Sk8man

You might be able to save some gas in checking things out initially by fishing right out from the marina itself if you are going to jig. There are nearly always lake trout lurking about out there. Just head right straight out of the mouth of the breakwall in the center of the marina and watch your depth finder.... for bait and or fish. They will usually be bottom oriented there (lakers and in shallower sometimes browns). if nothing of interest there head to your right (north) on a diagonal toward the beach area (still on the east side) gradually going deeper. They could be in 40 ft or 125 ft right now not sure....but there should be lake trout there. If not successful there keep heading slowly north on the east side and you will see a point and a building there they used to call the Officers - Club try fishing straight out from it or slightly north in 70-120 ft. I'm pretty sure you will connect with lakers at least at some point through there and still fishing, pulling copper and jigging are the best ways to hook up with them in those areas.

If you have the type with rings and are they staying in place? I used to have to use hot glue on the outer edge on some to keep them engaged on the dipsey They are mainly to control depth but if flopping around.....? As far as the L and R I just keep mine in zip locks and label it left or right (port or starboard) with a permanent marker and those are left preset to near 3 so they stay out away from each other and the other stuff.I have others that I make the adjustments on and I often run smaller ones (0) off the outriggers set at zero usually. I might add that the more line or wire you have out they usually head somewhat closer to each other and back a bit and I'm wondering if this is what you are referring to....are you by any chance running them (the rods and rod holder off the back or near the back of the boat? I usually run mine from the center or even some of the front rod holders...to get the dipseys to the side of the boat. where you want them to be....just thinking out loud.....

Good point from Chris Kuba.....

Hey Kuba....I think first of all I'd ditch the snubbers. but the tracking situation could be a number of things - first of all is the actual settings on the dipsey. Make sure the thing that turns to set it is not too loose, secondly make sure it is not set at the outer limit near the 3 because if even a tiny bit past it it will track poorly and sometimes even surface without releasing. Next check your boat speed because it is not just the angle of the rods...look at the angle of your line and slow down and check the position of the dipsey as you do. It also depends on what you are running in back of the dipsey ...if it is something with a lot of action or maybe too large for that particular dipsey it can keep it from working right. Check to see that it is going outward when you turn the boat to the opposite side. If not, jump overboard.... ...just kidding don't do it! Double check the release part of the dipsey to make sure it is engaged properly.

Not bad for "life in fast forward" Andy

I use each of the sizes of divers for different situations and depending on the particular body of water. The smaller ones I use with 20 lb. mono in shallow water or running say 20-45 ft in very deep water and yes they do hit bottom in 40 ft.of water with mono at 2.1 mph on zero setting as evidenced just yesterday. I don't use them for Kings on Lake O that way though. I generally use the medium divers for depths to about 70 ft. and 124mm DEEPER DIVERS for 80-125 ft. on 7 strand wire. The additional thing I do when I want additional depth from divers is use an inline cylindrical weight with an integrated swivel attached between my main line and the diver instead of just letting out more line and risking more tangles. Yes it adds a bit of torque to the rod but not all that much and it does get you deeper unless you are trolling in the ocean at 8-10 mph or perhaps going against very strong underwater currents It also depends to a degree on what you have attached to the diver (e.g. Spin Doc/fly vs. just a spoon). Another thing to do is check out your particular setup behind the boat on the surface and see how it is running (yes it does run somewhat differently sub surface with currents etc.) and try to use lures that you know run at compatible speeds so that you can then adjust your general trolling speed downward so that they all (or most) run well at that speed and yet go deeper. On the Fingers at least often times folks run too fast and cancel out the action of their lures (especially speed sensitive lures like Suttons) and experience "light bites" and poor hook-ups.

If the wind is bad you also have the option of fishing in the Seneca River from either lake for bass.

Not sure where you are located but you may for starters want to pick up one of the Fishing Hotspots maps at someplace like Walmart or Gander Mountain etc. to get a feel of things at least. Most of those maps are good for just getting a feel for places you haven't been before prior to going there....just a thought....

Yeah...I guess the only thing left to brag about is that we have the least competent legislature in the United States

I use the same general set up as flyboy (nice drawing by the way :>) but I use a large duolock snap attached to the 3-way swivel and attach it directly to the Luhr Jensen rudder. I use a 2 pound weight most of the time with large sets of cowbells and roller guide rods with 7 strand wire but depending on depth desired, and specific equipment I'm using I vary the size of cowbells and weights to go with it. I carry an assortment of weights from 4 oz to 32 oz in the boat. I use smaller sets of cowbells on the down riggers (minus weights) and usually use peanuts rather than spin-n-glows. When using the larger cowbells I locate a fixed cheater about 3-4 ft. above the cowbells on a leader sized to place the lure behind the cowbell setup and usually with a heavier spoon on it (e.g. NK 28) so that it places it downward and behind the cowbells and peanut. Very effective for large browns and lakers in the Finger Lakes. I also use mono instead of fluoro on the cowbells to peanut leader because down deep the visibility isn't a factor and I want a little stretch when using wire line. Very sharp heavy duty trebles are a must too.

Good luck and have a great season.

Although you can often catch fish on the way up (or down) while jigging it is primarily a bottom oriented technique...(and especially so in salt water). Lakers are primarily bottom oriented fish and browns often hug the bottom near drop offs. If you indeed have found the thermocline try to find places where it INTERSECTS the bottom regardless of depth and your chances of catching either of those species are increased. Very often suspended lakers in VERY deep water are inactive fish (e.g. out near the barge on Seneca in 500 ft down 250ft) but suspended fish near bait may be active fish. If you mark a cluster or a lot of fish near bait suspended it may be worth drifting and jigging for them if you have calm conditions but this is independent of where the thermocline is located. The essential thing is to properly identify the thermocline (not just clustered algae formations etc.) and to locate specific areas where it intersects the bottom. The thermocline varies with currents and structures throughout the lake and just because you find it at 60-70 ft in one place you shouldn't assume that it will be the same throughout the lake. Just my take on it....hope this helps

I guess the question becomes is 2 or 3 mph faster worth the possibility of over revving my engine and the potential damage associated with it. I did it (went wth faster prop) with a previous boat and couldn't figure out why my engine got so hot .....until I realized what the problem was....luckily no major damage...and I didn't have a tach on that one....

You got me ED....must be old age creeping up on me

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