Where to get started fishing the big water?

Wildfire

Wildfire

Well-Known Member
R.O.C. (Radio Operator's Certificate)
Hi everyone!

I feel like a total newb asking this. I've fished the inner bay for many years from a small boat, but this year we finally upgraded to a 20' and I'm looking forward to getting out in the bigger water for some eyes, trout, midsummer smallmouth, etc. Problem is, I have no idea what to do out there. I can drag a tube near Millionaires or rip a crankbait through the reeds off EC5 with the best of them, but that's all I've ever done. Any tips on how to get started in the outer bay, or out of Maitland or Colborne?
 
Sounds like you need to know where the sanctuary is in the inner bay or it's 300$ fine if you get it wrong. See ya I'm an idiot post. I got a few lakers at the Elbow this time last year. Down riggers and big spoons. Drag deep diving cranks for Pics or spoons off Dipseys. Lead core and riggers work for Pics too. Catch a Pic mark the spot then circle around and over it a least a couple times. Check your line a least every 1/2 hour you might be dragging a small pic . If you pop your line from a down rigger release to check it and no fish let it work for another couple minutes you get hits as the lure comes up. If you see a bunch of boats fishing they might know what they're doing. Just don't be That guy. When the fishing gets good lots of guys will say were and how deep. Maybe get a marine radio and listen to channel 68.
 
Outside the inner bay, rocky structure anywhere from 4 ft to 20 ft depth will hold smallmouth all summer. There are endless places to try along the north shore between Nanticoke and Port Colborne. Look for "macro" structure first, e.g. points and shoals. Then in those areas, look for secondary elements to hold fish - smaller ridges/points/dropoffs, broken rock, boulders. For lures, try a jerkbait... :censored:

For the other species the approach will depend your gear, are you set up for trolling? For 'eyes, your bass hardbaits will work if you have a way to get them deep (dipsy, downriggers, snap weights, leadcore…).
 
Thanks for the tips. I am fully aware of the sanctuary. I am a bit baffled that they are enforcing it without the posts being out this year. I know in previous years they had the posts with little signs on them and it was pretty clear. I don't have riggers and honestly don't want them I'd rather stick to dipseys or leadcore. How deep can leadcore get?
 
Wildfire said:
Thanks for the tips. I am fully aware of the sanctuary. I am a bit baffled that they are enforcing it without the posts being out this year. I know in previous years they had the posts with little signs on them and it was pretty clear. I don't have riggers and honestly don't want them I'd rather stick to dipseys or leadcore. How deep can leadcore get?
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The gents on here helped get me setup with dipseys last year I only ran two and they were very successful. I added two more rods to my spread this year so when we can take a friend I can run 4 rods.
I didn’t venture out with a fellow member and all I can say about leadcore is it’s a lot of winding but they say some days it out preforms.
 
Wildfire

Where do you launch from , or boat moored at???

As for how to target walleye
Riggers are not a necessity
Typically walleye will be anywhere from 25 - bottom...depending on bait and temps.
And in 45 - 65 fow

You will have to decide weather or not you like leadcore or not....average depth for leadcore is 4 -5' per colour....speed, current, lures will cause variance

Also decide how many rods you wish to use

There are allot of different setups you can use .

Jet divers off corners or on planer boards

Dipsy divers out each side (could run 2 each side at different settings)

Flat line with deep diving crank baits

Weighted rods using delta or clip weight
Let out 30- 50 'of line ,clip weight on line then let out another 50 -100' either put on planner or out corner or shute

Inline or trolling weights clip weight to main line then add 6-10 'of line to your lure ......

You could also troll 4 oz bottom bouncers
Or drift and jig

There is no right or wrong way ....have to decide what you like and what works best for you
 
Hey @Wildfire ,

You sound like myself a little while ago. I will be paraphrasing what already been said in the above comments, but I suggest you FOCUS (that's the key word) on something specific, i.e. downriggers and/or planers with mono is one great place to start.

Get 4x identical trolling rod/reel combos, throw on them 20-25 lbs mono (I use Big Game). Identical is better when you juggle them. Forget about everything else, especially lead core.

With 2 people in the boat you could run 4 rods, i.e. let's say 2 rods on riggers and 2 on planers, or 4 on riggers or 4 on planers.

For downriggers, drag 2 rods with worm harnesses or an RRF or a small spoon 5 ft off the bottom.

With planers, get a trolling sinker of 3-5 oz 50 feet after the bait, then reel out as much as you need by using a rough rule of 3ft of mono for 1 ft of depth (3-4 oz weight), i.e. for 100 ft of line out you will be about 30-35 ft deep. Add planer, let more line out until the planer settles.

You have to have a few trips like that, get some experience, figure things out and then you can for example add dipsy divers (using braid), as well as other toys.

Well at least these are my 2 cents... Congratulations, you are now newbie level 2 :)
 
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Hi Wildfire. Like vmuravin said above, choose one setup and work with it. We just started last year. A buddy suggested braid so we went with four identical rods, reels, and braid. Various dipseys and a good supply of spoons and body baits. We made a ton of mistakes but by the end of the year we had the hang of it and usually came home with our limit it the box. The members here are very helpful and knowledgeable. The folks at Angling Outfitters outside Woodstock are very helpful too and have all the toys you could ever want. Good luck!
 
Hey @Wildfire , @Lake Erie Bait and Tackle has some really good prices on combos right now if you don't have any at the moment. Might be worth a look, they posted in the classifieds.

I would agree with what the others are saying in regards to walleye. Start simple and focused and branch out from there. Personally I would buy some inexpensive combos and give it a go. If you like it and go often, get better stuff.

like @EOR said, Dipsys are a good way to go. Last year I found that they outperformed everything else. Thats not saying much though, it was almost impossible not to get your limit every trip last season. If you have never used them before there is a bit of a learning curve, once you get it their easy.
 
I'm going to go against the grain here.

I suggest you get a few leadcore lines, some inline planer boards, 4 dipsey rods and a rigger or two. You'll get a real rush out of buying all that gear.

Then, go and tangle it all up behind your boat. Tell yourself that you're only going to run a couple of rods to start, but after 15 minutes get overconfident and just mash it all out there. Reel it up and it'll be a big spiderweb of brand new garbage. Say some swears.

Now, with your new found respect for the gear, work at building out your spread slowly and carefully, visualizing where each line runs in the water column so that nothing gets tangled. Have a few more tangles that you don't understand. Say more swears.

Eventually your tangles will become less frequent, and you might catch a fish or two. Hopefully this happens before you run out of money.

Worked for me!!
 
Hi Wildfire Great advice on here from everyone especially having the same type of rod and reels starting out.Easier to detect hits when under troll.Make sure you get linecounter reels stay away from Okuma Magda .Okuma Convector linecounter are worth the extra money.You could start a thread and ask guys their favorite reels.If getting downriggers troll with monofilament. And if getting leadcore start with a 7 color and an 8 color and label the side of reel so you know exactly what you have in hand.A tip from the charter guys.
 
Another thing that blew me away when I started was where to go.Most guys share their success on this site and that gives you a starting point.Write down some tips on fow which equals feet of water and lure colors ,lead length from rigger balls or dipsy on a 1,2 ,or 3 setting.Laminate a dipsy chart that you keep in boat so you know exact depth.The thing that always blew me away was launching my boat and seeing 60 truck and trailers in parking lot but when I hit the water and looked out at the water ,you couldn't see another boat.Until you were out 5 miles or so and started seeing boats in the distance.
 
anonymoose said:
I'm going to go against the grain here.

I suggest you get a few leadcore lines, some inline planer boards, 4 dipsey rods and a rigger or two. You'll get a real rush out of buying all that gear.

Then, go and tangle it all up behind your boat. Tell yourself that you're only going to run a couple of rods to start, but after 15 minutes get overconfident and just mash it all out there. Reel it up and it'll be a big spiderweb of brand new garbage. Say some swears.

Now, with your new found respect for the gear, work at building out your spread slowly and carefully, visualizing where each line runs in the water column so that nothing gets tangled. Have a few more tangles that you don't understand. Say more swears.

Eventually your tangles will become less frequent, and you might catch a fish or two. Hopefully this happens before you run out of money.

Worked for me!!
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best advice yet, great read!! lol, had me on the ground. -- in admist the tangles, might get lucky and have a couple fish on, might be able to see them as the tangled mess comes up to surface, and just as the joy of catching some fish, when you reach out for the fish they pop off and swim away,,, add a few more made up swear words, and love every minute of it.
 
SouthernOntariosportsman said:
best advice yet, great read!! lol, had me on the ground. -- in admist the tangles, might get lucky and have a couple fish on, might be able to see them as the tangled mess comes up to surface, and just as the joy of catching some fish, when you reach out for the fish they pop off and swim away,,, add a few more made up swear words, and love every minute of it.
Click to expand...
My fav go to word is God-dammit
 
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