eastcoasttransplant

Thanks all. To me it's just funny that you have hundreds of different spoon colors to run. Some effective, some not, but the basic selection of flies seems to be much smaller. I'm looking at tying some derivations of different productive spoons and was curious if anyone else did the same. Basically, I separate my spoons into the following color schemes: -Herring/natural patterns (silvers with some highlight colors) -Whites/Pearls -Metallic Blues and Greens -Dark Greens -Purples and Blacks -Red, Oranges, Flo. Yellow/green -Glows I would say that I utilize my herring, pearl and metallic blue/green spoons the most. I guess that makes sense why those same colors of flies are the most popular. I am toying with using some popular spoon colors as a guide for a bit more diverse selection of trolling flies. Who knows whether it makes a difference or not but something to do during the winter. Now ocassionally I'll troll a purple fly here and there, a glow fly with highlights but I don't tie any red or orange flies and don't see many others trolling them either. I assume that has to do with light penetration and how reds and oranges are lost at depth and flashers and flies being more productive at deeper depths, spring cohos excluded.

When I met my father-in-law his fishing knowledge consisted of putting a worm on a hook and sitting there. Then, to my surprise, we actually went on vacation without the wife to Little Sodus Bay and had a blast. Although bad weather kept us off the main lake, we hit so many bass and pike in the bay he said it was a trip he'll never forget. Now he trolls wire line back in NJ for lake trout, heads up to the Salmon River for steelhead and has become a much more diverse fisherman who really enjoys getting out and fishing. We're already planning for him to come out this spring and try coho and brown trout fishing. He's an awesome fishing partner and this was just another day we had a blast out on the water.

Hey guys, quick question..... We all know that your blues, greens and pearls all work well for kings but do any of you guys troll other fly colors with success? I mean, look at spoons....you have all those different colors, that seem to work one day or the other, but flys are usually limited. Is it worth the extra effort to try and tie flies that resemble a few popular spoons or do you just think sticking with the blues, geens and pearls is enough? Here's just one example......the Kevorkian spoon is a great color that seems to work at many different depth ranges. would you guys tie anf fish a Kevorkian fly or are you just sticking with the three basic king colors? Thanks guys.

This was a pic from this last summer with my father-in-law. Nice day on the water with more fish released.

Keating's books are absolutely awesome and Dan is a swell guy. His two books will absolutely get you understanding fishing Lake Michigan and all the intricacies that go along with it. Oh, also Dan has two DVD's that show you what he's talking about in the books. All four are highly recommended.

I tie my own. I really like the addition of a large eye on the front of my flies. Maybe, it dosen't make a difference but I've always been big on adding eyes and will continue to do so.

Hey Ryan, Good luck with the flies.

Damn, I just bought the Keating on Kings book. Let me say that Keating on Kings is a great book for anyone getting started on the big lake or for those who want to pick up tips and tricks to increase their catches while out on the water. Good deal for both.

Hey guys....believe it or not I don't have many pics from last season. I have a few I'll try to get up when I get home tonight. I also would like to post a few pics of the trolling flies I've been tying. Some like sparse flies but I prefer dense flies with large dome eyes to give those salmon a real target point. As for guys here and on many other boards, almost all have been great in answering questions and helping out. Again, thanks all for the help.

Hey Josh, I joined IL Salmon Unlimited last year and am ready to do it again this year. I may actually help out with some of their marketing and sponsorship projects. Just looking forward to getting back out there and utilizing some of the things that have been shared with me.

Hum..sounds like the torpedo guys are very helpful. My thought is using torpedos was for the choppy conditions where regular dipsys might want to release due to wave action. Last year we had a few trips where we would set the dipsy back a few hundred feet, put it in the rod holder only to have the dipsys release due to wave action. Next we tightened up the releases, fairly tight, to prevent the false releases. However, if we hooked a smaller fish we'd be fisghting the dipsy and the fish, due to how tight we had to set the dipsy release. Here's where I thought the torpedo could come in handy. It would still take the lure out and back away from the boat but there would be no worry about false releases. I'm just curious on how the directional torpedos really work in rougher conditions. I was thinking about picking up 2 shark torpedos and giving them a shot this year. Lastly, so I am understanding that the addition of a barrel swivel between the torpedo release clip and the actual torpedo will help the rotation of the directional torpedo in rougher seas? Thanks guys.

Thanks guys. Actually, while I'm no where near the status of some of the well rounded fishermen here, I would not say I'm a novice either. Over my 30 year or so of fishing, I've had everything from kayaks to center consoles and fish for sunfish to tuna and shark. I love to learn about how to become more productive and efficient with any fishing I am doing and often spend countless hours reading or watching videos on the subject. Back in NJ, while most of my fishing buddies HATED trolling, I loved the way you could keep lures in the strike zone and cover water searching for active fish. Jiggling a plastic worm for largemouth is not really my cup of tea. I tie my own flies, both trolling and normal, and was so excited once i found out I'd be in range to fish for steelhead and salmon in the tributaries during the spring, winter and fall. Last year I caught (not snagged) an 11 to 13lb brown trout in the Root River on a fly I tied. My biggest brown to date and caught on one of my creations. Heck I've even caught bluefish on an old wooden lamp pull handle that I colored and turned into a lure. I love to fish and try to approach it as a guide or charter captain would. I love tinkering with presentations to see if there really is a better mousetrap and see how productive I can be. I also love to share my knowledge and have been lucky enough to write a few articles for various outdoor media. In the end, I appreciate all the insight for those who have been fishng the big lake for years. Those little things that might not be written in the books or shown on the videos can really reduce the learning curve and make the time on the water more productive and enjoyable. If I can return the favor to any of you, please do not hesitate to ask. Thanks all for the warm welcome and kind words.

Hey guys, I just got called out on another site for asking my many different questions without "giving anything back". Being a relatively new fisherman to the Great Lakes, I figured that this winter would be the perfect time to get the straight story from those in the know about various fishing techniques, gear, etc. Obviously, some feel it's their need to protect others from people like me, and to slam someone on a board for simply trying to learn more. Things like that really make people become lurkers and stop posting. Just remember....I agree it is wonderful to go out, and figure something out completely on your own. That being said, there's nothing wrong with asking for assistance along the way. I hope my numerous questions have not irked anyone here and if I can help anybody along the way, please feel free to let me know. I try to give back when I can and am more than willing to do so. Just let me know if there is an issue and I'm sure we can work things out. I thank everyone for all their insight and assistance to my questions. Thanks and happy holidays.

If you guys are using leadcore, are you attaching you torpedo where the leader attaches to the leadcore or where your backing attached to the leadcore? In addition, how are the "releases" on the torpedos? I'm concerned that I could lose a torpedo without having a secondary clip attached to the line. Any info would be appreciated.

I was looking at those torpedos today. A little pricy but might be an option in choppy weather.

It's interesting because obviously I've read about the thumper rods and even deployed them back in NJ for fishng bottom lake trout but I also have seen a few videos and articles about fishing them suspended for kings. Tim Dawiduak of Howies Tackle still runs lead balls and says he likes them because it gets the gear running in it's own "clean" water out behind of the boat. Now with a 6 rod spread, I normally just run my two leadcores, two divers and two riggers but I always think it's worth having different arsenals on the boat just in case. Maybe this is a perfect example.....last year I was out in some choppy conditions and trying to run braid and wire divers. Even though I tightened up the releases, I still had the dipsys trip from time to time in larger waves. Perhaps in conditions like that I could scrap the dipsys and run the wire suspended via lead balls. The balls wouldn't trip and thus might make the presentation easier. Nothing like letting out 250ft of braid or wire, putting it in the rod holder, only to have it trip immediately. Just another option I'm thinking.

So in inquiring about wire line fishing, I realize that many guys utilize wire dipsys for kings but how many utilize suspended wire with 16oz. or greater lead balls? Just curious what you find is the major difference using the lead balls versus the dipsys...besides having them pull directionally of course and how you go about determining where roughly in the water column the presentation is. I was thinking of maybe picking up a few 16oz lead balls and giving it a shot this summer. Thanks all.

Well I'm working on a budget guys. I have two 30 series Okumas that I will be running the #30 BloodRun wire and one Diawa SeaLine 47 series reel. Now the rods are another story...I purchased some discontinued Luhr Jensen wire line, roller guide rods last year at $30 a piece and have one shorter custom rod I had made for laker fishing in NJ. While longer rods might have been preferred, since I run the wire divers inside of the braid divers, I opted for shorter 7 foot rods. We'll see how it works out.

After much talk and consideration, I'm switching all three reels over to #30 BloodRun stainless steel braided wire. That being said, how are you guys connecting your braided wire to backing or the wire to a swivel?

My thought was I already paid $120 for the monel so I'd hate to hate to take it off and respool with braided if there were no clear cut advantages. Perhaps after a few seasons I will replace them with braided.

Well wire is hot. Seems like you have to have it and I have heard it almost always takes the largest kings on the boat. Back in NJ I ran single strand Monel wire for trolling lake trout with thumper rigs. It worked so I figured why change it. So now at this point I have three wire line rods....all spooled with single strand monel wire. Since 95% of guys use braided, I was wondering if my setup's were considered old technology or offered less advantages than braided wire. I talked to a few people and it seems to be a personal preference but I'm curious what you guys think. Thanks.

Ok guys....I hope all my questions don't turn you guys off and maybe actually help others out who might refrain from asking for one reason or the other. To me, researching or asking questions from those in the know is part of becoming a better fisherman and I thank you all for assisting me. So I've heard a lot about the spring coho bite and how seemingly you can catch fish after fish SO simply but I have a feeling it might not be THAT easy. Well I know that fishing the southern end of the lake is slightly different than fishing around the North Point area but here's what is on my mind already: Last year I saw a lot of boats fishing the cove around Waukegan. Rocks, some protection from wind and warmer water.....makes sense. Now move on to the North Point area...what am I looking for when seeking out coho? I know guys most often fish the upper water columns, and I'm assuming most stay closer to shore (warmer water), but we've seen what assuming has done to me in the past so I'm asking now before I'm trolling around like an idiot. I mean summer fishing can take place anywhere from 30 feet to 300 feet but spring coho? I'm figuring no point in running way out deep when the fish normally won't be there. Again, I've read the books that say look for the warmest water, stay up high in the water column but we all know there are days out on the water when we can throw the books away. I just need a bit of guidance when it come to clearing the breakwall as to what I'm actually looking for when spring coho fishing. Thanks again guys. I really appreciate it.

Yeah in reviewing the few months (July, August and early September) that I fished Lake Michigan, I think I relied too much on a thin temperature band. I mean most days out I took wave action, natural light penetration, speed and depth into consideration.....but I really relied on my Depth Raider to put me into a 42-46 degree band of water. Hey, we did OK. Our worse day trolling was 5 fish and best day was 17. That's for two people and 6 lines. Maybe not gangbusters, but OK to start. I think now what I'm realizing is that fish relate to a much wider temperature than I thought. My premises to fish over a certain depth or certain spread was still valid but I think next season I will not rely SO heavily on a "preferred" temperature. I just can't wait to get back out there and put all these things into perspective. Thanks again.

Thanks Aaron. I really appreciate the lesson and the personal insight you have provided. I just can't wait until next year to try out all these things I'm talking about now. Thanks again.