The big females were cooperative today. Missed another 3 that were just as big. I think we’ll spend some more time up there in September.
300’ of copper with any N4 spoon with white on it was hot. Lost one that was bigger than the rest.
1FE36F83-3750-4FD2-B6A9-6B226F6C0ABE-scaled.jpeg
B6EAD7D6-5D92-4866-BF25-44BE82B6EA6D-scaled.jpeg
EB5A0104-D19A-485E-BE48-E78F465050CA-scaled.jpeg
Looks like fun, I’ve been going out of silver bay a lot this summer. I wanted to go today but could not find anyone to go with. I’ve mostly been targeting coho salmon but Lakers are more fun to bring in for sure! I got my first king last weekend but was small.
0B31ACD4-03D5-49BA-9C4A-9846AB09BDEE-scaled.jpeg
Years ago I used to catch a ton of kings that size. Now most seem to be in the 5-8 lb range. Nice to see those smaller ones.
Went out of Two Harbors today. I don’t think I’ve ever fished anywhere other than Isle Royale in September and October. I’m gonna try a few more times closer to home I think. The size was a little unexpected. The females are clearly coming in to spawn. Nothing under 30” today.
Nice fish!
I went out of Two Harbors last Sunday and did well also. Two of us fished 7-noon and put 5 Lakers and 3 coho in the boat. Biggest was 33 5/8 that went back. Kept the others that went 22.5 to 30.
We ran riggers and dipsey’s down 55-60 over 100-200 feet for all our fish on Flashback spoons. Also lost a couple more nice Lakers on the way up.
There we’re a lot of guys jigging the humps too. Unfortunately I’m out of the area the next two weekends or I’d be hitting it again. Thinking of heading over to Chequamegon and try for coho’s mid October.
I should’ve mentioned that everything went back for us. Don’t really need more trout or salmon for the freezer yet. Not to mention it’s probably worth letting those females complete their spawn this fall.
xplorer when fishing Chequamegon for coho in the fall are you trolling with down riggers? I really want to fish that are but I don’t have down riggers.
I was up north on the rivers and it was full of life. caught many fish with barely anyone in the rivers with me.
xplorer when fishing Chequamegon for coho in the fall are you trolling with down riggers? I really want to fish that are but I don’t have down riggers.
I know you were addressing xplorer but I will tell you with 100% confidence you never NEED downriggers on superior. I fish my first 6-7 years on that lake without them. Including trips to Isle Royale.
Dipsys will get you down deep enough to reach just about any coho as will 10 colors of lead or 300’ of copper. Snap weight can do a lot too. 1 lb snap weights can also get you down over 100’ if needed.
My experience for cohos in the fall is that most are in the top 40’ so even 5 colors of lead and a small snap weight will suffice. I’d bet anything from the surface to 40’ would get you everything you need. Don’t let lack of downriggers keep you off superior.
If you need any 1 lb weights, let me know. I pour them. $4 each.
D58F43A2-29C7-48B6-A9C8-3BB47F15B943-scaled.jpeg
I prefer braid for most of my trolling. Sometimes I add long mono leads (25’ or so) to setups with braid only. You’re gonna want at least 30# braid for this, preferably 40-50#. I’m having trouble finding a dive chart for 1 lb weights. Sounds like the 50/50 method is what people normally do. Example being 100’ of line to the lure and 100’ of line after the weight is attached. That’ll probably get you 60-70’ down I think.
Truth be told, I wouldn’t recommend the 1 lb weights for everyday trolling. I only use them when nothing is biting above 50’ and I really want to get more lines down. Reeling in a 1 weight is like reeling in a 10# laker. I would not recommend 1 lb behind an in-line board unless it’s a TX-44.
I’d recommend dipsys for your deep lines. I like the Chinook brand metal ones personally. You can get these down 80# with 30# braid. Just beware that 30# is pretty light for these and a snag on bottoms could result in a loss of your dipsy. Straight up 30# braid for surface lines. You can always put 2-4 oz snap weight on these if the fish are down a few feet. Then lead core setups. Whatever you have, anywhere from 2-10 colors. Add snap weights as needed too. You can run boards on these too. I ran 300’ of copper on a TX-22 without issue. I even ran 150’ of copper with 4 oz weight without issue.
I personally don’t get to caught up on being precise on superior. +/- 15’ is good enough. These fish will go 40’ vertically to hit a bait when they want.
Longer lines in shallower water is usually better too. Downriggers don’t get hit as much when you have surface oriented fish.
Like Matt, I spent quite a few years without Downriggers. I like to run Dipsy’s with spoons, and run both half pound and pound balls also. My Dipsy’s are 50 pound braid, and lead is 30 pound. I almost always run a floro leader on both.
What Matt said, Chequamegon in the fall is a shallower water bite, and you will get a mixture of salmon, Splake, and browns mixed in. No need to run stuff right on bottom.
I also use in line boards and run sticks a lot. Like Matt said, there’s no need to have Downrigger’s in Chequamegon in the fall. The ones I have are just 2 foot walker manuals, that I got for 100 bucks each when gander moved their store here in Duluth.
Awesome advice guys! I’ve been really tempted to get out on the big lake and try for some lakers and salmon!
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
