Combo Trip: Jigging and Trolling

[Capt Juls]

Fun times...sounds like you had a great day!

Regarding speed during cold water months...

I remember several years ago, I had a customer and his buddies in my boat, and his son, and his son's buddies, were fishing out of his boat.

The son said, the bow mount quit and was going to head in.... so, while we were all doing 1.3 to 1.5mph that December day, his son finished out the morning, by trolling back to Mazurik's with the big motor only, and couldn't keep it under 2.5mph against the current (so those baits were ripping down below!).

That kid ended up putting a bunch of monster walleye in the boat at that speed, while the rest of us were only getting nice eaters (3-5 pounds). I don't remember the exact number of how many he caught on that pass, but it was something like 6 or 7, and anywhere from 8-11 pounds.

I definitely keep that in mind every year, when I'm fishing cold water.

[slimshady]

Exactly. You just never know from one day to the next. That's why I like constantly changing speeds to see what they want. I will hit the "rabbit" button on the remote, let it take us up to 2.3 - 2.5 for a few seconds, then back to the regular speed. Or, put the kicker in neutral for a few seconds and then back in gear. I also cut the speed when I get a big fish, so if more lines fire while we are slowing down, I might try keeping it slower for a while. On the other hand, if I am getting bites as the boards are going out to the sides (faster), I will know they want it fast. The bottom line is, there is no set rule for speeds, even in really cold water.