Downrigger trolling from a Hobie Outback

What's up NCKA?

I got bored, so I put together a little video clip of me trolling for salmon with a down rigger... Figured it might be helpful for anyone who's never worked with a downrigger, or anyone who's thinking of adding one to their yak.

The video shows all of the steps involved in using a downrigger. It shows me... Popping my line out of the clip and reeling it up (to check my bait)... Cranking the downrigger ball back up... Letting out 10-15 feet of line (the "drop back")... Clipping into the line release... Lowering to depth (reel is in free spool with my thumb on the spool to keep it a little tension)... Engaging the reel and sticking it in the rod holder... Then taking all the slack out of the line and "loading" the rod.

Soleman makes a quick cameo appearance, too... We were out trolling near the Duxbury buoy.

You can also find the thread describing how I installed the DR here:
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=63218.msg709505#msg709505

Highly recommended...

Cheers,

~Alex

Thx for the post! I have the same downrigger will try to repeat what you have shown here.

Boy, that sure does look like an easy way to DR troll!  I've been mounting everything behind me, because I try to keep my deck free for re-entry.  But that looks like it works really REALLY well!  Thanks for that video! 

One question though, are you able to use your paddle as well?  Cant see if the dr or rod is in the way of a paddle stroke.  I often switch between paddling and peddling while trolling, to give the legs a break but keep on moving.

Nice!  Thank you for posting.  I've been debating whether to add a DR.  Your how-to is very informative.

Thanks for the video.

Has anyone tried using a Shuttle Hawk in the ocean?


I use this when trolling the lakes and they're great on the lakes!

Thanks, guys! Glad this was helpful. I had something like 6 straight hours of trolling footage that I was about to delete because I didn't catch any salmon. Figured I'd try to squeeze a little usefulness out of it.



Al - You're right. The downrigger is REALLY easy to use in this position. It puts you in a natural and comfortable position while you're cranking. The DR is far enough forward that I can paddle a little if needed, but it's not ideal. I have to adjust my paddle stroke a little to avoid it. When my legs need a break I usually just mooch for a bit (or pretend my legs aren't burning and keep going). I slide the DR out of its base and toss it in the hatch for launching and landing.

I've never tried a shuttle hawk, but I've researched them a little. I actually called Shasta Tackle a while ago and chatted about using them for ocean salmon. Apparently they can work with low-drag setups (i.e. small low-drag dodgers or no dodgers). I think he said they max out around 40 or 50 feet with heavier salmon gear like a Sling Blade dodger and spinning bait. Worth a shot, I guess.

AlexB,

If you try the Shuttle Hawk, make sure to change out the release clip that came with it.

Get something with a heavier grip, I use a Scotty mini Power Grip. Next time I go for salmon, I'll try using the Scotty Power Grip.
http://amzn.com/B001M4HT5C

Thanks P-Sherman. I'll keep that in mind.

B what size weight are you using?

6-lb weight on 85-lb powerpro. It seems to work OK down to about 150 ft. Probably can go deeper, but it starts blowing back a bit.

AlexB, that's a nice video showing how to use a downrigger.  Post a video showing what you do when you get a strike!
 
We have some minor differences in technique and equipment.  You hold your rod in your hand when running out fishing line, clipping the line into your downrigger release, and lowering your downrigger weight, and keep fishing line from running out too fast by putting your thumb on your reel.  You don't put your rod in its holder until you've lowered your weight to the desired depth.  I put my rod in my rod holder for the entire process.  After I put my rod in my rod holder, I run out fishing line, clip the line into my downrigger release, engage the clicker on my reel to keep fishing line from running out too fast, and then start lowering my downrigger weight.  When my weight reaches the depth I want, all I need to do is reel in some fishing line to put my rod under tension.  You use a pinch-style downrigger release; I use a Black's clip-style downrigger release mounted on top of my weight, which I think works better with braided line than a pinch-style release.

I like the way you have your downrigger set up.  I posted a description of how I mounted a Cannon Lake-Troll downrigger on my 13’ Revolution, and why I mounted it that way, at http://www.yakfisher.net/smffiles/index.php?topic=9918.0 . That post is a spiffed-up version of a posting I made earlier on the Northwest Kayak Angler’s forum.

AlexB, taking notes....thanks for the info/video ! !

Thanks Pete!

I don't have any video of fish catching with the downrigger yet. I've actually only used it a few times, and have only caught a couple rockfish (bycatch), a few mackerel, and one small ~18" shaker salmon. As luck would have it, my camera batteries died before any of that action...

Good info!
Thanks for sharing, AlexB!

Thanks for the video.

Has anyone tried using a Shuttle Hawk in the ocean?


I use this when trolling the lakes and they're great on the lakes!

I tried the Shuttle Hawk for Salmon fishing but it seemed like my rod was too stiff. it kept bringing the Shuttle Hawk back up...

I use it for koke fishing alot to stack the lures.
http://www.shastatackle.com/stacking.html