Spider Rigging Disaster Story

[Ralph Cordell]

I am about ready to try dynamite. Doing hard time would be a snap compared to yesterday. I've been spider rigging for several years but recently "upgraded???" from my old telescopic rods and whatever spincast reeI could find cheap to a set of 8 3-piece 16' trolling rods with Mitchell 310 spin reels. I thought about setting them up (running the line through the guides and tying on jigs) ahead of time since my time on the water is my most precious time but decided not to since I was not sure how I would break them down for transport and did not want to deal with a mess of tangled rods. So yesterday the wife and I head out to the lake (she has never been a big fan of spider rigging). We go to one of our more promising spots, she has her pole in the water and I am putting my 3-piece rods together, running the line through the guides, putting on floats and tying on jigs. After an hour I have 4 put together and am trolling with them. Now that sounds slow but I am serving as Guido the Guide and responding to my wife's comments - "I'm snagged", "this reel doesn't work", "I don't like that green float - I can't see it put the red and white one on" and "I don't like that thin line (6 lb Cajun Red) give me the old reel (spooled with 15 lb mono). So we fish that spot and troll down lake a bit farther to a really nice cove where I've had some great times in the past - including one brush pile that paid off with a couple of fish every time we went over it. We get to cove and bam, within minutes one of the rods is now a "J". Hollaa - only to find a little bass had gone after my black/blue/black jig. Now this lake has a 10-14" slot limit so my fish is legal - albeit on the short side. I'm not that fond of bass filets but the DNR has asked folks to keep their short fish so this one goes into the live well. After 45 minutes of trolling - nothing. Keep in mind I've got 4 more rods that I've even rigged up yet. So I ask the Mrs if she wants to go up river to my all time favorite spot - "Sure Thing Hole". I take the rods out of the holders, hook the jigs onto the hook keepers, rest the handles on the floor with the rods resting on the holders. Fire up the big motor and head up to a place that is about as close to Heaven as I expect to get. When I get there, I find the rods have gotten tangled. Some of the reel handles have caught line from other rods, others have snagged on guides and still others are tied together by line. Now keep in mind that this is describing the condition of only 4 rods - most of them had two or more of these problems. So I pull into a little cove and set to work trying to straighten out the Gordian knot that is my tackle. I get three rods separated, in the rod holders and ready to bait up and am putting new jigs on the fourth when I hear this crackling noise in front of the boat. Looking up I find we've drifted in and about 5' of my three ready to fish rods are buried in the button bush along the shore. What I hauled out was a royal tangle so I just cut the line at the reels and stuck the whole mess in my back pocket after cutting out my jigs and removing my floats. The wife is smart enough to keep quiet during this whole ordeal. The day is drawing to a close and I spend the rest of the time throwing Road Runners parallel to the shore and pushing my one remaining pole. Are you still spider rigging when there is only one pole? ;-) I learn something every time I go fishing. The only problem with the above is that I'm not sure what I learned. I guess my first question would be "how do those of you who spider rig with long rods keep from getting your lines tangled in transit?" With my telescopic rods, I'd collapse them, wrap the line around the rod and put a piece of masking tape over the jigs. I'm thinking of taping sections of toilet paper/paper towel rolls over the guides and jigs. Other suggestions would be appreciated. Just don't tell me to take up golf. I forgot to mention how I fell in the drink while launching my boat - bad idea to try crawling along the rear bumper to the hitch when you have a hard top bed cover - those rascals are slippery and don't give you much to hold on to. To make matters worse - I got my short bass and the Mrs brought home a 13" crappie. Sixty bucks for gas for the boat and six for minnows, I'm going to have to switch to lobster. OTOH - the beautiful day on the lake and the fun of the frustration - priceless.

[BTB]

That is one heck of a story. I do not envy you! I don't have alot of experience with long rods but I do have two 12' rods (2 piece rods). I put them in vertical PVC rod holders when on the water. For road transit, I hook the jig in an top section guide and wrap the line around the pole, then break the rod down and put it in a "Rod Saver" rod holder (mounted horizontally, has black velcro straps to secure rods).


With the three-piece rods, I don't know if you could just take down the top section and store the rod in a rod holder that way. Taking all three pieces apart sounds like it could turn to tangles pretty quick. Good luck and I hope you have a better day of fishing next time you head to the water.

[BigKyd]

Holler at EZ-Pole Holder, he has the solution to your problem.

[Mrs. Crappie Stalker]

First of all, although you have my sympathy, your story was great and you're braver than I am for sure. I spider rig with 10, 11 and 12 foot rods and I don't think I could handle a 16 ft rod without major technical difficulties. Second, being a Mrs. and fisherwoman myself, tell your wife that being able to take care of her own tackle, poles and rigging makes you a happy husband. There only two things I ever ask Paul to help me with - getting the hook out when it's in really deep and helping me get untangled when I get multiple poles tangled up. As far as your line, try the little hair clips. They come in all different sized, just pick the size that will close around your poles. You can clip them on and off one handed and I just clip them on the t-bar of my rod holders so I don't have to hunt them down to put back on. You can get them at Wal-Mart, Target, Fred's, you name it.

[skeetbum]

That is the reason that I stick with 2pc 12' rods. I feel you have to smarter than what you're working with, and I run out of smarts not far past there. Pre-rigging is the hot ticket, and wrapping the line around the rods works real good. Velcro strips with the hook on one side and the loops on the other and you can cut them for the length you want, like for one one rod or 6.My 12's fit inside the boat so they get rigged at home and transported ready. Good luck figuring it out, the rod holders I see others with look like a good option.

[cnorf]

Go look at Cumberland Crappie Custom Rod Holder Home at their rod rack. I have been there and done that with going with "only" 4 rods to fish with and when I get there I cut line on three of them so I can fish with one. I bought one of their rod racks about 3 weeks ago and love it. I have no connection with them except being a very happy, satisified customer. Last time I went, I had 6 rods rigged before I left and "WOW" I had 6 rods untangle and ready to fish. lol.

[Stymie]

You need rod transports.
EZ on Mississippi board or CallShy on Alabama board can help you out.
They both make some good ones.

You might also wanna wrap your lines around the pole before going fast.

[south point]

when I am transporting my long poles to the lake, pre rigged always, I hook the jig on the bottom eye of the top section then break the rod down reeling in slack line as I go. then wrap several wire bread ties around all 3 pieces to keep them neat and as tangle free as possible.
when I get to the ramp, I take my poles out of the rod box and assemble them right before everyone crowds into the boat. now, with the pole assembled and ready to fish, I hook the bottom jig to the hook keeper above the handle, then, with my right hand, I grab the line halfway between the rod tip and the jig. with my left hand, I spin the rod so it twists the line around the rod 6 or 7 times, then loop the line in my right hand over the nearest rod eye. I call it the "long pole wrap". if ya do it to every rod, your tangles will mostly be kept to a minimum. and after a short while it will become second nature to you and you will soon wrap all your poles like this.

[skeetbum]

South Point, I do the same thing but I call it the rod box twist. If you don't do it with rods in a rod box, you'll invent some new words. Good advice.

[jimp]

jeeze, what a day you had, which is exactly why I use 7', and the occassional 8' rod, but I don't spider rig either. Another reason for me NOT to SR as well. You'll figure a method to control the rods after some more practice.