Top Ten Tips For Spring Brown Trout

Top Ten Spring Brown Trout Tips
By Troy Creasy

Trophy browns like this hog, can be caught on a regular basis if you follow a few simple steps and pay attention to details. Remember, the little things make the difference!

As the ice goes out and the boats go in, anglers across Lake Ontario will be in search of Mr. Bulgy, the brown trout. To help you increase your nearshore catch, I put together a list of what I think are the ten most important items to have in your BT fishing arsenal.

1. Rods. You need to start with a quality rod. The days of the old stiff downrigger rods are gone. Today's lake conditions require light line tactics, and to master this method you have to use a light rod. For years I have used custom made rods that employed a 4 or 5 weight fly rod blank, wrapped on a level wind reel seat. Today, top manufacturers have recognized the need for specialty rods and now, many companies offer numerous models ranging from super soft, to firm yet forgiving. I personally like Okumas 9'6" light action Celilo rod, as it has a soft light tip with enough backbone to handle a heavy trout.

2. Reels. I prefer to use a small level wind that matches my rods. Strapping on a big salmon reel on a small light rod doesn't look or feel right. My Daiwa Millionaires have been nothing short of stellar. I have abused them on the lake and rivers for five seasons now. The problem is they stopped making them, so I have switched several rigs over to my Shimano Tekotas 500 LC. The drag on these reels is unbelievable! Yes, they are pricey, but worth every penny. If $170.00 is out of your price range, Okuma's Convector SD or Magda's all come in smaller sizes with prices to fit any angler's budget.

3. Line. We now have our rod and reel, so of course we need to pack them full with quality cord. Every angler has their favorite line and there are plenty of good ones out there. You need to go light due to the clear water conditions, so I stay with 8-pound from ice out until about the end of May. My choice over the years has always been Maxima, period. This winter I was introduced to Mustad's new line. I have used the Thor on the rivers for steelhead and I am very impressed. I will be trying it on the lake as well and will have a product review on it for the next issue.

4. Leaders. We know how picky a spring brown can be, so we need to go real light with our leaders. Since I am spooled with 8-pound on my reels, I will go with 6-pound fluorocarbon for my leader. Seaguar and Maxima are top in this field.

5. Swivels. Forget the big snap swivel at the end of the leader. Your best bet is to use a small (high quality) barrel swivel between your main line and leader and then tie on a small duolock snap at the end of the leader. The smaller, the better.

6. Lures, spoons and stickbaits. You spend all that hard earned money on the best lures, but are they working properly? Make sure your spoons are kicking properly and that they aren't spinning out of control. Remember to run your stickbaits alongside the boat before you send them out, and vary the speed to be sure they are tracking straight. Make sure it hunts!
I love it when I hear a voice come over the radio stating, we just caught another sea gull. Why is your lure skating across the surface? Even shallow divers will run 1 to 3 feet below the surface; sea gulls generally only pluck bait off the surface. If I catch one gull a year that is too many, yet others seem to do it on a regular basis. Hmmm?

7. Stretch it back and out. If you are not getting strikes, get it out away from the boat. Use courtesy when you are stretching out your planer boards, especially if you are in heavy boat traffic. I try to run no more than 100 feet on each side of the boat. Don't be afraid to send your outside line back 200 feet. Sometimes browns are real spooky and that extra 50 feet or so can make the difference.

8. Don't troll in a straight line, and vary your speed. Auto-pilots are great when you are rigging, but spin that wheel if you want to catch fish. Changing your speed will consistently produce more strikes.

9. Get away from the pack. Why fight traffic. Try to get just inside (shallower) or just outside the main pack. Boats and motors scare the hell out of shallow water trout. If you can pick a line that other boats haven't taken recently, you will take more bites.

10. Finally. Don't get stuck in a rut. What worked yesterday, may not work today. What is working for one boat, may not work for you. We buy all these different lures, put them in the water. They will never take a fish if they only sit in your box.
If you are not happy with your success, make changes.
Good luck.