"You're fishing too deep," was the advice charter captain Dave Engel blurted out over the radio. A nearby boat who had been watching us net fish after fish, couldn't take it any longer. The frustrated angler put out a call for help and Engel who runs Best Chance Charters in Saugatuck, Michigan, gladly offered his assistance.
"The biggest mistake most Great Lakes trollers are making is not concentrating on the top 30 feet of water," Engel elaborated. "During April, May, and much of June, most of my best catches are taken near the surface. Sure, you can catch a few fish deep, but the fast action is up top."
Engel and his partner Bill Bale have proved this fact time and time again. Last spring the boys from Best Chance Charters averaged over 10 fish per half day on the water and 15-fish days were common.
The day I spent sharing their boat last May yielded 17 Great Lakes trout and salmon. This day in particular was special because we caught all five trout and salmon species completing the Grand Slam of Great Lakes trolling--an angling milestone I haven't been able to accomplish since the heydays of salmon fishing. According to Engel, most days on the water yield at least three different species.
"Brown trout, steelhead, and lake trout are the fish we catch most often," says Engel. "A fair number of king salmon are also taken and a sprinkling of coho round out the catch."
All five species frequently show up in the Best Chance Charters harvest records, yet these guys rarely fish deeper than 30 feet when the water surface temperature is 55 degrees or less! The trolling pattern these anglers have settled on leans heavily towards in-line planer boards with as many as five boards set per side. The remaining lines are divided between Dipsy Divers and downriggers.
"If the weather is flat and calm, 80-90 percent of our catch comes on the boards," admits Engel. "On choppy days the divers and downriggers hold their own, but more than 50 percent of the fish still fall prey to the little in-line boards."
"There are lots of days when we actually see steelhead before we catch them," says Bale. "If the water surface is calm you'll often spot steelhead tailing at the surface. When we steer our boards past a fish like this it's not a matter of it biting or not biting, it's a matter of which line it's going to unload on!"
Most anglers could tap into this kind of action if they would only modify their trolling tactics.
In-Line Boards
In-line boards aren't exactly new items on the trolling scene. Anglers have been using the Yellow Bird, Tru-Tracker, Wille Side-Liner, and Off Shore Tackle Side-Planer for many years. The secret is learning how to get the most from these mini-skis.
Many anglers understand that in-line planer boards help spread out the trolling coverage, but what most don't understand is that these fishing tools can actually improve the action of trailing baits. When an in-line board is trolled it jerks and darts when pulled through the waves, momentarily interrupting the movement of the lure.
How important is this interruption of lure action? According to many professional anglers, charter captains, and serious anglers, the benefit to lure action in-line boards provide is invaluable.
"Not only does the lure experience changes in action, but when the bait hesitates or slows down for a few seconds, it provides fish with an irresistible opportunity to strike at a floundering target," says Bale.
The captains at Best Chance Charters prefer the Off Shore Tackle Side-Planer board, but not the way the board comes in the package. "We modify the board considerably to meet our needs," says Bale "The first step is to remove the flag. Walleye anglers need the flag to help determine strikes, but when fishing for steelhead or other Great Lakes fish the flag is just extra weight."
"Next we remove the lead ballast weight and clip away about 1/3 of the lead weight with a pair of side cutters," adds Engel. "Making the board a little lighter makes it easier to reel in when changing lures."
"The next step is to remove the release mounted at the back of the board and replace it with a large snap swivel. "The snap swivel is clipped over the line and allows us to trip the board and let it slide down when fighting a fish."
"The final modification is to replace the model OR-14 (black) release that comes with the board with a heavy tension (red) OR-16 Snap Weight release," explains Bale. "The heavier tension of this release allows us to troll at high speeds or when making turns without the boards accidentally tripping."
An angler might ask why so many changes are necessary? These simple modifications enable the Side-Planer boards to function flawlessly. Because these boards are a little larger than other in-line skis, they track to the side better, making it easier to run several lines per side. Also the larger size handles rough water better, a fact of fishing in Great Lakes waters.
Rods used for fishing in-line boards are loaded with 17- to 20-pound-test quality monofilament. If spoons are to be used, a ball-bearing swivel is attached to the terminal end. A simple snap is adequate if body baits are used.
About six feet ahead of the lure, a barrel swivel is tied in-line with a 1/2- or 3/4-ounce egg sinker threaded onto the line ahead of the swivel. This lead weight helps spoons run a foot or two deeper and also stops the board from sliding all the way down to the fish. When body baits are used, a Speedo bead is threaded onto the line about six feet in front of the lure to stop the board.
When it's time to set lines the process goes smoothly. The desired lure is set approximately 80 feet behind the boat and the planer board attached to the line.
"The best way we've found to attach an in-line board to monofilament is to loop the line around your finger and twist it half a dozen times, then position the twisted line in the planer board release," explains Engel. "This method insures that the board will hold securely on the line until a fish strikes. Most fish pull the twisted line free of the release instantly, but with smaller fish we often have to trip the board by popping the rod tip sharply."
Using this ingenious trip and slide-down rigging method, you can fish up to five or six boards per side. On a calm day the outside lines are often set to run out 150 feet from the boat. During rougher conditions the boards can be run effectively much closer to the boat.
A handful of trusted lures complete this deadly trolling system. Favorite body baits include the Storm ThunderStick, Rattlin' Thin Fin, Bomber 15A, Bagley Bang-O-Lure, and Rapala Husky Jerk. The best colors are fluorescent red, firetiger, chartreuse, and other bright shades.
The top producing trolling spoons are the Wolverine Silver Streak, Pro Spoon, Dreamweaver, and Stinger. Productive colors include silver with orange, silver/orange/green, watermelon, gold/orange, and gold/orange/green.
Dipsy Divers
A couple Dipsy Divers rigged off each side are useful for covering a little deeper water than the planer board lines. The best way to fish two or more Dipsy Divers per side is to stack one above the other by setting one diver on the No. 3 setting and the other on the No. 1 or O setting. The diver set on No. 3 will run further out to the side and closer to the surface. The second diver fishes deeper and closer to the boat.
This rigging method helps to keep lines from tangling and it also covers the water column more thoroughly. The leader from the Dipsy to the lure should be 6-10 feet long. A shorter leader gives a crisper action to spoons. Crankbaits seem to produce better with a little longer leader.
In all cases the leader must not exceed the length of the rod. If too long a leader is used, getting fish close enough to reach with the landing net can become cumbersome.
The same lures used on planer boards are also effective when fished with a Dipsy Diver. More important than the type of lure used is knowing the exact length of your trolling leads. Then it's easy to duplicate this lead and return the diver to the exact depth range.
Most serious diver fishermen use line-counter reels to keep track of diver leads. The Daiwa 47LC is the standard choice among most anglers, but in recent years other line-counter reels have hit the market.
Downriggers
Riggers can also an effective way to fish the top 30. While most anglers associate downriggers with deep-water fishing, there's no reason these angling tools can't be used to fish a wide variety of spoons and body baits are specific depths.
Most larger Great Lakes boats have five electric downriggers mounted. One rigger is mounted off each side and positioned to point perpendicular from the hull. Another set are rigged to fish straight out the back or angling out over each corner. A fifth rigger guards the middle of the transom and fishes straight out the back.
Generally, the line that runs straight out the back is set to fish the deepest. Corner and outside riggers reach out away from the boat and are often set to fish a closer to the surface.
When it comes to rigger fishing few anglers have logged the number of hours Dave Engel has spent on the Great Lakes. Dave's advice on rigger fishing holds true on all the Great Lakes waters and when fishing for each of the trout and salmon species.
"Spoons are the most commonly used lures with downriggers," says Engel. "If you're fishing a spoon it's a must to use a quality ball-bearing swivel that allows the spoon maximum freedom of movement."
According to Engel anglers often make simple mistakes that prevent them from catching maximum numbers of fish on riggers. "Lead lengths are important when fishing riggers. If you're fishing a lightweight flutter spoon it needs to be fished tight to the downrigger weight. Set your leads from 10-15 feet and you'll experience more action from your spoons."
Engel adds, "Heavy casting-style spoons can also be deadly when fished off riggers." "These heavier spoons have excellent action when fished on longer leads. The extra lead length helps get these baits away from the boat a little and can pay off big on some days."
A quality release also makes a downrigger function smoothly. "The release must have enough tension to provide a good hook set, yet trip easily when necessary," says Engel. "I've been using the Off Shore Tackle OR-1 medium tension release for years with flawless success. Rubber bands, alligator clips, and other home-made releases simply don't cut it."
Summing It Up
The Great Lakes offer a wealth of trolling opportunities. When most anglers think of these deep, clear-water lakes, they conjure up images of downriggers and fish taken 50, 60, 70, or 80 feet below the surface.
The fastest fishing action, however, often takes place in the top 30 feet. Once you've made a commitment to fish the surface, the rest is easy. After all, catching fish isn't hard, it's finding them that most anglers struggle with.
For charter information, contact Best Chance Charters at 616-857-4762.
Copyright (c) 1997 Mark Romanack. All rights reserved.
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