Trolling for Spanish Mackerel - livebait tips.

[Nicko_Cairns]

Hi guys, I've been lucky enough to live in some remote places and do a lot of mack fishing, so here's an article I wrote a couple years ago. http://www.fishingtownsville.net/201...part-1-of.html

Most of my fishing is trolling with deadbaits and lures though, although I definitely use livies at anchor and even during a slow drift (that's a conversation in itself though), so one thing I would like to know is how people are rigging and swimming their livies? Next time I pick up a fusilier, stipey etc I'd like to have a rig ready, stick that bad boy on and slowly start cruising around. I'm sure someone somewhere knows the ultimate rig, I'm thinking a nose or bridle rig through the eye with a wired stinger hook through the skin near the tail?

Thanks in advance, p.s. not big on guessing fish weights and don't have scales in the boat (should get them) but biggest fish have been just shy of my height at around 5.5 to 6 feet, I haven't cracked the 6 foot size yet. I plan on measuring length of the big boys from now and and will post some pics this year.

[Nicko_Cairns]

Here's a nice little show of pretty big macks (I know as we caught some of them) harassing a baitball over a bit of structure. You might get lucky sometimes with macks seemingly in the middle of nowhere but structure is what you're searching for, find structure and you'll find bait then you'll find the macks.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7646221@N02/8556143017/

[Beatsworkin2]

Very interesting read finding isolated spots work well never thought to troll across them thanks

[Nicko_Cairns]

You're welcome, if they hold bait the macks should be there too and you'll have the area to yourself!

Very interesting read finding isolated spots work well never thought to troll across them thanks

[Nicko_Cairns]

Two quick points that I'd change in the article if I could be bothered to re-write it. 3 knots is a good (lure and bait) speed once you've found the fish, 6 knots is a good exploring speed looking for the fish (while trolling lures). If you're trolling slow and they aren't playing the game then up the speed to around 6-7 knots and sometimes that gets them biting. Sometimes they just won't fire at all, that's time to stop trolling and try drifting with knife jigs, or pick up some live baits and fish them at anchor.

If I'm fishing two live baits, one will be only about 1.5-2.5m below the surface on a float, the sun/sky gives it a nice profile and the other will be dropped down to where the macks are located so it's staring them in the face, this one will usually get hit first but the macks will probably move higher in the water column when they start feeding and hit the surface livebait too.

Lastly, use a shock leader if you're new to this or you're using the rod later for jigging, bottombashing etc as you can just remove the lure and trace and attach your bottom rig, I find the braid straight to a swivel then onto single strand wire then lure works very well but you need to be in communication with the boat driver to cut off the fish to avoid rub offs and this takes some practice. So if in doubt use a wind-on mono leader before the single strand wire. Hawaiian snap clips are particularly good for this style of rig and fast changes to a bottombashing rig etc.I attach them straight onto the swivel and attach whatever is on the terminal end via the snap clips. Avoid any other snap clips as you risk them opening.

Cheers.