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Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Mon Mar 09, 2020 6:32 am
by digitroll (ron)
Capt. Pete Alex of Vision Quest charters with a great discussion of trolling speed and Fish Hawk interpretation:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wJocE4 ... tzavzMHO1o

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Fri Jun 10, 2022 10:24 pm
by Jbush24
Haven’t posted on this forum before, but have read a lot of the great feedback everyone has posted here. Really appreciate all of your willingness to help. My dad and I have been fishing salmon for years, but only get out a handful of times each year and we’re still trying to figure things out. I’ve been getting a bit more interested over the past couple years and with the kids having grown up, I’m hoping to start getting out a bit more and would love to find a bit more success. A good day for us seems to be a just a couple of releases and lucky to boat a couple of fish on a good day. Nothing close to what I read here.

We finally upgraded from our 30 year old Eagle sonar to a Lowrance Hook Reveal 7x, which I suspect may help a bit. My question for you all is whether you might have speed management tips for those of us who don’t have the budget for a Fish Hawk? I’ve seen videos of folks on the Great Lakes who rely on rigger cable angles etc… to manage currents and ensure proper lure action. Anyone use this technique (or something different) here on Champlain and find consistent success without a Fish Hawk, or is it just trial and error for the most part? Specific angles you look for etc…? We just tend to troll around from about 2 to 2.6 mph SOG.

Jeff

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Mon Jun 13, 2022 12:23 pm
by TUnamas
Jeff - I've learned that a Fish Hawk is a good device, but it isn't absolute. As much as it offers for speed, it offers temps, which can be equally valuable. I fish only with sonar to find bait. I know my fishing area pretty well, and while it does fluctuate, be mindful of which direction you are trolling and at which depth when you get strikes. If I'm fishing a known good area and seeing bait, I'll cris-cross it, trolling in opposite directions and then shifting course 90 degrees each way. Stagger your depths around the bait until a pattern develops. Be mindful of your heading and depths when getting hits and you can quickly develop a good pattern. Winds, currents and the seiche will change each day, so what worked yesterday may not work as well today, but find bait, and then attack it! A Fish Hawk speeds the process, but I haven't invested in that yet! Know too that not all lures run well at the same speed, so you'll want to keep track of what lure is where when you are trolling. E.G., Needlefish and CI's may not play well with each other, or Speedy Shiners. Find what works and replicate it!

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2022 12:07 am
by Jbush24
Thank you for your detailed reply and I appreciate the tips. I feel you’ve hit on a few things we’re probably guilty of, which is not being as aware of the patterns, directions etc… that we need to be. I’m hopeful the new sonar will help with identifying the bait. Initial run with it Saturday was not successful. I believe our Transducer location was not ideal and we had a hard time maintaining a good signal. Moved it to a different location that has been successful with a previous transducer, and hope to get it out for another test run this week. Fingers crossed….

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2022 5:47 am
by cpmaple
I myself can say before I got a fishhawk I would only get releases an fish in one direction for that day may be north or south. Now with the fish hawk I know why say I was doing 2.8 sog north in turn I would either be way to slow or fast the opposite direction due to current. I still got fish but in my opinion the fish hawk was a game changer on my boat. Keeps me in the target range for speed so lure presentation is the same. Same as u I never had a good sonar unit till this spring which I've only had time to try it once. Hummingbird helix 7 can't wait to please with that more come Saturday for the lci cpmaple

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2022 9:13 am
by striper192001
I am about to pull the trigger on a fish hawk. Any guidance on best place to buy one? Seems like the going price is $ 799

Thanks much,

John

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2022 1:29 pm
by Pcraft237
I would go directly through Fish Hawk. I’ve had one for several years and can say the company is great at responding to questions or problems.
I’ve found I’ve gotten the most use from it in determining temperature as I drop downrigger. I drop it down in intervals as it takes time to register to monitor. When I hit 50-55 degrees it’s usually where I find the fish. As far as speed, 2.5 to 3mph seems to work for both salmon and lakers.

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Tue Jun 14, 2022 4:12 pm
by dry net
Fish hawk customer service will be great no matter where you purchase the unit. They are simply a pleasure to deal with. Good luck!!!!

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Tue Jun 21, 2022 6:39 pm
by Adkhare
I hate to admit this for fear my son will call me out on telling him the fishhawk made no difference but since that thing went in the boat I’m guessing the catch rate went up by more than 50% even in the spring in shallow water we forgot to put it down one day and got nothing next day rods fired all day. Coincidence maybe but you won’t see us fishing without that in the water. Well worth $$ just don’t try explaining that to a wife

Re: Trolling speed discussion and the value of a Fish Hawk

Posted: Wed Jun 22, 2022 8:18 pm
by Reelax
Won’t fish without it in the troll…

Matt