What size mainline and sinker for trolling?

excellent, nice little nook there...great weather too...
 
Tillamook gets a later run. The further north you go, the later the runs, typically. Tidewater down here usually dies mid October. It starts heating up in August. There's still fish obviously but they don't hang out in the salt once the fresh really gets flowing, they just shoot upriver.
DrTheopolis said:
That kills it "down there"?

In Tillamook, the first storm will often blow the darkies out of upper tidewater, and a new batch comes in. It's a pretty huge system, though, with late-running fish.
 
I picked some sea lice off john's Chinook. Seemed pretty fresh.
 
Looks like a good fish, great weather, the last of the sun lol. I have never been happier to see a lot of rain coming. It's gonna be an upriver slay fest.
 
right on schedule, 9pm Monday and it is pouring in Florence...:thumb:
 
That's what I like to hear roger :)
 
xltom said:
Anyone know where to get clear gas early in the AM on the way from Eugene to Florence?[/QUOT Noti has ethanol free premium gas
 
As to the original question -- I'm far from a master at big water trolling, but what I do know is... it doesn't matter that much.

Use braid (which I don't like as much, because if you do get a tangle, it takes too long to fix), use 25# mono, use 60# mono... it will all work, and I've seen it all work. My personal trolling rod (I don't have a boat, but most of my fishing buddies do) is 30# mono with 25# leader, which I'll use for everything -- trolling the bay, backtrolling plugs in the tribs in winter, anchor-rotting on the Columbia... it works just fine.

For what you're doing, just use a leader lighter than the mainline (big water nooks will hit it with a winch cable on it), use a quality bead chain(fancy swivel) at the end of the mainline, and use lighter dropper than leader, and you'll be fine. I don't use a spreader, I put a small corky at the end of my mainline above the bead chain, and I tie the dropper/weight to a snap swivel (or just a snap, whatever's in the tackle box) (both ends) and clip it on the mainline above the corky (corky keeps it from hanging up on the swivel). Easy to change weights, and being a slider, is more sensitive.

But really, not one setup described in this thread is "wrong." Whole buncha ways to do it, figure out your favorite, since they all work.
 
Yeah I think I'll try something else next time. Seems like a ton of knots south of the spreader is tempting fate.. I ran a setup just like the one shown in the directions that came with the fish flash. Maybe there's a way to have a spreader that slides?

EDIT: Just found some by NW Tackle solutions..
 
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Just looked at those, you're still going to need to have a bead swivel below the spreader, then about 10 inches or so to your fish flash, which is then connected to your leader. The key is just making sure you tie good knots, and get them wet to cinch them down good. What knots are you using? I go back and forth between a polomar and an improved clinch, both will do the job, it's just very important to wet the line when cinching it down with heavy leaders, they tend to come loose due to the thickness of the line if not tightened real good. Just my 2 pennies.
 
JeannaJigs said:
What knots are you using?

I used an improved clinch but I added a wrap from my usual 6. I read a bit about it, seems I should have done less wraps for larger line instead.
 
xltom said:
I used an improved clinch but I added a wrap from my usual 6. I read a bit about it, seems I should have done less wraps for larger line instead.

I don't like improved clinch on mono over about 8 pound. I use Palomar with heavier mono (and all braid), never had a problem. roger
 

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