Question for all the dock shooters?

[seejimfish]

When you are you shooting docks what do you do? Are you just letting it drop down or swing back or counting it down and reeling it in? What works for you?

[CrappiePappy]

When you are you shooting docks what do you do? Are you just letting it drop down or swing back or counting it down and reeling it in? What works for you?

For me, it's mostly shooting the jig back under the dock & then "very slowly" reeling it back out. I rarely let it swing back, or do the countdown thing .... "unless" I'm aware of the fish suspending deep beneath the dock (usually a Fall thing). If the dock has less than 15ft of water under it, I'm figuring I'll cover most of the water column with this method (& repeated casts from various angles). For those few docks that I encounter, with more than 15ft of water under them .... then, yeah, I may let the jig drop a few feet before starting my retrieve, but only after I've covered the upper layer of the water column.
In any event, once I've covered the dock with casts from every possible angle ... and especially if I've caught fish holding close to the support poles .... I'll always follow up with this method - Vertical Casting | Older Articles Sometimes just the different track of the jig (more vertical than horizontal or angled) will get me a few more fish.

... cp

[snakedodger]

i dont fish from a boat but from the docks,heres what i do.flip it under the dock let sink couple feet,leave the bail open and rip line out, the jig will fall straight down under the dock .when the line gets tight its on the comeback.sometimes let it comeback more or less.sometimes rip out more or less line till you find the right combo.i use a 1/64 jighead for the really slow comeback.hope this info helps

[Mike Andrews]

Most of the docks I fish are in 10' of water or less. Fish are not on them in numbers all year long so it's a seasonal thing, spring / early summer and then again for a shorter period in the fall.

I shoot my jig as far back in the shade as I can and let it fall until it hits bottom and then hop and/or swim it back out. Alot of my fish hit on the initial fall and the only indication is a "tick" in the line or at times the line moving slowly one direction or the other. IMHO you have to become a line watcher to fish docks effectively and hi-vis line is a must.

[MePreach]

Crappiepappy is dead on! I believe the biggest keys to dock shootin is fish every angle! It may sound crazy but there are many times the direction your shooting the dock seems to be the only way to catch em! Also if you cant see where your line meets the water to see it twitch or move you are missing alot of fish! I catch more that I never feel and only see line twitch than I do feeling the hit! I dont use hi vis shootin docks but it would probably be best if you cant see that good. BE WARNED that dock shooting is very addictive....my wife and kids say I am obsessed with it! Good Luck