Where do I start?

[stevenhickeys]

Hello,

 

Last year I purchased an open bow 19' Bluefin and I would really like to do some lake fishing this fall.  I have a couple of decent Penn 320 reels, a couple of hand cranked downriggers, two cannon balls and releases, a decent Lowran GPS/ Fishfinder, a big cooler and a net.

 

If you guys could answer some basic questions for me, I hope to launch at Charlotte and start fishing in the river outlet area.  For a beginner like me, what line stregnth would be good for my reels considering they will be used with the downriggers for trolling?   What is an easy downrigging set up for me to use to get started?  Are there any lures, colors, sizes that are must haves for my tackle box?   Lastly, when are the salmon most active in the fall in the Genesse River.

 

Thank you in advance for any tips and advice.

 

SH

[Has Been]

Get a couple of # 4 J plugs Glo Green Flouresent   or  silver bullet  maybe w/ a red head. 15-20# mono go out to the mouth of the Genny, put them back 25-75 ',  run rigger  10' of bottom & drive around, but don't wait to long,

[stevenhickeys]

Thank you Has Been for the response.  I will pick up some #20 mono and the plugs.  From what I understand, I should have the plugs 25 - 75' behind from the cannon ball and 10' off the bottom.  I believe the bottom is pretty flat and sandy in the river outlet area.

 

I have heard the river outlet transition between the clean lake water and the muddy river water is an active area for the fish.

 

Any thoughts about trolling speed and direction, water temp or depth or just experiment??

 

SH

[Sk8man]

Right now the water temp isn't all that important for mature kings anyway...they are homing in on their native streams. I'd be trolling back and forth out from stream mouths. They will spread out all over so just have to experiment depth wise and as far as trolling speed it needs to be varied and with the J-plugs they can also be run closer to the ball as well especially when run towards bottom. Probably wise to make shorter in that case as they go all over the place and dive as well

Edited September 22, 2013 by Sk8man

[Has Been]

Biggest mistake a lot of people make Salmon trolling  is to overcomplicate things. Remember that they are fish .  Keep it simple at first till you master the equipment /situation you are in& fish efficiently . No need to have a whole lot of stuff out this time of year & for you to start out with. I fished 3 mornings this past week by myself. When bite was on , there were times I ran only one rod.Most times ,two . And I did pretty well.

 

 J plugs are pretty speed forgiving lures.With the longer leads & slow S curves while driving ,your lure speed will vary ,which is a good thing to trigger strikes. Good Luck.

 

First light this time of year  is best IMO.

[John E Powell]

Duplicate post text deleted.

Edited September 22, 2013 by John E Powell

[John E Powell]

Most any plug with an exaggerated wobble, as compared to a plug with a swimming action, will catch salmon congregating off streams and rivers at this time of the year. Look for plugs with sturdy construction and hooks. Some of the best, listed from faster to slower trolling speed are the J-Plug type lures, Ping-A-T, Tadpolly, and Kwikfish/Flatfish. I personally have had the greatest success with the Tadpolly and Ping-A-T if only because they are something different than the J-Plugs so many other people are running. They also allow me to troll slower and put the plug in front of the noses of the salmon for just a bit longer than the J-Plugs.

 

If I don't see porpoising fish in the shallows, I'll run rigger lines in deeper water as described above, but if there are porpoising they are off the bottom and active. I'll target them with lures pulled 8-12' behind inline side planer boards pulled off the side of the boat and flatlines behind the boat with lures set 12-15' behind a large bobber (to keep the lure high in the water column).

 

Don't be afraid to run the boat in 6-8 foot of water with your inside planer half way to the beach in 3-4 foot of water. Lures set 8-12' behind a planer are only running 1 - 1 1/2' below the surface.

[stevenhickeys]

Thank you all for the responces.  I will try to get out there Fri afternoon or Sun morning depending on the forcast and my work schedule. 

 

Good luck to all of you guys going out this week!!

 

SH