Fishing in the wind!!!

[Len]

Was just wondering if any of you fish on windy days and if you use one of those drift anchors or wind socks that can slow the boat down while drifting with the wind.

[fishingpox]

I fish on windy days but, I go to a lake where I can get somewhat of a break. I fish from the front of my boat with the wind in my face if need be. I do not use anything to slow my troll down. I was wondering about those things myself.

[Minus 1]

Hey Fellers::
I read somewhere in this forum where some of you drag chains when fishing with the wind. Are we talking regular 8 foot log chains ?
Thanks:::Ledhed

[whizkids]

I use a wind sock ( sea anchor) when fishing in the wind. I bought a cheap one and I like it very much.

[krappiekrazy]

I use the wind sock. Have been known to drag a few chains too. I use a 3X size. Sometimes if the wind really get up we drag 8FT. of chain off each side of the boat. Tie the chain to a rope. Let enough rope out for the chain to reach bottom. Sometime you just let the chain touch bottom other times you will have to let a 8 ft. touch bottom. This takes time to get it right but it is worth the trouble. Wind sock and two 8 ft. chains will almost stop my boat. Make sure your bilge pump works.

[Crapbie]

Me and my wife saw some guy throw chains over the back of his boat one time and go off fishing, we thought he was doing some illegal type of fishing and debated over reporting him lol. This was right after I read about how you can only keep 5 of certain types of freshwater clams and thought it was some weird style of claming.

So the sound of the chains clanging does not scare off the fish? Can you see them on your depth finder?

[Crappie Chaser]

Yes, using a heavy logging chain (about 25-30 pounds) is great for trolling to keep the boat from drifting too fast with the wind. Tie a rope to the chain when fishing in deeper water. The more links dragging on the bottom, the more resistance it provides to slow the drift. Less links will speed up the drift. Other advantages when using chain is it seldom gets hung up when dragging on the bottom, as it climbs and rolls over structures. Using chain will also help keep the boat straight in the wind. The only disadvantage I've found is its heavy and messy. Spraying the chains with Reel Magic keeps the chain slick and getting the mud off easier.

[Moose1am]

I have the MinKota Drift Sock that I got last summer at Walmart. I used it once last summer on a windy day. I tie it to the back of my boat using a water ski harness. I have two handles welded onto the back of my transom. They are places on there symetrically. My ski harness is a "Y" like devise. There are two hooks on the Upper Part of the "Y" and then the stem connects to the ski rope with a loop systsem. I just snapped the two hooks onto my handles on my transom and then connected the drift sock to the loop end of the ski harness.


It slowed me down some but my boat seems to go sidways with the wind. It's probably due to the way the wind catches the upper part of my bass boat. But I didn't like it going sideways down the lake. I was hoping that the front of my boat would point downwind and the back of my boat would be facing directly into the wind.

So I tried connecting the ski harness to just the left side of the transom by putting both hooks on just one hand hold. Then I switched to the right side hand hold on the transom. In all cases my boat drifted sideways down the lake. I have not use the drift sock since that one time. Maybe I need to put a parasail off the front of my boat and another drift sock off the back in the water to get my boat to point straight. LOL


I do know that one drift sock was not slowing me down very much as the wind blowing about 10 mph to 15 mph that day.

Was just wondering if any of you fish on windy days and if you use one of those drift anchors or wind socks that can slow the boat down while drifting with the wind.

[Minus 1]

Thanks for the comeback guys. Going out to get me some chain today.I've picked up a lot of good information on this forum. I'm installing some rod holders on my boat. Planning on trying some spider rigging and some slow trolling . Now, if I can get somone like Treepotato, or Jigman2 or anyone else who fishes Brookville or Monroe to hook up with me and give me some hands on training, I may be able to catch some fish...( hint, hint ) :p
Thanks..you,re a great bunch of guys...
Ledhed

[unknown 5]

You can use 5 gallon buckets for drift socks. Just drill some 1" holes in the bottom. Don't use the regular metal handle, drill holes under the lid lip and tie your rope in those holes. I usually use 3 holes and allow about 3 or 4 feet of rope before I tie them into the main line. Drift socks can cost $30 or more, plastic buckets can be free if you know where to get them.