Just back from my first trip in bay

[Tom Lagana]

Hey everyone
Just got in from Eastern Bay where I fished near the Romancoke Pier. I was in about 22 feet of water. I trolled and did cast and retrieve. Also threw a Rat L trap out there. All to no avail. I did get 4-5 bites when I got close to the bird nest structures, but I was only in 4 feet of water and was using a beetle spinner.

My question is when I am trolling deep water, 20 feet seems deep, how deep should the trolling line? Does it naturally fall to the depth I need. Do I need to weigh it down. I included also a picture of the jig I used. Is the paddle tail on correctly.

I have found great value in all the wonderful advice I have received so far so I am hoping someone can give me some more pointers.

Regardless I had a great time. Waves were alittle rough at first but it seemed to calm down.

Thanks again everyone!!!


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[Tom Lagana]

Here is the jig


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[Huntrava]

Hey everyone
My question is when I am trolling deep water, 20 feet seems deep, how deep should the trolling line? Does it naturally fall to the depth I need. Do I need to weigh it down.

This is where a fishfinder comes in handy, since the answer depends on how deep your target species is living. In my experience, you want to run the bait at the same depth as the fish you're targetting, or slightly higher. Many fish tend to attack prey from below, so I've read many experts advise trolling immediately above seaweed/vegetation to get strikes from fish living in there. Definitely don't try to troll along the bottom...you'll just get hung up.

Your lure definitely won't go to the depth you need automatically. It depends on the amount of lift the lure creates, the lift/drag of the line, the length of line you let out behind your yak, and the speed you paddle. In shallow water it's pretty easy to eyeball your depth. In deep water, you might have to bring the yak to a stop, then let out your line to your desired depth (using FF), start paddling, then slowly release more line until it eases back down to where you want.

[Tom Lagana]

Thanks. Forgive my ignorance but how will I know when the gear is at the depth I need it. I won't be able to see it. Is there a desired length you let out your reel? Sorta like a rule of thumb.


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[Shady]

There is no real rule of thumb with trolling paddle tails as there multiple variable at play. But, in general, to troll deeper, you'll need a heavier jig or need to let out more line. Sometimes I'll determine how much line I need to let out by first seeing how far it needs to be let out to drag the bottom, then work backward from there. Typically, Striper will orient themselves near the bottom or on structure.

You should put the paddle tail on the jig so it is as straight as possible, which will give the most natural swimming motion. The way that you have attached the paddle tail would lead to it spinning through the water.

[J.A. Veil]

You should put the paddle tail on the jig so it is as straight as possible, which will give the most natural swimming motion. The way the you have attached the paddle tail would lead to it spinning through the water.

I noticed the same thing in your photo. It appears that the hook leaves the plastic too far back. It caused the tail to curl. It takes a bit of practice to get plastic tails on straight but it is not difficult. A lure that does not look realistic or natural is less likely to get attention.

Here are some examples of plastics rigged so they swim well. The bottom two lures on the right photo have internal hooks installed by the manufacturer.

006.jpg 001.JPG


Lure depth is important only if you think you know where the fish are. Without a FF unit, you probably cannot know that. If you troll multiple rods, you can use lighter or heavier jigheads and shorter or longer amounts of line.

[Huntrava]

Thanks. Forgive my ignorance but how will I know when the gear is at the depth I need it. I won't be able to see it. Is there a desired length you let out your reel? Sorta like a rule of thumb.


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Easy if you have a fishfinder. Just drop the lure straight down while you're at a stop and watch the screen.

If you don't have a FF, don't sweat it--you *probably* don't know exactly how deep the fish are anyway, so there's no need to be scientific about exactly how deep your lures are going. Instead, just use jig heads with differing weights (put 3/8 oz jig head on one, 1/2 oz jig head on another, etc.) and pay attention to what is getting you results. That said, trying to troll deep water without a FF will get you hung up frequently if you don't know the depth/terrain of the water, so it might be more convenient to keep your lures closer to the surface.

[Mark]

I'm not close to the proficiency of most of the trollers who post here but I try to stay in 5 to 10 feet of water when kayak trolling because I believe it's very hard to keep a 3/8 oz. to 1/2 oz. lure (my typical weapons) in the strike zone in deeper water. So my rule of thumb is to cast behind the boat and let the lure sink until I feel the bottom with the jig. Then I reel in line as I'm moving forward or I move the boat faster until I do not feel the lure striking the bottom. After a while I just just kind of know how much line to let out to keep it off the bottom in the area I am fishing. Frankly, to me the value of the fish finder is knowing the depth, not seeing fish. I don't know that I ever see a fish mark in 5 feet of water. In 20 feet yes, I'll see fish marks but I carry nothing to troll deep enough to get them if they're 10 to 12 feet or more below me.

[Tom Lagana]

Just back from my first trip in bay

I do have a ff


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[Yak Fish]

If you're using a paddle tail, like Mark said, you'll need to target shallow water. They just won't go deep enough unless you have a really heave lead head on there. ...and you really don't know how deep it's running which I don't like because it's a lot like guessing. They're solid lures but you must use them in the right situations. June-Early August the bigger fish are hanging deeper and you'll never reach them there. Now through beginning of October, nicer fish will be shallow and an optimal time for them. October through winter they'll head progressively deeper, right down to the very bottoms of the deepest channels. All of these situations require a different tool. For deeper water, diving plugs are a very accurate way of hitting a specific depth. The right depth is generally just off bottom but that's not always true, like when fish are suspended. You'll see them on your fish finder. For other weighted lures, I run a reel with a line counter so I can be very precise with my presentation. However, each lure has a max depth it will run and more line will not matter.

[Cowpokey]

Here is the jig


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I feel like we're on an episode of PUNKed, internet version....

[Tom Lagana]

Don't get the punked reference???


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[Cowpokey]

Don't get the punked reference???


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In reference to, you did that on purpose to play a joke on us.

[Tom Lagana]

LOL[emoji23], no joke is on me....that's what I actually used. And can you believe I didn't catch anything?????
I am so thankful all you guys on here are so helpful. Now I know how to do it.


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[Mark]

...that's what I actually used.

That lure had to be spinning like a top in the water.

You never know...it might have created such an unusual action that it would have interested a curious striper.

You just didn't run across one of them that day. There's often a degree of luck in fishing even when we rig the baits right.