Lake Champlain United - Forums

I have become more intersetd in salmon fishing lately and I'm a little ignorant when it comes to their seasonal movements. I know that they can be caught closer to the surface, and sometime closer to shore in the spring. But once the water warms up, can they still be caught in the upper parts of the water column or do they go deeper like lakers? I'm wondering whether they can be targeted all summer in deeper water with downriggers like lakers, or are they harder to pinpoint? I am investing in downriggers this year and I am hoping to use them to fish for salmon all year instead of just lake trout. I was also wondering whether anyone is using baits on downriggers? I have used them to drag eals and herring on the ocean but I have yet to see anyone using them with bait in fresh water,

Thanks,

Mike

Welcome....

Salmon follow bait and temp. Find both and you will find salmon. Spring temps drive them up and summer tems drive them down. They will leave temp for bait, but not for long. We have rigger sucess on flies, spoons and stick baits. I am not aware of any real bait being used on LC from riggers.

Best of luck.... Look forward to your pics.

P.S. Think stick baits in spring and flies in the fall... Spoons anytime.

Thanks Matt. Sounds similar to saltwater tactics. Find the bait and you find fish...usualy. I just bought a new HDS so that should make things a little easier than with the old Eagle. I also bought 2 Big Jon electrics from a guy at work, so once I get them rigged up the salmon had better watch out!

Thanks for your help,

Mike N

fishbreath55 wrote:Find the bait and you find fish...usually. I just bought a new HDS so that should make things a little easier than with the old Eagle.Mike N

The bigger the HDS, the bigger the fish

My HDS sometimes shows a lot of fish, but it's another thing to get them to bite....

The fun part is to keep trying.

Your question about bait: I've heard of guys tying up smelt and having zero or near zero success. Yet it is practiced with much success on Landlocks in Maine.

Raz you are rite on about sewn on smelt in Maine!! I have fished there more than a few times and a lot if not most locals use that method although I think they drift and not troll useing smelt !! Not sure but if they are trolling they go super slow and also have a special way they tie on the smelt!!! Never tried it never needed to useing the same methods that we use on Champlain seems to work just fine!!! Sleeps

When growing up in NH as teenagers Don Miller and I use to use sewn on smelts all the time behind a large single spinner blade 4-6 inches in size and with leadcore trolling very slow. The smelt was hoked through the eyes and the leader and hook were brought through there, behind the gills and again just behind the anus. A slight bend was made in froxnt of the last hole by tkghtening the leader to have the smelt roll slightly when trolled. Worked well for salmon and great for lakers on Winni and Wnnisquam.
Michael