I was hoping for some input on trolling for kings.

I am a dedicated chinook moocher on the cusp of taking up trolling and I am looking for advice.
I did fairly well mooching for kings on elliot bay a few weeks ago, but have been consistently outfished by trollers since. Given a choice, I would hoose to catch fish mooching, but that seems very difficult right now on the bay. Being a pragmatist, I would rather catch fish trolling than not catch any mooching. I have done well trolling for coho in the past, so I do know the basics of trolling for salmon.

I have aquired a couple of beat up but serviceable downriggers. What sort of terminal tackle, depth, trolling speed, etc do you all reccomend? I have observed that glow/green/white squid & green hotspot accounts for many fish on elliot bay how do you rig and fish this set up?
Any other general advice is appreciated. Thanks

Well I am sure that you are going to get several opinions on what works best, and don't be afraid to take it all in and find what works best for you. I am normally a herring hood behind a flasher (Green/glo) troller, but this year the set up that I have had the most success with is a green Grand Slam Bucktail 24 inches behind a green hot spot flasher. Use 40lb or 50lb leader to get the best action. But like I said, that is just what has been working for me. I know there are a lot of guys on this board that catch a lot of fish trolling using different techniques. Guys like Seacat, Dangerous Dave, Downriggin'or JasonS and many others are a wealth of information so take in as much as you can, I know I do.

Good Luck!

Hey nice meeting you guys last night Umrules. My favorite rig is a big pink hotspot with either 32" leader to a glow in the dark green spatter back squid. Or a 6' leader to a whole fresh herring. Timing is key being on the water for the bite. King fishing is very spotty this year though.

Jason S

What can I say.....GLOW, GLOW, GLOW. I use glow dodgers (11" Hot Spot) and glow hoochies (24" behind the dodger). White/glow works best because it is most visable at depths like 100 feet. I also cover the dodger and hoochie with herring oil.

Geoduck,

Use what you have the most confidence in...
However, you won't go wrong using anything that glows. Starting at roughly 30', fish have a hard time seeing anything. The deeper they go, so does the vision. Three keys things to remember about Salmon: hearing, sight, smell. If you have all three keys, you'll catch fish! This time of year, rarely are the fish feeding, they are transiting. So you need to find baits that aggreviate or trigger a feeding instinct.

For Summer Kings, be on the water before twilight.
This is prime time. The sky will be just turning gray. I prefer the first 50' with my starting point at 35' to 40' and working deeper during this period before sunrise. At sunrise, I am on the bottom scratching (within 10'). This depends on available sun light. If it is overcast, I stay on top a little longer. When the bottom doesn't produce, I'll troll out in the deeper water about mid level or roughly 80'.

As far as baits go, my numero uno is a spoon. Specifically the Sonic Edge glo/green splatter back behind a glo/green Hot Spot flasher and 55" of leader. If this doesn't do it, I troll either a 4" green/glo hootchie with a big glo/green spin n' glo in front or a monster 6" glo/green hootchie at 48" behind the flasher. If none this works, see ya at the ramp it's Busch Ice time.

Terminal gear... that mooching rod will work just fine. 20# is about the lowest test you'll be able tun off the release. Any smaller and you'll have a hard time finding the right tension or constant tripping. Just remember not to put too much pressure on the rod when trolling. Especially if the rod is a "high end" model.

ALWAYS troll with the tide or slightly across it. Salmon always face into the current until they see your bait. Not only that, but you're covering more water than sitting in one spot wondering why you're not moving.

Lastly, Smelly Jelly. Your choice, but I like herring favor.

If you have more questions, fire away! There's plenty of Salmon out there to catch.

Downriggin'

Highest I use is 15# maxima and I have no problem with the cheapie releases that you can get at Narrows Marina. Hey by the way conversly for 17 mature kings kept with 6 over 20#'s I haven't caught one deeper than 62 feet yet this year. Combine that with the fact I don't even think about hooking the boat up in the evening till 6:30. In the morning I am home eating breakfast with the wife by 8:00. I am not saying you will not catch fish between the times but when the sun is up I don't do Kings.

Jason S

Hey Guy, Thanks for the tips! All very usefull info for me.

What speed do you guys troll at? I've seen boats catch fish going fast-ie 5+ knts and slow ~ 1kt. My inclination, being a moocher at heart is slow, but I'm trying to be more flexible.
What speed do you guys find most effective?

Thanks again, I appreciate the advice.

I know guys that troll fast and catch kings. I troll at 1.5 MPH and catch kings. I don't think it really matters. What does matter is the action on what you are presenting to the king. The more action the better.

I use the downrigger wire as a guideline. I try to maintain a 40 to 45 degree angle.

Downriggin'

Speed to me depends on what your flasher or dodger is doing. Keep an eye on your tip and adjust your speed so you get a nice pulse on in. Remember the flasher is also their for sound. As far as leader length I go for 24" OF 50lbs for bait that doesn't have its own action to 15-20lbs and up to 60" for bait that has its own action. Hope these help along with the other advice.

Tight lines

Kevin

Run a Fish Flash from Big Al's Tackle off the down rigger ball. Clip your line about 6 - 10 feet above the ball and use just a spoon or a Baitbuster, something to give you action. This set up is nice because when you're fighting a fish, you're not fighting the flasher because it's connected to the ball.

Always troll from 2.5mph to 3.2 mph.

Also, don't be afraid to try purple.

In addition to all of the suggestions so far, if you haven't done so yet, get schooled at Salmon University .

Soak it all up and apply it on the water. The info on that site is right on, the setups, the areas, the seaons, etc. Check out the "Ask the Pro's" page specifically. Some of your trolling questions are answered there.

Another excellent way to learn is to spend the money and go on a charter that uses downriggers. Ask questions and observe. Many times the skippers are happy to bring you up the learning curve. Even if they are not, you can still observe. It's helped me a lot over the years and it's fun to let someone else do the riggin' and you get to catch the fish! IMO, it's worth the money when you're just starting out.

Hey! what can I say...looks like umrules, downriggin, jasons, and seacat have given you all the good scoop. Hope to see you all out on the water this weekend. I've taken the entire next week off with the intentions of filling up my freezer.

You guys fishing the derby this weekend in Sinclair Inlet? I may fish Sunday?

Jason S

Hey Jason,
I hope lots of people are doing the Derby thing this weekend as I will be at SW on Sat/Sun hoping for small crowds.

If you see us out there say "Hey"!

I'll be fighting the crowd on Satuday at Pt Defiance witht he PSA Derby. I am pushing for Sunday at Sinclair....

umrules.... You and Dangerous fishing together this weekend?

Downriggin'

Downriggin,
Dave will be out Saturday in his boat with a couple guys and I'll have my boat out both days. I think Dave is heading up to Sekiu on Sunday to get into some of those Silvers up there.

Good luck this weekend.

I will be at Southworth Sunday morning think I'm gonna avoid Sinclair this weekend. Fishing was good at Southworth thursday morning with Kings and Silvers.

JasonS