Fruatrated, and discouraged.... kayak trolling questions

[Vikingyaker]

I caught a few stripers the other day but thats it avsolutely it since ive been here..... my plan was this to sabiki aome bait then chjunk a 2 oz egg weidht and a 5/0 circle hook on...... i couldn't find bait i tried beetle spins amd fish bites nothing bit, so i like to troll and was wondering what people troll from the kayaks, i will not have 4 lines out ever mauybe 3 at the most, these umberella rigs create to much drag, mayne its cause I'm new and dpmr know what im doing yet but im getting frustrated with my new home (southern maryland) i wamt to catch big fish my though was work up the food chain.... some advice on locations and baits yall are trolling would help alot..... how do you catch big stripers the ones i hear the east coast is famous for? My first fish i got lucky on at the most recent heroes on the water event i participated in..... im not asking yall to throw the fish on my stringer but maybe some launch guidance, why i cant catch anything ay point lookout?

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[DOGFISH]

I like to troll crank baits, such as YoZuri Crystal Minnows. As of late I have been using the larger sizes in the 13' and 20' diving range. A more shallow lure is the old reliable rattle trap. As far as the YoZuri, I like the colors of chartreuse and of natural shiner color. There are also a lot of folks on the forum that have great luck with jig heads and rubber tails. However, I will let them speak to those lures, as I generally fish deeper water and prefer crank style lures. When I do fish shallow I like to use, again, shallow YoZuri cranks along with Sebile Magic swimmers, Koppers Live Target jointed hard baits and Savage Gear jointed baits. I have even used 1/2 oz Rooster tails in shallow water with good success.

I cannot go without mentioning my old favorites a Rapala Glass Rap in Glass Ghost color and YoZuri Hardcore Drum in natural shiner. This used to be my standard set, but I have started to move to larger baits even for summer and fall. Of course in the Spring you cannot to wrong with a 9" Sebile Magic Swimmer.

I agree, the umbrella rigs create too much drag for me, even though some on the forum do use the smaller versions. I am sure you will get all kinds replies on your trolling question.

I also troll around 3-3.5 mph.

Good luck.

[Yak Fish]

I've written a whole book on the subject! :-)
The fish are just starting to move a little shallower. Summer is not the best for stripers on a kayak. The pattern focuses more on main stem fishing, mostly out of reach for us. There are exceptions, but wait a few weeks and fish the tributaries and you'll have better luck. I troll small umbrellas in Oct/November when the peanut bunker are all over the tributaries. I don't think a pair causes too much drag, but then again I'm using a pedal drive.
For now, focus on points that just out, say 10' of water, specifically where current sweeps by. As the water gets colder, move a little deeper in your search. The big fish are here during a short time, although you can catch 30 inchers any month of the year. The 40-50" fish show up in winter through spring.

[Vikingyaker]

I've written a whole book on the subject! :-)
The fish are just starting to move a little shallower. Summer is not the best for stripers on a kayak. The pattern focuses more on main stem fishing, mostly out of reach for us. There are exceptions, but wait a few weeks and fish the tributaries and you'll have better luck. I troll small umbrellas in Oct/November when the peanut bunker are all over the tributaries. I don't think a pair causes too much drag, but then again I'm using a pedal drive.
For now, focus on points that just out, say 10' of water, specifically where current sweeps by. As the water gets colder, move a little deeper in your search. The big fish are here during a short time, although you can catch 30 inchers any month of the year. The 40-50" fish show up in winter through spring.

I can't put the book down! Im tryimg tp soak up as much knowledge as possible, i wemt out again yesterday with no luck once again. When you say tributaries, like the st marys river? There is a launch close to me. Piney point... im gping to try this afternoon, unfortunately due to certain injuries from over seas i have a very hard time making it out for the morning bite... and also some injuries that can cut my time pretty short on the water. Id be ok with a 30 inch fish right now!

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[Vikingyaker]

I've written a whole book on the subject! :-)
The fish are just starting to move a little shallower. Summer is not the best for stripers on a kayak. The pattern focuses more on main stem fishing, mostly out of reach for us. There are exceptions, but wait a few weeks and fish the tributaries and you'll have better luck. I troll small umbrellas in Oct/November when the peanut bunker are all over the tributaries. I don't think a pair causes too much drag, but then again I'm using a pedal drive.
For now, focus on points that just out, say 10' of water, specifically where current sweeps by. As the water gets colder, move a little deeper in your search. The big fish are here during a short time, although you can catch 30 inchers any month of the year. The 40-50" fish show up in winter through spring.

Where do you get these smaller umberella rigs because at the shop near me i asked amd theg only have giant ones.

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[Yak Fish]

Where do you get these smaller umberella rigs because at the shop near me i asked amd theg only have giant ones.

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I make my own. I call them "Chesapeake Rigs" and they generally sell as fast as I can make them. I wasn't able to make any last year because I was in the middle of moving, and this year is looking dicey because I'm trying to release my second book by October. There are other options though. You can get mini frames and put shad on yourself. They're not quite as productive as Chesapeake Rigs but they do work. For a CR I can tell you the depth they run to dial in the right presentation, but for the ones you make yourself you'll have to do a little experimentation.

[Yak Fish]

I can't put the book down! Im tryimg tp soak up as much knowledge as possible, i wemt out again yesterday with no luck once again. When you say tributaries, like the st marys river? There is a launch close to me. Piney point... im gping to try this afternoon, unfortunately due to certain injuries from over seas i have a very hard time making it out for the morning bite... and also some injuries that can cut my time pretty short on the water. Id be ok with a 30 inch fish right now!

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I just looked at the map for Piney Point. That's big water out there and I'll guarantee there are decent fish there. You will find a lot of 15-19" fish right now, period. Don't let that discourage you. The bigger ones are often deeper or nearby, but on a different pattern. For example, I got a 30 incher last week on shallow structure. Big fish were there, smaller fish were away from it in deeper water. It's how it often goes. Troll some 4-5" baits that dive 5-12'. Get one that's shallower and one that's a little deeper and just comb the area. Don't get into the deep stuff unless you see birds out there, which is very possible. There are a lot of breakers out in the deeper water, with red drum sometimes below! Drop a jig to those. That's generally a boater's pattern, for us we can look in the creeks and rivers as the air temps begin to drop...any of the branches that lead into the Potomac are what I'm talking about. They're shallower and have less thermal mass, so they'll cool first. Go there early in the morning before they warm up through the day! Piney point is very prominent, many of the points that I like are found on charts and are less obvious, but they will draw the stripers that are around. Hope that helps!

[manlystanley]

I caught a few stripers the other day but thats it avsolutely it since ive been here..... my plan was this to sabiki aome bait then chjunk a 2 oz egg weidht and a 5/0 circle hook on...... i couldn't find bait i tried beetle spins amd fish bites nothing bit, so i like to troll and was wondering what people troll from the kayaks, i will not have 4 lines out ever mauybe 3 at the most, these umberella rigs create to much drag, mayne its cause I'm new and dpmr know what im doing yet but im getting frustrated with my new home (southern maryland) i wamt to catch big fish my though was work up the food chain.... some advice on locations and baits yall are trolling would help alot..... how do you catch big stripers the ones i hear the east coast is famous for? My first fish i got lucky on at the most recent heroes on the water event i participated in..... im not asking yall to throw the fish on my stringer but maybe some launch guidance, why i cant catch anything ay point lookout?

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What I like to use, is a tandem rig (e.g. a 3 way sivel at the from) and two buck tails following with different length lines (1-2 feet). Keep going out and working it. If nothing else, good excise and a chance to meet great people.

Best Regards,
Stan

[Big Mike]

Viking - for your info, Sabiki rigs are illegal in the tidal waters of Maryland. You can only have two hooks per line (multiple hooks on a single lure only count as one hook). Keep this in mind if you make your own umbrella rigs. Right now we are starting to see schools of breakers in the Patuxent and Potomac. We were at Piney this morning and there were fish just outside the bridge on the Potomac side. No keepers but good fun. You should also go at high tide and try casting to the grass banks in the creek to try for red fish and trout.

[Vikingyaker]

Viking - for your info, Sabiki rigs are illegal in the tidal waters of Maryland. You can only have two hooks per line (multiple hooks on a single lure only count as one hook). Keep this in mind if you make your own umbrella rigs. Right now we are starting to see schools of breakers in the Patuxent and Potomac. We were at Piney this morning and there were fish just outside the bridge on the Potomac side. No keepers but good fun. You should also go at high tide and try casting to the grass banks in the creek to try for red fish and trout.

Thanks for the info.... no sabiki rigs! DAMMIT. what is a good local tide app for the phone the one i used in texas doesmt cover all the way out of here

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[Big Mike]

I use windfinder a lot - it has tide info for the places we launch at and has wind speed and direction forecasts in 3 hour chunks. Not always accurate on speed but pretty good on direction. Winds above 10 out of the SW or S make for a fun ride on the Potomac side of Piney Point, the creek will generally be fishable.

[ronaultmtd]

A word of caution- depending on where you are fishing at Piney Point, Potomac River Fishing Commission (PRFC) regulations are in effect, not Maryland DNR...inside St George's Creek MD DNR regs are in effect...get on the website and make sure you know the regulations- ignorance is no excuse and you can get a ticket...I fished Piney Point today- it got rough as a cob this afternoon...white caps, washing machine churn, hard to fish in that...finally threw the towel in...School stripers and white perch cooperated...but the sod banks were full of breaking waves that washed out all kinds of floating grass...oh, yeah- trolling baits... the really big cow stripers migrate north in late spring/early summer and come back in late fall and winter...so I downsize this time of year for the smaller stripers- for hardbaits, I use Rapala XRaps in XR10 and XR8 sizes with the trebles replaced with single-in-line replacement hooks...for soft baits I use two variations of this combo- a Bomber Sea Shad 1/4 oz jighead with a Bass Assassin Sea Assassin 4 inch paddletail...and a Arkie jig spinner...or just the head and paddletail...in the cooler weather my baits get much larger...XR-12 and 14 XRaps, Stretch 27s...Tsunami 8 inch sand eels...trying to fish Maryland the exact way people fish in the Gulf of Mexico will be disappointing...live bait works...as does chumming...most Snaggedline folks use lures pretty much exclusively...most of us could write many chapters of a fishing book on the various techniques we use but really don't think about...and while tide charts says it is high tide at point no point at 6:30 am...what you find by fishing at point no point is that high tide was at 5 am...and at 6:30 the tide is beginning to outflow...nothing takes the place of putting in your time on the water finding what works for you, and what species of fish are biting what baits at what time of year...takes a lot of fishing trips to figure out any specific location....and then the seasons change and it all changes...

[mtnmike.ma]

I use tides4fishing and FishWeather. Neither is perfect but adequate resources for the most part. It was great getting on the water with you up at ft Smallwood last Saturday. Since then I've been seriously thinking about upgrading to one of those pro fish reloads.


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[baitball]

Viking,

I’m one of those guys that likes to troll jig heads and paddle tails. The jig head/paddle tail rig is simple and versatile – easily transitioning from trolling to light-tackle jigging duties if called for.

This time of year I recommend a tandem rig combination. I pair a 1/4oz “Trout Eye” to a 3/8oz or 1/2oz “Gulp!-brand” jighead. The paddle tail I use is a 3” or 4” Zman-brand“MinnowZ”. Pick a color or two that seem natural to you; a tried-and-true producer is “Opening Night”.

I can troll up to four rods at a time (4x 2 rigs/rod = 8 hooks), but as soon as I find what color is working on that particular day, I simplify things by reeling in the non-producing color(s) and end up trolling one or two rods at most.

I keep an additional rod rigged with a white or chartreuse Specialized Bait "Li'l Bunker" casting spoon in case I come upon any breaking fish or diving birds. I could also simplify one of the trolling rods at that time to a single jig head/paddle tail rig for jigging duties in order to reach deeper (i.e. bigger) fish below the breaking school.

Hope this helps.

Trout Eye.jpgGulp! Jig Heads.jpgZman MinnowZ.jpgLi'l Bunker.jpg

[Vikingyaker]

I use tides4fishing and FishWeather. Neither is perfect but adequate resources for the most part. It was great getting on the water with you up at ft Smallwood last Saturday. Since then I've been seriously thinking about upgrading to one of those pro fish reloads.


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Man i have an extra one my girl Friend is bringing my trailer labor day weekend so i can pull both of them you are more then welcome you paddle it and even take it out fort a trip or two too see if you like it. I love them personally i like to troll alot and its great for that! But ther offer is out there and your always welcome!

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