The Spoonpluggers Forum

John posted a really good article in the Northern Indiana newsletter. This place has been kinda dead here lately, so I thought I would repost his article for all here to look at, and see where you are at in your Spoonplugging.
Good one John......
Hope you dont mind me reposting. It is certainly good "food for thought"
Steve

A TEXT FOR YOU
There is a structure situation right here in front of you. It is an area of the bottom that is differ-ent from the surrounding area. It is a summer time spot and we are away from the shoreline quite a distance. This is the area for this time of the year where you have a chance to get into a large group of bass. Your job is to find out the size and shape of this feature. I want to know how many major breaklines exist on this structure and I want you to draw the shape of the fea-ture at each major breakline on the structure. You will have to locate the depth of the breakline first and then follow it around the structure and then draw out each breakline. If there is a weedline, I want to know how deep it runs and the shape of the outside weedline also. If it has an inside weedline, I want to know how it runs and I want you to draw the shape of it also. I want the contact point found and marked with a red marker. Any other fingers that exist, I would like a yellow marker thrown on the tips of the fingers.
Once you map this structure, throw markers and have it drawn, you may now do some trolling of lures now that you know how and where to make your passes. I want the passes started as shallow as you can and end up to at least 35 feet on this structure. There are other breaks that exist on this feature and if you make your passes correctly, you will find them and you need to record these breaks on your hand drawn map.
Everything that was asked of you in this test are all part of Mr. Perry's guidelines for us to use in our learning process. Every one of these tasks you should have had no problem doing. The whole mapping process should not have taken more than 30 minutes and this would include the drawing of the map.
What have we learned by mapping this structure? We know the overall size and shape of the feature. We know exactly how each breakline runs around the structure. We have located the contact point and know exactly where the fish will make contact with the bar. We have set up our trolling passes with the markers and have included shoreline sightings for future trips. We have made all of the trolling passes necessary in order to eliminate the unproductive water and arrive at the fish in the shortest amount of time. We know all of the most important details of this structure and we did it all in just a few short hours. There will never be a time that we fish this spot without knowing exactly where we are, what exists on the bottom of the lake and what you and I need to do to catch the fish. It is a good feeling to know where you are on the water and knowing what we need to do to catch a fish. All that is left is to wait for the fish to do their thing.

Thanks Steve. It has been dead, yet there is so much to think about and get ready for next year, I could talk for a long time on what my plans are but would rather hear about what the others plan to do to get better at this thing. John

Well since no one will take the bull by the horns here,.......I will.

Buck said once:
"I find good fishermen, good mappers, good interpreters, and especially good trollers have a tendancy to not take up a casting position when fish are not moving well (bad weather condition). They will hit a straggler on a deep contact point, and if several passes do not produce additional fish, off they go to another structure, break, or breakline.

I can’t find too much fault with this as I find myself doing the same thing. I think the reason for this is two-fold. First, I know the fish are deep and dormant, and I can only expect straggler movement to structure, but if I go long enough and hit enough places, I will make a catch (of stragglers). Second, I keep hoping a mass of fish will move within reach at some place during the day."

I found this tidbit a few months ago, that Buck stated to be quite interesting. He even stated that he himself was guilty of not going to the cast often enough.
Quite often here in the west with these deep clear Reservoirs, I have found I tend to do the same thing for the most part. Hit a really nice fish in 30 to 70 feet of water, make a few more trolling passes, and if no takers move on to the next good structure, "hoping" to hit a movement of a mass of fish elsewhere.
While many times, this works quite well and at the end of the day, I will end up with several really nice 6-9 pound fish, I began to wonder how many more i could have taken if i had been more patient and worked those deep breaklines on the cast more? Maybe even get that 10 pounder I am still trying to catch?

This past year, I proceeded to do just that. I found my goals changing somewhat in that instead of running off to find out more about my lake, i needed to find out more about THIS structure!
Buck always said that we can always get better in out Interpretation! Actually we NEED to get better the deeper we go!

I then came up with a novel way of working very deep breaklines with a slow presentation, yet very quickly.
I call it "drop shot trolling".
I put a line counter reel on a short casting rod, braided line,1 to 6 ounce sinker(depending on the depth), a 4-0 or 5-0 hook, and big 10-12 inch Manns Jelly worm, rigged like a regular drop shot.
Jeff Loy calls it a "drop shot on steroids"!
Anyway, it is then an easy thing to simply set the counter to the depth of the top of the breakline and then using a flasher, and with the motor in reverse(backtrolling) simple work around the entire breakline, staying in contact with the structure. Once you go around the structure, then go back doing the same thing at the depth of the base of the breakline. Simply lift and drop the weight, wiggle the line some, wait, then lift and drop and move on a little.
It is a much faster way to work the structure, effectively and efficiently, with a slower speed control, yet still moving along faster than you could do it on the cast.
I still get to learn more about my structure, breaks that are present, etc.
I get great "feel" with the braid, and yes, it will work using 12# wire line and a leader on the reel too!
I am talking deep, deep breaklines here. 50 to 100 feet if need be.

So there you have what i am doing out here. It will work for you on shallower lakes too. Tom Ferencek showed me the backtroll deal many years ago while we casted a structure. He didnt use a trolling motor all those many years ago. I simply adapted his teaching then to what i am using now.
It works quite well so try it sometime.
FWIW
Steve