What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

[mnewb1]

We live on Lake Michigan in Grand Haven. We purchased a boat mid season last year, and I spent most of the summer on an inland lake only venturing into Lake Michigan once or twice.

I would like to venture out onto the lake this year. I have a 23 ft Sportcraft Fishmaster. What equipment do I need to go after Lake trout and Salmon?

 

[dpty22]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

I have only been out on the Big Lake a few times with my cousin. from looking at all his gear i would start out with good electronics. it you can get a finder with gps that would be a big plus. second i would say comunication equipment. guys on the lake are always sharing information on the lake. how deep, what color, what speed, and so forth. another option would be to go out on a good charter and study the set up and ask a lot of questions. good luck.

 

[sasto]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

I'm no expert on Lake Michigan but spent many summers fishing out of Harbor Springs/Petoskey. I used Penn 320GTI reels with 15lb test. Downriggers are a must for me. I always liked trolling a spoon trailing a dodger or flasher. Some friends there also use trolling flies and bucktails. You will also need a boat that will go very slow. We mostly troll at about 1kt. Early morning bite is the best while using glow in the dark spoons.

Good Luck!

 

[Huron Angler]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

Lake Trout: dodgers and squid, stinger spoons, trolling near bottom with downriggers

Salmon: J-plugs, spoons, or squid bait on downriggers near 54 degrees(thermocline where salmon feed)

I also fished the Petoskey area, as well as Rogers City to Alpena for salmon and brown trout.

I agree that Penn reels are great, 15-20lb test, manual or electric downriggers(Penn, Scotty or Walker are the best brands).

You can also just run a long line back with a rapala, Hot-n-tot or other diving lure for fish that are shallow like salmon and walleye, depending on the season.

Other options include running planer boards or outriggers to get some lines off to the side of the boat to keep from tangling.

Good luck to ya!

 

[rolmops]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

I spend 95% of my fishing time on Lake Ontario and there is a true wealth of information to be shared.The best way for me to share some of that knowledge is by pointing you to the LOU (lake ontario united) website.Here it is:
http://www.lakeontariounited.com

 

[mnewb1]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

Thanks for all the good info, everyone!

 

[Mi duckdown]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

Go To Michigan Sportsman.com Or ask you neighbors what they DO.
You are in salmon Haven. ASK AROUND DUDE.
YOU ARE WASTING YOUR TIME HERE

 

[greenbush future]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

One of the best ways to learn this lake and the other ones too is to take a charter out and learn from the pro's. You will have 1/2 day to ask, observe, and learn. Lake Michigan is better known for Salmon than Lakers but both are there. Steelhead are quite a blast too.
I agree with the above post visit the website listed below to learn.

www.michigan-sportsman.com

 

[flukefinder]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

We live on Lake Michigan in Grand Haven. We purchased a boat mid season last year, and I spent most of the summer on an inland lake only venturing into Lake Michigan once or twice.

I would like to venture out onto the lake this year. I have a 23 ft Sportcraft Fis
hmaster. What equipment do I need to go after Lake trout and Salmon?

Get ready to drop some cash, dude. If your boat doesn't already have it, you should have a color fishfinder/depthfinder, a reliable GPS (you can get by with a handheld unit), a speed/temp/depth guage, and the best quality downriggers you can buy-at least two - electrics are good, but not vital. They should have at least 200 feet of cable on them. I've been fishing Lake Ontario for 15 years and am partial to Cannon downriggers, but Penn also makes some nice products. If you haven't selected your rods yet, you want downrigger rods with levelwind reels. Again, it's a matter of personal preference, but I like Penn 320GTis and Daiwa 47LC or 54LCs. The reels should be spooled with 20-pound test line. Lures run the gamut, and you can spend a small fortune just on this stuff alone. Luhr Jensen is the leading salmon lure manufacturers and there lineup includes the popular J-Plug, as well as attractors such as a dodgers and flashers. O'ki is another popular brand of flashers, and other lures include Northern King, Silver Streak, Northport Nailer and Southport Slammer spoons. Cut bait rigs have become popular in the last 5-7 years and a Rhyes Davies makes one of the more popular bait harnesses. Cabela's has a lot of this stuff in their catalogs, but an earlier suggestions was right on the money - book a couple of charters before you do it yourself and get a feel for how it's done. There's a lot to learn, and if you'd like to know more I'll be more than happy to talkk to you about. Good luck!

 

[flukefinder]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

We live on Lake Michigan in Grand Haven. We purchased a boat mid season last year, and I spent most of the summer on an inland lake only venturing into Lake Michigan once or twice.

I would like to venture out onto the lake this year. I have a 23 ft Sportcraft Fis
hmaster. What equipment do I need to go after Lake trout and Salmon?

Get ready to drop some cash, dude. If your boat doesn't already have it, you should have a color fishfinder/depthfinder, a reliable GPS (you can get by with a handheld unit), a speed/temp/depth guage, and the best quality downriggers you can buy-at least two - electrics are good, but not vital. They should have at least 200 feet of cable on them. I've been fishing Lake Ontario for 15 years and am partial to Cannon downriggers, but Penn also makes some nice products. If you haven't selected your rods yet, you want downrigger rods with levelwind reels. Again, it's a matter of personal preference, but I like Penn 320GTis and Daiwa 47LC or 54LCs. The reels should be spooled with 20-pound test line. Lures run the gamut, and you can spend a small fortune just on this stuff alone. Luhr Jensen is the leading salmon lure manufacturers and there lineup includes the popular J-Plug, as well as attractors such as a dodgers and flashers. O'ki is another popular brand of flashers, and other lures include Northern King, Silver Streak, Northport Nailer and Southport Slammer spoons. Cut bait rigs have become popular in the last 5-7 years and a Rhyes Davies makes one of the more popular bait harnesses. Cabela's has a lot of this stuff in their catalogs, but an earlier suggestions was right on the money - book a couple of charters before you do it yourself and get a feel for how it's done. There's a lot to learn, and if you'd like to know more I'll be more than happy to talkk to you about. Good luck!

 

[ChampionShip]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

GLAngler.com You can thank me later.

 

[walcat]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

Go to www.fisherie.com Also www.Ohio Game Fishing.com

 

[evinice66]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

start with dipsy's and leadcore, research planer mast systems, and start from there

 

[HAV2FISH]

Re: What gear do I need for Great Lakes Fishing?

I cant recommend any fishing equipment. But the few times i have been on lake Erie i have seen some good storms pop up so i wouldn't go out without a weather radio.