Outdoors: Trolling tactics vary for fall rock

True, trolling isn't my bag, but for tournament fishermen and those who want to catch big fish (bigger on average compared to light tackle), it's effective. It's also true that fall trolling on the Chesapeake has changed in the 15 years since I first gave a shot. Today, it's not uncommon for sport anglers and charter captains to troll 20 or more rods, thanks to planer boards. If you've been in a fishing time warp or don't venture out to the bay's main stem you may not be familiar with planer boards. You would be if you were on the water Opening Day this past spring; you'd have seen a sea of them. (Because of the popularity of planer boards, I wouldn't be surprised if at some point the Department of Natural Resources and/or the Sport Fish Advisory Commission discussed the possibility of establishing standards for size, distance from the boat and visibility.)

The planer boards now popular with Chesapeake fishermen evolved on the Great Lakes and were originally designed for salmon and trout trolling. Regular users of planers know that the size of the board makes a big difference; hence there are two- or three-board models in 6-, 10- and 12-inch sizes. In general, the wider the board the deeper it'll run in the water, which in turn creates more tension on the board's running line, allowing anglers to fish more lines. Do-it-yourselfers can build a set for $60 or $70. A professionally built pair will set you back $150 to $200. Most professional captains prefer highly visible colors such as orange or yellow. White or black are hard to see.

Captain Frank Tuma of Downtime Charters loves planer boards in the spring but seldom uses them in October when the stripers are in shallower water and/or if he's fishing in close quarters. Later in the fall, when the rockfish hold deeper in the channel or if he needs to cover a lot of water, he'll break out the boards.

When trolling, he matches his lure size with the bait present. Right now off the Magothy River he is seeing a lot of peanut bunker (juvenile menhaden), which the 22- to 28-inch rockfish devour. He's already catching a fair number of rockfish better than 30 inches, however, and even a few to 36 inches, He expects the ocean-run rock to invade our waters in force well before November.

"I look for bait (on the fishfinder) first," he said. "If I see red on the (fish) meter I'll drop the boat out of gear to let the lures drag right through the school." Currently his go-to lures are No. 15 and 17 Tony spoons, but that will change once the bluefish leave for good. Later in the fall he'll switch to Tsunamis (4-inch) and a tandem bucktail/Tsunami sandwich. His reels are 20-pound class Penn 330s or Okuma CV55 matched with light-weight 5½ foot Billfisher rods.

Captain Randy Dean aboard the charterboat Bay Hunter says the difference between fall fishing and the spring trophy striper fishing is the size of the baits he'll troll. In April and May he uses only the big guns - 9-inch Sassy Shads on 4- to 8-ounce parachutes. He'll still use the large lures on the planer boards but mixes in small tandem bucktails (2 ounces or less) or umbrellas with small bucktails on the boat rods. While the blues are still present, he suggests using pork rinds, such as those made by Uncle Josh's. Capt. Randy prefers his pork trailers to be 4 inches long by 3/8 inches wide, in colors of red yellow and white.

When the rockfish are hugging the bottom and are finicky, he'll switch to bottom-bouncing using almost exclusively tandem bucktails. Once over a pod of rockfish he'll drop gear to get the baits on the rock's nose. Use 3-foot leader tied to an inliner drop sinker, attached to a three-way swivel with one heavier bucktail tied to a 3-foot heavy leader and the 5-foot leader attached to a lighter bucktail.

Who knows? You may see me paddling my 15-foot kayak, dragging a Tsunami and a Stretch 25, off Brickhouse Bar later this month.

Fins & Feather Report

So many different fish much to catch, so little time. Both the fresh and salt water fishing is going great guns, and should continue through the month. The DNR's fall trout stocking program is underway in streams and rivers across the state. For specific dates and waterways, check the DNR's Web site at www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/stocking/springtroutstock.html.

When weather isn't fitful, overall there are plenty of bluefish to 5 pounds and rockfish running in the 20- to 35-inch class, taken either trolling or on light tackle using Stingsilvers, Crippled Alewives, Specialized Baits and various soft plastics. Rockfish are hitting topwater plugs at dusk and dawn in the tributaries, which also have catfish and white perch. Since spot are gone, many fishermen are trolling on lumps and channel edges using small bucktails with pork rind trailers. Once blues leave they'll switch to Sassy Shads (glow white), Storms, and Tsunamis.

Some hotspots included lumps off the Magothy River, Chester River and Eastern Bay. In the middle and lower Chesapeake, fishermen and charter captains report good bluefish and rockfish bites from Cedar Point to Buoy 77, Breezy Point to Parker's and off the Gooses. Very few sea trout have been caught; a few keepers from Breezy Point...