[firstlight]

It looks like everyone but myself is using Anchovies these days.
Are they that good?
I normally fish a flasher and Hootchie in local waters and just wondering if any old flasher/hootchie types like myself have converted over to bait because it was that much better.

What is your normal set-up when fishing an Anchovie?

 

[IronNoggin]

Sometimes, and only sometimes, bait as in 'chovies is the only way to go. When the fish are "off" the bite, in super clear water, or just plain being finicky, bait will indeed outfish the others... most of the time.

The vast majority of the time I'll be running spoons, hootchies or plugs. Less muss, less fuss results in more time in the water, and generally just as many if not more fish to hand. And of course when a vicious snap is on, I certainly believe that damn near anything you toss down there will work. No time to be playing with bait then methinks!

As said though, there are times...

Generally run the chovie in a teaser head, there is loads to choose from, ~ 5 feet behind your favorite flasher.

Cheers,
Nog

 

[tsweet129]

Yah i agree with the last guy...when the bite is on just about anything works...i've had lots of success with spoons as well but hoochie are another story for me...i can't seem to catch a cold on a hoochie...during the winter fishing i use nothing but spoons...but as we move more into the spring and summer months the fish are a bit more finicky and chovy seems to be the way to go....if i'm running 4 rods i generally run 3 chovy and 1 spoon....i use a teaser head and a 6 ft leader on a variety of different colored flashers...i also mix up the teaser head colors a bit...haven't found that one color out performs any other but some people swear by certain patterns.....just make sure you test the chovy in the water to make sure its rolling before you drop it down...

 

[bigjay]

I find anchovies work esspecially well on migrating fish later in the season, cause there nice and oilly. The stand by green hoochie will out fish anchovies sometimes. About this time last year the only thing that worked was the speckled back greeen hoochie, but you got to remeber to shorten the leader to 48" or less, and you at least 40lb test so the action of the flasher is transmited to the hoochie.
Have fun, Jason

 

[firstlight]

Some good stuff there folks .
Thanks a bunch and keep em comming.

 

[tsweet129]

Yeah big jay i use 3 ft leaders and 40 lb test real stiff stuff and i still haven't had any real success on em....any catches i've had have mainly been snags....real strange cause i catch lots of fish on spoons and chovy...i'm beginning to get a complex about it..ha h ah ah aha...

 

[bigjay]

Tsweet126, I'm in the same boat with spoon. I've never caught anything on them. And I don't know why.
I'm totally itching to get out... I should have my boat on the water next week in time for some good weahter. Maybe I'll find the trick to spoons.
Have fun, Jason

 

[tsweet129]

Isn't that weird....who's to know....I'm heading out in the morning around 530 or so....gonna work the QA and Hump for the morning then try the Sound closer to the low tide...wind looks promising...should be a good day...just need some blood and scales on the boat...

 

[chumsalot]

t

3' is far to short for chovie. Think bigger. Much bigger. Depending on water conditions and boat speed, try up to 8' leader. Maybe more.

johnny.

 

[tsweet129]

the 3 ft reference was to using hoochies....i use 6-8 ft on chovy....ya gotta have 3 ft on hoochies or you don't get the right action on em...

 

[fishinmagician]

Sometimes, and only sometimes, bait as in 'chovies is the only way to go. When the fish are "off" the bite, in super clear water, or just plain being finicky, bait will indeed outfish the others... most of the time.

The vast majority of the time I'll be running spoons, hootchies or plugs. Less muss, less fuss results in more time in the water, and generally just as many if not more fish to hand. And of course when a vicious snap is on, I certainly believe that damn near anything you toss down there will work. No time to be playing with bait then methinks!

As said though, there are times...

Generally run the chovie in a teaser head, there is loads to choose from, ~ 5 feet behind your favorite flasher.

Cheers,
Nog

Hey Iron,

When you're on the troller, of course you're using gear and hooking a plenty with feeders. On the other hand, if you were fishing the wall on a terminal fishery with those gurdies...would you stick with the same ??? You'd be pluggin away big time......... However, when you're on the Dreamweaver--- for mature chinooks don't you find you do better with bait?

On the inside waters (Georgia Strait)..on most terminal fisheries.... you better have bait when you're running 4 or more rods...otherwise most mature chinooks will run you by. I've fished it enough and bait is IT hands down from trip to trip..and for the one trip in a few where tackle will outdo the bait...it's just not worth the odds...better have them brined on board or ya may as well be on shore... .. and I don't know what it is..but I've tested the theories enough pulling gear on one side (tails adjusted for speed) and bait on the other--and normally it's BAIT, BAIT, BAIT. However, as you said, there are days when certain tackle just whacks 'em good. REAL GOOD.

Then again the days you guys get let in to the areas where the sporties abound are few and far in between...

Your thoughts?

FM.

 

[bottomwatcher]

When i am using anchovies & teaser heads , i preload some ahead of time , in case the bite is on ,it is only a matter of snapping a fresh one without wasting time rerigging

 

[IronNoggin]

When you're on the troller, of course you're using gear and hooking a plenty with feeders. On the other hand, if you were fishing the wall on a terminal fishery with those gurdies...would you stick with the same ??? You'd be pluggin away big time......... However, when you're on the Dreamweaver--- for mature chinooks don't you find you do better with bait?

Your thoughts?

HiYa FM,

When we used to fish mature fish with the troller (many many moons ago now) we generally ran the same combo of spoons 'n hootchies. Too many pieces of gear in the water to even think of running bait, and yeah, we really did conk them back then. The exception to that of course was plugs. They VERY much have a place in the mid-to-late summer fisheries.
You are of course right in that "the days you guys get let in to the areas where the sporties abound are few and far in between". The intense lobby pressure from the SFAB and others translates to getting us off the water by the time most sporties are thinking of heading out. Usually June 15, this year being no different. That, with over 1/2 the quota still swimming around out there. Always an excuse of course (they aren't going to admit that the recreational interest pressure is driving any of their considerations :), this year being: We can't (or won't) stop either the in-river FN spring net fishery (Fraser), nor the Victoria recreational fishery, and even though we understand the impact of Area G on the current stock in question is much smaller than the other two, Area G is the one we can control, so you get the hit. Typical. Kinda would like to stroll into their offices one day on June 15, and send them home for the rest of the year sans pay. Same thing they're doing here. Ah, but alas I digress. Sorry 'bout that, too close to the heart I guess...

I have found that once you enter closer in from surf line, bait will quite often be the Go-To item on mature fish. Seems especially so in areas within Barkely and a couple of other Sounds. But, once you get up inside the Inlets proper, I can show you a handful of hootchies, and a couple of plugs that will far outfish bait on most days. Believe the strike is more reactionary than feeding behaviour at that point, and likely the reason for that.

Last 2 seasons I have enjoyed tremendous luck running plugs offshore later in the season. Yes, bait caught them too, but by going to the 7" Tomic, we by and large avoided coho and smaller springs, while still enticing the Biggies to do battle. And the numbers have generally been more than enough to satisfy the hungriest client.

As for the DreamWeaver, she wandered off two years ago now. Still in the game, but decided the maintenance, moorage, fuel and all other niceties of ownership were a tad tough to deal with. So, last year I worked with Ken Myers (FishMyster) and this year for Castaway Charters, both out of Ukee. Find it a lot more relaxing at the end of the day simply to clean up and worry only about the next day's fish. I will get another, and am in fact looking at one at the moment. But for now, being a Hired Gun is a comfortable position. >

Cheers,
Nog

PS: I also agree with bottomwatcher, and those days I am running bait always have a half dozen pre-rigged and ready to drop quickly. Speeds up the process, which of course results in more strikes.
Cheers

 

[Even-tide]

A little off topic to anchovies, but herring strip has been killer for me the last couple years. what burns me with chovies is the smaller fish whack it once and it's done. I've caught and landed more than a few mature fish with the same strip...it rocks. $6 worth of strip last longer than $15 worth of chovies.
this year I haven't been happy with the quality of the cut on the strip...been getting some cut uneven in the thickness, kind of fat in the middle tapered to the front and back. I cant get these to roll, after a little trimming down they roll just fine.
but I still have chovies on board ready to go.

 

[fishinmagician]

When you're on the troller, of course you're using gear and hooking a plenty with feeders. On the other hand, if you were fishing the wall on a terminal fishery with those gurdies...would you stick with the same ??? You'd be pluggin away big time......... However, when you're on the Dreamweaver--- for mature chinooks don't you find you do better with bait?

Your thoughts?

HiYa FM,

When we used to fish mature fish with the troller (many many moons ago now) we generally ran the same combo of spoons 'n hootchies. Too many pieces of gear in the water to even think of running bait, and yeah, we really did conk them back then. The exception to that of course was plugs. They VERY much have a place in the mid-to-late summer fisheries.
You are of course right in that "the days you guys get let in to the areas where the sporties abound are few and far in between". The intense lobby pressure from the SFAB and others translates to getting us off the water by the time most sporties are thinking of heading out. Usually June 15, this year being no different. That, with over 1/2 the quota still swimming around out there. Always an excuse of course (they aren't going to admit that the recreational interest pressure is driving any of their considerations :), this year being: We can't (or won't) stop either the in-river FN spring net fishery (Fraser), nor the Victoria recreational fishery, and even though we understand the impact of Area G on the current stock in question is much smaller than the other two, Area G is the one we can control, so you get the hit. Typical. Kinda would like to stroll into their offices one day on June 15, and send them home for the rest of the year sans pay. Same thing they're doing here. Ah, but alas I digress. Sorry 'bout that, too close to the heart I guess...

I have found that once you enter closer in from surf line, bait will quite often be the Go-To item on mature fish. Seems especially so in areas within Barkely and a couple of other Sounds. But, once you get up inside the Inlets proper, I can show you a handful of hootchies, and a couple of plugs that will far outfish bait on most days. Believe the strike is more reactionary than feeding behaviour at that point, and likely the reason for that.

Last 2 seasons I have enjoyed tremendous luck running plugs offshore later in the season. Yes, bait caught them too, but by going to the 7" Tomic, we by and large avoided coho and smaller springs, while still enticing the Biggies to do battle. And the numbers have generally been more than enough to satisfy the hungriest client.

As for the DreamWeaver, she wandered off two years ago now. Still in the game, but decided the maintenance, moorage, fuel and all other niceties of ownership were a tad tough to deal with. So, last year I worked with Ken Myers (FishMyster) and this year for Castaway Charters, both out of Ukee. Find it a lot more relaxing at the end of the day simply to clean up and worry only about the next day's fish. I will get another, and am in fact looking at one at the moment. But for now, being a Hired Gun is a comfortable position. >

Cheers,
Nog

PS: I also agree with bottomwatcher, and those days I am running bait always have a half dozen pre-rigged and ready to drop quickly. Speeds up the process, which of course results in more strikes.
Cheers

Thanks for the comeback Iron Noggin.

I relate to what you're saying. The thing is about fishing in the Strait/Mainland area is that when the fish "shut down" and you're on limited bites, you really have to "hang in there" and hope that the few if any are going to check out your offering don't pass your bait by--as they're way lazy by that time and trolling water can be limited when they hunker down in a smaller area.

As for the hootchies, I've discovered a few of that handful of hootchies through lots of research and following suit/matching spoon and plug colours and concur what you're saying.

Different location, different "game" as they say. Preriggin bait is definite a good way to go.

FM.









But yep, that's what I thought, the "bait" factor definitely comes into play on mature fish.

 

[fishinmagician]

A little off topic to anchovies, but herring strip has been killer for me the last couple years. what burns me with chovies is the smaller fish whack it once and it's done. I've caught and landed more than a few mature fish with the same strip...it rocks. $6 worth of strip last longer than $15 worth of chovies.
this year I haven't been happy with the quality of the cut on the strip...been getting some cut uneven in the thickness, kind of fat in the middle tapered to the front and back. I cant get these to roll, after a little trimming down they roll just fine.
but I still have chovies on board ready to go.

I hear ya Even-tide. I've been on the old skool Herring Strip program now for years and there are distinct advantages and the hook up %age ROCKS. Nothing like that little erratic snap with a pause on the best holders that trigger those strikes. Over the last few years I have herring strip to thank for a whole lot of fun and this spring on one particular day it was no exception and business as usual with the Herring Strip. Wistfully I remember one particularly active day when I got to "the spot" well after the bite was on.... if I had a longer trip it would have easily resulted in many more hookups. The fish had already turned off the spoons/chovies.. and from then on it was the "Strip Show". I would have liked to have known what "could" have been but unfortunately....few have a real appreciation of just how effective those strip ARE.

Some people can't catch a cold on strip..but it'd be one of the top 4 choices out of all of my lures.

We're probably the only 3 guys buying Strip in the Lower Mainland at this point.

 

[Pippen]

FM or Even-Tide....

As I have never tried strips....(feel free if you don't want to reply and compromise "supply" ) but how are they rigged up? What size does it come in and do you just fish it like a chovie as far as leader length etc?

I have used some of everything over the years but never tried the herring strip.

Cheers.

 

[TheBigGuy]

Hi FM, glad to see you back posting again. Hadn't heard much from you in a while.

Regarding the chovies, sadly they are often required locally to produce cosistent catches. I love hoochies, and at times they will produce well here. However, the choves are often required when the artificials aren't the ticket.

I find the west coast a totally different story. Hoochies, spoons, and plugs, can usually provide all the action you need. I only drag bait on the west coast when my favorite gear has hit a long dry spell. I only use bait there when I become hard up for a fish (which isn't that often thankfully).

 

[Pippen]

I did notice last fall.....September fishery time that most days we dragged hoochies on one side and chovies on the other; I would say the hoochies outfished the chovies probably 3 to 1....unless you counted the doggies.

The two trips over to WCVI last summer all we fished with was chovies in late July and mid-August.

I do appreciate reading this thread as it does open ones eyes a little bit to a few things.

Oh....and FM....as BigGuy said; welcome back.

 

[TheBigGuy]

Regarding strip, it is a great bait (and far more economical and durable than chovies). Once you know how to customise the heads by changing the hole locations, you can fish it at pretty near any speed. Add some mylar tape and eyes to the heads for added attraction. Caught all my tyee here on strip, says something about it's effectiveness. The reason why I believe it worked so well with the big ones was that I customised the heads to spin well at super slow trolling speeds. I think the bigguns liked it that way.