Ric66

I use 2 5 gallon buckets on my 17 foot boat. I like them because they are easy to use. Just toss them over. With bags you have more lines in the water to tangle. I do use a large bag when I drift for perch and its a little more difficult to get it deployed. Yes, they do bang on the side of the boat and take up more room. If you go with buckets, drill a hole on the side towards the bottom of the bucket and put a rope through it. When you bring it in pull on that rope and it will empty the bucket. Makes it easy to bring them in without having to stop the boat.

You might also want to get splash guards for your transom. I feel a lot safer now that I have them as I don't have to worry about taking a wave over the transom. Here's a video on how to install them. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=corKMIjGWzE

I wish I had this information when I first started using them years ago. I also used to use two Clorox bottles to float two of these rigs way behind the boat. I could fish them shallower and then have two rigs fished deep straight down from the boat. Caught two large walleye on Hemlock Lake using these. Not so much fun to fish these rigs when it was rough though.

X2- couldn't have said it better. I have 17ft deep V. Pick your days. Mornings and late afternoons the wind often calms down

Was out on lake Ontario today (Sunday) and did great on the perch. Good size and different year were in the mix

X2. Just learned about Veri-Veri sauce this year and its a great easy way to make salmon on the grill. Just don't overcook it like I did yesterday Another great way is to soak fillets in soy sauce for 15-30 minutes, then slab on some kind of creamy salad dressing- ranch, Caesar, Thousand Island, etc and then coat with bread crumbs and put flesh side down on grill, then flip and let cook till done.

Exact same thing happened to me and my friend on Hemlock. That lake is bad since you can't see what's coming over the ridge. Didn't have iphones back then to check radar. And like Lucky said, lightning can strike 10 miles away from the storm and if you can hear thunder, you aren't safe distance away.

Fished there 2 weeks back and did very well on the lakers. Could not get any salmon which was new for me. Fished near King Ferry to the power station. Wire dipseys set on 2 with 125 to 150 feet out with flasher and flies. Downriggers between 60 and 90. I fished early morning mostly. Boat speed between 2 to 2.5 Fleas not too bad.

It is an ever learning hobby but so rewarding when things start to work and this site has helped me so much. Definitely invest in wire dispsey rods and put flasher and flies on them. Honestly, if I had to leave either my dipsey rods or my downriggers at the launch, I'd be waving "bye" to my downriggers. Maybe its because I have more confidence in my dipsey rods when I fish Lake O. I'm not sure about this but I wonder at times if there is too much bait, our offerings go unnoticed. One other suggestion I would make that helps me with my small boat is to use lures that have a wide range of speeds they will work at. That's because with a small boat you get tossed around a lot and it's harder to keep your boat moving at the same speed. I use medium weighted spoons and Spin Drs. For me these seem to work the best especially when speed control is an issue. Keep posting to let us know how you're making out.

I fished Cayuga all last week and had no problem getting lakers to hit on downriggers and I was fishing no where near bottom. If you want to catch really big lake trout then the bottom is where they will probably be but if you are looking for the 3-5lb then you don't need to fish bottom. And you will occasionally get a nice laker OR a nice salmon fishing shallower. I have a 17 foot boat and speed can be an issue. I use a kicker motor and one or two 5 gallon buckets if needed to slow me down to 2 to 2.5, although usually not needed on Cayuga. Someone mentioned dispy rods- the best friend to small boats. I use wire dispy rods with the diver set on 2 with anywhere from 125 to 175 feet with flasher and flies. Early in the day is best. I also use flasher and flies on the downriggers. I am with you- I would get very nervous with my downrigger ball close to bottom on Cayuga unless I knew the area I was fishing like the back of my hand. I've been surprised way too many times on Finger lakes and how fast things shallow up. I caught a downrigger ball on Canadice many years ago on a tree. Not fun. Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Lake trout have always been known as a good eating fish so not sure why either. Maybe it depends on where the lake trout are coming out of.

I usually run a leader that is about the length of the rod I'm using. I use either a snap swivel or sometimes use this wire connector- don't know what they are called but they are used on the Finger lakes when guys are using Seth Green multiple leader rigs. At the other end I just use the snap swivel that comes with the flasher- Spin Drs mostly on my dipsey rods

Wife never liked Lake Trout till I started bleeding the fish. Makes a huge difference.

Love Arima boats. Wish they would start selling them around here. Back to the issue....I hope there is nothing harmful in this algae since we'll have kids swimming there next week when we rent a cottage. I know there are some harmful ones out there and I guess there is no way to tell the difference between harmful and not harmful ones just by looking..

Thanks, guys. I'm going to be spending a week at Cayuga next week with friends and family. It's going to be a little anticlimactic catching Finger lake trout and hopefully some salmon compared to what you can catch on Lake O.