Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3613 June 9-23 2017 | Page 19
VOL.36 • ISS. 13
Smash The Speed Barrier
Do Pro-Cure Scents Work
With Hum Dingers!
I
think a lot
of anglers that
troll for trout and salmon
in our inland lakes are locked
in a “speed rut” and are catching
fewer fish then they could if they’d just
broaden their horizons a bit.
Over the years, a lot of trollers have
adopted the attitude that slower is better.
Most trollers putter along between 1 and
2 mph and if kokanee are on the menu
that range draws down even more to 1
to 1.5.
Okay I recognize that there is a reason
for this. When the fishing is tough, a
super slow presentation is often the
best option. I also understand that most
trolling gear is designed to work best at
these speeds. But what also needs to be
recognized is that the fishing isn’t always
tough, sometimes the fish are active and
chasing. And we can’t lose sight of the
fact that trout and salmon can swim up-
wards of 13 mph. They can and will run
up and smack a lure moving at 4 mph
without breaking a sweat.
Wait a second…do fish sweat? How
would you know it’s all wet down there?
But you see where I’m going.
I’ll concede that a nice slow troll is
the correct answer at times, but at other
times I’m convinced that you’ll catch far
more fish if you do your trolling from
the fast lane.
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June 9 - 23, 2017
When it comes to trolling quickly,
say from 2.5 to 3.5 mph, for trout and
landlocked kings one of my favorite of-
ferings is the ½ ounce Hum Dinger
from the folks at Shasta Tackle/
Mack’s Lure.
I think color is less important
when trolling quickly then when moving
slowly. If water clarity is anywhere near
decent, I like to go with natural colored
lures. That means chromes paired with
hues of blue or purple.
When the light level is low either early
or late or when the sky is overcast, black
can be an absolutely deadly color that
few anglers ever think to try.
A fast trolled spoon will draw strikes
out in open water, but it’s when you
work tight to structure that the method
really shines. In reservoirs, trout, kings
and bass orient to structure in the form of
points and drops adjacent to deep water
when feeding. They hold in these areas
and ambush any baitfish that happen
to swim within range, yet if anything
threatens the gamefish they can simply
melt into the depths.
When you show these fish that are
fired up and in a