Deeper Divers, TripZ Divers Join Fish Hawk Electronics

Posted on September 18, 2012 by trevorsumption

Brainerd, MN September 18, 2012 – Grayden Outdoor, LLC. announced today it has purchased the assets of the patented and trade-marked Deeper Diver and TripZ Diver product lines originally introduced by Walker Downriggers. The Deeper Diver and TripZ Diver will join Fish Hawk Electronics as part of Grayden Outdoor’s growing line of trolling products.

“The addition of the Deeper Divers and TripZ Divers makes sense for us because we share many of the same customers,” said Trevor Sumption, Grayden’s president. “Initially we’re going to focus on getting everything in-stock. From there we believe we can expand the use of divers in several fisheries, and beyond that we’ve got plans to add new technology to divers in the near future.”

Deeper Divers are directional sinkers available in five sizes that allow trollers to target fish from just below the surface all the way past 120-feet. Deeper Divers get down fast and stay down until tripped. The bottom weight can be adjusted (without a screwdriver) allowing the angler to select how far to the port or starboard side they want the Deeper Diver to run. They are offered both in fish-attracting colors and stealth finishes like clear and black, and are staple for catching Great Lakes salmon, trout, and walleye.

The buoyant TripZ Diver features the same trip-release mechanism found on the Deeper Diver, which allows anglers to fight the fish instead of the diver. It has been a fish-catching hit on Lake Erie when fished under planer boards for walleyes, and today is an under-utilized tool in a variety of other trolling situations. Available in sizes that reach 20, 30, 40, and 50-feet respectively, TripZ Divers will be offered in seven proven- effective color patterns, plus they have an internal rattle that attracts fish and helps them dive more quickly.

Launching later this fall, the new website—trollingdivers.com—will be a resource for anglers looking for more information on fishing with divers, including expanded dive charts, rigging tips, and detailed information from top charter captains and tournament fishermen from around the Great Lakes and other fisheries.

About Grayden Outdoor, LLC. – Founded in 2009 and based in Minnesota’s lake country, Grayden Outdoor’s brands include Fish Hawk Electronics, Original Catch Cover ice fishing products, and now Deeper Divers and TripZ Divers. Because it’s a family owned and operated small business, Trevor’s boat mostly sits on the trailer, but looks really good in the driveway.

Detecting and Reacting to Deep Currents

Posted on September 18, 2012 by trevorsumption

By Dave Mull

Have you ever been trolling on the Great Lakes and noticed a boat pretty far behind you, trolling on the same heading? You may have watched that boat gain on you, draw even and buzz on by. Your speed-over-ground on the GPS says you’re going 2.5 mph, and maybe the surface speed monitored by the paddlewheel on your sonar’s transducer says the same thing. You think to yourself that 2.5 mph is perfect for the lures you have down on downriggers and diver disks, and marvel that the guy driving the other boat must be pushing it close to 4 mph—way too fast for most salmon or walleye applications. Yet you can’t help but notice—with no small degree of envy—that the speedy boat’s crew is waving the net around like it’s a checkered flag at a finish line.

Why were they catching fish while you weren’t? That boat probably had a speed-and-temp probe that detected a following current. While that crew knew the exact speed of their lures down below, the following current was pushing your lures from behind and making them drag along lifelessly.

Currents are a fact of life on the Great Lakes and many other big bodies of water. Scientists who study such things tell us that surface currents in large lakes and estuaries flow at approximately 45 degrees to the direction of the prevailing wind. This direction of flow results from the Coriolis force from the earth’s rotation—the same force that causes the whirlpools in your bathtub to spin counter-clockwise.

Deep water currents below the surface move at progressively greater angles to the wind the greater the distance from the surface. The deepest currents flow in an opposite direction to the wind. These currents are far less apparent than the tides of the world’s oceans, but just as measurable if you have the right equipment.

I personally have the Fish Hawk X-4 on the current project boat and would rather get rid of sonar and GPS than the speed-and-temp. No question these things help catch more fish. First, they help locate the thermocline where water abruptly changes from warm to cold—a natural barrier that concentrates bait and fish. Plus they allow you to find the depths where the water temperature is ideal for the species you’re pursuing (for instance, many good anglers agree that big kings like 43 degrees).

But just as importantly, they show you how the water is moving down below, and this information lets you know whether to speed up or slow down to get maximum lure action.

In August, I was with my friend Ryan Gilbert aboard his 21-foot power catamaran, Cattitude Adjustment, intently watching his Fish Hawk, installed on his transom, while trolling deep water out of Holland, Michigan. Currents were crazy that day and the fish were deep. We could easily tell when we were in a deep cross current by the way the downrigger cables slanted to port or starboard. Tougher to tell was when we were going against or with a deep current, and that’s where the Fish Hawk was invaluable.

At times, the surface speed (recorded by a paddlewheel on the transom) varied from the down-speed by as much as 2.5 mph. Had we not realized this, trolling against the deep current at a surface speed of 2.5 miles per hour would have made the lures act like they were moving at 5 mph, which means they would have likely been “burning out,” spinning too fast to get a fish to strike. If we were trolling with that down current at 2.5 mph on the surface, our lures would have been just hanging. The would have been going the same speed as the deep current, not wobbling or flashing at all. And chances are, we wouldn’t have known it.

Whether it’s best troll with or against a deep current depends on who you talk to. Some charter captains like trolling with a deep current, moving faster than the current to give the lures proper action. The benefit, they say, is they can cover a lot more water that way, which is true. Think about it. If you have to throttle your boat up to 3.5 mph to pull your lures down below at 2.5 mph, then you’ll cover a mile more lake per hour. On the other hand, if you have to slow to 1.5 mph to make your lures move at 2.5 mph against an oncoming down current, then you’ll be covering a lot less water.

Still, many captains believe they catch more fish going against a deep current, believing the current itself is pushing fish into the boat’s path.

I’ve caught fish moving both with and against the current and believe that on any given day, the fish will strike more readily when lures are coming with the current or moving against it. Some days it doesn’t seem to matter.

So experiment. Eventually you’ll figure out the day’s pattern. And a speed-and-depth probe will help you quickly learn how the fish want it.

Meat Rigs 101

Posted on April 23, 2012 by trevorsumption

by Trevor Sumption
Unless you’ve been hiding in your fish cooler for the last couple years, you’ve probably heard reports about awesome catches of big kings taken on meat rigs. Many anglers, myself included, have used meat as a last ditch effort to get bites on tough days, but most haven’t really learned how to maximize their effectiveness – so I called Netminder Captain George Peplinski and asked him to share his top meat rig fishing tips with us.

Captain George knows a thing or two about fishing meat. Fishing out of Onekama, MI the Netminder averaged 40-bites per day on meat during the 2011 fishing season. George is a member of the Erie Dearie pro-staff and helped Dreamweaver design their new meat rigs.

Top 4 Meat Rig Tips:
Speed control – Capt. George says speed control is absolutely critical when fishing meat rigs. He keeps his probe speed at 2.0 MPH to get the bait to do one roll per second.
Leader length – In cold water Capt. George uses a 32” leader, which gives the rig a snappier action. He switches to a 40” leader in warm water to produce a lazier action.
Big attractors – Capt. George relies exclusively on 10” Spin Doctors on his divers, leadcore, and copper, while an 11” Paddle will always be on the deep chute rigger.
Color – Once Capt. George feels he has found the fish’s color preference, he’ll color coordinate every rig in the water. For example, if blue is the color, he’ll rig a blue bait head, blue teasers, blue flasher, and even a blue diver. Blue, green, and glow are consistently good color choices, and a glow bait head coordinates well with most rigs.

A typical summertime charter set for Capt. George consists of 11 rods featuring: spoons or plugs on the two boom riggers; an 11” Paddle with a meat rig off the deep chute rigger; two wire divers per side – each with a Spin Doctor and meat rig; one leadcore per side off an in-line board – each with a Spin Doctor and meat rig; and one copper line per side off an in-line board – also with a Spin Doctors and meat rigs. In tournaments with a 9-rod limit, he pulls the two boom rigger rods and uses 100% meat. Capt. George will put his Fish Hawk probe on one of those boom riggers without a fishing line on it. This allows him to easily monitor speed throughout the water column and keeps the probe in the water 100% of the time.

A little about the meat itself – most anglers have been using commonly available herring strips, but ballyhoo strips are becoming available now too. Capt. George has not seen a preference from the fish, but does believe that ballyhoo is a little tougher, holding up to 2 fish, and it has brighter silver scales and more flash. Pre-packaged bait strips are available at most tackle shops in popular Great Lakes ports. Or soon you’ll be able to go to eriedearie.com and have bait shipped directly to your house packed in dry ice in a reusable cooler.

If you have questions about meat rig fishing, or are interested in booking a trip to learn the details firsthand, Capt. George encourages you to email him at netmindersportfishing@hotmail.com.

Spring Spoon Fishing Tips

Posted on March 22, 2012 by trevorsumption

By Trevor Sumption

Mild spring weather has created early fishing opportunities throughout the Great Lakes. It seems like most articles I’ve read lately about catching early season salmon and trout focus on using crankbaits or small dodgers with peanut flies. While those two lure types are undeniably very productive, many seasoned captains still prefer a springtime spoon program.

Spoon size is an important consideration. Fishing out of St. Joe, MI in April and May aboard the Sea Screw III, Captain Jerry Lee “matches-the-hatch” and relies on small spoons like Mini-Streaks to imitate the smaller baitfish frequently found in cold spring water. As the water warms he’ll start using standard and mag Silver Streaks, but he’s not afraid to use larger spoons in cold water if larger baitfish are in the area.

Also fishing out of St. Joe in the spring, MI-HI Capt. Steve Martin believes small spoons have the best action when fished on short leads off the downriggers. When fishing smaller spoons, Martin sets his spoons 6-feet behind the cannonballs.

Russell Gahagan, Manager of the Angler’s Avenue tackle store in Sheboygan, WI says that any color spoon will work in the spring – as long as its orange! While some anglers use lighter line when fishing small spoons, Russell still runs 20lb test line. “I feel that individual spoons have the perfect action and produce better than others of the same brand and color. When I find one of those special spoons, I don’t want to lose it!”

Chartering in Lake Huron for over 35-years, Capt. Ed Retherford mixes mini-Streaks with orange Brad’s Thin Fins fished on three and five colors of leadcore off in-line planer boards to catch early season Atlantics and browns in the Alpena area.

I like the simplicity of running a spread of spoons. They catch fish at a wide range of speeds, and if you find yourself on a wide-open coho bite its easier to unhook fish and get lures back in the water fast!

Salmon Fever: Scratch the itch at the sport shows

Posted on February 12, 2012 by trevorsumption

Salmon Fever is tough to cure in February. Even though serious salmon fishing action is still months away for me, I find myself daydreaming about it already. I’ve got it especially bad this year because I’ll be on the Great Lakes in a new (used) boat this season, and I’ve been talking to guys who have been catching fish trolling near the beaches all ice-less winter.

I leave for the Duluth Boat Sports and Travel Show this week. Talking to customers at the show might help reduce the fever some. Then again, maybe seeing new tackle and talking about fishing isn’t such a good idea…

Speaking of sport shows, here is a piece that Dave Mull wrote recently about the importance of Speed and Temp Probes:

2012 Fishing Electronics: Speed ’n‘ Temp Probes

By Dave Mull

With the array of fine sonar and mapping units available to help anglers catch more fish, speed-and-temp probes don’t get much attention. Yet, many anglers who have these probes wouldn’t trade them for the finest fishfinder/GPS unit in existence. These anglers have learned that knowing the water temperatures below and how sub-surface currents are affecting their lures can really help catch more fish.

With the sport show season beginning, you might find your best deal of the year on one.

Speed ’n‘ temp probes are mainly tools for trollers, who install a probe on a downrigger cable above the ball. The probe has a thermometer and a speed-recording paddle wheel on it and sends the temp and speed info to a display unit in the boat.

This information comes topside either through the downrigger cable, which is then hard-wired to the display unit, or, in the case of the Fish Hawk, the probe beams the information to a transducer mounted on the transom. The upside to the Fish Hawk is that the others need special, coated cable on the downrigger whereas the Fish Hawk can use any downrigger cable; even the stealthy superlines and mono that some anglers prefer. Moor Electronics, Cannon and Kell Labs all have units that require the coated cable.

Why are speed-and-temp units so useful for trolling? For one, many species of fish, including salmon, brown trout, lake trout, steelhead and (to a lesser extent) walleyes have distinct preferences for a certain range of temperatures. By finding that temperature with the probe, anglers can concentrate their lures for their targeted species at that depth. For instance, captains have found that Great Lakes brown trout like water temperature between 49 and 54 degrees. In the summer, the surface temperature might be 70 degrees, while 54-degree water is 50 feet down. By setting lines along the kind of vertical structure that attracts browns, and 50 feet down, the anglers have greatly increased their chances for putting lures in front of browns. Another example: Great Lakes captains have compared notes and found that their biggest king salmon are caught in water temperature from 39 to 43 degrees. By focusing their spread at depths where this water temperature exists, they know they are upping the odds of hooking into bigger fish.

Trollers also like to know how subsurface currents are affecting their lures set well below the surface, and speed-and-temp probes do this effectively, too. Many newcomers to trolling the Great Lakes don’t realize that subsurface currents might be pushing against or behind their lures. When they come against a lure, currents might cause that lure to wobble too fast and even “burn out.” When a current is following a lure, it can cause it to just dangle and not wobble much at all.

With its paddle wheel down at the downrigger ball, a speed probe relays this important information to the angler. When trolling against a subsurface current, the angler must slow his boat way down to keep the lure working at optimal speed; when trolling with a current, the angler must speed up to get the lures down there to act properly. Knowing what the currents are doing at depth is nearly impossible without a speed probe.

Sports show season begins in January, with lots of retailers offering good deals on lots of different things. It’s a great time to shop for a speed-n-temp probe, perhaps the best new piece of electronics you can mount on your boat to help you catch more fish.