Fresh-water trolling is usually done with fishing equipment for standard bait-casting. A glass fiber fishing rod is well suited to this fishing method as it is very durable and unlikely to break.
In my experience, the usual bait-casting reel is adequate for most applications. The exception would be deep trolling.
As you may expect, you need to adjust the size of the tackle to the size and weight of the fishing lure. Small lure – light tackle, and so on. Medium and medium-heavy gear is recommended for freshwater trolling in most cases.
Choosing the right lure is very important when fishing any considerable distance under the surface. You can use different weights and sizes of the same lure to reach different depths, including bumping the bottom, or you can use an assortment of different designs in various weights.
For trolling, wobbling spoons are well suited. You will find that some can be trolled at various speeds and perform well, while others need a particular speed for best results. You have to test this out for each one.
The larger spinners and spoons are often used for muskies, pike, and lake trout. Here I prefer a spoon that wobbles or darts to one that spins in the water. The spinners may catch as many fish, but I find them too tiring to troll. I’d rather use a lure that throbs and gives notice that it’s working correctly, but doesn’t put up much resistance.
Spinners pull harder in relation to their size than spoons, and big, round-bladed spinners are an effort to use on light tackle. Spinners have a tendency to twist a line, so when you are trolling with them, it is usually advisable to add extra swivels. Some spinners twist a line so badly that a rudder-shaped sinker or a plastic keel placed ahead of them will save you from much grief.
Once a line gets badly tangled, it is such a chore to untangle it that one is tempted to throw the line away. If a line is twisted but not tangled, take off the line-twisting lure and let the line out carefully behind a fast-moving boat or feed it into a fast current until it unwinds. If the line is tangled and knotted, you need patience, good eyes, and imagination to straighten it. A new line may be the best solution.
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