Outdoors

Motion on the ocean

Trolling lures at a brisk pace is productive for kings

By DAVID A. BROWN
Published May 6, 2006

It's the oldest and probably the most accurate axiom of the animal kingdom: Never run from an angry dog. Why? Because he'll chase you.

I'll save the fight-or-flight debate for another time. For fishing purposes, know this: Kingfish will aggressively pursue anything that they perceive as a potential meal. And the majority of times, they will catch what they chase.

For anglers using artificial lures, the key is to integrate your presentation into what kings are used to seeing. For the most part, that means forage species such as threadfin herring, sardines, blue runners and mullet.

Happy is the king mackerel that can sneak up on a school of baitfish hovering in the water. But that's rare. More often, baitfish move with understandable anxiety.

Tournament anglers know that slow-trolling live baits will tempt whopper kingfish like nothing else. The strategy is to make a bait look vulnerable and entice a strike.

But live bait is not without drawbacks. Unless you have deep pockets - kingfish bait always draws a premium price - catching a day's supply of minnows is an arduous task. Slinging heavy castnets or jigging with gold-hook rigs can burn a lot of fishing time.

Those looking to win a tournament with one giant king insist it's a worthwhile effort. There's no doubting that statement,unless you're more interested in constant action than a moment of glory.

When the former describes your objective, you'll do well by running artificial lures over nearshore rock piles and artificial reefs.

Mobility and immediacy are the key benefits. You can quickly drop a spread of lures and sling them into the boat whenever you need to move. There's no worry about dehooking and maintaining live baits. And in the morning, you can go straight from the dock to fishing with no delay.

Popular kingfish lures include hefty diving plugs, large spoons and even narrow lead head jigs. Also included in this style of fishing is an artificial lure and dead bait combo. Try a trolling jig with a cigar minnow on the hook or a bullet head lure with a nylon skirt in front of a dead ballyhoo.

At trolling speeds of 3 to 4 knots, diving plugs dig on their own, but spoons, jigs and bullet heads need help in reaching depths. Downriggers are most precise, but planers are another option. With a weighted arm on the front end, planers are designed to run at about a 45-degree angle when set. Nos. 2 and 3 planers are good for kingfishing - the larger the planer blade, the deeper it dives.

Typically, a heavy-duty snap swivel on your main line clips to an attachment ring that slips along the planer's arm. The artificial lure runs behind a leader attached to the planer's back end, usually about 20 feet of 80-pound fluorocarbon tipped with about two feet of Nos. 3 or 4 wire.

When a fish strikes, the pressure pulls the planer backward, forcing the arm to slide through the attachment ring. At this point, the boat's forward motion causes the planer to rise. Similar to a downrigger rod tipping up when a fish knocks the line out of the clip, you'll usually see the planer rod bounce as a strike sends the rig to the top.

The drawback of fishing with this rig is that once you reel the planer near the rod tip, you have to hand-line the leader - and your kingfish - to the boat.

The pressure of water drag is significant with artificials, particularly planers, so you'll need stronger tackle than live-bait kingfish gear. Stout 7-foot rods and 4/0-class reels with 40- to 60-pound braided line will get the job done. Braids slice through the water quicker than monofilament, so lures reach target depths quicker.

Tournament types usually snicker at the mention of artificials. However, when live bait is hard to come by, artificials or dead bait combos can be your only salvation.

Aside from a good tournament backup plan, artificials are often the top choice in certain scenarios. For starters, it's a commonly accepted view that schoolie kings offer the best meat. Larger kings can have a gamey tasteas mercury content typically rises with age. Thus, lure draggers usually catch the best-eating kings.

Moreover, when introducing new anglers to kingfish, most appreciate constant action over waiting for one big fish. That's not to mention the fact that a large, experienced kingfish will usually humiliate and discourage rookie anglers.

A hunk of plastic and metal may not nab the biggest fish of the daybut when it comes to kingfish productivity, artificials are the real deal.

[Last modified May 6, 2006, 02:15:18]