Keep Getting Skunked?

Opendome; lot's of great advice above; too bad it isn't 40 years ago.
You REALLY need a GPS/Chartplotter because so many fishing spots are RCA (Rockfish Conservation Area) where fin fishing is illegal at all times. If you went on the WCVI or north of Campbell River, the RCA's are far enough apart to be avoided w/o a GPS. The GPS/Chartplotter will most likely have fish finding capability with the addition of a transducer.
I would consider inside waters south of Campbell River pretty fished-out for Ling & Rockfish. This is compared to 40 years ago; Iv'e been fishing Vancouver Island for 45+ years.
Trolling w/o a down rigger will limit your options; but you can either drift fish with jigs and/or cut-plug herring to target Chinook, Ling, & Halibut. Wind, current will hamper your efforts ; to be successful you should be DR trolling, & drift fishing. Another good technique for trolling w/o a down rigger is to go slow with cut-plug herring & there take the motor out go gear, letting your rig sink deep; just don't put out more line that the depth of the water.

So, in summation I'd say you are fishing the wrong area using the wrong techniques. Going out to WCVI & getting a guide to teach you would be useful.
My personal technique is to go to a great spot, DR troll for Chinook, and get enough bottom fish while trolling to make me happy.

At the end of the day, it's all about what makes you happy.
 
I would consider inside waters south of Campbell River pretty fished-out for Ling & Rockfish.

Oh yes-- nothing to see here-- Move along !! :rolleyes:
 
Without downriggers and using divers you’ll need to stay away from other boats. While your gear is dragged some distance behind your boat you risk tangling up with other boats gear.
 
Just a couple of points to add on charts and apps. The MyCatch app from Angler's Atlas has all the RCAs fully up to date and will let you know if you cross into one. I keep it open on my phone when we're fishing just to be sure, since sometimes even the Navionics charts are out of date. Second, you can view great charts at https://webapp.navionics.com/?lang=en#boating@6&key=kiufHfkqoV including sonar depth readings. For lings and rockfish, I scour the charts to find good looking structure (again, it doesn't need to be deep -- I pulled up a nice ling from 40' of water last week) and then jig needlefish, cod jigs, and Gibbs Delta Jumbo anchovy jigs. Depending on the current, you will want at least 6 oz; sometimes I get up into 14 if the current is moving. On that note, finally, everyone on here should know about this great site, with up to date current predictions and stats (as opposed to tide charts): http://www.dairiki.org/tides/daily.php/jua (start here, then click on the little "map" tab on the right and pick the location nearest to what you plan to fish). This has been so accurate for me in terms of knowing when the current would be slack, versus just when tide would be. And it's a lot easier to get your jigs down straight when the current is not ripping by at 5 knots.
 
Opendome said:
Hey everyone!

I've been trying saltwater fishing for the last 5 years here but have limited capabilities, no downriggers (use a deep six diver when salmon fishing), no GPS, no fish finder. 99% of the time I get absolutely nothing except when the pink hoard moves in and bites everything. I was wondering if anyone can help me out. Lately I've been fishing around Sidney for Lings but again, nothing. Tried around the SE side of Coal Island using a power paddle but nothing. Does anyone have any advice? I want to target Halibut and Lingcod and was wondering if anyone can give me some general advice of where to go?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
How did you do?
 
Hard to argue against getting some electronics. Navionics on a phone and a cheap depth finder are kinda necessary for lings which will be found on structure, otherwise you're blind. For hali, if you have some spots that you can chart your way into, like large gravel bars and other large structures, you have a chance, but again, a combo of Navionics and a depth finder will make it 100% easier for you.

Any reason why you havent yet added electronics to your arsenal?
 
OP - So I am the opposite of this situation my boat is armed to the teeth with gear. I am also known among my friends as "the cheapest man in NATO" ... but I still spent the money needed to get the right equipment for success.

(This is meant to be helpful and constructive) So here is my take....If you have been fishing for 5 years and NOT getting fish and you are resistant to getting the tools that will increase your odds then you will likely continue to NOT get fish.

Options
1) Get some gear = GET the fish.
2) Do NOT get the gear = keep getting skunked.

When I read your post I also wonder, what is your time worth? You have a boat, take the time to get out there, seem to want to catch fish. Why would you NOT get the gear to be more successful? If cost is an issue think of all the money spent on gas, food etc to go fishing and not catch?

If you want to keep cost down you could at least get a manual downrigger for salmon, navionics app and use your phone (or a cheap tablet).

I would suggest basic gear for your boat
1) manual downriggers (used electric if you can afford it)
2) Chart plotter/GPS sonar combo (used) or
3) download the navionics app and use a cheap tablet or phone (even one with a cracked screen but works)

This basic investment should improve your chances. For instance a sonar and chart will help you better target rock piles locations for bottom fish, charts for driving the right contours for salmon trolling etc. Even manual rigger can be found for under $100

When I started off fishing, I went from shore fishing to kayak fishing, to fishing of a dingy, to an old boat that I was working on. A friend said "you can work on boats or you can get a boat that works and go fishing... not both". I eventually went to a boat with all the gear... like ALL the gear including autopilot. I'm not saying you have to go crazy like me, but some basic investment is needed to make your fishing adventures something you enjoy by having a bit of success.
 
Get a used chartplotter. Lots of decent units for under $300. Use sounder to find bait, jig on that bait. You will get plenty of fish that way, especially in the summer/fall. I would say jigging is usually much more effective than trolling around with a deep six.
 
Fishing salmon with a downrigger increases catch rates because riggers are “constant depth” devices…I use mine to go up and down through the water column continually until I find the magic depth where the fish are then I try and stay at that depth. If you don’t want to strap a downrigger to your gunnel you can always use parachute cord, a pair of gloves, and a 10 pound ball. A friend of mine up in Alaska fills his freezer every season with this method. He has the $$ to outfit his boat but likes to stay old-school and has gotten very good at it.

The caveat: you’ll want to mark off the depth measurements on your parachute cord and yes, get a cheap portable 9V fish finder so at least you can track bottom and know your depth

As far as what you attach to the parachute cord to get a salmon’s attention: there literally are a squadrillion things out there on the market that you can use that will all catch salmon.

A good start: a dummy flasher with approx. two meters of heavy mono attached to your cannonball and a Skinny-G or a Coho-Killer or any smallish spoon that’s light enough to flutter about a meter above the ball. A deadly combo on anything that swims

Or yes, a jig. Hard to beat a jig that’s fished up and down through the entire water column
 
onefish said:
Get a used chartplotter. Lots of decent units for under $300. Use sounder to find bait, jig on that bait. You will get plenty of fish that way, especially in the summer/fall. I would say jigging is usually much more effective than trolling around with a deep six.
Click to expand...
x2 with the jigging. if you have even the cheapest fishfinder that only shows depth and dot matrix specks as bait, you can catch everything under the sun with a simple MacDeep jig. can’t begin to count the amount of times i e limited on lings, springs and coho all on the same jig all in the same location
 
RiverBoy said:
x2 with the jigging. if you have even the cheapest fishfinder that only shows depth and dot matrix specks as bait, you can catch everything under the sun with a simple MacDeep jig. can’t begin to count the amount of times i e limited on lings, springs and coho all on the same jig all in the same location
Click to expand...
Yup. find the structure, find the bait, you will catch fish. Jigging is the way.
 
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