Jigging or Drift Fishing for Salmon
- Thread starter acrowe
- Start date
Aces
Well-Known Member
That’s the waves and swells job
the grinch
Active Member
8'6" HMX with fast action!
the grinch
Active Member
We use an 8’6” HMX and an Ugly Stick. Macfish 1.5 or 2.5oz lure, depending on conditions and bait fish around. Rarely fish deeper than 80ft. Rarely came back without limit and lingcod when we targeted them. As fir technique, everything seems to work. I’ll drop it through the bait and jig up a few feet at a time. Girlfriend gies to depth we see on the sounder and slowly bobs up and down. Sometimes I’m working it up and down fast, sometimes hooking a fish trolling the lure when slowly repositioning. Everything seems to work. Sometimes not a fish bites when there is a cloud of them, this Mon-Tue we’d see a loner at 70-80 ft and drop down and BAM! Haven’t trolled for three years. Note depth on fish finder pic!
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the grinch
Active Member
Haha... yeah, notice the depth. We had to drift off the shoal into deeper water to get the bigger ones.
acrowe
Active Member
I was pretty impressed, my sounder is an older much less detailed Lowrance model, it actually takes some experience to discern fish and bait from all the noise and other stuff. I suspect I would have a hard time staying calm I ever saw a screen like that - buck fever sort of thing.
the grinch
Active Member
To be honest, this late in the season, big groups like that almost never had a bite. Coho? Did much better when we drifted off the shoal and targeted the loners we’d find.
the grinch
Active Member
Also, the Hummingbird has a “fish ID +” that puts a picture of the fish where the arches are. Otherwise I can never really discern the arches from bait.
tubber
Well-Known Member
Neither can the sounder. Practise without the walleye cartoons, and you'll still catch fish and learn what you're looking at.
the grinch
Active Member
Ummm… I pretty much limit out every time I go out…. Seems I’m reading it ok… but thank you so much for the constructive advice!
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Bryan Allen
Well-Known Member
same rig I use for lings.
Salty338
Member
Those look good!!
Salty338
Member
Probably all you need though. I have a simms tackle bag with 3 planos in iT and all my leader and swivels. It’s way too much. Bag doesn’t take up much space but it’s gotta be 50lbs with all the jigs in it. Lol
acrowe
Active Member
I have seen the Daiwa jigs but I don't have any, I assume they work very well.
Do you have strong color preferences in what jigs you use? I seem to have them, but I am not sure its really well evidenced as I haven't actually had the opportunity to compare with anyone. Summer 2021 I felt that white and chartreuse was producing best for me. This summer it was pearl white that I thought was the best color. Its likely just what I had on when the bite came on.
Thinking of your 50lb bag, I have a couple plano boxes in a tackle bag, but I had the bag sitting up on a little platform on the boat dash. It fell down and cracked the plastic planos because the jigs are so heavy.Some of the jigs actually knocked holes in the side of the box. At some point I will have to replace them or figure out something else.
I see you keep the jigs all rigged on leaders. I have always done that with trolling gear but not with jigs. I guess I figure figure that If I put on a fresh leader I am less likely to keep using slightly damaged ones I didn't examine closely enough, and that the rolled up leader will be kinked and more likely to snag on the jig. I am not sure either are actually really good reasons that make much difference and rigging definitely takes time if the bite is on. I may switch to pre-rigging now I actually consider it.
Do you have strong color preferences in what jigs you use? I seem to have them, but I am not sure its really well evidenced as I haven't actually had the opportunity to compare with anyone. Summer 2021 I felt that white and chartreuse was producing best for me. This summer it was pearl white that I thought was the best color. Its likely just what I had on when the bite came on.
Thinking of your 50lb bag, I have a couple plano boxes in a tackle bag, but I had the bag sitting up on a little platform on the boat dash. It fell down and cracked the plastic planos because the jigs are so heavy.
I see you keep the jigs all rigged on leaders. I have always done that with trolling gear but not with jigs. I guess I figure figure that If I put on a fresh leader I am less likely to keep using slightly damaged ones I didn't examine closely enough, and that the rolled up leader will be kinked and more likely to snag on the jig. I am not sure either are actually really good reasons that make much difference and rigging definitely takes time if the bite is on. I may switch to pre-rigging now I actually consider it.
Haverodwilltravel
Member
I like jigging for salmon. It’s quiet and peaceful. No fumes. If the fish are there you will catch them. I like using buzzbombs and macdeeps. These Shimano lures look great but they’re also expensive.
I use a Garmin Striker for depth only. I have yet to catch one when it says fish are below. It tells me there are fish between 25 and 40 feet all the time. I jig through and there’s nothing there.
I fish east coast VI.
I use a Garmin Striker for depth only. I have yet to catch one when it says fish are below. It tells me there are fish between 25 and 40 feet all the time. I jig through and there’s nothing there.
I fish east coast VI.
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acrowe
Active Member
As far as the depth sounder and reading it, I have gotten better over time though I wouldn't call myself a total expert. I was able to identify bait very quickly (in most situations), picking out fish from noise has been more of a learning curve. I think I am generally pretty good at it now. Some of the strong currents around Campbell River produce a lot of noise signals on my sounder so it does require me to pay attention.
sly_karma
Crew Member
I don't get enough saltwater time to really have a feel for colours. I would think there are some subtle differences that would be discernible over a season or two of steady fishing. The three weeks a year that I'm on the chuck isn't much more than a snapshot.
But the slow pitch concept Is primarily about lure action. The centre weighted jigs flutter with lots of lateral movement and the strikes come almost exclusively on the fall. The jerky, erratic action and the flash of the lure are what triggers reaction bites, sometimes even with fish that have ignored trolled lures and baits.
My experience is that colour is only a minor part of the overall presentation of the lure. My main focus is 1. finding the fish, and 2. positioning the boat over them so that the lure can show its best action on the drop.
I will say though that I try to use brighter colour patterns on overcast days, and vice versa. If the bait is sparse and deep and I'm playing the both ways game (tap bottom a few times in hope of ground fish before jigging up through the bait), then a pearl UV butterfly might go on the line.
