Caught a lot of trout yesterday on free lined DOA’s, paddle tail grubs, and the trout trick. They are really biting well.
WHAT LAKE?
Lake Wando to Lake ICW
it was a lake out there
quote:
on free lined DOA's,
A good friend and fishing partner of mine loves to free line an unweighted DOA shrimp and often out fishes me using live shrimp. But if I used it, I wouldn’t do nearly as well as he does. Got to have the right touch and feel, and hold your mouth just right, but he can sometimes make me look like a monkey with those DOAs. It’s OK with me, I like watching other people catch fish and I’m a pretty good net man 
Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper
Yeah free lining a DOA is pretty effective. It took me a long time to learn how to fish it, but mostly, how slow to fish it. Figured out the slow part after beginning a retrieve and had a call. Put my rod in the holder to take the call, then watched the rod double over while it was sitting in the holder. That has happened several times. I’m so confident with it now I’ll often use it to prospect and find fish before others get bit on live bait.
What do you mean by “free lining” the doa? Letting it drift along the bottom with the current versus cast and retrieve? What is your best color of doa shrimp?
The guy that made the DOA did a class at Haddrells a few years ago, and he advocated free- lining, but I’ve been stuck on popping corks. Would you be more specific how you fish free line. I’m guessing the first ingredient is patience, which is tough.
Free lining just means tied strait to the line/leader. It’s said using a small loop knot gives it a more natural action. I use 15# braid tied to a 20# mono leader, at least 12" long. Assuming the boat is laying with the current, I cast up current around 2 oclock, and depending on the velocity of the current I usually pull out another rod length of line. Fish with your rod tip down, almost touching the water. What you’re trying to attain is a “controlled belly” and a “controlled drift/fall” as the bait goes down current. If you get it right you never even turn your reel handle untill the bait is about 4-5oclock behind you and starting to ride up in the current. Even then if I like where my bait is I’ll feed out some line to keep it near the bottom. Don’t try to impart any “action”. No jig, no jerk, pop, etc. That is unless there isn’t enough current to move it. In that case I will (literally) move my rod tip 2"-3" at a time.
Last year a buddy was struggling catching trout asked me to take and show him how I was getting them. He met me and had his rods rigged up with all the latest and greatest sparkleys and shineys. We got to the spot and he is working it over catching nothing and I had caught several free ling the DOA. He finally decided to try it. I caught a few more and he caught nothing. He was getting pretty frustrated when I mentioned to him he was making 3-4 casts to my one cast. He slowed it down and started picking at them
Colors - Doesn’t matter so much this time of year. I like pink with sparkles, root beer with sparkles, silver with sparkles (I guess I like sparkles), clear, and the traditional white and white with a chartrues tail. If you looked in my bag now I think all that is in there is a few silver with sparkles, and a root beer with sparkles. I don’t think the color is as important as getting it in front of the fish in an appealing easy to catch manner. I fish so simply now. All you’ll find in my bag is a handful of DOA’s, one color paddletail grub, and some trout tricks. Plain lead colo
My son & I have planned to come down from Chapin to fish the upper Wando tomorrow (Tuesday 11/10) from kayaks. I’m concerned about the recent rain & what that’s done. Any suggestions or advise would be appreciated. Thanks.
If you wait for that perfect day, it may never come, or it may be tomorrow!
JB, that’s exactly how my buddy Raymond fishes them. Throws them up current and lets them drift, no reeling, no jerking, just a slow drift. He usually kicks my butt and keeps me busy with the net.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper
quote:
Originally posted by Jerk Bait… Assuming the boat is laying with the current, I cast up current around 2 oclock, and depending on the velocity of the current I usually pull out another rod length of line. Fish with your rod tip down, almost touching the water. What you’re trying to attain is a “controlled belly” and a “controlled drift/fall” as the bait goes down current. If you get it right you never even turn your reel handle untill the bait is about 4-5oclock behind you and starting to ride up in the current. Even then if I like where my bait is I’ll feed out some line to keep it near the bottom. Don’t try to impart any “action”.
I’ve never thought to try that, but, what you describe is exactly what you do with dry flies. ‘Line mending’ of a fly line is a technique to make it appear as though the fly doesn’t have anything attached to it.
I’ll have to think about what other fly fishing techniques can be translated.
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quote:
Originally posted by PalmerScottquote:
Originally posted by Jerk Bait… Assuming the boat is laying with the current, I cast up current around 2 oclock, and depending on the velocity of the current I usually pull out another rod length of line. Fish with your rod tip down, almost touching the water. What you’re trying to attain is a “controlled belly” and a “controlled drift/fall” as the bait goes down current. If you get it right you never even turn your reel handle untill the bait is about 4-5oclock behind you and starting to ride up in the current. Even then if I like where my bait is I’ll feed out some line to keep it near the bottom. Don’t try to impart any “action”.
I’ve never thought to try that, but, what you describe is exactly what you do with dry flies. ‘Line mending’ of a fly line is a technique to make it appear as though the fly doesn’t have anything attached to it.
I’ll have to think about what other fly fishing techniques can be translated.
Exactly the same!I fish for speckled trout a lot with the fly in the fall and winter, except I use sinking clouser minnows and bot dry flies. And as you said, mending the line to keep the belly managable. I also mend my line a lot when free lining DOA’s. I didn’t put in my description. I was trying to keep it simple. Get you some bright clousers and try them for trout. I bet you’ll have a blast.
I learned some stuff from this. Thanks. I find it hard to be patient enough to fish them properly. It would be hard to prospect for fish that way but deadly once you know where they are
2000 SeaPro 180CC w/ Yammy 115 2 stroke
1966 13’ Boston Whaler w/ Merc 25 4 stroke “Flatty”
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I feel you. I find patience much easier to have, when I know the technique works!
Jerk Bait,
Generally, I fish a light circle hook when using live bait for trout, what style/size hook do you recommend for the free line version? I’m going to try this over the next few days, thanks for the info.
DOA’s come pre-rigged with hooks and weighted in a 1/4oz and 1/2oz version. Don’t buy the 1/2oz. Too heavy and sinks like a rock. If I were free lining live shrimp I would use a 2/0 circle hook and a tiny split shot slid a little ways up the leader.
And don’t forget to set the hook with a DOA! It’s not a circk
le hook and you should be fishing with a belly in your line.
Thx for the awesome post! What do you mean “a belly in your line”?
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Originally posted by kiblerwsThx for the awesome post! What do you mean “a belly in your line”?
I’m pretty sure he means with slack in the line, which causes the “belly” or “bow”, thus allowing the bait to swim naturally and freely. Just my $.02.
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