| Jason,
There are a couple of tell tale times when I will troll.
1) When learning a new lake where trolling is allowed, I like to throw a 1 to 2 oz. spinnerbait out about 20 to 30 feet behind the boat. Troll about 3&1/2 mph around the 5 to 10 foot break or pieces of structure. Holding the rod in your hand is a key to success with this tactic. Raising and lowering my rod tip to adjust the height at which the spinnerbait is running in the water. This is a great way to learn a lake quickly. You will find some excellent spots that you may have never fished before.
2) If I run across a large school of baitfish when I am moving from spot to spot, I will stop and troll the school of baitfish for a minimum of four passes. If I don't see anything after the fourth pass, I move on. I also do this when I happen to drift off of a piece of structure that I was casting and see baitfish on the graph.
3) When the fish are holding to the deep pods of weeds (10 to 20 feet) and I make contact with one while throwing a crankbait, I will come back through the area with a trolling pass. This has led to many multiple fish days.
4) I like to get on a piece of structure and cast out towards open water, running the bait up the edge of the piece of structure. If I contact fish doing this, then I will make a couple of trolling passes just off of the piece of structure. Chances are, there are several fish holding out there. |
