How to use Downriggers & Dipsey Divers & Sonars

In our Trout Fishing Tips eBook, we discuss the ways that downriggers, dipsey divers and sonars can help you catch more trout. This video gives shares a few tips on using these things as well.

 

Now that we're entering one of the more challenging seasons for trout fishing, sonars can be particularly helpful.   And of course, any time trout go deeper in the water for food and comfort, downriggers can also be very helpful in getting your baited hook down to them.

Free Fishing Seminar Nov. 29 & 30

Avid Anglers will have a chance to learn more about fishing including how to catch more and bigger fish from the man who writes the weekly fishing reports at Irvine Lake (California).   Steve Carson is his name and he is ranked as one of the top t0 anglers in the world according to the IGFA.

The seminars are FREE and open to all who wish to attend.

The first seminar will be on Nov. 29 from 6 to 8 pm at the Sport Chalet in Marina del Rey.  The second seminar will be on Nov. 30th at the Torrance Sport Chalet (same time).

Topics will include both freshwater and saltwater fishing tips.  And of course, trout fishing at Irvine Lake and other urban lakes will also be discussed.  There will also be a few tips for parents who are actively teaching their kids to fish.

Free seminars tend to fill up quick, so you should plan on arriving early if you want to get a seat.  If you love fishing, this is a great opportunity to learn more from an experienced angler. For more information about this fishing seminar, click here.

Roe Bait Tips for Steelhead Fishing

Steelhead fishing is popular with many trout anglers!    There are several different fishing techniques used by Steelheaders, but fishing with roe (fish eggs) is one of them. Like salmon eggs, fishing with roe can be as simple as baiting the hook or more complicated by adding other things to the hook to make the bait more visible and attractive to fish.

The video below does a nice job of showing you different ways to bait a hook with roe for steelhead fishing.

Need help tying the egg loop knot mentioned in the video above?  Check out the video below:

For more steelhead fishing resources, click here.

For advanced Steelhead fishing techniques, click here.

Dough Bait Tips for Trout Fishing

Most trout anglers are familiar with dough baits such as Berkley's PowerBait.  These baits are specially formulated to attract trout and the nicest thing about them is that they float ... which helps to keep your bait off the bottom of a lake bed.

Dough baits are especially effective when fishing lakes stocked with rainbow trout.  That's because these baits are similar to the food fed to hatchery trout.  While Berkley has it's competitors in the dough bait business, I've had the best luck with Berkley products.  So I personally tend to stick with them.  Rainbow glitter powerbait is one of my favorites! 

Fishing with dough bait is really easy.  I typically use 6-lb test line with a 4 or 2-lb leader.  Between the two, I attached an slip sinker on the 6-lb test line and then tie on a snap-swivel.  I attach my leader (typically 18-24 inches) to the swivel.  At the end of the leader is a treble hook (usually size 12).  This rig is typically a bottom fishing rig. Using powerbait on this rig gets the baited hook off the bottom of the lake (making it more visible to trout swimming by). However, I have had success using the same rig (minus the sinker) when fish are feeding off the surface.

When baiting the hook, most anglers just make a ball around the hook to cover it up.  And while that does work, the video below offers a few more tips.

Another thing I like to do sometimes (especially when fishing is slow) is grease my leader and dough bait with trout attractant. The advantage of this trick is that the trout attractant can help disguise human smells transferred to my line and bait while handling them.

For roe bait tips for steelhead trout, click here.

Have any more dough bait secrets?  Feel free share them here!

Tempe Town Lake to be Stocked Nov. 23rd

Every year the AZ Game and Fish Department stock Tempe Town Lake with thousands of rainbow trout. This year, the event will take place on November 23rd from 3 to 5 pm.

This is a fun family event which is not only FREE but there will also be fishing rods and bait available for folks who don't have their own. For many kids, this is an opportunity to catch their first fish!   There will be plenty of experts around to lend a hand .... so don't worry if you don't know how to fish!

No fishing license is required during the event (3 - 5 pm).

By the way, the AZ Game and Fish Department have recently stocked all of the Urban Lakes, so anglers can enjoy more trout fishing opportunities.

Kayak Fishing - The 3 GOLDEN Rules

I stumbled across this video today while surfing the internet and thought our readers might find it useful.  Trout fishing in kayaks has been on the rise the last few years due to the fact that Kayaks are less expensive than boats and easier to transport.

But fishing from a kayak does pose some challenges and this video does a good job addressing some of those challenges.

New World Record Brown Trout

This year during the Salmon-A-Rama tournament, Roger Hellen landed a 41 lb 8 ounce brown trout near Wind Point (Racine, Wisconsin).  The trout was pulled out of Lake Michigan  at 8:30 am on July 16, 2010.

Needless to say, the trout won the tournament's grand prize (and was the largest fish ever caught in the tournament).  However, it took four months before the IGFA declared the brown trout a new world record in one division and a shared tie in another.

The new trout, officially broke the 24-year old record in 50-lb line class division (held by Paul Loquasto).  The previous record (set on April 29, 1986 in Lake Ontario, N.Y.), weighed just 14.4 pounds.  While it may seem incredible that this record hasn't been broken sooner, it may be because most anglers aren't targeting brown trout in the 50-lb line class division.

Hellen's brown trout catch will share the all-tackle record Tom Healy who caught a 41.7-pound brown trout Sept. 9, 2009 at Manistee River, Mich.  If you're wondering why this record is considered a tie when Hellen's catch is an ounce heavier, you're not alone.  According to IGFA rules, Hellen's trout needed to be one-half of one percent heavier than Healy's trout to claim sole ownership of the record.  In other words, Hellen's trout needed to be about 2.1 ounces heavier than Healy's trout to officially break Healy's existing record.  None the less, Hellen will share this record with Healy.

Hellen is having the catch stuffed for display in his home.  For more information about this record brown trout, click here.

Trout Plants in Northern California

During the week of  7 - 13 November, 2010, the California Department of Fish and Game will be planting trout in several fisheries in Northern California.

For more information about the fisheries being stocked, click here.

Speckled Trout Fishing Good in Florida's Intracoastal Waterway

Speckled trout fishing is reported to be excellent in Florida's intracoastal waterway.  Cooler temps and plenty of shrimp have played a role.

Trout are near the surface right now so topwater plugs, Mirrodines and 1/4 ounce jigs with plastic tails have yielded results.  Fishing under lighted docs up and down the Intracoastal Waterway is also a good bet since specks tend to hang there. Plastic tail grubs and Mirrolures are good bets under lighted docks too.  If you have a boat, you might try trolling slowly on the creeks and grass edges

You cand read the full report on Speckled trout fishing in the Intracoastal Waterway by clicking here.

For more tips on speckled trout fishing, click here.

Trout Fishing Report for Oklahoma

There's a great fishing report out of Oklahoma this morning.  Trout fishing is being reported as excellent in several fisheries at the moment. 

Folks trout fishing on the Lower Illinois River are having great success above Gore Landing using rooster tails(1-2 feet below surface), flies on the surface, and power bait.

Folks fishing Pawhuska are doing well with powerbait and small spinners.

Trout fishing on the Blue River is also reported to be good. Anglers are using powerbait, inline spinners and super dupers with success.

For the complete fishing report, click here.

Trout Stocking at Beaver Lake

Beaver Lake is scheduled to be stocked with rainbow trout on November 8th, 2010.  The department of fish and wildlife is planning to release 2,300 rainbow trout.


Beaver lake is open year-round for fishing.  The daily bag limit is five fish — and only two of the fish exceed 15 inches in length — and bait anglers must keep the first five trout caught.

Since temperatures are cooling down, trout fishing action should be heating up!  While Beaver lake has a maximum depth of about 50 feet, try fishing closer to the surface (up to about 18 feet in depth).  Lures, PowerBait, etc. should all be good.