Trolling Speeds

[Thebad]

Just wondering if there is a good starting point for trolling speeds. I am sort of new to the walleye game and was wondering what are some of the beterr speeds to pull bottom bouncers with spinner rigs as well as crank baits, etc. Thanks

[JWG]

I usually try to stay between .9-1.4 mph if I'm using crawlers, and 1.5 - 3.0 mph if using cranks.

[Raybob]

-at nite in the dogdayz...

I like to use the ETM stealth mode & PBs w/a rod hand-pump 'pull for riprap Eyes on the rocks shallow.

Any boat speed goes for off-shore breaks as my main concern is "lure speed" when flutter droppin' R-Traps off breaks w/good electronics & with my main quite 4-stroke boat pusher...

[ziert]

I usually try to stay between .9-1.4 mph if I'm using crawlers, and 1.5 - 3.0 mph if using cranks.


JW has it dialed in alright. Start at a happy medium of 1 MPH. Look at the various baits you will use as they play/work just under the surface. Speed up or slow down barely enough to get the spinner, or wiggle in motion. I have a 75 Yami 4-stroke tiller, It won't let me go much slower that 1 MPH. GPS speedometer works best. Kick the engine in and out of neutral for slower speeds and stop and go action on the bait. Better get use to this anyway because the first thing you want to do when the bite comes is to simultaneously set the hook and put your motor in neutral. Electric trolling motors will move you slower, but you have no speedometer for consistancy. Remember, when you u-turn the boat the bait slows way down, and all too often that's when they get bit. Also try to note the speed (and depth) of the first bite and try to duplicate it thereafter.

[teamlund]

I was trolling a shoreline a few years ago. We were passing an old guy barley chugging along.. We we out in just alittle deeper water going 5 mph and we caught fish. That is how we fished the rest of the day. Planer boards and cranks do funny things at those speeds!!!:bigsmile:

[Burr]

One thing to keep in mind, when you say spinners to the great lakes fisherman from OH and MI area, it means a totally different thing than spinners said to someone from MN or the Dakotas.

As a GENERAL rule, I categorize like this:

Jigs and bobbers - verticle to .4 mph
Rigs - .4 to .9 mpg
Bottom Bouncers (spinners to MN and Dakotas) .9 - 1.5 mph
Trolling, or pulling Cranks - 1.5 on up, with a std of 2.2 mph

Great Lakes spinners (I have come to understand from this board) is typically .9 to 1.8 mph.

Keep in mind, these are just general rules, as you can rip a jig, and with all the plastics getting popular, pulling and casting jigs is pretty popular as well. At the same time, you can stall a suspending crankbait for extended periods to trigger a strike as well. Every presentation can be fished at every speed, it just takes a little more attention to detail to do it. Sometimes fishing a method extremely out of it's norm is extremely effective.

Hope this helps, was what you were looking for.

[ebijack]

good info given so far..... the "S" turns are what help you figure out the speed of the day. like mentioned in one post, the inside lines slow down during a turn while the outside of the turn speed up. that way you cover at least .5 mph difference. slow "S" turns till you learn how much you can turn without tangling lines etc :) here on the great lakes, i average 1mph to 2mph for harnesses and plugs then up to 3.5mph for spoons...average.