Trolling Speed

[yellowsubmarine]

It's been a while since I had a decent boat setup for trolling for walleye and northern. Now that I'm able to do it again and watch my speed with GPS, what is a range for trolling speeds. What is too fast and what is to slow.

Thanks in advance.

[mistermom]

First of all, I'm no expert on this. In fact Derek probably knows this stuff way better than I. Anyway, according to the "trolling bible" (available on this HSOforum) speed isn't a crucial factor in how deep crankbaits will go unless you are using weights of some sort. Speed can influence performance: too slow not enough action and too fast can spin out. It is a cliche, but the fish will tell you if your speed is right or not. When you are making turns your bait speeds up or slows down depending upon the way you are turning. If you're getting hits on turns that can indicate the fish are liking a faster or slower speed. Anyway, there are all sorts of factors to consider and experimenting is about the only way to get answers. Hope that helps.

mm

[Tonka Boy]

Mistermom is correct. Let the fish dictate what speed you need to be going. I've caught them anywhere from almost motionless up to 8 MPH while trolling. I never would have imagined catching them at 8 MPH, but a friend of mine uses this method every fall on Mille Lacs and has proven me wrong. You just never know...

[Polar Bear]

Here's some free advice...(and worth every penny).

If you are fishing structure known to hold northerns and are not connecting...go faster. Use the chartruese #9 shad raps and hold on. You will know its fast enough if you could almost get a water skier up. No kidding. The only problem is that your lures must be tuned to perfection while moving at this speed or they won't track properly.

For walleyes I've had most of my luck while moving between 2 mph and 3.5 mph pulling crank baits. Polar Bear

[Guest]

water temp can also be a speed determening factor, stick baits verses full body baits such as shad raps.hope this helps.see ya.

[Walleye_GFA]

Get the book from this site that has a good many lures and how deep they go at what line length with 10 pound test... for example with 10 pound test a deep shad rap 7 will dive to 7 feet with 90 feet and 9 feet with 120. That was a WRONG example but thats the kind of info you get from the book...

Ill post name of book when I get out to garage...

Wally

[Dave B]

I think that generally people troll from 1.5-2.5 mph for eyes. I fish mostly rivers and troll 3-4 mph. But the main thing is to vary the speed until something works.

[Rainman]

Just let the fish tell you what they want! They will!

[Borch]

When trolling there are few secrets. But one statement that Buck Perry made years ago has stuck with me to this day.

The secret to catching more fish is precise speed and depth control. Color and lure style are not nearly as important as these two factors.

That said. You'll need to let the fish tell you what they want. Just pay attention and vary depth and speed till you find out what htye want.

Good Luck!

[Rick]

I too am a BIG Buck Perry fan.

The book you are looking for is
"Precision Trolling"
The Trollers Bible

You can find it by clicking here.

[Guest]

I'd like to recommend the In-Fisherman book "Walleye Wisdom". They address trolling in depth, but this is just in addition to what everyone else has said.

Like anything, there is really no clear answer. It all depends on the season, conditions, etc.

Depending on all that, you will want to try different approaches, from fast to slow, deep to shallow, and the like. The real key is that you have to try different approaches until something works, BUT to also have a consistent plan and not just do things willy-nilly. If you go out with a guide and at first do not catch fish, you will see that they just keep adjusting things - depth, speed, lure color, etc. You need to do this too, but have a plan. Keep track of what works and what doesn't for that day, and the next time you encounter the same conditions you'll do better.

I know that might seem vague but if you read any of the things people have posted here, they all eventually say that. Fish are just as temperamental as people, and if one thing is not working you need to switch to a new approach.

[Guest]

It can make a difference if the weather is bad or good. If it is bad or the fish are inactive then you might want to troll slow and use a slow presentation. The walleyes are probably lazy and want to use much engery to get it.
If the weather is good and the fish are active then you might want to troll faster and get their attention. You can use live-bait spinners, cranks, or a fast moving jig will work.
All ways experiment with speed, some fish want it super slow while others want it super fast.

------------------
aka Fishstunner

[yellowsubmarine]

I almost forgot I posted this. Thanks so much for all the replys. I'll get the books mentioned before and hopefully I won't have to do everything be feel anymore, although I have had a fair amount of success this way, it would be nice to get a little more consistency. Thanks again and good luck out there.