Trolling question/engine noise

Very new at lake trolling for rainbows and salmon. caught plenty of both in rivers and streams, but all my trolling experience is in the salt or in lakes for stripers. My question are these: is it better to use your electric motor even if your outboard is capable of trolling at under 2 knots? How sensitive are these fish to motor noise? When I offshore fish engine noise is a plus in most casess, neutral in most others. In clear shallow lake water I can see where noise would be a big negative, but most of these summer time fish are going to be 35-70 feet deep it seems where engine noise may not be as much of a factor. I can use either, just wondering which to try first.

Doc I have seen brookies hit a rod length from my boat while trolling .Also many times we run lures very close to the ball and get hits. There are days where getting the lures far away from the boat will be the best way to get bit. I would definately use the gas motor to troll if given a choice.

Hi!
Haven't posted in a while.
Been a bit busy with the Gulf oil spill.

June and the 1st half of July was quite good for Kokanee at West Hill Pond here in Ct.
Now things are slowing down -> WHY? -> No idea as this should be the best time of year to catch Kokes.
Fish are staying deep (Between 30 and 40 ft.), and running in small tight schools, and they seem to have a bad case of Lock Jaw!
You name it -> And I've tried just about everything to get them to bite.
Best luck is still fishing at night with a Hali or Kodiak ice jig with 2-3 inch dropper with #8 red Gamakatsu Octopus hook, baited with 2-3 maggots and 1 large white corn kernel.
As for scents -> Shrimp and Anise, used sparingly, seem to work well.

Trolling for Kokes is a time, and cost, consuming activity.
Plus at this time of year you have to troll deep and very SLOW -> 0.25 to 1.5 knots.
For me (Here in Ct. - where it is allowed) it's easier to go out at night at anchor (fore and aft) with a light and still fish for them.
I can see on my fish finder the exact depth(s) that they are cruising at and lower my bait to that exact depth.
Plus it's a very relaxing way to fish -> Quiet, cold drink + snack, and/or have a radio and listen to a ball game.
Just as much fun and thrill to hook into Old Phsycho Fish!

Well that's my report for now.
Hope you guys are having better luck!

Best regards,
SeaDog

awesomereport

Excellent post Sea Dog!

Especially the anchoring up and enjoying a cold one while listening to the ballgame, although i'll be focusing more on the fishing and my cold one since my ball team has decided not to play this season.....

Damn overpaid slackers!!

I use my 4 stroke gas engine to get to the area I want to fish. Once there I use the bow mounted electric troll motor. No exhaust fumes no engine noise. It just seems to make the trip more enjoyable.

trolling

I have used both .....the same results ....set back from the ball seems to be more crushal than anything ....speed on the Bows,,,1.7 at the most .....been having great successs this year with Luhr jensen laketrolls willow leaf #66 silver hammered with Rhys Davis achovy special bait heads and shiners .....also Roger doger uv pink /green tiger with Michigan Stinger Scorpion GreenBack spoons......I am catching a lot larger bows this year with these setups up to 22 inches

Well I'm back from a week of fishing on the lake. I used both the outboard and the electric trolling motor for 6 straight days. I caught fish with both, but since I found the fish this week to be as or more responsive to faster speeds (up to 2.2 mph) I used the outboard more and caught more with it. I could have used the electric at this speed but figured why bother to drain the batteries. Biggest difference was the sound of the downrigger cable. It was quite noticeable at 2 mph when the outboard was shutdown, but didn't seem to bother the fish.

I have a 17' Alumaweld Super Vee, I bought a bow mount minkota and added the co-pilot which is a remote steering and speed operating feature. Noise or no noise, trolling with a bow mount is a heck of a lot easier then any motor on a transome. it was the best purchase I have ever made. quiet and very easy to control the boat especially going into the wind. Just a fantastic feature ......... I love it!

trolling motor

rgarbar said:

I use my 4 stroke gas engine to get to the area I want to fish. Once there I use the bow mounted electric troll motor. No exhaust fumes no engine noise. It just seems to make the trip more enjoyable.

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Saves a lot on fuel, the quiet is nice,and it definitly reduces maint. costs on the gas motor