Setting up the spread
this way reduces the
chance of lines tangling
and allows you to set
the baits where they
need to be. If the bayou
is too wide cover it all,
set the rod closest to
the shore shallowest and
let each rod toward the
middle of the channel
set a little farther back
and deeper. You may
find one rod getting
more hits than another,
then set one of the rods
next to it the same way
and see if you can double your action
bite. However, trolling was and still is a very
productive way to catch fish, especially if you
do it properly.
The beauty of marsh trolling is the multitasking; you can fish a variety of depths of
water at one time, offer a variety of bait styles,
shapes and colors, and cover a lot of ground.
Most of all, it can be done in conjunction with
your usual fishing practices.
In most of coastal Louisiana, you can find
open lakes and bays connected by winding
bayous. For me, that condition was exactly
what I found in my winter hideouts in the Biloxi
Marsh, south of Shell Beach, and parts of
Delacroix.
In the Biloxi Marsh, I could drift fish across
Mussel Bay and pick up a few specks, work
that until the bite slowed, anchor at the mouth
of the bay, and pick up a few more from the
canal’s drop-off; and then, instead of gunning
and running to somewhere like Pete’s Lagoon,
This is by far the most important key to successful trolling. If you are pulling jighwads with plastic, you want them to LIGHTLY touch the bottom as you troll.
Barely bouncing the bottom and then staying above the bottom for 10 to 30 second. If you are digging to much reel the line in some. If you don’t ever see the
bait catching the bottom let a little line out and see if it settles into that pattern
I would drop a few
lines in the rod
holder and ease to
the next spot - sometimes by outboard or
on shorter runs, by
trolling motor. I almost always picked
up a couple of decent specks and if more successful, another
pass or two would often add considerably to
the fish box. I spent a lot of time trolling on
cold winter days, especially in Bayou La Loutre.
By choosing colors,
jighead weights, or
length of the leader,
I found a few ways
to make my trolling
“spread” as effective as possible.
With a little
practice and tweaking, you will find
that in cold conditions, the rush to the
next “spot” is often
less productive than
a nice long troll.
Summary
There are numerous bayous, channels, and
shell lined areas where trolling successfully
produces fish. Like any technique, it will take a
little time to perfect your spread and choice of
baits as well as find which areas produce best.
But I can promise you the technique is fun and
productive.
Give it a try and then send me an email ([email protected]) let me know what worked
and what didn’t.
Get out and Get On'em
March 2016 www.marshandbayou.com
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