A downrigger is a device used while fishing using the trolling method, which places a lure at the desired depth. A downrigger consists of a three to six-foot horizontal pole which supports a cannonball, generally 10 to 15 pounds, by a steel cable (generally stainless steel or wire). A clip, also known as a "release," attaches a fishing line to the cannonball weight. The bait or lure is attached to the release.
Downriggers consist of four major components, the weight, cable, pole or boom, and the spool. A fishing line is attached to the downrigger cable by means of a "line release." The weight is normally a five-to-twenty-pound mass of lead which is connected to the stainless steel cable. The spool is brought up either by a manual crank or via an electric motor.
In addition to attaching a lure to the fishing line, an oval piece of metal or plastic (often hammered or curved for reflective purposes) called a dodger or flasher is often used to attract fish from greater distances. The types of lures used to troll with using downriggers range from metal "spoons" that are often decorated using color tape or paint, plastic or rubber "squids", tinsel beaded flies, or painted plastic J-plugs. These all come in a variety of colors, finishes, and glow patterns for various fishing conditions.
The length of fishing line between the downrigger release and the lure is known as the "lead" and this varies in length depending on how far behind the boat the fisherman would like to lure to trail. This fishing line is typically between ten and twenty pound test. When fishing for salmon this lead is often quite lengthy in order to avoid the fish being frightened by the noise of the boat's trolling motor. When many boats are trolling in a small area this often results in crossed lines and tangles which are a detriment to the fishing experience.
The speed at which the lure is pulled through the water has a great impact on success or failure. For this reason fishermen use devices that accurately track speed. Typically, trolling from one to five knots is the range that allows for fish to be caught. This varies from species to species as Chinook Salmon may prefer higher speeds while the more docile Lake Trout may prefer a much slower-moving lure. Trolling motors are used to calibrate this speed more accurately than large outboard motors. Trolling plates may be used with larger motors to slow the boat to the desired speed, although some anglers experience mixed results using plates.
The downrigger should be set at the depth the target fish are schooling. Different species of fish school at different depths, and those depths also change at different times of year. A fish finder is useful determining this depth.
Using a downrigger may be hazardous. Many manmade reservoirs mask submerged trees and other structure beneath the surface. A downrigger's weight may foul on such objects. When such a snag occurs in conjunction with high winds, it may cause a lighter boat to capsize. It is therefore prudent to carry wire cutters to avoid this potentially lethal scenario.
Using a downrigger began in effort to increase productivity of fishing in larger bodies of water. Downriggers are used to troll and maintain the lure's depth in accordance with the thermocline at which the fish species being sought normally feeds. People began using downriggers first in the Great Lakes area. They are now used all over the world to help catch a large variety of fish.
In the Great Lakes, downriggers are used to catch a variety of species including chinook salmon, atlantic salmon, lake trout, brown trout and steelhead.
Recently discovery of an Edward vom Hofe late 1860s-1870s downrigger found local to Niagara Falls and the Salmon River area point to the reelmaker Edward Vom Hofe Brooklyn New York as the father of the modern downrigger. Prior it was thought that the great lakes Michigan anglers had invented the modern rig. However it was intended for the deep water basin fish listed above and most likely prior to the Hydroelectric plant being built on the Niagara River late 1870s. Somehow the device was lost in time due to the construction of the electric plant most likely causing a disruption in the Salmon fishing. Only one of these examples exist today. Not until the 1950s would a device similar to the Vom Hofe design reappear. It is possible that the modern downrigger introduced in the 1950s was copied from another Vom Hofe made device but for now that can not be proven due to the great time span in between the two designs. Edward vom Hofe was a premier tackle smith and reel maker. [1]
There are two main classifications of downriggers today. There are manual downriggers, such as the Scotty Manual Downrigger. There are also electric downriggers such as the Scotty Electric Downrigger. A manual downrigger requires the user to crank the line to retrieve the weight. An electric downrigger utilizes an input screen and has automatic functions controlled by the user with the press of a button.
Trolling is a method of fishing where one or more fishing lines, baited with lures or bait fish, are drawn through the water at a consistent, low speed. This may be behind a moving boat, or by slowly winding the line in when fishing from a static position, or even sweeping the line from side-to-side, e.g. when fishing from a jetty. Trolling is used to catch pelagic fish such as salmon, mackerel and kingfish.
A fishing rod is a long, thin rod used by anglers to catch fish by manipulating a line ending in a hook. At its most basic form, a fishing rod is a straight rigid stick/pole with a line attached to one end ; however, modern rods are usually elastic and generally have the line stored in a reel mounted at the rod handle, which is hand-cranked and controls the line retrieval, as well as numerous line-restricting rings that distribute bending stress along the rod and help dampening down/prevent line whipping and entanglement. To better entice fish, baits or lures are dressed onto the one or more hooks attached to the line, and a bite indicator is used, some of which might be incorporated as part of the rod itself.
A fishing reel is a hand-cranked reel used in angling to wind and stow fishing line, typically mounted onto a fishing rod, but may also be used on compound bows or crossbows to retrieve tethered arrows when bowfishing.
A fishing line is any flexible, high-tensile cord used in angling to tether and pull in fish, in conjunction with at least one hook. Fishing lines are usually pulled by and stored in a reel, but can also be retrieved by hand, with a fixed attachment to the end of a rod, or via a motorized trolling outrigger.
Bass fishing is the recreational fishing activity, typically via rod-based angling, for various game fishes of North America known collectively as black bass. There are numerous black bass species targeted in North America, including largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, spotted bass or Kentucky bass, and Guadalupe bass. All black bass species are members of the sunfish family Centrarchidae.
Fly fishing is an angling technique that uses an ultra-lightweight lure called an artificial fly, which typically mimics small invertebrates such as flying and aquatic insects to attract and catch fish. Because the mass of the fly lure is insufficient to overcome air resistance, it cannot be launched far using conventional gears and techniques, so specialized tackles are used instead and the casting techniques are significantly different from other forms of angling. It is also very common for the angler to wear waders, carry a hand net, and stand in the water when fishing.
Angling is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod, although rodless techniques such as handlining also exist. Modern angling rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a cranking device for storing, retrieving and releasing out the line, although Tenkara fishing and traditional cane pole fishing are two rod-angling methods that do not use any reel. The fish hook itself can be additionally weighted with a denser tackle called a sinker, and is typically dressed with an appetizing bait to attract and entice the fish into swallowing the hook, but sometimes an inedible fake/imitation bait with multiple attached hooks is used instead of a single hook with edible bait. Some type of bite indicator, such as a float, a bell or a quiver tip, is often used to relay underwater status of the hook to the surface and alert the angler of a fish's presence.
A winch is a mechanical device that is used to pull in or let out or otherwise adjust the tension of a rope or wire rope.
Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice fishers may fish in the open or in heated enclosures, some with bunks and amenities.
A trolling motor is a self-contained marine propulsion unit that includes an electric motor, propeller and control system, and is affixed to an angler's boat, either at the bow or stern. A gasoline-powered outboard used in trolling, if it is not the vessel's primary source of propulsion, may also be referred to as a trolling motor. The main function of trolling motors was once to keep the boat running at a consistent, low speed suitable for trolling, but that function has been augmented by GPS-tracking trolling motors that function as "virtual anchors" to automatically maintain a boat's position relative to a desired location, such as a favorite fishing spot. Trolling motors are often lifted from the water to reduce drag when the boat's primary engine is in operation.
A fishing lure is any one of a broad category of artificial angling baits that are inedible replicas designed to mimic prey animals that attract the attention of predatory fish, typically via appearances, flashy colors, bright reflections, movements, vibrations and/or loud noises which appeal to the fish's predation instinct and entice it into gulping the lure. Angling activities using lures are known as lure fishing.
In sport fishing, a spoon lure is a fishing lure usually made of lustrous metal and with an oblong, usually concave shape like the bowl of a spoon. The spoon lure is mainly used to attract predatory fish by specular reflection of light, as well as the turbulences it creates when moving in water.
Donner Lake, formerly known as Truckee Lake, is a freshwater lake in Northeast California on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada and about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of the much larger Lake Tahoe. A moraine serves as a natural dam for the lake. The lake is located in the town of Truckee, between Interstate 80 to the north and Schallenberger Ridge to the south. The tracks of the Union Pacific Railroad run along Schallenberger Ridge and closely follow the route of the original transcontinental railroad. The historic route of the Lincoln Highway, the first automobile road across America and US 40 follows the northern shoreline, then climbs to Donner Pass from where the entire lake may be viewed.
In angling, casting is the act of the angler throwing the bait and hook as well as other attached terminal tackles out over the water, typically by slinging a fishing line manipulated by a long, elastic fishing rod. The term itself may also be used for setting out a net when artisanal fishing.
Fishing tackle is the equipment used by anglers when fishing. Almost any equipment or gear used in fishing can be called fishing tackle, examples being hooks, lines, baits/lures, rods, reels, floats, sinkers/feeders, nets, spears, gaffs and traps, as well as wires, snaps, beads, spoons, blades, spinners, clevises and tools that make it easy to tie knots.
Coarse fishing is a phrase commonly used in Great Britain and Ireland. It refers to the angling for rough fish, which are fish species considered undesirable as food or game fish. Freshwater game fish are all salmonids, particularly salmon, trout and char. Generally, coarse fish are freshwater fish that are not salmonids, though there is often disagreement over whether grayling should be classified as a game fish or a coarse fish.
Fishing techniques are methods for catching fish. The term may also be applied to methods for catching other aquatic animals such as molluscs and edible marine invertebrates.
The paravane is a towed winged (hydrofoiled) underwater object—a water kite. Paravanes have been used in sport or commercial fishing, marine exploration and industry, sports and military applications. The wings of paravanes are sometimes in a fixed position, else positioned remotely or by actions of a human pilot. Pioneer parafoil developer Domina Jalbert considered water kites hardly different from air kites. However, paravanes generally orient themselves in respect to the water surface. They may have sensors that record or transmit data or are used entirely for generating a holding force like a sea anchor does. While a sea-anchor allows a vessel to drift more slowly downwind, the paravane travels sideways at several times the downwind speed. Paravanes are, like air kites, often symmetrical in one axis and travel in two directions, the change being effected by gybing, shunting, or flipping over.
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