Bobbing for Lake Trout

When I first moved to the Lake Superior area I was really looking forward to trying this. Basically what you use is a spool with wire line wrapped(about 300 ft should do) around it, with a leader of mono about four feet long . The wire line is necessary due to the extreme depth of the water these fish are located in. There is to much stretch in monofilament for this depth of fishing-you would not be able to set the hook. Also just getting the line down where it has to be would be a challenge.

Bobbing for Lake Trout can be a little tricky at first. The first time I tried it I felt really stupid. I kept trying to feel for the bottom and before I new it I had all 300 yards of line off my spool and still hadn’t found it. Their was an older guy next to me on the ice, “How many feet you got on their” he asked. 300 I said. Not bad he replied “you are only in 220 ft of water”. I pulled the line up and started from scratch. I fed the line down several feet at a time jigging it on the way down waiting to feel the bottom-and their it was. After a little bit of practice you will get real good at it. The same thing applies to feeling the fish strike. Its kind of hard, but after awhile you will be able to tell even the slightest nudge or bite on your line.In this article I refer to ice fishing mainly due to the time of year it is, but this type of fishing is also done in open water on a calm day from an anchored boat.Mainly heavy jigs are used (3/4or1oz) tipped with a cut bait of smelt or suckers. The fresher the bait the better. I have used frozen bait successfully but it is never as good as fresh. I have fished next to other fisherman using bait I caught the night before. They were using frozen bait and I was using fresh-they got skunked and I left the ice with my limit. I have seen this happen many times.

OUCH, hurts to be on the wrong side of this!

Equipment you will need.

Bobbing Stick

Wire Line

¾ 0r 1 oz jigs-variety of colors

Monofilament for leader line

 Bait to cut fresh or frozen smelt or suckers

Also having a fish locator to find the fish is a big asset along with a tent so you can stay warm. This is a lot of fun and you can bring home some very nice fish.

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