Shallow water king salmon fishing can certainly be a challenge without the right equipment and knowledge while pursuing them. In this post, we will discuss the equipment we use along with some insights to put it all together. So, let’s get started!
The Right Equipment
Having the right equipment to fish for shallow water kings is paramount to success. Since we will be fishing from anywhere near the surface to about 50 feet down in the water column, we need to be able to run lines in this sector of the water column. Our arsenal includes downriggers, slide divers, mini divers, like Big Jon’s, assorted segmented leadcores, and segmented coppers. It also includes Otter Boats as well as Church Walleye boards.
Lure Selection Is Key
Shallow water fishing for kings usually requires a selection of mostly spoons. It’s a good idea to have stickbaits, j-plugs, some meat, and flies along, as well. Our tackle boxes are loaded with Michigan stingers in Scorpion, Stinger, Stingray, and Magnums. We also like Moonshine, Silver Streaks, and Fuzzy Bear spoons. Colors are dependent upon time of year and water clarity. Meat and/or flies have their days, especially, in the grey light, or when there is a well defined break.
The Right Spread
Our typical starting spread for shallow water kings are matched to where in the column the fish are. We dial in with temperature and fishfinder targets. Early morning, don’t be afraid to run spoons or plugs within 5 feet of the surface. We usually stretch at least one line back off the riggers up high. We also run one, two, three, four,and five color lead cores to start, with spoons and sticks of different sizes off the boards. Sometimes the fish prefer Walleye Boards over Otter Boats, especially, on flat bright days. Later in the season, for staging kings, j-plugs really work well. We add deeper sets as the day gets brighter including leadcore segments and up to full cores. 50, 75.100, 150, and 200 feet segmented coppers get deployed later in the day. Usually, we tail gun the deeper running copper off the stern.
Diaing It all In
In a previous post, we touched upon dialing in on the fish both in terms of lure selection and location of apparatus, which you can find here in the following link. https://www.acecharters.com/blog/trolling-spread-techniques-for-lake-ontario/. It sheds some light on how to get the most out of a day of trolling Lake Ontario. Putting it all together during your next shallow water king salmon fishing trip is the difference between full boxes or coming home empty!
If you have any questions , feel free to contact us at 413-346-7675 or via our contact form with any of the questions you may have . We will be happy to answer them. If you would like to book a trip please call 413-346-7675 or feel free to use our contact form as well!