JoeMan

Any tips on avoiding line twist on rigger rods when running spinner/flys? I usually set the lure from 30' ot 50' behind the ball. I have no problems running spoons or plugs on the rigger rods. All lures have been productive for me on the riggers, its a pain keeping the twist from causing a mess in the line if someone allows some slack in the line. I run 20# mono on my rigger rods and I make sure the big ball bearing swivel is free on the front of the spinners. Thanks.

Cores, then riggers, then divers. Last couple of years the divers have slowed down for me. I run 2 high divers and 2 low divers on wires. I run about 5' of mono behind the divers. I also run 2 riggers, 2 full cores, and 2 half cores. Everything else is pretty consistent. With 4 of my 10 rods being divers I hope I can get more diver hits. My best fights have been hits on the divers. Any suggestions.

Jobsite,

I live in Ludington and the reports are pretty good from the piers for Steelhead catches. I stop down to the pier during lunch and someone is taking a steelhead just about every day while i'm there. I gotta believe they are in PW lake. Weather looks good for this weekend. Good Luck!

Got out this morning with my daughter and her boyfriend for my season wrap up.

Went 4 for 6, all Steelhead. We started in 60fow and worked out to 140fow. Green retape spoon 50 down took two. Lemon Ice fly, spin doctor on a high diver, 90 back. And blue bubble spoon on six color core went 1 for 3.

Time to put the boat up and switch up to deer hunting.

Got the chance to take my parents out again this season. Fished casual hours from 12-5pm. We went 4 for 6, 2 kings, coho, and a steelhead. Lost another steelhead and had a throw back lake trout. We fished from 70 to 140 FOW. Caught 2 on full core, DW Blue Dolphin. and 2 on a 6 color core with a green holo retape. I was probably fishing the dipseys and riggers too deep. Word over the radio as we were coming in to the dock was fish were being caught in the top 40' of water. Great day to be on the water.

I almost forgot. The weather forecast looks great for tomorrow. Waves 1-2 subsiding to 1' or less later in the day. Have a great day on the water. Not too many more like this one. Andy

Tony, I also plan to fish Ludington tomorrow. I plan to be launching about 1:00pm and fish the afternoon and evening. I spoke with a couple of guys at noon today, just coming off the water. They had 4, 1 coho and 3 steelhead. They said they fished straight out from the 35's out to the 39's then turned around and fished all the way back to the harbor. No real pattern, picked up fish all over. Water is cold from top to bottom. The water is not set up with the recent winds and storms so I don't expect the fish to be concentrated. I plan on using mag spoons and spin doctors and keep the speed up to cover some water until I can find some pattern. What is the name of your boat, I will try to get you on the water, maybe we can compare notes. Andy

Nice job Andy! Any size to the kings?

All the kings were 3 year olds. All between 6 and 8 pounds. Best eaters, I think.

Fished Friday nite from Ludington, 8 for 11. Went straight and fished from 190 -250 fow. First 4 fish were steelhead, DW Junk Box glow on full core, Carmel dolphins on sliders. Then went dead for a while and started changing lures. Put a Black/White Glow spoon on a rigger right at dusk, 110 down. Could not keep this lure in the water, all four salmon came on this spoon. Tried to get another Black/White spoon in the water but did not have time. Great crew and nice night, waves less than 1ft.

Went out again last night, 1 for 3. The lake was flat as glass. We went back to the bank and started in 120fow. After about 20 min. we hit a king on the full core, DW Junk Box Glow. It was looking to be a good night. A while later the slider lure on the downrigger took a hit, nice fish, good weight. We just started fighting that fish and the full core went again. Double On!! Both fish came unbuttoned before they got close to the boat. Shortly after we got the lines set another boat came over the radio with a distress call. They were dead in the water. They were less than a mile away so we started the troll toward them. We pulled lines when we got to the stranded boat and gave them a tow in. We missed the prime time fishing right before dusk, but we were able to get everone back to the dock safe.

How big were the alewives?

Went 2 for 2 tonight. Both 3 year old Kings. Carmel Dolphin on a rigger 111 down in 170fow. Yellow ladderback glow on a full core in 150 fow. Good night overall. The fish were loaded with bait. The first fish had 5 alewives in its stomach. Seems like we should have had more hits if the fish were feeding that much.

My season started very slow. Big storm in mid-June shut down the launches for 2 weeks. Inconsistent weather in July made fishing very tough. Late July, August, and September were very good. Averaging 4-5 fish per trip. The fish look more healthy than previous years. Overall my numbers were down(due to the late start), but this was still a very good season for me. I fish out of Ludington and I hope to get another 2-3 weeks in before the switch to archery.

Livin the dream, nice catch, I caught a salmon at the state park beach house yrs ago when i was a kid, have they started up the river at the state park yet?

Yes, they are in the river in good numbers. Just a reminder, they have a hook regulation in the Sable river that was started a couple of years ago. Single point hook with the gap between the point and shank no greater than 3/8". I like to watch the fish up there but it is tough to get a bite.

Took a crew from work out last night. We went 6 for 8, all Kings, mostly 3 yr olds. The lake was flat calm, we ran out to 80FOW in front of the bath house and started a north troll towards the drop off. We worked 80 to 130 FOW. Rigger 50 down with a DW kevorkian lure was hot tonight, 3-5. DW Junk Box glow on a full core took 2 more. Great night on the water, best sunset this year, and caught a few fish!

I've been letting them out off of a loose drag consistently without tangles. I've even had a couple of hits on the way out! I also like the suggestion of letting them out over the back of the boat and swinging them over the top of the downrigger line. I've been holding them way out from the side of the boat until I get the dipsey in the water to start tracking. I also agree with StormWarning II about the Mags vs #1's being different tools to better control your spread.

The usual rule is to fish longer leads behind the ball when fishing shallow water. I usually set my lines about 30-35' behind the ball when I am fishing less than 50fow. Here is a sonar pic of a salmon coming off the bottom to my rigger ball set at 24'. As you can see the fish checked out the ball and took off. When my lure came thru about 10 seconds later the fish was long gone.

Here is another picture of a fish coming down about 6' and it looks like it took a couple of pokes at the ball. I was told fish never come down, again my lure was 30' back.

This is a downward looking sonar so the lures are well out of sonar range. I thought these were interesting. They were taken less than 5 minutes apart. Next time when fishing is slow I am going to try to break a few conventional rules and try some things that may not make sense, but may just get a hit!

Got the chance to take my parents out salmon fishing this past week. They are 77 years young and decided they want to catch thier own salmon this year. Went out Thursday Nite and set up in 90fow out in front of the water project. Water was 67degrees from top to bottom. We went 2 for 3 and had a perfect evening on the water. Here is a pic of dad fighting a fish and back at the launch.

We went back out Friday morning and went 6 miles straight out to look for colder water. We found ourselves out in 5-6' waves and after two fish we packed it up to head in.

DW Kevorkian on full core, Lemon Ice on the Rigger, and Green/Green Spin Doctor-Fly combo.

However I have not had much success with the lead core. I've run a full core and a 7 color...not one bite

I switched my leader line to flourocarbon and it helped my core bite considerably. The cores are my best producers.

Welcome GirlFisher. Silver One is right on track and has a ton of good advice. The boaters safety class is a must. If you have a boat, you may want to contact your local Coast Guard Station and ask if they would give you an inspection. You will learn the laws and pick up some good tips. Violations found on the water may result in a ticket. Be proactive and ask Law Enforcement for guidance and help, they are a great resource.

Nice catch, Ken. I'm always nervous with that much electricity in the air. I guy got hit by lightning in Ludington during the recent Gander Mountain tournament. Fortunately he survived, but the boat was totally disabled and all the electronics and wiring was fryed. Good fishing.

Went 6 for 8 last night. All kings up to 12#. We started straight out to about 130 fow and set a north troll toward the point. The first fish came on a rigger line 75 down with a white on white spinner/fly combo. Next two fish came on full cores, DW Dr. Death and PK Special spoons. As we got on the bank the full core hit again and the wire diver made it a double. We lost the fish on the wire but boated the core fish. We turned around and ran back over the water and hit another double on the full core and the rigger with a blue/green spoon. I wish we would have found that spot earlier in the evening. All the fish were between 60 and 90 feet deep. Every one had a good time and really enjoyed the time on the water.

Most rewarding fishing for me is watching a new fisherman hook into that first King. I always enjoy my time on the water with good people. Good job Randy!

Yep! Best part of fishin is the eatin.

Went out after work, waves were 1-3's. Got bounced around early then settled in for a pleasant night. Started in 70fow on the bank and ran up past the stick. We worked the water from 70 to 110fow. Marked good numbers on the graph but no takers. Turned around and headed back south into the wind. Worked 140 to 150fow. First hit was on a full core. Good rip but only got it half way in when it came off. Next hit was on a high diver back 140'. White on White flasher and fly combo. Boated 11lb king. Last fish was a small laker on a 6 color core. Too small and had to throw it back. Good crew and had fun on the water. I decided to post this report while the salmon was finishing on the smoker!