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Author Topic:   Trolling for Dorado, Yellowtail and Tuna

sdwhaler17 posted 08-23-2012 03:00 PM ET (US)
Southern California has had a warm water summer this year (temps as high as 74 or 75 degrees locally). This has brought on a deluge of pelagics north into the local, small boat fishing range. (10-15 miles off-shore and closer)
This weekend I will be trolling feathers, cedar plugs, zukers etc from my 17 whaler on the floating kelp paddys just like many other boaters in Southern California fleet.
I have gotten some advice on how far back to troll for various lures. Mostly guys refer to 3 wakes back or 5 wakes back etc.
I've never thought about it this way before. Can anyone describe this, is it as simple as counting the crests of the wakes generated? Typical trolling speeds are 3-8 mph depending on what you are trolling.
If I get so lucky as to catch a local Dorado, I will be sure to post some pictures.
John S
tomol posted 08-23-2012 04:32 PM ET (US)
Count the low humps in the water directly astern.
Be prepared to experiment and adapt when you're out there. When trolling for tuna in my old Montauk it was amazing how frequently the furthest lure back would get hit no matter how far back the spread was. I could never explain it.
For yellowtail, different story. We tolled big Rapala's for them, and the ones that got hit the most were in the exhaust bubbles, and only if we were going at 8 or 9 knots, which looks silly with your rods bent so much when you're trolling, but most people pull them too slow.
Brace yourself. There are going to be LOTS of boats out there this weekend. Your best bet will be to troll outside all the knucklheads tucked up against the paddy. Dorado in particular will patrol a couple of hundred yards or more from the weeds.
sternorama posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US)
good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
sternorama posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US)
good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
sternorama posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US)
good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
sternorama posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US)
good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
anthonylisske posted 08-29-2012 06:53 AM ET (US)
Good advice given above. Ride the lures on the backside of the wake. Every once in a while, slow down or accelerate a little. Maybe even a little side to side slalom movement with boat. It will cause the lures to act differently (lures on inside of turn will slow vs the opposite on outside). Take note if you get hits during these changes. If it hits the outside lure on a turn, then maybe kick up your trolling speed a little. Stuff like that.
Best of luck. In any case, it will be fun.
jtms posted 08-29-2012 08:48 AM ET (US)
Every boat pulls lures differently and the conditions will dictate this as well. I fish on the east coast and fishing is probably much different, but I was always concerned about how the lures looked versus sticking to a certain set distance behind the boat.
We always had one line well behind the others swimming all by itself and this is the one that normally caught the largest fish.
sdwhaler17 posted 08-30-2012 05:41 AM ET (US)
Starting to get the feel of it. Probably put 25+ miles on my boat last weekend. Left Mission Bay for La Jolla, played with the barracuda for a bit... got bored and started West in calm seas. Probably went 7 or 8 miles off shore. Started trolling off and on hoping for a blind jig strike while looking for kelp paddys.
We followed the ridge south to nine mile bank. Finally found a floating kelp paddy holding no fish but threw bait to a 6 or 7 foot mako shark that kept my diver/partner in the boat. Found two more paddys for nothing later in the day.
Headed back into the point loma kelp, quickly pulled in a several calico bass, in the 3-4 lb range and called it a day.
Heading back out this Friday, will try again. The biggest issue i am having is spotting the paddys from my 17' Newport. I realize how important it is to have some height to spot these things.
I have big advantages over the big boats when fishing the beach and the kelp.
I lose all of that going off shore. If the wind is completely calm i can do okay. Here is a smaller (10 lb) yellowtail i caught trolling a rapala the other weekend.
http://i484.photobucket.com/albums/rr206/john_sedgwick/ Yellowtail%208%2010%202012/2012-08-10130447.jpg
Bigeye posted 09-01-2012 12:05 AM ET (US)
Nice yellowtail.
Bigeye posted 09-01-2012 12:05 AM ET (US)
Nice yellowtail.
padrefigure posted 09-06-2012 08:32 AM ET (US)
Just for a different perspective, you might check out The Hull Truth or 2coolfising for trolling advice. In the Gulf or Mexico, I generally troll three lines from my Outrage 22. I run an Islander down the center, far back, maybe 200 feet. On the corners, I run on the face of the 2 and third wake. Speed is 6-7 MPH, faster if the seas permit. On the short corner, I usually use a rubber band to hold the line at low angle by looping it through the lifting eye on that corner. When a fish hits, the rubber band pops and it is game on. Generally run bigger baits close to the boat. The limit on speed is the lure that you run--tuna, mahi, baracuda, etc. can swim 30 MPH, so there is no danger of out runnning them. Pick the maximum speed that your lures track best. Trolling lures (Pakula, Islander, jet heads, etc.) can be run faster than plugs.
sdfish posted 09-06-2012 11:05 AM ET (US)
Hey John,
I do the same fishing in my boat (17 whaler) and have had similar results. My boat is converted Super Sport to center console, I have the lower bow rails and a much smaller console.
I have trolled the 9 mile, 182 and on the way out to the 302 this year.
Last time out, we found lots of paddys, only one yellowtail wanted to play. We fished about 15 miles west of Oceanside harbor.
Just a matter of time till we get something. The fish seem to be coming closer!
I have had great luck on my friends boat (26 Skippy) about 60 miles south at the tuna pens. The only fish I have got on the troll with them this year was 37 lb albie this past weekend.
All of our bluefin, dorado and YT have been on paddy stops with bait.
There is a definate advantage of a taller boat when looking for paddys. On my boat, my buddy stands on the bow holding a dock line tied up to the front cleat to keep himself steady.
Shoot me a pm if you have any questions.
Sebastian
sdfish posted 09-06-2012 11:10 AM ET (US)
John - Do you have a bait tank on your boat? Out here you are at a serious disadvantage without it. I can send you pics of my set up if you are interested. Sebastian
sdwhaler17 posted 09-09-2012 02:00 AM ET (US)
I do have a bait tank, its a Kodiak with a pretty basic external pump that works pretty well. I often end up with a good amount of dead bait. I think that going long distances in a small boat in choppy seas tends to kill the bait more than anything else. I have had better luck when the seas are very calm.
lizard posted 09-09-2012 02:55 AM ET (US)
sdwhaler- what size Kodiak tank do you have and where is it mounted on the boat? That makes a big difference, coming out of the MB channel, which can be gnarly. I have two bait tanks I may be selling. One Kodiak and one integrated leaning cushion/bait tank/ storage area. The integrated one is likely too big for a Montauk.

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Author	Topic: Trolling for Dorado, Yellowtail and Tuna
sdwhaler17	posted 08-23-2012 03:00 PM ET (US) Southern California has had a warm water summer this year (temps as high as 74 or 75 degrees locally). This has brought on a deluge of pelagics north into the local, small boat fishing range. (10-15 miles off-shore and closer) This weekend I will be trolling feathers, cedar plugs, zukers etc from my 17 whaler on the floating kelp paddys just like many other boaters in Southern California fleet. I have gotten some advice on how far back to troll for various lures. Mostly guys refer to 3 wakes back or 5 wakes back etc. I've never thought about it this way before. Can anyone describe this, is it as simple as counting the crests of the wakes generated? Typical trolling speeds are 3-8 mph depending on what you are trolling. If I get so lucky as to catch a local Dorado, I will be sure to post some pictures. John S
tomol	posted 08-23-2012 04:32 PM ET (US) Count the low humps in the water directly astern. Be prepared to experiment and adapt when you're out there. When trolling for tuna in my old Montauk it was amazing how frequently the furthest lure back would get hit no matter how far back the spread was. I could never explain it. For yellowtail, different story. We tolled big Rapala's for them, and the ones that got hit the most were in the exhaust bubbles, and only if we were going at 8 or 9 knots, which looks silly with your rods bent so much when you're trolling, but most people pull them too slow. Brace yourself. There are going to be LOTS of boats out there this weekend. Your best bet will be to troll outside all the knucklheads tucked up against the paddy. Dorado in particular will patrol a couple of hundred yards or more from the weeds.
sternorama	posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US) good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
sternorama	posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US) good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
sternorama	posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US) good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
sternorama	posted 08-29-2012 02:04 AM ET (US) good local advice-i might try that out of the OC on Friday...
anthonylisske	posted 08-29-2012 06:53 AM ET (US) Good advice given above. Ride the lures on the backside of the wake. Every once in a while, slow down or accelerate a little. Maybe even a little side to side slalom movement with boat. It will cause the lures to act differently (lures on inside of turn will slow vs the opposite on outside). Take note if you get hits during these changes. If it hits the outside lure on a turn, then maybe kick up your trolling speed a little. Stuff like that. Best of luck. In any case, it will be fun.
jtms	posted 08-29-2012 08:48 AM ET (US) Every boat pulls lures differently and the conditions will dictate this as well. I fish on the east coast and fishing is probably much different, but I was always concerned about how the lures looked versus sticking to a certain set distance behind the boat. We always had one line well behind the others swimming all by itself and this is the one that normally caught the largest fish.
sdwhaler17	posted 08-30-2012 05:41 AM ET (US) Starting to get the feel of it. Probably put 25+ miles on my boat last weekend. Left Mission Bay for La Jolla, played with the barracuda for a bit... got bored and started West in calm seas. Probably went 7 or 8 miles off shore. Started trolling off and on hoping for a blind jig strike while looking for kelp paddys. We followed the ridge south to nine mile bank. Finally found a floating kelp paddy holding no fish but threw bait to a 6 or 7 foot mako shark that kept my diver/partner in the boat. Found two more paddys for nothing later in the day. Headed back into the point loma kelp, quickly pulled in a several calico bass, in the 3-4 lb range and called it a day. Heading back out this Friday, will try again. The biggest issue i am having is spotting the paddys from my 17' Newport. I realize how important it is to have some height to spot these things. I have big advantages over the big boats when fishing the beach and the kelp. I lose all of that going off shore. If the wind is completely calm i can do okay. Here is a smaller (10 lb) yellowtail i caught trolling a rapala the other weekend. http://i484.photobucket.com/albums/rr206/john_sedgwick/ Yellowtail%208%2010%202012/2012-08-10130447.jpg
Bigeye	posted 09-01-2012 12:05 AM ET (US) Nice yellowtail.
Bigeye	posted 09-01-2012 12:05 AM ET (US) Nice yellowtail.
padrefigure	posted 09-06-2012 08:32 AM ET (US) Just for a different perspective, you might check out The Hull Truth or 2coolfising for trolling advice. In the Gulf or Mexico, I generally troll three lines from my Outrage 22. I run an Islander down the center, far back, maybe 200 feet. On the corners, I run on the face of the 2 and third wake. Speed is 6-7 MPH, faster if the seas permit. On the short corner, I usually use a rubber band to hold the line at low angle by looping it through the lifting eye on that corner. When a fish hits, the rubber band pops and it is game on. Generally run bigger baits close to the boat. The limit on speed is the lure that you run--tuna, mahi, baracuda, etc. can swim 30 MPH, so there is no danger of out runnning them. Pick the maximum speed that your lures track best. Trolling lures (Pakula, Islander, jet heads, etc.) can be run faster than plugs.
sdfish	posted 09-06-2012 11:05 AM ET (US) Hey John, I do the same fishing in my boat (17 whaler) and have had similar results. My boat is converted Super Sport to center console, I have the lower bow rails and a much smaller console. I have trolled the 9 mile, 182 and on the way out to the 302 this year. Last time out, we found lots of paddys, only one yellowtail wanted to play. We fished about 15 miles west of Oceanside harbor. Just a matter of time till we get something. The fish seem to be coming closer! I have had great luck on my friends boat (26 Skippy) about 60 miles south at the tuna pens. The only fish I have got on the troll with them this year was 37 lb albie this past weekend. All of our bluefin, dorado and YT have been on paddy stops with bait. There is a definate advantage of a taller boat when looking for paddys. On my boat, my buddy stands on the bow holding a dock line tied up to the front cleat to keep himself steady. Shoot me a pm if you have any questions. Sebastian
sdfish	posted 09-06-2012 11:10 AM ET (US) John - Do you have a bait tank on your boat? Out here you are at a serious disadvantage without it. I can send you pics of my set up if you are interested. Sebastian
sdwhaler17	posted 09-09-2012 02:00 AM ET (US) I do have a bait tank, its a Kodiak with a pretty basic external pump that works pretty well. I often end up with a good amount of dead bait. I think that going long distances in a small boat in choppy seas tends to kill the bait more than anything else. I have had better luck when the seas are very calm.
lizard	posted 09-09-2012 02:55 AM ET (US) sdwhaler- what size Kodiak tank do you have and where is it mounted on the boat? That makes a big difference, coming out of the MB channel, which can be gnarly. I have two bait tanks I may be selling. One Kodiak and one integrated leaning cushion/bait tank/ storage area. The integrated one is likely too big for a Montauk.