and bend the hook out and away some from the shank so as
to offset it a little more. Next SHARPEN your hooks from the inside edge so as
to direct the point slightly out and not in as the come from the package. MATCH THE HOOK TO THE BAIT SIZE ; When using bait, you should generally match your hook size to the herring size for best results.
CUTTING & HOOKING BAIT ; When cut-plugging a herring, you should wet your hands, cutting board, herring etc. This will promote the non removal of scales off the bait. The more scales you leave intact on the bait the better the bait will perform for you. In cutting the bait, if you do not use a cutting guide, use the 45/45 degree rule. Then remove the entrals. One modification is to also cut a 90 degree Vee notch at the rear of the body cavity. This generates longer bait life by not tearing the cut angle & allows the water to flow out this hole, creating bubbles. A modified West Port hook up is good. This is hooking the upper hook thru the belly cavity & up thru the backbone & out in the center of the back. The other hook is passed thru the belly cavity & out the short side belly, then just allowed to dangle back by the tail. When using whole herring for bait, about the best way I have found is to run the rear hook thru the lips of the herring sideways. Hold the herring by slightly squeezing it on top of the head & bottom of the jaw. Right behind the forward part of the lip juncture between the top & bottom you will find a spot that the upper hook will go straight thru from one side & out the other, push it thru. With the lower hook on the same side that the upper hook's eye is on, push it into the rear section of the herring, (usually about 3/4 of the way back). Bring this lower hook mostly thru the bait & back out so that the hook's point is facing forward with the eye laying alongside the bait. Now rotate the front hook 180 degrees without tearing the bait, & push it in thru the rear gill plates & out the other side so both hooks points are on the same side. There should be a slight bend because of the tension from the front hook. If the bend goes not give the desired spin, move the rear hook either forward or rearward or tie your leader spacing differently to match the bait size. The above method holds the mouth closed. Another method is to use one of the "herring bonnets" when you troll whole herring. There are many different types, but essentially they allow you to put the nose of the bait in a protected bonnet. This will help especially if the frozen bait is not as good as you may like, & it helps keep the bait from pulling apart, & gives a rotating turn to the bait, without the effort of placing the hooks EXCACTLY in the right location for each bait. TO TOUGHEN
YOUR BAIT ; To toughen herring or anchovy
bait, soak in 1 cup rock salt to 1 quart water, to form a salt brine, bait
should be soaked in this overnight, however even a few hours helps. It can be
kept in a refrigerator for a a month or so, if for longer freeze it in the
brine. The brine being a strong salt solution will not freeze. You however may
want to make a wooden floater lid on your container to keep the bait submerged. SINKER
DROPPER LENGTH, REGULAR TROLLING Estuary
(Shallow water) (15’) 12" SINKERS for MOOCHING ; Since the barbless hook requirement, the old tied in line kidney sinker should be abandoned, because it can be used as leverage for the Salmon to throw the hook. It is suggested that it be replaced be the Metzler slider bar type sinker, or the simple sturgeon sinker slider on the mainline and then attach the round cannon ball sinker to this slider snap. The round ball is cheaper & has less resistance so therefore a lighter sinker will get you down just as deep. Another good thing to do when using the slider, is that the cheap snaps usually used on these sliders will bend if you get the sinker hung up. Or you can use a lighter short 6" leader as a dropper, thereby breaking the dropper and saving your other gear. WASHINGTON 2 OUNCE LIMIT ; To fish deeper if in a Washington State 2 oz weight restriction areas, if you are using standard gear, switch to a 20# spectra type line. This is usually equal in diameter to 6# mono for size & will create less drag. The word is that using this gear, watching the tide change & back-troll. Buy using this method, 150' depths can be achieved with a 2 oz weight. Or use the super-line and a diver that weighs less than the 2 oz. Doel Fins & Luhr Jensen Jet Divers are 2 that do comply, and can get down to about 50 ft. Rig the Jet Divers on an 18" dropper off the end of the mainline 3 way swivel. Then off the 3-way swivel go with 40" to 50" of leader to a small Hot Spot Flasher or Fish Flash, then 20" to 24" leader to a squid or herring for Coho, or 26" to 31" for Chinook. POLARITY ; Commercial trollers have for years known that some boats will out-fish others, this can sometimes be traced to electrical current in the downrigger wire. If you remember your chemistry from high school, when you place 2 dissimilar objects (stainless wire & zinc anode or a aluminum boat) in a conductive solution (salt water) you create an electrical charge. Scotty & Pro Troll both make a "Black Box" that can be adjusted to give the desired electrical charge to your wire. Different types of fish react to different electrical charges. If you have any doubts, you can simply check your wire with a volt/amp meter. It should have a voltage of + .5 to +.7 from your ground to the downrigger wire. If it is outside this range either way, it will benefit you to consider doing something to correct the problem. If the voltage is low, you can add zincs to your motor/trim tabs, etc. If it is high, then it is suggested you check things out & ground everything metal that is in the water. One thing most overlooked would be your trim tabs. They will usually be bolted thru the fiberglas hull, just run a bare #10 wire as a ground from you negative battery terminal to the bolts & put a second nut holding this ground wire. Do this to anything metal that is on the outside of the hull. PROTECTING YOUR GEAR ; The saltwater environment is something that will ruin more gear than anything else. Many fishermen don't properly take care of the rods, reels, flashers, or spoons. The result is when they want to use them next year, many are ruined or badly in need of TLC. One method commonly used by knowledgeable persons is to, as soon as you get off the water, or at least before you leave the boat for the night, spray the gear with "Salt Away". This solution will remove the salt. Next you want to lightly wash the same gear with plain water. Let it dry, and then spray it with a corrosion blocker. Two that are effective & economical are made by CRC. They come in aerosol cans & are CRC "3-36" & CRC "Engine Stor". Another would be LPS-1. This stuff is a light spray metal protector & will help immensely on rod guides, reels, swivels & spoons. WHAT TO DO AFTER YOU HOOK A FISH ; In use you can set the drag slightly lighter than normal, but to where it does not pull off while the boat is moving. Set the clicker to "ON", this will wake you up when a fish hits, & with the drag set slightly lighter, if the fish happens to be large enough to pull the line until you get things organized. OK, now your rod has "Went Off", meaning a fish probably has hit the lure & the line has snapped out of the line release. What do I do? Grab the rod & REEL FAST to take any slack in the line & see if you can feel the fish on the other end of the line. If it is still hooked & you can feel it, reel in & keep the line tight. Once you make a decision as to the size of the fish, do we leave your partners rod in the water or not. If the fish is under about15#, you may leave the other rod out hoping to pick up another out of a possible school of fish. Do not stop the motor, but keep trolling & you may want to turn the boat SLIGHTLY toward the fish to give more room to net the fish, while at the same time considering keeping the other lines from tangling in the prop. You may slow down slightly, but do not stop. For one, if you do stop, then your partner's line may become entangled with his downrigger wire. As soon as the fish hits, pull that downrigger wire & ball in. Here is where the electric downrigger comes in handy. If you are using a electric model that has an automatic button & a preset shut-off trip, all the better. Pull the ball into the boat. You may also want to rotate the downrigger arm straight back or forward to give more room off the side to net the fish, without entangling things. If the fish is a larger fish & pulling out line that you have no control over, then you had better quickly pull the other downrigger up, stow the balls & be ready to fight the fish, or even chase it to recover some line back onto the reel spool. It is best if the netter & the fisher to also wear Polaroid glasses, this will allow them to see into the water & see the fish a lot better cutting out the surface glare. Another thing to keep in mind, is at all costs try to keep the fish out of the other downrigger wire. If it happens to tangle your partners line, then have him put his reel in free-spool, only reeling in when lots of his line is out, but not interfering with the fighting of the fish. Most experienced recreational trollers do not stop the boat when an average size fish hits, as there is usually other gear out. By the time you realize it is a fish large enough that you may have to pull the other gear & chase it, this fish may already have 150 yards of line out & going away from you. You need a reel that has enough line capacity to act as a cushion to allow you to get the other gear in, turn around & chase the fish to retrieve some of this lost line. Some fish, depending on where they are hooked will ant to go to the right, or the left. Take him on the side he wants to go to, do not to to bring a RH hooked fish on the LH side of the boat. If a fish is hooked with a lure on one side of the mouth & you keep putting him on the other side just because that is where you are comfortable in netting from, you very well may pull the hook out before he comes in. This then will also determine what you will do with the other rod & downrigger wire. This has also proven beneficial if you happen to have 2 fish on at once, as with the boat still moving, the second fish tends to not get as excited if you do not get it really close (around 30') to the boat & it will tag a long, giving you time to net the other smaller or more tired fish first. NETTING THE FISH ; Wear poloroid sunglasses to help cut the water surface glare & allow you to see the fish in the water better. More fish are lost within 10' of a boat than any other location by fishermen who try to net too soon. OK, the fish is coming in, ( we are now assuming that you are not alone here.) If possible let the fish tire out to the point that it comes in along side of the boat, without spooking & wanting to make another run. Some skippers like to have the fisherperson move forward enough from the stern to allow the netter to stand in one of the rear corners. This gives the netter a chance to cover more area if the fish tends to go behind & or under the motors. The netter needs to grab ahold of the BOTTOM of the net bag lightly with a couple of fingers of the forward hand that is also holding the net handle close behind the bow to give maximum diversity. This method is so that you are holding the bag out of the water & not spooking the fish. With the other hand the netter has ahold of the handle as far back as possible & yet be able to control the net in any circumstance.
Be sure that the reel drag has NOT been tightened down more than normal during the fight, as if the fish makes another run with a tight drag, it may pull the hooks out or break the line or rod. If it is a large fish you may even lighten the drag slightly to assure this will not happen. Allow the drag do what it is designed to do. This will actually get more fish into the boat. When the fish comes along side & appears to not offer a lot of resistance, the fisherperson needs to lead the fish toward the netter, but not bring it's head out of the water, (for some reason the fish finds extra energy if it's head is out of the water.) As the fish is lead in, the netter makes a QUICK jab down IMMEDIATELY IN FRONT of the fish, at the same time releasing the fingers that are holding the bag's bottom at the same time the net hits the water & since fish has not reverse, the net can then be QUICKLY lifted straight up, closing the bag & trapping the fish in the net & then against the side of the boat. Do NOT raise the net parallel with the water, but pick the handle straight UP, again closing the bag. Also here is one thing to remember, that IF the lure has more than 1 hook, when you net the fish, you have to do it right the first time, as if you do a close miss but are near enough to tangle a loose hook in the net, you can kiss the fish goodbye because the fish is now probably outside the bag & yet attached to it. Sometimes this process has to be speeded up if you can see that the hook is lightly hooked in the edge of the fish's mouth, & you run a chance of having it pull out at any second. Try to bring in & make a quick shot at netting. Do not try to net a fish that is deeper than VERY CLOSE to the top & remember that these fish have no reverse, but they can turn very quickly. As soon as the netter has the fish in the net, strip of 6 feet or so of line so the rod tip will have a better chance of survival during the excitement when the net & fish are brought into the boat. RELEASING A FISH ; If your fish is one that the regulations say is illegal, in that is is not adipoise fin clipped, then you will have to release it unharmed without taking it out of the water. In this case you should not tire the fish unduly, but get it in as fast as possible to ensure that it has a good survival. There are a couple of ways to go here. A hook release can be used. This is like a small gaff hook with no sharp point on the end. In use, when the fish is close to the boat & tired enough that you can grasp the leader a foot or so from the fish, use this hook remover by reaching out & hooking the line. Next bring the remover close to the fish, & with the other hand holding the leader, quickly raise the hook remover handle while at the same time lowering the hand holding the leader. What this does is raises the fish's head into the remover, but reversing the hook & putting the weight of the fish to unhook itself. Depending on the size & specie of the fish, & whether it is tangled in the leader, you may have to net it, but keep it in the net tight against the side of the boat. Unhook it & tip it out of the bag without bringing it aboard. For a link to an article on releasing fish CLICK HERE. DOWNRIGGER WIRE AROUND THE PROP ; Needless to say this is to be avoided if at all possible. For those of you who use the main motor for trolling at times, I recommend the "Sting Ray" type stabilizer fin that is attached to the cavitation plate. Your boat / engine may not need it's advertised usage of "getting out of the hole faster", but let me tell you, these fins sure make something for you to lay on when the motor is tipped up & to have something to hang onto while someone else hangs onto your feet while you unwind the wire off the prop. Especially when you are 15 miles out in the Pacific Ocean & it is rather choppy. You may say it won't happen to me, but if you fish with downriggers enough the odds are against you. Also carry a spare spool of wire, crimpers, sleeves & an extra weights. If you run the spectra type lines & get that around the
prop shaft, you will very likely be in for problems of tit cutting the shaft
seals out if allowed to run even for a very short time. This started out as simply a
leader length behind flashers list, but seems to have grown into a general
Salmon trolling page. Originated sometime 1997, Last modified 12-30-2005 |
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