Newbie / Tackle? / Meet n Greet

[camelbird]

Hoping to make it out to the meet n greet this weekend. Given my lack of knowledge, figure I’d do some preparation for the potential trip. Please critique as I am a total red shirt freshman tryin to learn form the masters!

Kayak
Emotion Stealth / Shakespeare Angler 105 – 10’6” x 30” wide – paddle – It’s a decently stable kayak, I swam in college, PFD, figure I’d be fine

Rods
Shimano 4000 – 7’ MHF – 20lb Braid – maybe fluorocarbon leader
Bass Pro Baitcaster - 7’ MMF – 20lb Braid – maybe leader

Lures
Bucktails ¾ oz – 1oz, Jig heads with flukes (white) / bass assassins (chartreuse), lipless crank baits ¾ oz (sexy shad), Deep diving crank bait (shad), JR Spook, Rapala walk the dog, Kastmasters and fish bites for potential live bait.

Other tackle
Fish finder, Bait bucket for live lining, anchor, rod leashes

Where
Points where current is present for casting (tide shifts), channel for trolling, live bait near structure / pilings

This is only the result due to research on the net - any help is much appreciated!

Thanks again!!!

CB

[ictalurus]

If you search for posts by Don (DOGFISH), you'll see pics of the lures he uses in that area regularly. He really had them dialed in last year. Hopefully, the pattern will be the same this year.

FWIW, the two or three stripers I caught there last year were caught while trolling a deep diving Yo-zuri Crystal minnow in Tennessee shad color (silver, black back, orange belly). Don suggested a different color (silver, bluish-black back, white(?) belly), which he uses, but I couldn't find that color. I trolled between markers 6 and 4 anywhere between 4 and 16ft, or so. I also picked up a nice white perch jigging a 1.25oz Stingsilver near marker 8, I think. I trolled a couple other things that never got hit and casted at some structure along shore, which also didn't produce.

Wayne (Chimo) and Don found the mother lode of nice fish somewhere farther out than I went and caught them jigging metal, I think. I think I'll be following them this year.

[camelbird]

NICE!!!

And I know I need to earn some stripes first, so the information is much appreciated.

Thanks!

[tufnik]

It looks fine. I also have and use 1 1/2 oz jig heads when the current is up. Gets the plastic down there.

[DOGFISH]

Sounds like you are right on. I do use a florocarbon leader on everything, from casting to trolling, even if just 18"-24" on the kastmaster. The deep diving crankbait is the best thing that I have used for trolling in the river, anywhere from 2 3/4" to 4" depending on conditions and time of year. Also, with the crankbaits, you don't have to use lead in between the lure and the rod. The shad color is fine. I like the Rapala Glass Shad Rap, GSR07, in Glass Ghost color. As Bill said, the YoZuri Crystal Minnow in a shad color works fine, which I also use sometimes. I also use a YoZuri Hardcore Drum, in a shad color, which is a lipless crankbait. So far this year they are what I have had the best luck. I would not forget the stingsilvers or even a kastmaster used as a vertical jig. Last year I was caught off guard by the vertical jigging. What I do is troll around and try to locate the fish. However, I also try to remember or mark where I see fish and get no trolling bites. You can then go back to where those fish are and try vertical jigging. According to Andrew, Kayak456, he has done well in the Ramsay Lake area, behind Turkey point with jigs and topwater. I have not had chance to try that area yet.

I have posted some photos of the crankbaits that I use most, http://www.snaggedline.com/showthrea...9571#post19571. I think it was in the South River 10/6 report. Also, I posted the NOAA map reader address in the Meet and Greet thread. I still, as Bill said, fish generally between the #4 and the #6 channel markers and back towards the flats area. However, take that with a gain of salt. On slow days, I have caught fish pretty much throughout the entire area of the mouth of the South River.

There looks to be a good number of fish out there this year also. Also, looks like the weather is going to cooperate with us.

Good Luck.

[ictalurus]

Forgot to mention your braid. Next time you respool your reels, you might want to think about switching to 10lb or 15lb braid, unless you fish structure frequently. I've got two Carrot Stix with similar reels, but one is spooled with 10lb PowerPro, and the other is spooled with 15lb. The combo with the 10lb is surprisingly more sensitive than the one with 15lb. I've got a different rod with 20lb braid on it, and there seems to be a difference between the 15lb and 20lb as well, but there's also a difference in the rods, which confounds the comparison. If you have some spare spools, you can have a lighter and heavier spool. I'm "hand deaf" (hand blind?) and can only seem to feel a fish when it really slams my jig, so I need all the help I can get. I don't fish structure like the Bay Bridge very often, so abrasion resistance is less important than sensitivity to me. Switching from mono leaders to fluoro leaders made a big difference, too, in terms of sensitivity.

Just my $0.02. Your mileage my vary.

[mmanolis2001]

I was just going to post a thread with my tackle selection for this trip but this thread looks like the perfect place to post it.

I'm sticking with the same game plan as last years trip which was miles of trolling. I will keep a rod loaded with a metal or jig if i see breakers
though. This year i will be prepared with my VHF set to channel 71 and waiting for DOGFISH to relay when and where Chimo is pulling fish out of the water.

Rods
I'm bringing 3 rods this trip.

7' Med Lite casting - slinging metal, jigging, top water, pulling a rattle trap in shallows.

7' Med Hvy casting - crank baits, Tandem bucktails/jigs

7' Musky casting - The Sh@t and giggles rod. I'm going to try one of the tubes worms i made. I will also bring a 1.2oz parachute/Shad combo in case i mark some deep to compliment the deeper diving cranks.

Lures
Various gulp goodies
BDK's in white, chart, Pearl
deep diving rapala in chart/silver
deep diving rapala in shad
mid diving shad rap in clear blue/silver
shallow bomber long a in blue/silver
rattletrap in black/silver
zara spook in black/silver
pop-r in black
various metals in 1/4oz to 3oz
various jig heads in 1/4oz to 1oz
12" tube worm in wine

Tackle
Ball Bearing swivels
Keel trolling sinker for tube worm
20lb Leader material

[chimo]

Welcome aboard camelbird. Sounds like you and I are going to have about the same set up except I will have a few more rods, some freestyle jigs and some cicada / sonar style jigging spoons. My general idea is to troll tandem rigs / lipless crankbaits until I find fish and then try to stay on top of them and jig with jighead fluke combos / sonars / freestyle jigs / lipless cranks. Backup plan is to cast to structure with flukes. Last year I got lucky after being skunked for about 4 hours and stumbled across a dropoff stacked with rock and hit them pretty good vertical jigging. Good Fishin

Chimo

[camelbird]

DOGFISH - Thanks for the information - I've always wanted to pick up a Yozuri Crystal Minnow, but just never had the need. Excellent, thank you. I have a few lip-less cranks in shad color with red eyes I think might work.

ictalurus - Thanks for the tip about the braid, this is my first year really using braid / fluorocarbon leader. WOW, what a difference. I think I might put 15lb on the second spool for my shimano 4000. I also have a 7' Daiwa Procyon MLF which is going to get either 10lb or 8 lb PP. Funny analogy - hand-deaf - hilarious.

mmanolis2001 - Did you say miles of trolling? - oh boy, My shoulders are going to be sore after this trip - and I'll think I'll go straight to a hobie dealer promptly after. hahah. As for your tackle I think I just added another rod in the mix - light tackle for casting spook / metal. And will have to research "sonar" lure. Thanks.

Chimo - Thanks for the welcome! I hear you are the man to follow... uh uh, I mean speak to when it comes to the South River. Thanks for the heads up on the "cicada" lures.


THREE WORDS:

DICK'S SPORTING GOODS!

[chimo]

Someone is giving me too much credit if they think I am the one to follow Found some fish last year at the Meet and greet but that was the first and only time I have fished there... Dumb luck.

The Cicada's and Sonars are pretty much the same lure, I think I have heard them called blade baits... http://www.lurenet.com/brands/heddon-lures/heddon-sonar . Bass pro carries the same thing under another name, can't remember it right off the top of my head. They can be cast and retrieved but alot of great lakes anglers use them for vertical jigging for Smallmouth and Walleye.

Chimo

[camelbird]

HAHAHA, given this is my first time to put the kayak in the bay I am hoping to run into a bit of luck my self

Cicada, Sonar, Blades etc, all about look the same, and with everyone's description, seem to be jigged vertically over the fish?

[chimo]

They can be cast and retrieved or trolled as well but I've only ever really used them for vertical jigging. Nice compact and realitively heavy design helps them sink like a rock which is nice for getting them down to the fish and keeping your line vertical.

Chimo

[surfdog]

check out outletbaitandtackle.com they have lure jensen and bomber stuff on sale. all kinds of stuff for .99