In late September or early October, I
begin fishing for
school rockfish by
trolling with wire line. This technique works in many locations around
the bay where small rockfish, bluefish or trout can be found. Trolling
in the manner described is a bit difficult to get used to but the
results are very consistent and sometimes the action is almost too fast!
I troll very slowly, maybe 2 to 3 knots with special tackle. Two lines
from the stern are rigs spooled with #30 monel wire. On these lines go
a 3 way swivel. A 24 or 28 oz. sinker is added on 3-4'section of #30
mono. The third part of the swivel gets a 20-30' leader with either a
single lure or
a pair of
bucktails. The leader is less likely to tangle if it is made of #50
or #80 mono. If the area trolled is full of snags, the leader may need
to be #30 in order to sacrifice it and get the wire back in the event of
a hang-up. The jigs can be 1/2 to 3 oz. and come in various colors. A
shad body or curly tail worm is added to the jig. White jigs and white
shad are my favorite. I also prefer running double jigs on at least one
of the wire rigs. The first rig is dropped slowly until one "thumps" on
the bottom and line is let out until the rig constantly thumps in 40' of
water. In depths over 40' we cannot keep the rig all the way on the
bottom. The sister rig is also dropped down until it thumps once, then
put in gear. The rig will quickly rise to a level a bit above the
bottom. This method keeps proper spacing of the two wire rigs with one
now at or near the bottom and the other just above. A little practice is
required to get proficient at trolling these without tangles. Watching
the line guide on the reel is one way to get an idea of how much line
each rig has out. This technique is quite effective and will catch
rockfish, trout and bluefish. The deep rig which is constantly thumping
normally catches the most fish, especially if the rig uses double jigs.
I like one jig 18"inches from the rearmost 3 way swivel and the other
about 30" back from the 3 way. In addition to the wire line rigs, I
troll two other lines on my outriggers. Riggers are nice but not
mandatory. Forward rod holders or roof rod holders work well also. The
rigger lines are #30 spectra running farther back, usually at 150' and
180' respectively. I prefer to set the lines out in a specific order of
long rigger line, shorter rigger line, deeper wire line and shallower
wire line. This method minimizes tangles which are no fun in the heavy
wind and cold typical of rockfishing. The longer lines also get paired
jigs but without the dropper sinker. Again, I use a 3 way swivel which
connects the line to a pair of bucktails. I like the distance of the
first jig to 3 way to be about half that of the distance from the 3 way
to the second jig. Typically this amounts to 18 and 36" or so. The
shorter front jig is also larger and heavier than the trailing jig.
Similarly, the front jig may get a larger shad body than the rear. Both
jigs combined will weigh 5 to 10 oz. and will run up to 30' deep
depending on boat speed, current, line out and combined lure weight. The
idea is to get 4 lines at various depths in order to cover the entire
water column. If the fish prefer a certain depth, we can make some
adjustments to move the other lines toward the preferred depth. There
are several variations to the basic trolling pattern. For instance, if
the bluefish are plentiful, we may replace some of the trailing jigs
with small spoons. I like to use this method over a hard channel edge,
especially an area where a bend appears and tide rips are present. Puppy
Hole is one of the best examples of this. Other excellent areas to fish
include buoy 6 in Tangier sound,
Crisfield's
Artificial Reef, Tangier Light, Kedges Straits, the Mud Leads, and
buoys 62, 72A, 72 and H.S. in the bay proper. I always spend time under
the birds if they are around. I have found that one key to successful
fishing
around birds to maintain a very slow constant speed. I can normally
idle right thru the fish without spooking them. Another advantage of
deep trolling is it's continued effectiveness after fish are spooked
from the surface. Inevitably, one or more boaters will appear under
birds and blast thru the fish at high speed, sending the fish deep.
This is all part of the challenge of working the fish. For more on wire
line see the Lure Depth
page.
Wire Line
Trolling for Trout
We catch a lot of grey
trout while trolling with wire line. Much of this is accidental while we
are rockfishing but we do target grey trout specifically with wire line
at times. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel is where we do most of this
fishing. We troll bucktails very slowly along the pilings and right on
top of the tunnels for trout. This is hard work but can be very
productive, especially if targeting large trout.
Trolling for BIG
ROCKFISH!
I try to fish for BIG
rockfish when I can. For me, this amounts to an occasional spring trip
but mostly involves trolling from early November until about Christmas,
dependant on the weather. Sometimes I fish for bigger fish on Daybreak
during the fall season but more often I go with a friend on a larger
boat. The weather for the fall season is typically very heavy and cold,
making a large boat almost mandatory.
Spring rockfishing is
done in the shipping channel of the Chesapeake Bay. I live at the
extreme southern end of the spring fishery and often miss the season
entirely as the fish seem to pass by me quickly. When I go in the
spring, I fish the area from buoy 72 north toward HS buoy. I troll about
3 knots using large bucktails, large spoons and plugs like the Rapala
CD15. A favorite rig is a 3 way swivel which has an 8oz. bucktail
dropped down 18-24" and a spoon trailing behind 20-30'. The spoon should
be rigged on #80 or #125 line with a ball bearing swivel at mid-point
between the 3 way and the spoon.
Fall and winter trolling for big
rockfish is very similar to the techniques described for school
rockfish. One important difference worth noting is the tendency of big
fish to sometimes be indicated by the presence of
gannets.
Gannets look and act very differently than gulls and are seldom seen on
the bay until November. Gannets feed almost exclusively on large
baitfish such as Menhaden. This trait is shared with the large rockfish
and both predators are normally present together. Seeing gannets and
rockfish working a school of bait together is one of the most dramatic
and exciting events in nature.
Lots of special rigs have gotten
popular lately as the fishery gains popularity. I use the fancy rigs on
occasion but tend to go with a few simple and time honored rigs. I like
one "bottom bouncer" rig on wire line which consists of one or two
bucktails with 9 inch shad bodies 20' or so behind a 20-32 oz. sinker.
Another rig which is good on wire is a pair of 8 oz. bucktails with 9
inch shad bodies. This tandem rig does not require a dropper sinker. One
of the most productive rigs I use is an 8 oz. bucktail and shad with a
21 tony spoon. This is the same rig used in the spring fishery.
Two other rigs deserve
mentioning although both are somewhat tempermental. The first is the
umbrella rig. I rig #9 wire through 6" shad bodies and attach to the
umbrella with a swivel. I then rig a large bucktail or parachute lure on
the center line of the umbrella back 24" behind the rig. The jig is the
only part armed with a hook. The umbrella is difficult to launch and is
best run very far back in the spread....even to 300'. The most dreadful
of all rockfish lures is the Mann's Stretch 30. This lure dives deep and
can be run by itself or preceded with a heavy dropper. The lure tends to
run in a circular "hunting" path. If the spacing and depth of the other
lures is not correct, the Stretch will seek out every line in the water,
wrap around each rig several times and then proceed to jump out of the
water like a tiny crazed mako in defience. The remedy for this is
several crewmembers with line cutters. In spite of it's problems, the
Stretch 30 and it's little brother the Stretch 25 catch fish. Most
serious trollers carry a red/white model and a "grey ghost". The
red/white Stretch 30 goes back into service during the summer for
bluefin tuna and wahoo. For more on wire line see the Lure Depth
page.
