I need help on this matter please. The one week a year I get the opportunity to fish salmon, I am bottom bouncing. Sorry, it is my only chance to catch these magnificent fish and unless I catch many, I am miserable for the next 51 weeks. I catch and release the fish and it is rare that I damage the fish (the odd pink belly hooked - hard not to belly hook the odd pink sometimes when they are real thick)
I want to improve though. I don't want to be a flosser. I want to catch these fish legitimately.
I bottom bounce with a probably 30" - 40" leader, spin-n-glo and a 6" hootchie. Am I flossing? when I first started this, I was taught the approach as a way to anger chum salmon into attacking the hootchie. Very effective my first year and I have been hooked ever since. I have caught all species of salmon and a few steelhead with this method. For the most part, these fish are hooked inside the mouth. Sometimes I do hook them foul. Not intentionally. I am just not as good differentiating between a bite and maybe that was just a fish brushing against my line. I am getting better, but still have a long way to go.
I have seen the high and mighty fly fishermen floss, even though they don't admit it. They get the fly at the right depth and 'swing' it into the open mouth of the fish. I have seen bottom bouncers adjust the corkie so that it floats at that same correct depth to swing the offering into the open mouth. I have seen bobber fishermen do the same; get that depth exactly right. I have had veterans criticize my technique, because my offering is too big; I need to downsize to get that exact depth. Then I see the guy with the 8' leader and a big a$$ hook with yarn. OK, he is obviously doing something wrong.
So what is right here? Maybe max leader length is something that could be specified. I have seen different opinions on this thread between 24" and 5'. What is too long. With what I do, is that flossing or is that a legitimate method of bottom bouncing. I am trying to learn here. Not trying to peek your wrath and encourage your vengeance. Please help