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Posts: 346
| Looking to start trolling more this season. I've heard fast trolling can be dangerous to fish? Is this true? How fast is too fast?
Thanks,
MJB |
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Posts: 1023
Location: Lafayette, IN | Count me "In" on this question too, MJB. The boys on St Claire really dig that method as do the guys out east in general. I'm sure my equipment isn't beefy enough for it and I worry about dragging a fish too much and killing it or at least hurting it badly. But time will tell if I upgrade so I can do it safely. |
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Posts: 696
Location: Northern Illinois | I'm sure if you set your drag so that the fish would be hooked but loose enough for it to take out line it would be fine either way. |
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Posts: 132
Location: Kawarthas, Ontario | Speed trolling does not in any way pose a threat to the fish. You need to moderate your drag pressure slightly if you're going to troll at higher speeds. You don't need a whole lot of pressure to drive the hooks in, especially if you're using rod holders (with needle sharp hooks). A heavier boat adds even more impact to the hook-up. Most of the better speed trolling baits are either of a smaller size or are constructed of moulded plastic, which tend to be lighter than say a large 9 to 13 inch wooden jerkbait. One of my favourite speed trolling rigs for running the Sledge jerkbait, is a 9 foot heavy action salmon downrigger rod. This thing is "whippy" verus even a medium-heavy bucktail rod in the 7'6" range, but it works great. It's loaded up with 65 pound TUF XP on a Abu 7000C reel. The drag is set for about 9-10 pounds of pressure.
If your drag is too tight, and you hit a big fish at high speeds, one of two things is going to happen... you'll rip the hooks out of the fish, or you're going to find out real quick where the weakest link in your equipment is.
Muskies that hit baits at high speeds don't nibble or nudge them... they are on nothing short of a flat-out search and destroy mission. Most strikes will come at a right angle to the direction that the bait is travelling, and the primary target area will be the forward 2/3 of the bait. Most fish are hooked in the corner of the mouth as they hit hard and then turn with the bait crossways in their mouth.
Hope this gives you a starting point.
Steve Wickens
STRIKE ZONE Muskie Charters |
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Posts: 1310
Location: Washington, PA | I'll second Steve's comments. |
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Posts: 1137
Location: Holly, MI | Steve has it right. I set my drags very loose. I back it off until the lure is pulling out line at trolling speed then tighten it up a bit from there. I won't troll without a clicker (line out alarm)reel so I know the instant there is a hit. I thumb the spool for the hookset and this is plenty if the hooks are 'razor' sharp. I am anal about my hooks as I have never seen a factory hook that i would use out of the box. You can cover a lot of ground to find fish. I mark the spot in my GPS for future casting spots. Most of the Musky fishing isn't done on a lake that is over 200,000 acres. Sometimes you have to go find them. |
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