LURE~FISHING IN DEEP
LAKES & LOCHS
by Gordon Sinclair
& edited by Nick Caine
LURE~FISHING
IN DEEP
LAKES & LOCHS
by
Gordon Sinclair
& edited by Nick Caine
INTRODUCTION
The lure of deep lakes and lochs is not easy to resist
— within their hidden depths lurk some tantalising predators: char, ferox
trout, pike, salmon, sea- and brown trout if you're lucky ...... and lucky and
skilful is what you'll have to be to catch some of these special quarry that
have evolved and adapted to those deep, cold waters over millennia.
Lure-fishing
for ferox trout and char usually means trolling lures at great depths using
downriggers, with fish-location further aided by using a depth/fish-finder;
without such an instrument, in very large deep lochs, the needle-in-a-haystack
syndrome comes into play.
That's said, in the warmer months, fish such as brown trout can be taken much closer to the surface, and as for pike, they can also often be found in the shallower margins and inlets, especially near their spawning grounds.
In this article we hope to give you some hints and tips about how to tackle what can otherwise be very daunting, difficult and disappointing fishing.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE RULES
- OK?!
For
sure, whether you're fishing the loch and lakes of Ireland, Scotland or Wales,
and the reservoirs of England, you will find that success comes all the more
quickly if you use local knowledge of whatver kind you can get or afford.
Taking to local anglers or paying for the advice of local ghillies always pays dividends because without it, you're fishing blind, and almost bound to blank.
BOATS & TROLLING
In order to
cover even the tinest fraction of a massive loch, you need a boat, a fish-finder
and some trolling gear including heavy down-riggers.
It
always makes good sense to fish in company and to wear proper life-jackets (not
just buoyancy-aids), and so you can, for example, troll with two rods on down-riggers
and two rods closer to the surface.
Trollernostering
If you can't get hold of a downrigger set-up, don't despair! There's a simple and cheap way to get your lures down deep and to keep them there, and that's to use a paternoster-style rig, modified for trolling, often called trollernostering. Here's how to do it:-
TACKLE
– RODS & REELS
For deep loch fishing, trolling from a boat, you won't do better than a short,
stiff, strong bait-caster rod & multiplier reel set-up — see
the separate Article in our Tackle Section.
Although a jerk-bait rod will suffice
too, I prefer something a tad softer, but that's just personal preference.
These
days there's a huge choice of very good multiplier reels, and at non-rip-off
prices too. Personally, I think you have to go a very long way to best the classic
ABU Ambassdeur ranges. I have tried quite a few others e.g. Shimano, Penn etc.,
but for whatever reason, I still seem to migrate back to my ABUs.
TACKLE
– LINES: Monos, Braids & Fusion
When
you're trolling in deep loch with loads of line out, you don't want a line with
a lot of stretch if you're to stand the best chances of setting the hooks at
extreme range. Personally I set great store by what I regard as Berkley's excellent
range of Trilene monofils. For troller-nostering in deep lochs my favourite
is Trilene SensiThin with a BS of 20 kg (44 lb).
Over the years I have tried to resist moving to Spectra and Dyneema super-braids, and to stick with good tough, abrasion-resistant monos such as the latest generation of co-polymer ones and there are some to be had that don't stretch very much, just the right amount to give an vital bit of shock resistance.
However,
despite their high price and relatively poor abrasion resistance I have been
lured by their low stretch and high sensitivity and have finally succumbed to
the temptation; I have still stuck with Berkley though! 
Their
Fireline fusion braid suits me just nicely because it behaves very much like
my normal monos but has many of the qualities of the superbraids that I like.
I have tried a quite a few of these newish Superbraid lines and the one I prefer
for deep-water fishing, especially trolling, with a downrigger, is PowerPro.
But as far as which mono, fusion or braided line is best for you, only you can find that out — these are just my own personal pointers. They are loads of lines around to choose from and some of the reviews in the Tackle Test Section on this website maybe be of further help in pointing you in the right direction.
A pal of mine swears by sinking braids for troller-nostering and it certainly makes sense; he uses a couple of types, Masons Tiger Braid, I think one's called, and the other is a sinking version of Berkley's Whiplash Pro.
TACKLE
– TRACE-WIRES
I
always fish with a trace, period! In most of the big deep lakes & lochs
that I fish, hopefully there's always a good chance of catching a nice pike
and so it would be foolish not to use a wire trace.
There are loads of different types around but for this sort of lure-fishing I tend to use the wires that I have for my sea-fishing. OK so they may affect lure action more than a tad, but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Just about any wire of around the 50 lb BS mark or higher will be more than adequate.
LURES
for Lochs: PLUGS
I make no apologies for plugging Rapalas because in my opinion, they've always
been top fish-catchers — not cheap but very good! Even when you're using
a downrigger or troller-nostering to get your lures deep down, it's still a
good idea to use sinking or suspending plugs.
I
like the Rapala Sinking Magnum is that mackerel blue & white pattern, or
the new CountDown (sinking) Super Shad Rap in a bright colour.
There's
always a big debate about what colours and patterns are best for deep water
where there's very little light sometimes.
I prefer either blue/white
or bright yellow or orange fluorescent colours. The Deep Down Suspending Husky
Jerk is another of
my favourite Rapalas because this has a particularly good action when trolled.
I like the Clown colour best.
Of course Rapalas aren't the only suitable plugs around; there are loads of other brands to choose from. But whichever brand you pick for lure fishing in deep lochs and lakes, make-sure that they don't lose most of their action when they're trolled.
LURES
for Lochs: SPOONS
Heavy spoons with a good trolling action are another way to get down to those
murky depths where the ferox trout and char may be lurking. There are myriads
of different spoons available and it's quite an impossible job to chose or recommend
a sure-fire winning spoon, because there's no such thing!
When
the going gets tough as it usually does on deep lochs, I always fall-back on
my old faithfuls, and when it comes to spoons, you'll have to go a very long
way to better the Kuusamos. Once again, I go for a blue-white pattern or a bright
fluorescent one.
LURES
for Lochs: SPINNERBAITS
I wasn't
sure whether or not to put spinnerbaits at the top of my list of recommendations
for loch & lake fishing, especially trolling but make no mistake, spinnerbaits
are a great all-round lure, and 
are
fairly snagless into the bargain. I go for big heavy ones, with blue, silver
or white blades and skirts, or, in complete constrast, brightly coloured fluorescent
ones. For sure there is no one right answer, but it's easy enough to try both
sorts.
LURES
for Lochs: JERKBAITS
Jerkbaits can be staggering
successful lures, especially for piek and especially in mid-water and towards
the surface. The advent of sinking versions can overcome the previous problem
of control and adding action to jerkbaits at great depths, for example, when
trolling. And as for which jerkbaits to try, I'd suggest some of the big fluorescent-coloured
ones or, if you're trolling quite slowly, then a BullDawg type of soft plastic
jerkbait sometimes gets results.
LURES
for Lochs: SPINNERS
Personally, I feel that big spinnerbaits will out-fish spinners almost every
time in venues like these, but there's still the odd occasion or two when they'll
deliver something when everything else has failed. Mepps are pretty much unbeatable
still, and I use their Musky & Giant Killer spinners.
Once
again, I prefer blue & white patterns or the complete constrast of bright
fluorescent yellow, red and orange spinners, and once again it's a matter of
trying both types to see what happens.
LURES
for Lochs: MID- & TOP-WATER
You can of course fish your normal lures in mid-water or run them very close
to the surface. This can be a good technique in the warmer months, for tempting
the odd big fat trout or two. Equally, moving towards the shallows, feeder river
and stream inlets and other features, often yields good dividends if pike are
what you're after.
LURES
for Lochs: FLIES
In case you thought that I'd forgotten flies as good lures for most deep loch
predators, I haven't — it's just that the Editor says that they're for
another separate article for another day!
SUMMARISING THE SPECIES
As with lure fishing almost anywhere else too, when you're fishing deep lakes
and lochs, you never know what you're going to catch, because the lures I have
suggested wil tempt the big specimens of all the resident species, salmon, trout
of all sub-species including ferox, char, and of course pike. it's all part
of the fun, challenge and excitement, but if you want to make sure that you're
safe to fish for another day, as they say, please remember always to wear a
life-jacket (not a simple flotation aid) when you're going afloat, and make
& take all the other essentials and precautions.
Please
e-mail any comments or feedback to me,
Gordon Sinclair
or to Brian Barwell (Deputy Editor)
or to Nick Caine (Managing Editor)
via this email address:-
NickCaine
@ Talk21.com
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