In the Chesapeake Bay, school sized striped bass,
known locally as "rockfish" are targeted by many anglers. This
class of fish are caught using a variety of methods including
trolling, chumming, fishing with live bait, cut bait and casting
artificial lures.
In late September or early October, I begin fishing for school rockfish by trolling, typically along the channel edges of the
Pocomoke or Tangier Sounds, near Crisfield, MD. This technique also works in many locations around the bay where small rockfish,
bluefish or trout can be found.
Trolling in the manner described is a bit difficult to get used to but the results
are very consistent and sometimes the action is almost too fast! I troll very slowly, maybe 2 to 3 knots with special tackle. Two lines from the stern are rigs spooled
with #30 monel wire. On these lines go a 3 way swivel. A 24 or 28 oz. sinker is added on
3-4'section of #30 mono. The third part of the swivel gets a 20-30' leader with either a
single lure or a pair of bucktails. The leader is less likely to tangle if it is made of #50 or #80 mono. If
the area trolled is full of snags, the leader may need to be #30 in order to sacrifice it
and get the wire back in the event of a hang-up.
The jigs can be 1/2 to 3 oz. and come in
various colors. A shad body or curly tail worm is added to the jig. White jigs and white
shad are my favorite. I also prefer running double jigs on at least one of the wire rigs.
The first rig is dropped slowly until one "thumps" on the bottom and line is let
out until the rig constantly thumps in 40' of water. In depths over 40' we cannot keep the
rig all the way on the bottom. The sister rig is also dropped down until it thumps once,
then put in gear. The rig will quickly rise to a level a bit above the bottom. This method
keeps proper spacing of the two wire rigs with one now at or near the bottom and the other
just above. A little practice is required to get proficient at trolling these without
tangles. Watching the line guide on the reel is one way to get an idea of how much line
each rig has out.
This technique is quite effective and will catch rockfish, trout and
bluefish. The deep rig which is constantly thumping normally catches the most fish,
especially if the rig uses double jigs. I like one jig 18"inches from the rearmost 3
way swivel and the other about 30" back from the 3 way. In addition to the wire line
rigs, I troll two other lines on my outriggers. Riggers are nice but not mandatory.
Forward rod holders or roof rod holders work well also. The rigger lines are #30 spectra
running farther back, usually at 150' and 180' respectively. I prefer to set the lines out
in a specific order of long rigger line, shorter rigger line, deeper wire line and
shallower wire line.
This method minimizes tangles which are no fun in the heavy wind and
cold typical of rockfishing. The longer lines also get paired jigs but without the dropper
sinker. Again, I use a 3 way swivel which connects the line to a pair of bucktails. I like
the distance of the first jig to 3 way to be about half that of the distance from the 3
way to the second jig. Typically this amounts to 18 and 36" or so. The shorter front
jig is also larger and heavier than the trailing jig. Similarly, the front jig may get a
larger shad body than the rear. Both jigs combined will weigh 5 to 10 oz. and will run up
to 30' deep depending on boat speed, current, line out and combined lure weight.
The idea is to get 4 lines at various depths in order to cover the entire water column. If the fish
prefer a certain depth, we can make some adjustments to move the other lines toward the
preferred depth. There are several variations to the basic trolling pattern. For instance,
if the bluefish are plentiful, we may replace some of the trailing jigs with small spoons.
I like to use this method over a hard channel edge, especially an area where a bend
appears and tide rips are present. Puppy Hole is one of the best examples of this. Other
excellent areas to fish include buoy 6 in Tangier sound, Crisfield's Artificial Reef,
Tangier Light, Kedges Straits, the Mud Leads, and buoys 62, 72A, 72 and H.S. in the bay
proper.
I always spend time under the birds if they are around. I have found that one key
to successful fishing around birds is to maintain a very slow constant speed. I can normally idle right thru the
fish without spooking them. Another advantage of deep trolling is it's continued
effectiveness after fish are spooked from the surface. Inevitably, one or more
boaters will appear under birds and blast thru the fish at high speed, sending the
fish deep. This is all part of the challenge of working the fish.
For more on wire line and fishing, see articles on
lure depth, trolling with wire line,
trophy rockfishing and rigging a shad daisy chain for rockfish.
Cleaning your Catch
Seafood Recipes
Fishing Reports
Fishing Techniques
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