My family would like to try salmon fishing, and I don't know where to start in terms of rods, reels, line and tackle. (We've been trout and walleye fishers but recently got a bigger boat).

So if I want to troll L. Washington and the Sound, how big of a pole and what kind of action do I need? What is the best type of reel? What weight of line? I'm only five feet tall and my hands get tired easily, plus we've got kids aboard, if that makes a difference in how I choose gear.

Also, I'm assuming I really need to get a downrigger. What should I look for? Are there any brands I should stay away from?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

Erynh-

For trolling in both the lake and sound I use a 10'6" rod rated for 15 to 30lb line and would recommend using nothing shorter than a 9 Fiberglass rod. Dont buy an expensive graphite rod for trolling, they will not handle the endured stresses of trolling like fiberglass can. Save those for the rivers.

If your hands tire easily then select a level wind reel with at least 4:1 ratio and a single handle with a long arm, 4-5 inches. My wife likes this setup because she can gain more leverage on the fish and retreive line easier. Good for kids too.

For a mainline I use a 20lb monofilament line on all my salt reels, 15lb for fresh. Try Maxima or Ande line.


When considering what type of downrigging equipment you want to buy, I think it's important to keep in mind how often you plan on using it, and for what type of fish. If you are going to fish alot, then buy good electric downriggers like Scotty Downriggers. If you are just going to fish for fun and infrequently, manuals may not be a bad choice because they are alot cheaper. What kind of boat did you get?

Thank you for the specific pointers, SkyGuy. I really appreciate it. I hate walking into the store without a clue! I think we'll try to get a used electric downrigger, as we'll probably get quite a bit of use out of it. One less thing to worry about, too, when someone gets a fish on, right?

We got a 1997 Bayliner Ciera, 2355. It rocks! Now for the crab pots and fishing!

Can anyone tell me what "hootchies" are? And how about "mooching"? (See what happens when you learn stuff from books?)

Thanks,
Eryn

hey, welcome aboard..
i dont have a boat , nor any downriggers, but you might wanna try the classifieds, there is allways some for sale there and also for poles and reels, look at okuma, cheaper but good for the money.. **berkley boy**

As a matter of fact I have a downrigger for sale in the classifieds on this site, A brand new in box Cannon.
Check it out here:
http://www.piscatorialpursuits.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=002378


It is extremley nice to have electrics when you get a fish, and even better when you fish deep for Blackmouth. Manuals are getting better with higher retreive ratio's, but electric will always rule.

Hoochies are mini squid baits, use the search function on the forum to find out all you could ever want to know about best colors, how to mooch, etc.

Mooching you normally use a banana weight (it's made out of lead no real banana's in the boat is the very first lesson) and I use a long leader, 8 feet, with a barrel in the middle of it which prevents twisting, stops seaweed from sliding to the bait and means less leader used when you need to change the hooks. Normally the bait is a cut plug herring. Here you want a good graphite rod so you can feel soft bites.
You can also mooch/jig darts, fake candle fish and the popular buzz Bomb without the extra weight as they are a weight themselves. Smear some scent on them though.
Mooching means you drift with the current and work your line up and down all depths. Myself I usually pull out about 25 feet of line, let it sit for ten seconds, ten more feet, let it sit, ten more, etc all the way down and then reel up ten cranks, fast when you hit bottom or you will hook a bottom fish, let it sit, ten more, etc. You generally want a line angle of 45 degrees or so so adjust your weight to fit that.
Usually you mooch in closer along kelp beds and shelves.
Salmon will hit on the way down, when it's sitting, or on the reel up so always be ready.

If you are new to salmon fishing as it sounds like, I would recommend that you take one of the Salmon University classes which run every so often. Another source of information is the seminars given at the boat shows and sportsman shows. The speakers usually have rods and gear set up for you to see and also slide shows which can be informative. Also keep following the posts on this bulletin board since there are many experienced people posting here.

Deepwater