Quote:
Originally Posted by "W"
Tolling.......is a lazy mans sport of fishing!!! Zero skills
|
One could say the same about hiring a guide.
Our family first started trolling because my son, 4 at the time, wanted to catch a muskellunge. Muskies are sometimes known as the fish of 1000 casts. Even with trolling, it took the boys a year and a half to put their muskies in the boat. See the attached picture.
Trolling can be very effective in helping inexperienced anglers catch fish. It does not require some of the fine motor skills of finesse working of artificials (but neither does a lot of bait fishing), but it does require being at the right place and keeping the right lures at the right depth. Trolling also requires the same fighting and landing skills as casting artificials and fishing with bait.
Some other reasons I've grown to like trolling is that when casting artificials, there are usually only one or two prime casting locations in the boat. We can troll six to eight lures at a time, giving everyone in the boat a pretty good chance to catch fish. In addition to being a great way to introduce youngsters and less experienced anglers to fishing, I've found trolling to be much easier on my shoulder than a day of casting. A lot of older folks suffer from various joint maladies, and I am no exception. The doctors tell me that my joint pains in my elbow and shoulder are repetitive use injuries that are best alleviated by reducing use and stress. Trolling and bait fishing simply put a lot less wear and tear on an aging shoulder.
A final reason I like trolling is it gives me a chance to learn a body of water well by studying the bottom, the fish, and the bait on the sonar as we move along. Staying in motion also allows us to keep a good distance from other anglers. No need to squeeze anyone for the best spot and minimal opportunity for others to squeeze us or scare away the fish we're targeting. Since the boat is in motion, as soon as someone hooks up, I can steer the boat away from obstacles and give the angler with a fish on plenty of room to fight the fish. We've never lost a fish to structure or the anchor line while trolling, but we've lost a couple (out of hundreds) in the propeller.