Drop Shot Tips On October 22, 2013
Drop Shotting is similar to vertical jigging for fish. A hook is tied a few inches above the weight instead of a jig at the end of your line. The principal is the same as ice fishing when you see your lure with your sonar and can see fish close to the lure. It is much harder in open water since the lure and the transducer move. You need a calm day or superior boat control to keep the lure below the transducer.
Picture is from Berkley Fishing
Q. What is the most important factor to seeing my lure on my sonar?
A. You must have the lure directly below the transducer. The sonar cone diameter is approximately 1/3 the depth of the water. If you are in 20 feet the cone is approximately 7 feet which means you need your lure on the bottom about 3 ½ feet from a line directly below the transducer . That is about one arm length. Always start with the boat not moving and drop your lure directly below the transducer.
Q.Why is it easy to see my lure when ice fishing?
A.Because the transducer is near the spot you drop your lure, the transducer never moves, and there is less current in the winter to move your lure.
Q.What settings do I adjust on the sonar to help see my lure?
A.The 83 kHz frequency will have a wider cone but I have found this only helps a little. Auto sensitivity works well except if you adjust it down too much to get a clear screen. Leave you sensitivity set high enough to see lots of clutter and you can see your lure on the edge of the cone better.
Q.Can I see my fishing line?
A.The line you see when you drop your lure is just the lure changing depth as it drops which gives the illusion there is a line from the drop to bottom so people think it is their fishing line.
This image shows the lure dropping and suspended near the fish. When you see this image you often get to set the hook!
The line you see when you drop your lure is just the lure changing depth as it drops which gives the illusion there is a line from the drop to bottom so people think it is their fishing line.
This image shows the lure dropping and suspended near the fish. When you see this image you often get to set the hook!
