Boating noob question

[LanceL]

I picked up a boat last fall for duck hunting. I would like to set it up for fishing in the off season. I don't need anything fancy, but I would like to set it up for trolling. I know the basic essentials that I will need. My question is, what kind of rigs do most use while trolling for trout? I have heard of pop gear, but I have no idea what it is. It is probably a silly question, but I would just like some advice on what to start with.

thanks.

[liketrolling]

I picked up a boat last fall for duck hunting. I would like to set it up for fishing in the off season. I don't need anything fancy, but I would like to set it up for trolling. I know the basic essentials that I will need. My question is, what kind of rigs do most use while trolling for trout? I have heard of pop gear, but I have no idea what it is. It is probably a silly question, but I would just like some advice on what to start with.

thanks.

get some one to take you trolling in there boat
watch YouTube

dodgers and squids work, you need to put a weight about 2 ft in front of the dodger to get it down. to where the fish are you need a fish finder to see how deep the fish are. rapala lures work .  they dive from 5 to 25 feet   with 100 feet of line out.  if you want it deeper put a weight on.    deer creek in the spring rainbows are in the top 20 feet of water. speed 1.2 to 2 mph

[BoatBallast]

What lakes would you like to troll?

This time of year, you can do well just trolling on top (e.g., throwing lures out the back of the boat and driving forward).  As the summer wears on, you'll need a way to get down, like with pop gear.  I don't find pop gear particularly fun to fish with, but it certainly is an option.  Pop gear is basically a bunch of spinning blades which rotate around a wire line.  You attach your fishing line to the front of the pop gear and then tie some fishing line between the back of the pop gear and your lure or hook with a worm. 

Diving lures can also be useful, especially in shallower lakes.

[obifishkenobi]

I picked up a boat last fall for duck hunting. I would like to set it up for fishing in the off season. I don't need anything fancy, but I would like to set it up for trolling. I know the basic essentials that I will need. My question is, what kind of rigs do most use while trolling for trout? I have heard of pop gear, but I have no idea what it is. It is probably a silly question, but I would just like some advice on what to start with.

thanks.

Robert Liketrolling has given you some good advice, in the spring and fall the fish are up high in the water column and you can catch them on your favorite spinner, spoon, rapala type lures or dodgers and squids long lined, they all work. As somebody else posted pop gear works as well but not nearly as much fun as the gear pulls harder than the fish in many cases. All season fishermen follow the fish down with several tactics, the best being down-riggers. Watch You tube videos to learn tactics and techniques. Other than sling blades and squids my favorite lures are little Cleo spoons and Jakes.

[LanceL]

Thanks for the responses. I will give it a shot.

[wormandbobber]

Simplify. What do you normally fish with? That's what I would start trolling. You don't need fish finders, downriggers, trolling rods, or anything else other than your normal tackle although all of those things can be helpful. Depending on where and what you normally fish for, you should start using the same baits/lures that you normally use (yes, trolling with powerbait on a hook works...).

[SkunkedAgain]

I picked up a boat last fall for duck hunting. I would like to set it up for fishing in the off season. I don't need anything fancy, but I would like to set it up for trolling. I know the basic essentials that I will need. My question is, what kind of rigs do most use while trolling for trout? I have heard of pop gear, but I have no idea what it is. It is probably a silly question, but I would just like some advice on what to start with.

thanks.

Lance, where are you out of and where do you like to fish?  Like was mentioned going along with someone can really shorten your learning curve.  I will add just a little here to reemphasize some points that I think will help you.  One it's sometimes difficult to troll slow enough, if you don't have a fish finder that gives you an accurate speed, you can get an app for your phone that you can use to check your speed.  It's important to keep your speed in the range that the fish will be interested in.  Trout and early season keep it down to about 1.4 works well... If you get chasing summer wiper, then you can open it up to 3 mph, but watch posts and folks mention speed and that will help you out... Make sure you use good swivels on your lures or else you may get a nasty surprise when your line all kinks up.... For trout, I do like the dodger and a squid, usually silver dodger and white, pink or orange squid will work on most days...  You may also like to try trolling a fly, like a wolly bugger in black and purple shades have worked for me.... really fun to catch a trout on the light tackle like a fly while trolling, they will pull the pole out of your hands sometimes... I do this early in the season and early in the day  as well when the fish are up closer to the surface... Good luck and have fun... Jeff

[LanceL]

I am out of Roy. I usually fish within an hour ish. My trout waters are mainly Echo, East Canyon, Lost creek. But I will fish anywhere if I get the urge.

[MrShane]

I am out of Roy. I usually fish within an hour ish. My trout waters are mainly Echo, East Canyon, Lost creek. But I will fish anywhere if I get the urge.

Using weights on your line a head of the lure for summer trout works, but takes fun out of it.
A super versatile method that does not get used much in Utah is leaded line, medium weight pole with moderate action, but throw the pop gear in the trash if you want to enjoy the fight.
Use the leaded line with Jakes, Triple Teasers, Rapalas, dodgers/squids, etc and have fun.
Dang it, I should have kept my mouth shut about this method….

[SkunkedAgain]

I am out of Roy. I usually fish within an hour ish. My trout waters are mainly Echo, East Canyon, Lost creek. But I will fish anywhere if I get the urge.

Using weights on your line a head of the lure for summer trout works, but takes fun out of it.
A super versatile method that does not get used much in Utah is leaded line, medium weight pole with moderate action, but throw the pop gear in the trash if you want to enjoy the fight.
Use the leaded line with Jakes, Triple Teasers, Rapalas, dodgers/squids, etc and have fun.
Dang it, I should have kept my mouth shut about this method….

Not sure if the leaded line is that unpopular, I've used it for decades, but it takes a lot of the fun out of the fight as well.... But it is a great option for catching.... I really like the down riggers for the warmer season, I can use my light tackle and really have fun when I get one on, but you probably won't set one of those up on a duck boat...  Lance good luck and I hope you have fun doing a little trolling, it has always been one of the favorite ways I like to fish... Later J

[LanceL]

This is a lot of good info. Thanks for the input. sounds like there are a lot more options than I realized. I appreciate the help. Now I just have to find the time to put it to use.

[Gone Forever]

I am out of Roy. I usually fish within an hour ish. My trout waters are mainly Echo, East Canyon, Lost creek. But I will fish anywhere if I get the urge.

Using weights on your line a head of the lure for summer trout works, but takes fun out of it.
A super versatile method that does not get used much in Utah is leaded line, medium weight pole with moderate action, but throw the pop gear in the trash if you want to enjoy the fight.
Use the leaded line with Jakes, Triple Teasers, Rapalas, dodgers/squids, etc and have fun.
Dang it, I should have kept my mouth shut about this method….

Not sure if the leaded line is that unpopular, I've used it for decades, but it takes a lot of the fun out of the fight as well.... But it is a great option for catching.... I really like the down riggers for the warmer season, I can use my light tackle and really have fun when I get one on, but you probably won't set one of those up on a duck boat...  Lance good luck and I hope you have fun doing a little trolling, it has always been one of the favorite ways I like to fish... Later 

With some thought I bet I could mount a downrigger on almost any boat.  That said, post picture of boat and I have an older model manual Cannon downrigger I would let go to a BFT member for $50.