strawberry question need help?

[Kent]

I usually have my best fishing this time of year at Strawberry. I used to troll almost exclusively, but I am moving more and more to vertically jigging. I haven't made the change because vertically jigging always catches more fish than trolling, I have made the change because I just enjoy vertically jigging more. To catch fish trolling at Strawberry one must be prepared to mix it up. I have had days where one lure was great for an hour or so and then it wouldn't buy a bite -- changed lures and started catching them again. Try a variety of lures (spoons, in-line spinners, Flatfish, a variety of flies from large to small (I have caught fish trolling a fly on my downrigger down 40 feet) dodgers or flashers ahead of your lure and the list goes on. This time of year if I am seeing fish on the fishfinder and not getting hits I usually try speeding up the trolling speed (always troll in S patterns to vary the speed on the lures). I have caught them trolling over 4 mph. Try running your lures from the surface on down to about 45 feet. If all else fails, put on a whole nightcrawler (I prefer using a rebarb hook and a worm threader with the entire curved part of the hook being exposed by running the nightcrawler up the line -- and I rarely deep hook a fish this way) and put it on the downrigger with or without a small dodger or flasher in front of it. Try trolling from right next to the shoreline all the way out into the center of the largest bays. Look around and see where others are fishing, and if you see a concentration of boats some place it usually means either the fishing is good there or has been good recently. If the wind comes up try drift trolling. Sometimes I have done great with a downrigger and other times I have been outfished by someone long-lining monofilament or using leaded line. Any other questions feel free to ask.
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