Shades

In my opinion, wire dipsy's do not run as deep as braided dipsy's. I think the superline has less drag through the water and therefore runs a little more true and sinks faster. When running 2 sets of dipsey's off my boat I always have my braided lines set on 1 (low divers), and I run the wire above them on a 3 setting ( high divers). As far as reaching a certain depth, I usually go with the 1/3 rule. For instance: say you let your dipsy out 90' on a 1 setting, you more than likely will have that lure running down to a depth of around 30' to 40' depending on if it's a spoon or a rotater and fly. Hope this helps!

I'm fishing the St. Joseph Summer Challenge, South Haven Big Jon Pro-Am, Waypoint Tower Marine in Saugatuck, and that does is for all the pro tourny's. I'll also be fishing all the local Steelheaders and Michigan Sportsman tourney's out of St. Joseph.

Captain Levi and I have only run 2 charters so far this April. First trip was Wednesday the 19th, caught 9 fish. Fished today and caught 12, 10 kings, 1 coho, and 1 steelie. Next trip is Saturday the 29th

Mark, Right back at ya. I appreciate all the help you have given me getting my boat ready for the season. What goes around comes around and I'm just happy that both boats are ready to fish. Now we just need the time!

Hey guys, After reading all the previous posts, it's clear that some people feel cut bait is not a traditional fishing method and therefor should not be allowed, while others see it as a welcome addition to their arsenal and use it on a regular basis. I won't keep beating on a dead horse but I have to agree that cut bait is a legal and accepted technique for catching salmon and trout. Having said that, I feel that if it is not listed in tournament rules as being off limits, then it should be allowed. By now I'm sure you can guess that I run cut bait in my spread. I have run it on charters and in tournaments with great success. Personally, I don't feel that it should banned in any tourny, with the exception of the Dreamweaver Challenge of course. I understand Caz's point of view that by banning cut bait it levels the playing field tackle-wise. However, I'm not sure I agree with that. Some folks seem to have unlimited wealth and it is reflected in their tackle box. Not to get crazy, but I side with Capt. Levi on this issue. In the pro tourny's I fish, what about the guys with faster boats than mine? Should I get a longer run time allowance because I'm not as fast? I don't mean to sound sarcastic, I'm just trying to make a point. As long as cut bait is legal, it will be on my boat.

I agree with the snubber. Like Capt. Levi, I attach my dipsy diver directly to the wire, and then use a rubber snubber with 40# flouro leader

Capt. Levi, I'd have to say my favorite meat rig is the crystal killer; crushed ice glow reel flasher, with a pearl mylar teaser and mag meat head. Run it right down the chute all the way on the bottom. I think it's the same rig that took your big Laker from last season in that picture!

Tom, Where are you fishing that you need to run your riggers 280' down?

Baydog, 1. No. I thread a rubber band onto my line and hook it and the mono through the rear pin on my boards. This way, if the board should happen to release while fighting a fish, it won't slide down the line and risk bumping the fish off. You could also use speed beads, but I like bands because they just reel right up into your spool. 2. No. I do the same thing for core and flatlines 3. Anything from 30 to 100 feet. For me it depends on how much room I have to work with. If I'm in open water and can spread way out, I will usually have a longer lead. 4. I like my boards to have a little slap in them, give that spoon some eratic action.

Spoonfed, My wire divers are an important part of my set up when I'm trying to put kings in the boat. I like to run the wire up high on a 3 setting, with my braided dipsy's on a 1 setting closer to the boat. I agree with Mark that the wire itself has a different vibration through the water column that attracts fish. Also, when the fleas get really bad out there, they rarely stick to your wire the way they attach themselves to fireline or power pro. One bit of advice when running wire: I like to keep the drag a bit looser than normal. With zero stretch, sometimes a hard jerk is enough to rip that treble right out of a king's mouth. I have found that if you can keep that fish on your wire for the first 30 seconds or so when he takes that inital run, then he's all yours after that. Good Luck!

I have always used rubber bands on my downriggers. I like the #19 size, you can get a bag of 500 for about $2.50 at Staples. Just remember to keep them out of the sun when not in use, or they will weaken on you. The thing I like about bands is that I can really crank down on my riggers to get a really good hook set when fishing for those deep Kings in July and August.

The Biggest fish I have ever caught out of Lake Michigan was a 31# King out of Manistee, Labor Day weekend of 2003. It came on a chartreuse meat rig off the starboard dipsy. One hell of a time gettin in the boat too. I had just started running meat rigs that year and forgot to shorten the leader on the dipsy to adjust for the long length of the teaser rig. By the time I had the dipsy to the rod tip I still had almost 13' of line out! I wound up having to hand line the rest in while my buddy got him in the net

Mike, That's Mark Turner's boat. I was fishing with him last weekend in the BB. Not our best day on the water, but it was only the 2nd trip of the year for us. Mark is not a member of site as yet, but I'll get after him about it this weekend.

Mike, Yes that's Bob Munch's new toy. He was out on Sunday with Joe Montella of the Southwest Michigan Steelheaders. I guess they caught a few fish but were mostly working out the kinks on the new boat.

These are the general requirements for obtaining a USCG captain's license. I know it seems a lengthy, but it's really not that bad. As far as some of the other requirements such as CPR, First Aid, etc... most captain's training facilities offer these classes as well. I got my license through Captain Bryan and would recommend him to anybody wanting to get their endorsement. ** BASIC REQUIREMENTS OPERATOR OF UNINSPECTED PASSENGER VESSELS (6 passengers or less) (18 years old): 360 days of experience in operation of a vessel. 90 days of the 360 days on ocean or near coastal waters or may be limited to inland. License will be limited to vessels of less than 100 gross tons and limited to near coastal waters not more than 100 miles offshore. If not U.S. citizen, the license will be limited to undocumented, uninspected vessels. MATE, Near Coastal (19 years old): 360 days of experience in operation of a vessel, of which 180 days on near coastal waters. MASTER, Inland, Not More Than 100 GT (19 years old): 360 days of experience in operation of vessels on any waters. License will be limited to vessels of not more than 100 gross tons and limited to inland waters. Endorsement for Sail or Auxiliary Sail available with 180 days of Sail of Auxiliary Sail time (may be part of the 360 days and may be prior to license issuance). MASTER, Near Coastal, Not More Than 100 GT (19 years old): 720 days of experience in operation of a vessel. 360 days of the 720 must be on near coastal waters. To be eligible for a 100 GT license, 360 days must be on a vessel of at least 35 GT otherwise, the license will be limited to 25 GT or 50 GT. License will be limited to vessels of not more than 100 gross tons, limited to near coastal waters not more than 200 miles offshore. Endorsement for Sail or Auxiliary Sail available with 360 days of Sail or Auxiliary Sail time (may be the same or part of the 720 days). COMMON TO ALL THE LISTED DECK LICENSES 4 hours minimum to count as one day. (Only one day for each date) 90 days recency in the past 3 years is required. First Aid within the last 12 months (Could be Standard First Aid) and current CPR is required U. S. Citizenship, you will need original passport or birth certificate. Military time goes to Headquarters for evaluation and foreign time is evaluated by Coast Guard (REC). Pass a routine physical. Vision must be at least 20/200 uncorrected in each eye and correctable to 20/40 in each eye. Color sense must be satisfactory. Must be within the past 12 months. (Waivers available in some cases). Drug screening also required. Free of drug or felony convictions for past 3 years, or past 10 years depending on severity of offense.

Hey Everyone, My name is John Howe and I recently joined GLF. I've been fishing on the great lakes for almost 20 years now, and I still learn something new every trip out. My home port is St. Joseph where I was born and raised. I have my degree from LSSU in fisheries and wildlife management and 2 years ago I received my 100 gross ton Master Captain's license. I hope to be on the water this year chartering my own boat, but as of right now I am still waiting for it to pass the DNR inspection. You can also find me working the lines on the back of Sportboat Charters, where I first mate for Capt. Levi Sanders My boat (SHADES), is a 1984 28' Baha Cruisers twin engine with a 10' beam. She's gettin old, and by no means is the fastest boat in the fleet, but it's very well set up for trout/salmon fishing with lots of room to move about. I enjoy passing on the tricks I have learned over the years that have helped me to become a better fisherman, so don't hesitate to shoot me an e-mail with any questions you might have, I just might have an answer. See you on the water! Capt. John Howe