Does anybody troll like this?

[TreednNC]

Ive read about all kinds of nifty ways to troll. Although Id love to try them all, I am limited with what I can do. I have a bow mounted tiller handle trolling motor. I cant see paying for an $750+ trolling motor on a boat thats only worth twice as much. I dont have a front deck large enough to mount a seat on to sit up there and spider rig off of the front, or anywhere to sit and run the motor (comfortably) while running rods off of the front, so I sit on it (the deck) and face backwards, turn my depth finder (mounted in the rear) around to face me. So sit on the deck with my feet in the bottom of the boat and face backwards. Put my rods off the side of the boat rather than front or back. I tried it yesterday and it worked alright. I just have the portion directly under the boat that Im not covering. I'm just looking to capitalize on what I have. Any suggestions to improve what I have will help. If it helps, I am in a 16' lowe big john if it helps picture the deck space I am working with.

Youre probably confused by now lol. Heres a little diagram to try to help explain. Any suggestions to improve what Im working with would be great.

[sailfish1]

dont know if this will help, but we've been using planer boards for the trolling for a few years.it doesnt matter what size rods you use with the boards we use and you can stagger them at any depth and can actually put out quite a few rods on each side of the boat if you fish wit a few people.

[alabass]

Treed, that's the way I'm set up on my jon boat. Carry a partner and have them run their poles directly out the back and you cover everything that way!

[TreednNC]

Im against planer boards. Personal reasons, not about their effectiveness. Wierd, I know.

Alabass, I dont have a partner that likes to troll or has trolling rods lol

[Brush Buster]

I like your thinking on do the best with what you got. I have a Lowe Deep V and i put four rods right out the back and troll one off each side just like you are doing. I also noticed that you have 10' rods. You might want to go to a 12' or larger on your outer rods for a little more coverage.

[REDBOAT]

Treed, this is basically how I do it...but just a little bit different.. my holders are on one side of the boat and my electric motor is stern mounted next to my gas motor. I fished this way all winter and it worked fine. The key is to have different sized rods and go large rod to small rod.

[PapermouthLegend]

I troll this way ALL THE TIME. I agree with redboat, using different sized rods staggers the lines and gives you more room. I use a 12' in front, a 9' in the middle and a 6' toward the rear of the boat. One of the best tips I can give you is to make sure you keep the boat moving when you hook-up. I use my bow mount trolling motor and set it on constant and just change the speed when I hook up. You won't get as many tangles this way. The next best tip I can give you is to buy some line counters. Indiana only allows 3 rods, and I purchased 3 of them for under $40 from Bass Pro Shops. This allows you to send the bait right back to the same depth. When you catch a fish, send the line counter back to the same distance and set your motor to the same speed. When the bite is really on this is one of the fastest ways to fill the livewell. You'll be surprised how many walleye and bass you catch with this method as well.

[poppop]

treed, that is basically how I do it....but I don't catch many...I think it is more me..than the trolling setup.

[TreednNC]

Thanks guys. I have them staggered pretty well with the current set up, with the angle of the holderes changed. I may purchase a 12'er for each side too. Thanks guys.

[SOWDADDY]

I don't know how deep your fishing but if your 10' or less you may spook alot of fish especialy on the ones closest to the boat. That is a real effective set up for longlining though. If your going to push you could extend your deck with a piece of plywood without much trouble,then mount your seat up front and also use underneath to store life jackets or whatever!