Trolling LMBs from a kayak?

I have some weekend conflicts so I think I'll mozy on down to Wheeler Branch and fish it from 7 AM until around 1 or so on Friday. The weather is supposed to be a little less hot over the next several days.

I just got in two Railblaza port mounts: 1) a mini port for a pre-existing attachment area on the Propel drive system and I, for now, will just use it for a drink holder I also bought. If I carry it in front of me, I'll be more likely to drink more and stay hydrated. 2) I also purchased a Railblaza StarPort HD and I have mounted it to port. 3) I ordered the Native underseat storage organizer which will hold 2 Plano boxes with some slips, too, for storing and quick access to various utility items (pliers, clips, etc.)

I look forward to trying all of these gadgets out.

So, just curious if anyone ever trolls for LMBs from their kayaks? If so, any specific baits you prefer? Speed? General depth? In deepest water . . . or along the outside edge of vegetation? How far back do you drag the lure? I'll be a novice at this but thought it would be sort of fun to give it a go.

Maybe at some other time, I could give it a go with stripers or sand bass, not sure. Anyway, one rod will be pointing toward the stern.

Brad

never heard of trailblaza. u prob refering to railblaza... Im using YakAttacks & some old Scotty's rod holders as well as the flush mounts that
came standard on my yaks. Trolling is pretty simple & something im very familiar with. in fact i do it more than i cast. Somewhere around 1 mph usually works. If you dont have some kind of GPS aboard you wont know exactly how fast your going. So, just find a nice n slow cruising speed & use 1 pole in the begining. Swimbaits, Topwaters, Shallow Diving baits as well as spinning blades all can work well for many types of bass. b careful around structure. you can easily snag a lure. try different baits, colors n speeds until you find what they want that day. points, stucture n varius covers can & will hold bass. try to locate & target these areas but dont paddle your yak directly over them especially if they r shallow. if you do be stealthy. The time of yr, day, amount of sun light, location, water temps & your speed will all determine your success rate. when you get good you can troll 2 lures. try 3 to achieve wizard level 1
once u find where they r, u can paddle to similar locations n cast or pitch to them also.
wheeler is a special lake, good luck

Thanks, I went back and edited the name just in case someone doesn't see your post correcting my error! A long day!

Brad

And, for the advice, too!

Brad

When I am trolling as a search tool I either troll a spinner bait or soft plastic swimbait on the shallow side of the boat and a crankbait on the deeper side of the boat. This time of year I would use an Alabama rig on the shallow side with lighter weight jig heads and a weighted one on the other side to get it down deeper to look like baits that have been harried from the school to start. Later as the light gets up I would change to a mid to deep crankbait and move further off shore. If you find a pattern then you can stop and cast to them with the bait that is doing the best for you.

For a grass line I would use a spinner bait on top or a super shallow crank like a bandit footloose or a manns one minus on top of the grass and use a crankbait on the grass edge that would go about 3/4 of the way to the bottom. For a hump two crankbaits that would hit the top of the hump and figure 8 them so you regularly make contact.

I used to do this with my trolling motor in prefish with the bass boat\ when I was in to the tournament scene.

Bert,

I hope to give it a go tomorrow and try some of your advice: where to use what and when. I have some nice spinnerbaits and a few crankbaits and swim baits . . . so I'll try these in different spots, see what happens.

Thanks! Brad

All good advise!
I've never really trolled for LMB mainly because they aren't really open water fish and they attack their prey from cover as it swims by.
Finding that cover and getting the lure close enough is going to be the trick to get them out of that cover to go after your lure.
It's a good way to locate the fish and then as mentioned stop and fish the area thoroughly.
If you can see visual cover, grass, stumps/brush, rocks etc. on the shore, and where that cover enters the water that is where you want to fish.
There's saying in the bass fishing world, and that is if you aren't hanging up you aren't fishing in the right spot!

Jimbo,

I'll be out at Wheeler Branch first thing in the AM and, as you may know, the lake is heavy on vegetation. I plan to drop shot most of the day but I want to run along the outside edges of the vegetation and see if something runs my lure down.

I can peddle my Propel at a steady 3 mph, then try slowing it down, speeding up.

I packed a crankbait, a couple of spinnerbaits, and some swim baits to see how it goes.

I'll report back.

Thanks for the advice!

Brad

I like trolling shad crank baits. I've had more luck with these than anything else. My buddy has caught a few trolling a wacky worm but I haven't tried that yet.

I troll whenever I am moving from spot to spot. Can't go wrong with a rat l trap in chrome/blue or black.