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Trolling For Trout
By Bob Ives
Early on, as far as trout fishing
in Australia, the main method was fly fishing and spinner bait fishing.
That's not so true anymore because in recent years Australian anglers have
developed a love for trolling for trout. A part of the reason for that is
the expanded use of small boats in lakes and such. With a few minor
modifications a good estuary boat can be turned into a great trout boat.
That makes trolling for trout a very appealing proposition and affords
fishermen the opportunity to fish places they would have a hard time
reaching from a bank.
Yes, we've all seen the TV fishing shows where it seems that they simply
drop a fishing line in the water a go on the merry way dragging the bait
behind the boat, but trolling for trout requires a bit more skill than
that. Each trolling lure you use will require you to incorporate a bit of
a different strategy.
Minnow trolling is a good example of that. It's best to attach the
artificial minnow to a light rod and reel with a swivel. This helps to
give the bait a more life-like action and keep the line from twisting. You
can experiment with different boat speeds, but you will likely find that
two knots works best with the bait out about 35 meters.
Not used as frequently as they once were, the banana shaped lures Flatfish
and Kwikfish are still productive and should be used when trolling for
trout. Fishermen stopped using them so much probably because they lacked
the patience to required to troll them so slowly. It's kind of hard to
blame them when you're out for a lot of fun action, but they do catch fish
and can be deadly when the bite is on. If you want to give these bad boy
baits a try, go for them in sizes F7 and X4 for Flatfish and K7 and K8 for
Kwikfish. Then, hang on to your rod.
Other great baits for trolling for trout would include Tassie Devils and
Cobras. These are colored tubes with fins on them and what makes them so
effective is that they have a very erratic action in the water which
drives the trout crazy. It's important that the boat is moving at the
right speed to get the most out of this action; about 2 knots.
If you want to increase the chance of getting more bites, you should try
attractors in front of the lures. They're just like any other fishing
tackle, some days they will really help and other days they seem to have
no influence or even prevent the bite. They usually consist of a chain of
spinning blades or a flashing bent piece of sheet metal. The chain of
spinning blades usually have up to four blades that spin as they are
trolled, with the lure lagging 50 centimetres behind them. They create a
lot of drag so use heavier tackle.
The flashing bent piece of sheet metal, called Dodgers, doesn't have as
much drag, but they do dart and weave around making whatever is trolled
behind it more life-like. Most any lure can be placed behind an attractor,
but small spoons and large flies seem to get the vote most often, but when
trolling for trout you could also use worms or mudeyes on hooks.
So, keep your speed in check, make sure your line isn't getting twisted
up, and try a couple of the more popular trout trolling lures like Tassie
Devils, Flatfish, Kwikfish, wet flies and other small lures. Experiment
with attractors of different types and you should soon get a feel of what
works best for you and be a master of Australian trolling for trout.
by Bob Ives
www.trout-fishing.com.au
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