Sandy creek last few weeks

[fisherman85]

Hello I'm new to the brown spring fishing and have been trying to get as much time on the water befor may 1 st because I'll be moving back on land to chase some gobblers. I'm just wondering what I may be doing wrong or not doing most nights morning I will only catch 6 to 8 fish and I'm happy when I do that but when I get to the launch or see reports where there catching 40 plus fish I wonder how come I can't get rhat many in the boat I go between 1.8 and 2.3 in and out of the muddy water run 7 rods 2 on riggers 3 to 4 ft down 100 ft back and so on pretty much do what everyone says and does just wondering if there are any tips when u catch a fish do u keep hitting that same spot ? Which is tuff to make turns w all the lines out there I'm happy when i catch a fish and 6 to 8 is great but I'd take 10 to 20 once in a while lol 60 would be great as well thanks for the input Richie

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[CHAMP99B]

Be happy w/the 6-8…some guys don't do that,it's where you fish and the lures you use,seems like your doing the right speed….remember its not how many you boat….it's who your fishing with and just enjoying a great day on the lake !!

[JakeyBaby]

Ritchie, to answer one of you ?'s if you continue to hit fish in one particular area then yes u definitely want to work that water more obviously. And pay attention to your temp, 2 degrees can be a difference between boating 2 fish and 20 fish. Also it's fine to run a bigger spread when you are searching and if your the only boat working that water, but once you have put together a "program" that is working you can use less rods to help you to turn easier and still pop more rods then you can handle. One other big help in my opinion, is lure selection! Size and color on some days really matter when it comes to putting browns in the boat. But then again someday s they will hit a french fry if you put it out there!

[fisherman85]

Hahaha thanks guys and Matt I'll have to hop aboard with u Somtime still fun catching a few just wouldn't mind going out one morn and doing a lil better

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[Legacy]

Speed duplication is huge and can vary tremendously depending on trolling direction (east and west) following the shoreline. 1/8 to 1/4 mph can make all the diffence. Water color and temp are also things to pay attention to. Watwer may be to clean or too dirty. Or you may find a warm pocket of water which may be a degree diferent or 4 degrees different then everything else. As you catch fish make a mental note on the bait, depth of water, speed, and location in the spread the fish came from and slowly build your spread on what the fish are telling you.

[ray koziatek]

also rember some boats run a 10 rod setup so don,t bash yerself too hard ..match your lure weight 1 light spoon and 6 heavy trolling slow means you only have 1 spoon working as it should . As rob stated the 3 s's speed,speed,speed....test each lure just below surface at the boat you want "good action not whipping or just dangling...can make or break lure action you dont need a 30lb swivel with 15 lb leader..

This might sound a little off topic but i spend many many hours diving in the keys and its amazing the different sound different boats have underwater.I have always suspected the difference in "boat sound patterns" in relation to catching..and after hearing the difference in a small motor (prop) working hard or a larger one (prop) cutting the water ,and seeing the fishes reaction their is no doubt in my pea brain the slower turning props are more fish friendly......so if yer running a small kicker into the wind maybe that could be a issue ..also i have watched guys run the shallows turn around and fish the water they just ran over..with 100's of hours spear fishing the bigger fish only give ya 1 maybe 2 chances before departing the area for a while so if ya got a hot area in shallow run a extra 1,2 mile before turning and give em a few minutes to calm down ,this is not as important in the deeper water near bait balls..also keep calm after the first hook up a struggling fish WILL get the attention of other fish so if ya can get it in without pulling your spread you should double on browns this time of year when you pass through a good area as for color .as rob said it can be mind boggling this time of year with the creek flows ,currents ect ect...

[Yankee Troller]

I think sometimes people over think things, and other times attention to detail is lacking in most peoples spreads. Spring BT fishing is all about being in the right water, and/or matching your spread to the water your in. Sticking with F7-F11 Raps, Small Thundersticks, and Shallow diving Smithwicks is the way to go. Other baits will work too, but they are great brands to start with. When we are fishing BT we keep our Moor which is 4-5' down between 1.8-2.0mph. Our GPS speeds have been 2.3-2.6 lately. We run 15lb main line and leader down to 8-10lb depending on the water clarity. Small black snaps attach the lures to our leaders. Staying in productive water is key, but this year that water is just about everywhere! Start off with hot colors on one board, and naturals on the other and let the fish tell you what they want. Same with your riggers. Bright on one and natural on the other. Once they tell you what they want flood the waters with it, but be careful as water moves, or dries up. Whats working at 7am might not at 12pm. 

[fisherman85]

Awsome input guys I do a lot of the things you guys are bringing to the table but may be over thinking it as well so I'm gonna print everything I guys said and practice it all over and over again a lot of it make sense ESP hearing it from professionals and about the kicker spoking fish I never thought about that I have a 9.9 johnson 4 stroke so maybe your right sometimes she has to work harder maybe it would be a good ideal to switch over to the big motor but thanks to everyone who threw some info out to me every little bit helps

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Edited April 23, 2014 by fisherman85

[Yankee Troller]

Our 454 is rumbling the whole time we are out there, and a 48" trolling bag is moving water, but we are hitting fish on a rigger back 50'. I don't think your kicker is spooking fish.

[fisherman85]

Good point I'm also a little confused on the spoon spread ray was talking about I remeber Yankee a few weeks ago saying u use split shots to get the spoon under and I tried that and saw that it went under but wasn't sure how far from the spoon you were running the split shot 6 ft or 6 in or just whatever gets it down

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Edited April 23, 2014 by fisherman85

[Silver Fox]

I think sometimes people over think things, and other times attention to detail is lacking in most peoples spreads. Spring BT fishing is all about being in the right water, and/or matching your spread to the water your in. Sticking with F7-F11 Raps, Small Thundersticks, and Shallow diving Smithwicks is the way to go. Other baits will work too, but they are great brands to start with. When we are fishing BT we keep our Moor which is 4-5' down between 1.8-2.0mph. Our GPS speeds have been 2.3-2.6 lately. We run 15lb main line and leader down to 8-10lb depending on the water clarity. Small black snaps attach the lures to our leaders. Staying in productive water is key, but this year that water is just about everywhere! Start off with hot colors on one board, and naturals on the other and let the fish tell you what they want. Same with your riggers. Bright on one and natural on the other. Once they tell you what they want flood the waters with it, but be careful as water moves, or dries up. Whats working at 7am might not at 12pm.

Exactly. Also, I take my plugs out of the package and run them. Just stay in dirty water and run those floating sticks. Not a whole lot of thinking going on right now out there. Heck, you could throw a licence plate w/ a hook and catch a fish on it. Lol

[Yankee Troller]

Good point I'm also a little confused on the spoon spread ray was talking about I remeber Yankee a few weeks ago saying u use split shots to get the spoon under and I tried that and saw that it went under but wasn't sure how far from the spoon you were running the split shot 6 ft or 6 in or just whatever gets it down

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Usually 6-8' ahead of the spoon. 

[fisherman85]

Hahaha Thanks a lot might throw a plate out there next time as well

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[Legacy]

Good point I'm also a little confused on the spoon spread ray was talking about I remeber Yankee a few weeks ago saying u use split shots to get the spoon under and I tried that and saw that it went under but wasn't sure how far from the spoon you were running the split shot 6 ft or 6 in or just whatever gets it down

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6' is good. Nothing longer then the length of the rod.

[gokudl3]

This is all I use for my split shot rig and it's been crazy good, and this has been my best spoon. I started using two of these split shots and I got a snag so I went to one with better results. I been running three lines off each board and that's it. After I start taking fish eventually I will put the split shot rig on the inside out 80' and it's the most constant producer. Last time I was out I was solo so I just ran one board out, stick bait on the outside and two inside rods had split shot rigs. The stick bait didn't take a hit after first two fish but the split shot rigs kept be real busy.


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[Lund SSS]

I've fished with a few of the captains on this board and have found one thing that really seems to change the outcome of the trip...... Pay attention to the "little" things. Yankee touched on details...... well if 75' off the board isn't working don't think 85' is not the answer. I like you was happy with 6-10 fish on a trip but when double digits are the normal your left wondering what your doing wrong ???.  Last year I made a very concentrated effort to set 2 things. (1) spreads of productive lures, the fish show you this and (2) consistent set back lengths. All line counters when you dial them in sometimes you'll never get the whole spread out.

Good luck and kept at it     

[fisherman85]

Thanks that may be part of my prob I'm guessing leads from the boards and riggers might need to invest in all line counters that way Ill know the exact length and can change the leads to what's producing I usually just try throwing a lil of everything all the time but I'm going to start putting out only what is working thanks a lot I appreciate all the advice can't wait to get back out there and give it another try

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[ifishy]

there is something to be said for how quickly you can re-set a line as a small boat who sometimes fishes solo there is not a lot of room to move around and when a fish is in the net it has to be squared away completely before rods go back out.  this past weekend I took  time before setting to get everything set where it was needed and have a plan for each rod and where it would go if a fish hit I was able to re-set much quicker as a result of having those rods in quicker let me get back in the good water quicker it also led to more hits as the rod going back out got hit in the first few mins more than once.  bigger boat bigger crew one guy can set while the other cleans up and this can lead to larger numbers sometimes 6-8 fish means you spent more time fighting fish than just trolling thats not a bad thing.  it also translates into fish per person 8 fish for 2 people is the same as 20 fish for 5