Questions about trolling speeds

[Don in Denver]

I'm just starting to get into trolling this year. I've always jigged, drifted or still-fished before. So for crankbaits what kind of speed should I be looking for? My big motor will only go as slow as 2.2 mph on the GPS and my electric will go much slower. The 2.2 seems about right for cranks but is it too fast to pull crawler harnesses? Sure could use some help with general guidelines for different lure types. Thanks in advance.

[DREW FISH]

alot of times I find myself catching fish w/ spinners and bouncers trollin at 2mph, as a general rule I try to start spinners around 1mph and work my way up. Generaly I find that 1.5 is my magic #. Even cranks should be pulled slower if the fast bite isn't workin'.

Bend a Rod
Drew #469

[Schnauzer]

Drew sounds right to me. I had been trolling too slowly for a long time. 2.2 is fine for cranks (can even go faster). You just have to get a feel for what the fish want. I can remember a time last fall where we were catching walleyes right and left at 2.2 miles per hour but couldn't get a bite when the speed slipped to 2.0. Raising it again to 2.2 got things going again. An outing or two later (in colder water), 1.9 seemed to be the magic speed. I'm basing speed on GPS, BTW.

[WALLEYE CHOP]

I just thought of this since you guys brought it up. In the past I have run both cranks and harnesses at the same time and seemed to do better with one or the other but not both! never realizing the speed was perfect for one but not the other! have you guys ever done this or had any differences like I have.

[ScottL]

One thing I like to do when pulling cranks, with the rods in the rod holders. I do short "Crazy Ivans" (if you ever watched "Hunt for Red October" you will remember this as the sharp unexpected turns to port or starboard. This move causes the inside crank to slow down and the outside crankbait to speed up. This move has really produced strikes for me. If the fish hits the inside one it usually means I'm trolling too fast, if it hits the outside one, I'm going too slow.

Regards,
Scott Lee

[Jerry]

Not necessarily Scott. From what I have learned and my underwater perception, the reason that the fish strike the fast (mainly)/slow lure most of the time is:

The lure may be further from the boat on the swing-where the fish are.
When you swing the boat it snaps a lure into a speed, same as a water skier getting spun into a circle. This trigers the fish into a reaction strike-creates agressive fish. Think of it as a cat and mouse game-remove reason. On camera, you can see fish following behind a bait and may not strike it unless enticed with a change. Or, the bait is just passing by as they watch. This is also true on a mud line or edy. The fish strikes due to the bait posibly getting away. The fish has no time for a decision response to eat and strikes out of reaction not reason.
On the slow side, the bait almost comes to a stop. Then it will jerk to a high speed when slac line is picked up. Again, this is a strike out of reaction.
Now for a tip, in dingy water I have taken 30# line on a muskie rod and trolled finly tuned hot n tots at an outragous speed in stumps. The snags were not in affect because the rod just pulled them loose immediately. The fish hit out of vengence, and it worked.
GB&GBUSA,
Jerry

[Walizz 1]

One thing to remember (regarding Jerrys post) that slow bait that slows down will also start to rise. If a fish hits that one you may be running your baits under the active fish.

[Sunshine]

Don,
Your answer is that sometimes 2.2 and above will work great and at other times you will not be able to buy a hit. As a general rule, early and late in the year when water temps are low you will have to slow down. Late fall when the piggies are out you may have to go less than 1 mph with cranks to get them to hit. Your trolling motor will work great for this as long as the batteries last. That's the major drawback of using the electric. Most people like you who are first starting out try your approach but eventually end up getting a gas kicker. I'm not suggesting this until you find out that you like trolling and find success. I would suggest that you get 1 or 2 drift bags if you don't have them. You can use these to slow your trolling down and then have them as a backup for drifting. Some people have used 5 gallon buckets will success. Others may suggest using a trolling plate on your big motor to slow it down. I have know experience w/ this so will let others comment. Personally, summer trolling w/ cranks at 2.2 mph+ works great. Little rippers, Shad raps, wally divers, hot 'n tots and reef runners are all my favorites. As a general rule, I have found that speeds of 1.7 and less work better for me with crawler harnesses.

[samIam]

As a long time shad rap troller, I've found that the #5's can be trolled with success at slow speeds (1.5 and less). I've also found that the bigger I go, the faster I go. 1.8 or 1.9 with #7, 2.0+ with #8, 2.2 with #9.