never have done it and wanted to know how fast, what luers, and what # test. should i use a flasher? thanx

I haven't been out trolling in a while but I used to do pretty well with a simple rig that I use. Take a gold with red head needlefish. Rig a leader of 6lb test that is as long as the space between the tip of your rod and the last thing you can hook the hook onto on the reel. Usually about 5 or 6 feet. Tie in a keel sinker or just a regular torpedo sinker. It's a good idea to use a swivel on either end of it. We would use little line snubbers on the lure side of the weight too, but it's not a must. If the fish are on top you can use 3/4oz or 1oz. If the fish are down deep you can bump up to 2 or 3oz of weight. The swivels make it easy to change the weight. When you troll, go slowly. Let the needlefish out about 10 feet behind the boat and watch it. It should kick slowly and only roll all the way over every once and a while. If it's spinning in a circle you're going too fast. It's a great rig and catches fish all over. You can also troll that same rig with a Yo Zuri Pin's Minnow or a small rapala. Works great and only sets you back a couple bucks for the rig.

You might try the gold or silver rapalas,broken back rebels also.If you see trout suspended at a certain level,near a thermocline , you can use leadcore line ( 18 lb. ) to really target in on the depth they are at.Also , once you know how deep they are you can return again and again to smack um.If your buddy is at the same level,double hookups can be common.The 15 to 30 foot depth is taylor made for leadcore,much deeper and you will want to think about Dipsy Divers or downriggers.For an interesting article on trout trolling with some good pictures,go to the links section of kayakfishing.com and hit on the articles by Les Dollard of New Zealand.Good stuff ! He discusses the use of leadcore and trolling.Scott Shaw

Depending on the size of trout and the depth they are at, you can troll with line ranging from 2lb to 8lb. I have trolled with 2 lb test and have done very well. This method is refered to as top lineing, no weight is added, just tie on a lure and troll. Super dupers work well, along with thomas bouyants,castmasters, and spinners. Each lure has its own proper speed, if you go to fast the lure just plains along the top of the water, to slow and it gets stuck on the bottom. A trolling motor works best.

I use leadcore alot, especially in the bigger and deeper reservoirs in L.A. county and San Diego. I use an Ambassadeur 6500 C3 and a fiberglass crankbait rod like a Daiwa 6"6. This keeps the fight enjoyable and still allows you to troll deep enough and bring the fish in. I sometimes step up to the Loomis 843 when I troll all 12 colors out or using 15lb leadcore and the trout or bass tend to be on the bigger side. The best trolling lakes for the bigger hold-over trout I have found are Cachuma,San Vicente,Piru,Casitas,Folsom - one the best, and any of the lakes that have deeper depths year-round and less stripers helps ! Good luck

Try trolling with a Tasmanian Devil lure. They are pretty rare, but if you go to www.cabelas.com you can use the search option to find them. These lures are the only thing that I ever troll with. They have more action than a kastmaster or needlefish, and the hook is on a piece of wire, so the body of the lure can slide up the line. If the fish starts jumping, the lure will slide up the line and not push the hook out.

Interesting sounding lure. Do you know if it is effective for species other than trout, or for casting as well as trolling?

Thanks?

Go to www.cabelas.com and use the search option on the main page...just search Tasmanian Devil, and it should show up.

To answer your other question, I usually cast with it anyway. There are 2 sizes, and I often cast with the larger of the 2. They are much heavier than Kastmasters, so they go a long way casting. I have had a few toad bass follow the rainbow trout colored one. But if you are fishing for trout, use the brown trout colors. I have caught limits in less than 1 hour quite a few times in the early morning on the trout patterns. If you are trolling, use the green/gold colors.

I have caught 3 trout from Lake Chabot and Del Valle this year on the larger rainbow trout pattern. All three times I was casting. 6lbs 10 oz, 5lb even, and 3lb, 14oz. It seems to work well on open water as well when the trout are bunched up close to the bottom. I just fish it like a bass jig.

The larger sizes are good for Bass in freshwater and Bluefish in the salt. Very popular in South Africa and Australia ...

I find leadcore with a snubber and about a 5 foot leader of flurocarben works really good for me. I amlost always have a bikini or firetiger needlefish while trolling for trout.

You can also find the Tasmanian devil here locally at some bait shops. I have seen them at Coyote bait & Tackle. I have gad good success at New Melones on Brown trout.

I've had poor success with a green Tasman on Cachuma - its trout seem to prefer red, orange, or silver. 2-3" spoons do very well pulled at walking speed; and as many catches are in shallow water where there's drowned twigs and branches, I pull with 15lb or better fireline. Line visibility isn't a factor with a reaction bait at trolling speed; and having your lure pull free as the hook straightens is better than losing it.
..Interestingly, I've found that pulling a bass crankbait, the big ones that run at 20+, catch nice trout when pulled at a slightly faster speed than bass like. Probably bcs bass are primarily lurkers and trout are cruisers? Whatever, when my first catch with a crank is trout, I've found that slowing down starts bringing bass aboard.