jigging motion, speed, etc.

[Lively1]

On vacation last week I went laker jigging once or twice a day.  I noticed sometimes after deciding to move to a new spot, I would get violent grabs while reeling up. I started reeling up like that on purpose and it seemed to produce some additional fish. (Still no more than 1-2 per day though.) 

 

I had been trying other things like a repetitive up and down motion at one depth, a long sweep of the rod up followed by reeling the slack in, and free fall followed by reversing direction just before the jig gets to a fish mark. What seems to work best is dropping to the bottom, then a steady retrieve up at medium speed.  Some of the grabs were quite high up.. 45-50 feet.

 

Given the small sample size, I'm not sure if this is really anything other than coincidence. What do other jiggers normally do regarding moving the jig, retreiving it, etc. Does one specific retrieve/motion seem to work best?

[Sk8man]

As with most things you do need to experiment but for lakers I've had the best success doing what you first described "reeling up".  It also may depend on what type of jig or spoon etc. you are using. Often letting it drop toward or to the bottom and with heavier jigs I let it free fall to the bottom and then hit hopefully stirring up things when it hits resembling some sort of commotion down there that may attract their attention.  Something you didn't mention though is if you are using a fish finder (very important) On mine I can see the jig going down toward the fish and then them going after it and much like jigging in ice fishing when you see them "interested" on the flasher you mess with them to try to get them to hit and it may take some doing sometimes and their responses often tell you whether you need to try a different jig or setup.   Much of the time the fish seem to want something a little "above" them if suspended.  Hopefully some of the guys that are "expert jiggers" on here will offer their opinions like Pete Collin, Guff, Hermit. andTg8 and others.

Edited September 2, 2014 by Sk8man

[Lively1]

Yes I do use a fish finder, just upgraded to a newer Garmin and can see the jig and fish clearly all the way to bottom (100-120 feet).  Often see fish rise up to it on the way down, or if letting it sit at one depth, fish will come off bottom to inspect it, say from 120 ft to 100 ft) and then slink back down.

[lakerchaser]

My tactic is to drop the jig all the way to the bottom and jig it fast 2 times, then start reeling up. Watch your graph. i reel half way up then drop down again UNLESS i see a laker striking up from the bottom ( solid black line )  I then stop the jig when hes close and  real up steady. Again watch graph. Continue reeling as long as he is following. If the laker drops off , drop back down to bottom and bring jig past him again. If no action whin 3 drops then bring all the way up and start all over. Some lakers you wont see on the graph so hold on good all the time.A steady jigging motion seems to NOT produce. experiment and mostly Watch Graph.Usually after reeling 3 turns on the reel you will get your hookup.or half way up. Have fun.PS.( If line goes slack, set hook.) Cayuga has been hot 85 feet has been my best depth north of the t- park.When its calm i like to just leave the jig down halway in the water column so when i see a laker on bottom or suspended i can get to him fast. Almost lost a pole last week Had pole in lap drinking coffee with jig down abot 50 feet when bam big laker on.  I could see on the graph where he came up off the bottom to jig. What a blast.

[WmPaul]

May I ask what type and weight jigs you are using at that depth as well as pound test line. I would enjoy giving that method a try on Lk. Ontario. Thanks.

[dawsonscreek]

I was taught the jigging technique by Finger Lakes Angling Zone guide, John Gaulke; He knows his ****, and I would highly recommend looking him up if you want to learn laker jigging. I rarely even bounce the bottom anymore, maybe 2 bounces at most, but like most people have said; you will get most of your strikes as you reel up from the bottom. No mistaking either, they are a violent fish!

 

 

May I ask what type and weight jigs you are using at that depth as well as pound test line. I would enjoy giving that method a try on Lk. Ontario. Thanks.

I run 25 pound braid, with a 12lb mono or flouro leader. 1 oz jigs and soft plastics such as flukes, lunker city shakers, and paddle tail swim baits are all great baits. Be sure to keep your line taught when you jig, and lift it only a foot or so off the bottom. Good luck!

[Sk8man]

On the Finger lakes I use 10 lb Power Pro braid with an 8 lb fluoro leader and jigs from 3/4 oz to 1.5 oz mostly but I do occasionally use some 2 oz. or more

[hermit]

These guys nailed the basics, don't spend much time jigging on the bottom unless they are very negative and unwilling to move at all.   I think 25 lb braid is a bit much, 10 or 15 lb is good.  The issue with 25 is that although it's as tough as nails and will never fail you, it has both more resistance in the water and more buoyancy than a lighter line, which makes it drop slower and harder to feel the jig.
 
Also Here's a couple posts I made earlier in case you missed them.  Mostly just says what has been said above but here you go.  From here and here.
 

Lively1, If you're getting that many hits on the drop and none retrieving you may want to change things up a little.  One thing I don't like to do is drop the jig past the lakers.  (This also applies to fishing to suspended fish, in fact more so because you don't have the bottom to stop you.)  It sounds like the fish are coming up and hitting the jig without you noticing them coming.  As you note it's difficult to set the hook on the drop.
 
If conditions allow you to use the fishfinder you should be able to see many of these fishing coming off the bottom (or moving from a suspended position) and react before they actually get to the jig.  Start taking it away from them before they get there.  
 
If you aren't seeing the fish but are having this happen, try not letting the jig go all the way down before starting your retrieve.  Could be 2 things- keep playing with your fishfinder settings, and also sometimes they come and hit from the side which you can't do too much about.  Additionally, vary the speed of your retrieve until you find something that works.  Some days you can't reel fast enough.  But like Zyoung, Guff, and others stated you should be catching at least 75% on the retrieve on average.
 
Zyoung, jigging the suspended lakers is definitely doable as you found out.  I can't say I've personally noticed a size difference but I spend maybe 10% of my time out deep, I do know of guys who do it regularly. Pretend there's a bottom and don't let the jig drop past it.  Plenty of big lakers feed off the bottom too as well as out deep.  As far as the jigging style, some days the snap-jigging works great and some it doesn't, mostly I jig a gentler way but that's also because of the jigs I use.  A lot of spoons are designed to be fished this way but I don't do it with jig heads and plastics.

 
 

Nice report, sounds good.  You'll definitely get a lot of those lookers or chasers, some days it's all they'll do.  But to mention that sometimes when you're reeling in, and the lakers are swimming up and grab your jig you won't feel a strike but rather an absence of weight, like the jig disappeared.  That's a bite, so set the hook!  It can be easy to miss especially if you're busy looking at the screen.  So watch the screen but the most important information is still coming from the feel of your rod so don't get lost watching tv, I know I've done it before.  Don't know if that was happening to you, they do just look a lot, but it's something to look out for.
 
Also sometimes when they're chasing it'll look like the laker disappeared, but really it's so close to your jig you're only getting one reading on the FF- so don't stop reeling. They'll follow it like this for 60 feet or more sometimes, though usually not as much in summer with the warmer top water.  I like to reel faster and slower if they're chasing to try to entice a bite, but stopping entirely doesn't work for me.   Anyway that's cool you got into them!

[lakerchaser]

I use  mostly a 1.5 oz jig with tube and 30 pound braid (8 lb dia eq ) and a 12 pound test floro or maxima leader. Does the job for me.

[bulletbob]

 Lively.. I started  jigging for lakers the year I moved here from NJ-1991.. Back then no one was jigging for lake trout..I jigged for EVERYTHING  in the salt water I fished in NJ, and researched lakers when I moved to NY state.. They were caught all over their range with jigs but it simply wasn't a popular technique here in central NY..'

In those days, I caught them the same way I caught Walleyes,  Bass, and  the various salt water species.. Hopping the  jig more or less  on the bottom, with sweeps and falls.. Variations in retrieve , yes, but mostly near bottom.. Maybe 5 or 6 years ago, I noticed my hookup ratio was suffering badly.. I could not figure out why.. Then one day on Seneca, I was reeling up and got whacked.. Kept doing it, and I started catching fish.. Talking to other jiggers it was apparent that something had changed... I have a theory, and thats all it is.. just an opinion.. I feel that with the huge popularity of jigging these days, the lakers will no longer respond to standard jigging procedure as they did at one time.. I think they just see too many jigs, and know that "real" food doesn't bounce up and down off the bottom.. Real food DOES however  try to break away FAST when approched by a predator,, The method we now use for lakers in the Finger Lakes was know in salt water for decades as "speed squidding", or simply speed jigging,,, The only salt water fish that responded to a jig raced up from the bottom years ago was bluefish..  I did it for years when bluefishhing.. However, I went several years before putting 2 and 2 together, and realizing that the lakers I had caught with standard bottom bouncing, were now only reponding to a fast moving jig  raced up vertically.. To put it simply, they just wised up... bob

[guff]

All the previous comments are good ones. But here is another technique you might want to try, especially if you are seeing lakers come to your jig then peel off before they hit it (which happens a lot). While drifting, I cast upwind as far as I  can. I open the bail on my spinning reel and let the jig settle to the bottom. I then reel in, usually rather fast, for say 20-40 feet then open the bail and let the jig settle back to the bottom. I repeat this 4 or 5 times then reel all the way in. Seems to work well some times. My thought is that sometimes the lakers like the jig going more horizontal than vertical. Just another option. This is with a 1-1.5 oz. jig

[Tg8]

I do often find that a pause followed up with erratic action vertically, especially if you have that feeling one is looking at your jig makes a huge difference. Especially,on tougher lakes like canandaigua. BTW canandaigua jigging bite is back, last sat had a number of tugs during the prime time, 5-8pm, landed two in between tube towing. Almost always if I see a hook shooting for my jig thats dropping I retrieve immediately as if trying to get away. I do this as well when I hit the bottom. Slow pop, erratic escaping motion, then retrieve. I usually try the erratic stuff when the straight retrieve doesn't draw attention.

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[Copperliner]

My .02 fwiw...been at this game awhile, still learning...

 

I have good luck using a painfully-slow jigging motion of only a foot or so on/off bottom, always a tight line, set the hook on any slack.

 

Like Guff mentioned, a horizontal approach often works well.  Also, try letting the jig sit motionless on bottom for awhile, then rip it up quickly and gradually slow down to meet the speed of any chasing fish, don't stop reeling.

 

As mentioned in posts above, keep your jig above any rising fish, then reel away if they're interested ("Getaway mode").   Seems the less they can inspect your offering the better - they become educated ("edjigucated"?) fast.  Don't sit and pound away on non-responsive fish - move.

 

Chasers will hook themselves, no need to cross their eyes with a stout hookset. 

 

I also enjoy using my custom 7', med-heavy, mod-fast rod (Cayuga) and a flipping reel spooled with 8lb mono when the chasing's good, which I'll dare say is a majority of the time.  The flipping switch comes in very handy for jigging.  I resort back to braid on a bit faster rod when they're more bottom-prone.

 

Have patience, the bite cycles throughout the day (and month).

 

Try a lighter, 3/4 or 5/8oz jighead on occasion, even in deep water.  Sometimes they seem to prefer a slower-falling meal.

 

I wholeheartedly agree with Dawsonscreek - treat yourself and enjoy a jigging trip with John Gaulke, www.fingerlakesanglingzone.com .   I retired my trolling gear many years ago after do so.       (Warning - an addiction will shortly follow!  )

 

Have fun,  Mike

Edited September 3, 2014 by Copperliner

[Sk8man]

Lively 1  -There you have it....great advice from some of the top jiggers around. If you follow that advice you'll hit the goldmine at some point in the near future. It once again points up and underscores the great value of this website...it would take (and did) folks years to figure this stuff out but everyone here is given that experience freely and generously

[Tg8]

Yr too kind sk8 every time I think I figured them out I get humbled reel quickly.

Sent from my iPad using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[WmPaul]

Interesting reading, certainly will shorten up the learning curve. I'm ready and raring to give it a go. Thank you one and all for this solid advise.

[Sk8man]

Tg8 I know exactly what you mean....and....ANYONE who thinks they have fishing all figured out all season long is delusional

[Lively1]

Thanks to all of you, for sharing tips, techniques, theories, and encouragement.

[Pete Collin]

A few years ago I wrote a long story about spying on john Gaulke and his client because they weren't biting for me. The gist of my story was that if your technique isn't working - even if it is tried and true - you must change your presentation. That story is erased since the old sanders board came down. Too bad. Anyway you can use your creativity to try any crazy thing out there. You just might become a heralded pioneer of jig fishing!

By the way - when did I become an expert? The overarching tone of most of my posts is that I'm out there constantly trying to figure things out.

[mpolena]

Well I am definitely not a master of this considering I have only gone out twice on Keuka last year, from Pittsburgh,  but I want to add a seperate technique.  I was using a kayak on one calm and one very choppy day and without any electronics both days did well in a short time period.  Instead of using the typical jig head with plastic I used a swiveling trolling weight with with an O ring and treble attached shoved into a white 3.5 inch tube jig.  I also used a good amount of weight compared to what most people have said here at 2oz.  Part of my thinking was with an uncontrolled drift I need to get down FAST to get any kind of vertical retrieve without a lot of drag.  I caught the vast majority of my fish and other hits by realing straight up when the jig was vertical.  I barely got any action using a true jigging motion.  Also when the weather was blowing  i would give the weight a short pitch in front so it would hit bottom before I drifted past.  Honestly I was expecting nothing but the action was fairly consistent the entire time I was out there.  I will be trying again the 11th and 12th and will mainly be doing the same thing, although contemplating adding an unweighted soft plastic about 2 feet above the bottom jig.

[dawsonscreek]

These guys nailed the basics, don't spend much time jigging on the bottom unless they are very negative and unwilling to move at all.   I think 25 lb braid is a bit much, 10 or 15 lb is good.  The issue with 25 is that although it's as tough as nails and will never fail you, it has both more resistance in the water and more buoyancy than a lighter line, which makes it drop slower and harder to feel the jig.

 

 

 

 

I never really thought of that, but I am going to change it over to something lighter, because at times, mostly windier days, I have a difficult time detecting bottom due to the boat drift and such, Thanks for the tip!

[Bonzoso]

Wow, great topic!  I too hired Finger Lakes Angling Zone guide, John Gaulke, to show me the jigging technique on Cayuga.  Best money I ever spent.  I had only fished Cayuga a handful of times but never caught a Laker.  I had John take me out on a really slow and snotty day this past April.  I caught my first laker after a lot of work. It was a really bad and slow day but he was able to put me on fish.  He showed me the technique and how to use the fish finder.  Long story short.  I just went out on my own for the first time this past August and had a banner day  The drop to the bottom and steady retrieve worked best for me. Lots of good info here on a great topic!

[hermit]

I never really thought of that, but I am going to change it over to something lighter, because at times, mostly windier days, I have a difficult time detecting bottom due to the boat drift and such, Thanks for the tip!

 

Yeah give it a shot, can only help.  I've looked around for a sinking braid but almost nobody makes one.  Stren has "Fluorobraid" but the reviews are terrible.  A heavier jig can help like lakerchaser's setup but depending on the rod that may take away sensitivity too.  

 

Lively1 good luck out there!  As you can see by the responses there are a variety of gear, techniques, and lures people are successful with, and a lot of it depends on the lakers' mood that day.  And your own preferences too.  A while back I wrote up this laker jigging guide to help answer questions.  It's only one guy's opinion of course but I think a lot of people have found it helpful.  I got plenty of help online when I started fishing so am always happy to pay it forward.

 

Alec

[Bonzoso]

 

  A while back I wrote up this laker jigging guide to help answer questions.  It's only one guy's opinion of course but I think a lot of people have found it helpful.  I got plenty of help online when I started fishing so am always happy to pay it forward.

 

Alec

 

By the way Hermit, I found your website after hiring John to guide.  I found it very informative, particularly the info on boat control. My boat is not ideally rigged for this kind of fishing as it is a high freeboard walk around with no trolling motor. It is therefor up to me to get my jig placed properly with the boat drift and often involves casting ahead of the drift to get a vertical presentation.  This was nicely explained in your write up.  Many thanks to folks like you who share their experience with old duffers like me and make our fishing experiences more enjoyable!

[Lively1]

Hermit - your laker jigging guide is what enabled me to go out and catch some on my own (last year).  It was extrememly helpful!

 

This year I have a bigger boat and more chances to fish, so more variables have come into play. And I may have forgotten some of what I read or it didn't sink in right away.

 

I summarized all the tips in this thread (and from a few other websites) and here's what I ended up with: 

 

Best/preferred times to fish:  6 – 9 AM,  5 – 8 PM

 

Jigs:                      1, 1.5, and 2 oz. jigs with flukes, paddle tails, etc. in white or pale green

                              Feathered (Marabou) jigs work better than plastics

                              Curly tail and Mr. Twister plastics don’t work

                              Trout like salted plastics but not scented

                              Tip jigs with bit of worm, salted minnow, or belly strip from fish caught previously

Line:                     10-12 lb braid with 10' fluorocarbon leader

 

Tactics:               

1. Drop jig to bottom, bounce 2-3 times, then reel up steadily
2. Let the jig settle to the bottom, then reel in rather fast, for 20-40 feet. Open the bail and let the jig settle back to the bottom. I repeat 4 – 5X then reel all the way in.
3. Keep your jig above any rising fish, reel away (up) if they're interested
4. Try not letting the jig go all the way down before starting your retrieve
5. If  the line goes slack on the drop, set the hook
6. A steady up/down jigging motion seems to NOT produce most of the time. However, a painfully-slow jigging motion of only a foot or so on/off bottom sometimes works also.