Downrigger Question

[Gobble Doc]

I'm considering a downrigger for my 13' boston whaler.  Do you have to wind the downrigger up and get the 10lb ball out of the water before reeling in the fish?  With a manual downrigger that would mean pulling up 50-100 cranks on the downrigger before starting to reel in the fish?  I fish by myself and it sounds crazy to have a salmon on the rod while trying to monkey around with a downrigger cable. 

[Camp David]

Hey Gobble D.

To answer your question.... you do not have to reel it up. The risk is the fish can easily get wrapped around the wire. I fished with a manual and a small boat for years and normally I reeled it up as the fish was taking line or out away from the boat. Some times you have to put a bunch of pressure on the fish to keep them away from the cable. Sockeye are the worst. They tend to fight straight up and down and even with electrics I've seen a few get tangled. If you get a tangle, let you line go slack and try to undo the fish from the cable. You can also maneuver the boat away from the fish.

[h20hunter]

What we usually do is the guy on the rod gets to the center of the stern. Other guy brings the ball up and swings the rigger toward the bow. Guy on the rod trys to work the fish to that side of the boat. When fishing solo I do the same thing but kill the kicker. With a little practice it is doable.

[CP]

Real downrigger fishermen fight their fish with one hand and crank the DR with the other. 

[bloodhound]

 i use electric, just fight the fish and hit the switch!

[h20hunter]

CP.......don't know how many times I've done that dance! I agree 100%.

[Gobble Doc]

Well, if I end up getting a downrigger I guess I'll be a real downrigger fisherman since I'm not going to be getting the electric version anytime soon.  Thanks for everyone's opinions on this one.  I want to get one on my boat and try for a coho before they all end up in the rivers. 

[CP]

G Doc –

Fishing alone with a manual downrigger is challenging.  What I’ve found to work best for me is to keep the boat in gear – very important – that helps keep the slack out of the line and keeps the fish from running all over the place, i.e. under the boat, around the engine, around the cable, etc.  It also gives you some time to crank up the cable.  Also, turn the boat in a large circle away from the side that has the DR mounted on it.  That helps keep the fish on the side away from the DR.  If the fish behaves you can net it with the cable still in the water.

[FC]

Real downrigger fishermen fight their fish with one hand and crank the DR with the other.

That's how I roll! I can just barely reach over and twist that "auto" 

[h2ofowlr]

We have left them down and worked the fish to the other side of the boat and just keep control of it.  I have also placed tension on the fish, done a few quick cranks on the downrigger, then to the rod and back and fourth until the ball is at the side of the boat.  Not an issue.  We are using Penn 600 & 625 down riggers.