What is a moocher rod?

[Erskin]

I have an Okuma ten foot classic pro model CPM-10M that has never been used. The line weight is ten to twentyfive pounds and the lure weight says one half to three ounces. It says the word Mooching on it. What does that mean?

[pvelyk]

I believe it a method of fishing for chinook where you use two hooks to bait a dead herring. You drift in your boat with the bait on the bottom. I also believe there is a method where your drop the bait to the bottom but also reel it up a bit stop, and repeat.

[Blue Knight]

I believe it a method of fishing for chinook where you use two hooks to bait a dead herring. You drift in your boat with the bait on the bottom. I also believe there is a method where your drop the bait to the bottom but also reel it up a bit stop, and repeat.

That's the actual purpose for those rods but they are also use for downrigging using a "mooching reel". I have three Islander mooching reels and if I never used a level wind again it wouldn't bother me.

[Erskin]

Thanks guys.  I'll use it on my downrigger.  What is a mooching reel?

[bout time]

A mooching reel is a large arbor reel similar to a fly reel. They have a drag on them and hold a decent amount of line. Just a heads up a decent reel will run you hundreds

Mike

'Bout Time

[kingpossible]

I had a few of those rods with the mooching label on them.  I found them much too heavy for use with downriggers, but I did use those rods for my braided divers rods.

 

From what I understand, mooching can involve using anywhere from 3 to 16 oz lead weights to present the bait depending on water current.

[Salmo slayar]

I think pvelyk is pretty much spot on about how to mooch. I learned about mooching a few years ago, when I went to Oregon to fish the buoy 10 salmon fishery on the Columbia river with my uncle who has been fishing salmon there for over 60 years. Man those up river brights taste good! Anyway, what I learned from my uncle was that mooching for salmon was very popular in the 70's, and you basically drift in the current or tides letting your bait hang out near bottom, often you anchor the boat or use drift socks to keep from floating away. For bait you use a herring or anchovie, which kind of flutters in the current, and is kept at the desired depth with a large weight. The technique is not as popular on the Columbia anymore, but is still commonly used by local fisherman who don't have a large enough boat to effectively troll and search the water for schools of salmon (the Columbia can be treacherous) . Here are a couple of links to give you a better idea of how it is done.

 

http://www.totalfisherman.com/blog/2066/how-to-catch-salmon-on-the-columbia-river/

 

http://coastsidefishingclub.com/grey-beard-articles/mooching-for-salmon/

Edited March 17, 2015 by Salmo slayar