Trolling Rods for Stripers
When fishing for stripers, there are a lot of methods that you can use, but trolling is one of the best tactics. Trolling is a cost-effective and fast way used by both professional fishermen and beginners to catch striped bass.
Since striped bass are known to hang on particular structures and follow an underwater contour line such as river channels and flat edges. The trolling rod should be strong enough to resist the boat’s pressure, and the big-lipped diving plugs are often used.
The rod should belong with a depth finder to help keep the lines clear and cover more ground while fishing for striped bass.
What Trolling Rods are Best for Striper Fishing?
There are a variety of fishing rods that you can use to catch stripers, but not all are used while trolling. Here are some of the rods that you can use;
Wire Line Jigging Rod
A wireline rod is solid and easy to handle. It has three wire sections connected to 6ft of planer line. It allows you to fish different water depths effectively with one outfit, but it also has the added advantage of allowing you to have the less abrasive planer rubbing back and forth through the tip.
The most popular reel is the Penn 113H 4/0 Senator; it is heavy and durable. It has an aluminium spool lighter and is susceptible to corrosion.
The Short Lead Core Rod
The short lead core is usually used to troll the tubes and worm by putting it on the rod holder. It’s easy to retrieve when the bass hits the worm since it’s near the strike zone.
It has an extra swivel between the two sections of the leader that helps with lure spin when trolling tubes or umbrella rigs. It can be combined with a Daiwa hyper-speed conventional reel to get an excellent lead core.
The Long Lead Core Rod
This rod is a musky rod, with the best being St. Croix Musky KD 1910 8-foot; it has a moderate action and bends easily, and it’s easy to catch stripers when the boat rocks or when the fish changes its direction. It is a 7 or 8 feet graphite rod with a long mono leader and is easy to hide on salty waters.
Trolling lures for striped bass fishing
There are many lures to use when catching striped bass, but several lures are ideal when using the trolling method. They will help you cover significant ground and easily secure striped bass. The following are some of the best lures to use when trolling;
● Bunker spoon
● Mojo lure
● Umbrella trolling rig
● Tube and worm rig
● Deep diver plug rig
Bunker Spoon Trolling Rig
Trolling bunker spoons are used mainly by anglers on the east coast to catch trophy striped bass. They imitate large baits like flounder, butterfish, mackerel, herring, and June weakfish.
They are available in different colours, but white, chartreuse, and green are the most popularly used. It has an 8ft rod with an ultra-soft model trolling wire and a speed of 2.5 to 3.5 knots. Combine it with a wire or braided line to get the spoons into the deep water column.
The most popular bunker spoon rigs are; Tony Maja bunker spoons, reliable bunker spoons, and spoon-fed and innovative bunker spoons.
Mojo Trolling Lures
Mojo lures come in different sizes and shapes and can be used in deep and shallow water. These lures are commonly used on the East Coast to catch bigger fish regularly.
Mojo lures can work on braid in a more vertical way than any other trolling lure, thus allowing the addition of more rods into the spread. Use a slow speed of 2 to 4 knots to allow them to hit bottom.
Diving Plugs
Deep diving plugs use different plugs to troll several depths, and they are used to catch big bass around bunker schools of the sandy beaches. It is usually used as a mid-water bait to imitate Bunker, Mackerel, Herring, Weakfish, and Bluefish.
It has a rod of 20 to 40 pounds, a mid-sized conventional rod, and a 50-pound braided line. It can be combined with deep divers like the Sebile Koolie Monnow, Mann’s stretch series, Rapala x-rap magnum, and bomber CD; it has a trolling speed of 4 knots.
Umbrella Trolling Rig
Umbrella rigs can be used on sand eels and saddle tail shads. It is one of the best performing trolling rigs with a rod of 6 to 7 feet and a weight of 30 to 50 pounds.
The swim shad umbrella rig is commonly used from the cape cod to the Chesapeake Bay. It can be trolled in white and chartreuse coloured rigs, but the most productive is the green coloured ones.
The umbrella rig imitates small baits like Sand Eel, sardines, Baby Bunker, Mullet, Tinker Mackerel, Smelt, and Worms. They are usually fished with a drain line or wire-line in deeper areas and are rigged with shad bodies.
Tube and Worm Rig
It is best used in the daytime in warm waters. It has a rod of 7 ft, 15 to 30 pound30-pound weight, and a mid-size conventional reel.
It has a low trolling speed of 2 knots and is best used in shallow waters. Due to its high floatability can be fished as a surface lure, fishing a light wire hook or smaller and no weight. The Tube Worm also works perfectly with a shaky head.
Trolling Tips for Catching Stripers
The most important tips to consider for a productive striper trolling are as follows;
- Use the correct type of equipment with non_corrosive fishing rods and conventional reels spooled with lead core lines to ensure that your lures work.
- Use a boat that can travel up to 2 miles per hour, depending on your trolling method. On the contrary, use dragging buckets or a drift sock behind the boat to slow the boat’s speed.
- Use the proper technique depending on the condition and the fishing area with striped bass.
- Use depth fish finders to locate big fish in structures and hot spot areas.
- The proper drag pressure is essential to secure a strong hook.
- Check your trolling lines regularly. There are numerous reasons a trolling line can get messed up. A swimming plug may go off the path and hook another line.
- Troll against the current since most fish swim towards the current.
The Bottom Line
Trolling is still one of the most reliable ways to catch big striped bass for beginner and professional anglers. Many different striper lures, baits, and techniques can be trolled.
Finally, you should keep your baits clean and remove all weeds and dirt before casting them back, thus will assist in maintaining their durability.