Any tinners on here from East Tenneesee...who troll?

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Really more interested in bass; walleye; stripers, etc. Though, I have a lot to learn about all aspects of trolling.

Been fishing for over 65 years, but almost always been a "wind and crank" kind of guy. Tried trolling a bit on a local lake last week and have caught more fish that way than any other.

My prior extensive experience(s) have been fishing shallow Wisc. lakes and salt-water Texas flats. These deep water, rocky, lakes have me baffled. Any help appreciated. richg99
 
When I was a kid, which wasn't that long ago, I used to troll buzz baits and rooster tails over shallow brush piles and points for bass on Watts Bar. Look for shallow flats near deep water for stripers and hybrids.

Chartreuse or white rooster tails trolled anywhere will catch just about anything. Also try rattle traps over deeper rocky points.
 
I've spent a lots of time trolling (although none of it in east TN) and there are a lot of variables. Live baits differ from each other. Crawlers and leeches have to be finessed differently than minnows. The fish tend to nibble their way up on a leech or crawler so once you feel the tug you've got to give some slack in the line before you set the hook. Minnows are more like crank baits in that the fish tend to strike hard and you can set the hook when you feel the strike.

Depth is an important variable. Northerns and muskies seem to tolerate the light and warmth of shallower waters but you will also find them in deeper waters too. My younger brother is a nut for muskies and can catch them all day long along the weed edges in 15'-20' of water and in the mornings and evenings in 12'-15'. Walleyes tend to be deeper but mornings, evenings and overcast days will find them in shallower waters.

Water clarity and light are other variables. If you use spinners on leech or crawler rigs the color matters depending on light and water clarity. My older brother and I trolled for walleyes for many years and based on our experience found some formula - like light color spinners on dark days (or maybe the other way around, I can't remember). The color of crank baits or spinner baits matters just as it does with any other kind of fishing.

Structure and how your trolling path relates to it is important. My muskie crazed brother follows the weed edges in a very erratic pattern of zigs and zags. In this way he ends up with a fairly consistent bottom depth. I, who am lazy and can't deal with all the steering my brother does, tend to have a more straight path of travel but then the bottom depth can vary a lot. My brother's success happens because he's consistent re the weed edge and depth. My success, should I have any, depends on the changing bottom structure where fish may be suspended in varying depths of water and will swim up or down to my bait.



Speed matters. My muskie brother trolls at around 5mph. Muskies are very aggressive and impetuous. They don't really think first before they strike and trolling at a higher speed tends to capitalize on that tendency. Walleyes require a slower approach. With leeches or crawlers we used to back-troll a lot (depending on how slow we could throttle the motor and how much exhaust stink we could tolerate). When I troll with crank baits it's usually at around 2mph +or -.

Size of lures matters. My muskie brother throws lures the size of sub-compact cars at them with the theory that big baits eliminate the little guys. He's right about that and commonly catches fish in the 40" + range. I'm a little more open in my approach because I don't really care what I catch.

That brings up attitude. I, who just want to be out on the water and don't care what I catch (and am lazy) take a pretty relaxed attitude and it shows in my success. My driven, muskie fishing brother really has worked hard to figure stuff out and it shows in his success. We both fish catch-and-release.

Sorry I couldn't answer any of your questions. I say just get out there and throw something in the water and learn from your mistakes and successes.
 
That was an extremely helpful response. Answered a lot of questions. It also opened me up to trolling, for muskies, on Melton Hill lake here. Some 50 inchers have been taken out of there.

The only 50 inch muskie I ever caught was with a guide, trolling.

You've given me a lot of food for thought. Thanks very much. richg99
 
Bobberbob gave a lot of good info, but i didn't see any comments on equipment needed. You can use the bass rods you have to troll (probably) but if you like trolling, you'll probably want longer rods and rod holders as holding the rods while pulling cranks for extended times get old in about 60 seconds. The crank baits you have will work since they already catch fish. I can't speak on pulling crawlers/leech set ups, but again, just holding a rod for extended times gets old quick and takes away from the enjoyment of fishing.

A gps unit is almost a necessity so you can monitor your speeds as trolling is very dependent on maintaining a certain speed that the fish want on that particular day. The preferred speed can change from the early morning speed to mid day speed to afternoon speed.

I troll for crappie, so come over to ET and I will show you a decent set up for trolling. Utube has lots of videos on setting up a boat for trolling, etc., which will help you in your search for info.
 
richg99 said:
Thanks. I am in Crossville. Would like to see what you have for a setup.

I added two rod holders a few days ago. richg99

PM me your phone # and we'll set something up. Jim
 

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