gofish
09-20-2007, 09:45 PM
boat control an triagulations (or bouy markers)are the key fer driftin.when ya find the promising structure iether drop a bouy or use landmarks on shore ta mark the general area. normally fer a driftin bite the cats arent too tight to structure and a school will cover a large area so bein real specific isnt too crucial.ya do still need ta be able ta hit it though so whatevers easiest fer ya go head an do it.if ya drop bouys make sure theyre way to the side of where ya want to drift an put one on iether side of the structure not up or downwind of it though.
now ya found the structure take yer boat upwind of where ya want to drift,going around the area,not thru it.remember that if yer close enough ta shore any open areas on shore or just the closeness to it can give ya fits and send the boat in a completely new direction from where ya want it.bring the boat to a stop and drop yer trolling motor ta turn it sideways to the wind.the way i drift my trolling motors a very important part of the presentation.use it to keep the boat at right angles to the wind and also you ca speed up or slow down the bow and stern to trigger or allow a tentative fish to take the bait.turning the bow into the wind more slows the drift on the bow and speeds it on the stern and vice versa.also keep in mind your outboard is a big rudder and catches a lot of water,you can raise or lower it to take some strain outta runnin the trollin motor if need be.
leader length,sinker wieght and distance yer bait is from the boat are extremely important.what you want is a slow "nodding" action of your rod tip,of a maximum of 1inch up and down.rule of thumb on leader length is the faster the drift or smaller the waves the longer the leader ya need.18 inches is my standard starting point.the deeper or farther from the boat yer bait is the heavier wieght youll need.i start with a 3/8 oz. lindy walkin sinker,but may use from 1/4 to 1 oz. if i need to. most things ive read suggest a 45 degree angle on yer line as it enters the water for drifting ,rivers thats ok but ive found that if you use this distance from the boat as part of your presentation you tend to do way better.as the distance from the boat increases an the sinker wieght is right the action of the bait on bottom is affected greatly.the farther away the more subtle the action on yer bait when wave action on the boat itself or bottom structure cause it (bait)to bounce.a good distance to start is 30 ft from the boat.cast an feed line till the bait hits bottom..in ky this year i was drifting 8 rods and only the 2 that were 150 ft or more from the boat got hits.large waves and wind were the factor but i also had a 1oz. wieght because of the depth (26 to 33 ft)
power drifting as i call it is when i want to fish an area an theres no wind or its comin from the wrong direction.also ill do it instead of anchoring on structure when im looking fer fish.exellent way to figure out what depth the cats are active at also. you can be very specific on fishing structure this way.i run my boat backwards with my trolling motor and fish out of the front simply because of comfort but it can be done iether way.its just basically jus like backtrolling fer walleye.
one last thing,put your rods in good rodholders or make sure they are really stable in the boat. most fish tend to double the rod while yer drifting an ive seen lots of people lose them.good luck!
now ya found the structure take yer boat upwind of where ya want to drift,going around the area,not thru it.remember that if yer close enough ta shore any open areas on shore or just the closeness to it can give ya fits and send the boat in a completely new direction from where ya want it.bring the boat to a stop and drop yer trolling motor ta turn it sideways to the wind.the way i drift my trolling motors a very important part of the presentation.use it to keep the boat at right angles to the wind and also you ca speed up or slow down the bow and stern to trigger or allow a tentative fish to take the bait.turning the bow into the wind more slows the drift on the bow and speeds it on the stern and vice versa.also keep in mind your outboard is a big rudder and catches a lot of water,you can raise or lower it to take some strain outta runnin the trollin motor if need be.
leader length,sinker wieght and distance yer bait is from the boat are extremely important.what you want is a slow "nodding" action of your rod tip,of a maximum of 1inch up and down.rule of thumb on leader length is the faster the drift or smaller the waves the longer the leader ya need.18 inches is my standard starting point.the deeper or farther from the boat yer bait is the heavier wieght youll need.i start with a 3/8 oz. lindy walkin sinker,but may use from 1/4 to 1 oz. if i need to. most things ive read suggest a 45 degree angle on yer line as it enters the water for drifting ,rivers thats ok but ive found that if you use this distance from the boat as part of your presentation you tend to do way better.as the distance from the boat increases an the sinker wieght is right the action of the bait on bottom is affected greatly.the farther away the more subtle the action on yer bait when wave action on the boat itself or bottom structure cause it (bait)to bounce.a good distance to start is 30 ft from the boat.cast an feed line till the bait hits bottom..in ky this year i was drifting 8 rods and only the 2 that were 150 ft or more from the boat got hits.large waves and wind were the factor but i also had a 1oz. wieght because of the depth (26 to 33 ft)
power drifting as i call it is when i want to fish an area an theres no wind or its comin from the wrong direction.also ill do it instead of anchoring on structure when im looking fer fish.exellent way to figure out what depth the cats are active at also. you can be very specific on fishing structure this way.i run my boat backwards with my trolling motor and fish out of the front simply because of comfort but it can be done iether way.its just basically jus like backtrolling fer walleye.
one last thing,put your rods in good rodholders or make sure they are really stable in the boat. most fish tend to double the rod while yer drifting an ive seen lots of people lose them.good luck!