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September 2016

During the course of the fishing season, I’ve written about the experiences I’ve had fishing various lakes and rivers. The season in and of itself has been a good one but more importantly, the times that I’ve spent with family and friends while fishing have given me memories that will last a lifetime.

Last month, my daughter came to Central Washington for a visit from California. It seemed like eons that I had last seen her, but I would always take her fishing no matter where I was stationed while in the Army when she was younger. Fond moments indeed, she would almost always land the biggest fish whether it be small mouth bass or catfish during the times we lived in Virginia. She expressed her desire to go fishing while on vacation here in Washington, and I was happy to oblige.

I really wanted to take my daughter

to catch six Sockeye, but the weather report showed wind gusts of up to 20mph, so I decided to take her fishing for Chinooks. I had heard through many anglers that in recent weeks past, Chinooks were being caught on Sockeye gear. Although it has been known to happen, there is selective gear to be used when fishing for Sockeye and Chinooks. I wasn’t sure if we were going to catch a fish that day, but just being on the water spending time with my daughter was enough for me. Suddenly however, the rod tip began to dance! I set the hook then handed the rod off to my daughter who was really surprised at the power and fight this fish was giving her. It was her first Chinook ever! As the fish began to slowly approach the boat after fighting with it, I realized that it was a hatchery fish, which made it all the better for her first fish.

I was using a Mack’s Lure Double D™ Dodger with a Double Whammy® Sockeye Pro. My leader was about 12” behind the dodger and I was trolling a tad faster than I normally do for Sockeye; 1.5mph. The Sockeye Pro, tipped with shrimp as bait, was set back about 15ft behind the boat. The reason I like Double D™ so much is that it covers water. It literally spreads out the lines and serves as a side planer as well, making tight turns easy without the fuss of lines

Fishing: A Family/Friends Time To BondBy Lance Merz

getting tangled.

After landing the fish and in the boat, the look on my daughters face was priceless. The smile couldn’t be removed and I’m safe in saying, she’ll be fishing again. Whether it is fishing with family or friends, it really doesn’t matter if you’re catching a fish or not; what’s important is having memories that you can look back on and cherish for years to come. Each year fishing changes in some way, but spending time with the ones you love will never change. Tight Lines!

Lance Merz

Faith Merz with her first Chinook Salmon.

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Using two Sling Blades™ in conjunction to the lure will create a more erratic action, which will help with reactionary bites.

Night temperatures are falling and that’s a sure sign that fall is just around the corner. It also means that fishing for Kokanee and landlocked Chinook is coming to an end. On a positive note, September, is a month when you can catch some of your biggest fish of the year; catching these big fish can be a challenge. Like all Salmon, these fish are reaching the end of their life cycle. They are no longer feeding and they are only concerned with one thing and that’s spawning. This of course, presents us with a greater challenge of how do you get them to bite? There are a few simple technique changes that will help you to convince a pre-spawn fish to bite.

Before I get ahead of myself, let’s talk about locating these big fish. Electronics are crucial to locating fish this time of year. Look for paired fish hanging close to the bottom or in areas of structure. Working the bottom is important for catching pre-spawn fish. However, dragging the bottom creates some serious concerns. You need to pay close attention to your electronics and watch your downriggers closely. Unless you have a real consistent bottom or the benefit of having digital downriggers that are programmed to track the bottom, you may need to stand over your downriggers ready to raise or lower them has you troll. A good ten pound bar weight is a real benefit

with this technique as they tend to snag less often.

Now let’s talk about changing our technique up a bit. Remember, these pre-spawn fish are no longer feeding, so we need to use a more reaction type presentation. A tactic that often works well for me is to double up Sling Blade™. Actually connect one Sling Blade™ to the other. This will create a much more aggressive action. The front blade will wobble, which will occasionally cause the back blade to throw harder and even spin at times. This more aggressive action will create more vibration and will incorporate a more erratic action to your lure. Behind this double Sling Blade™ setup, I like to run lures with greater action. For Spoons, I like the Hum Dinger and the Cripplures™. The rolling lateral action of the Cripplure™ is hard to resist in this presentation. If your preference is to use squid or hoochie type baits, go with the spinner type hoochie with the larger Sling Blade™ or even a Wiggle Hoochie™, which has a more aggressive action. There is one more important suggestion while using this technique. We’re not talking a trolling speed of 1.2 mph with this setup; we’re looking to get that reaction strike so we’re going to troll up to 1.8 mph. I like to get my speed up to where the back blade will actually roll completely around occasionally. Varying your speed faster or slower can also help. Go with bright colored lures. Glow is always a good choice. Good Fishing, Gary.

I have to chuckle a bit when I recall the first time I held one in my hand and took a really good look at it.

“Holy Mackerel,” I said to myself, “the guy that designed this hook must have had a couple beers too many if he expects this thing to catch fish.”

Well, friends, it wasn’t the first time my first thoughts have been dead wrong. And this time they were big time haywire. The hook designers for Mustad Hooks knew what they were doing when they developed the strange looking hooks I’m talking about. So did the good folks at Mack’s Lure when they put those hooks together with their wondrous fish-catching Smile Blade®s ®to make a lure that has been putting fish in the boat all over the place ever since it was introduced.

What that purposely bent hook and the Mack’s Lure Smile Blade®

Stan’s Space

They Wiggle While They Work

By Hall-of-Fame AnglerStan Fagerstrom

You’re missing a bet if you don’t have some of these Mack’s Lure Smile Blade® Slow Death Rigs to see how the walleyes in your area react.

Gary’s Fishing Corner

September FishingReactionary Bites

ByGary Miralles

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Sometimes in the big rivers of the West you’ll find walleyes holding where the water is deep and the current has great strength. New models of the Mack’s Lure Slow Death rig are designed to hold these monsters once you hook ‘em.

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Continued from Page 2and beads are designed to do you see, is come rotating and wiggling along the river bottom like a wounded or dying aquatic critter almost knowing it’s likely to get gobbled. And again---that’s what’s been happening ever since this lure was first introduced.

One of those places the lure has proved itself is the Columbia River. If you’re up to date with current fishing prospects in this big river you’re aware that it is now known for something besides the migratory species. In recent years it has been kicking out some of the largest walleyes caught anywhere in the world.

If that doesn’t get your attention, you should be aware that the Columbia now is also producing some of the West’s best action for smallmouth bass. And all this has pretty much transpired despite the efforts of fish management officials in both Oregon and Washington to not let it happen.

They are calling the hook Mustad came up with came up with “Slow Death.” It’s well named. I had a chance recently to get more of the details on just how successful this Smile Blade® Slow Death rig has been with some of the anglers who’ve been clobbering fish with it.

One of the guys I talked to was Bob Schmidt, the president of Mack’s

Lure. In the past it hasn’t been uncommon for me to find the top dogs of some of the country’s major lure makers who were spending more time on the golf course than they were out there on the water actually using their products.

That’s not how Schmidt operates. If he tells you one of the Mack’s Lure products does this or that you can believe it. I say this without hesitation because I’ve been right there in the boat with him as he has proved it in both the United States and Mexico.

One of the things Schmidt pointed out for me was that the Smile Blade® Slow Death rig now available from the Washington State based lure company is slightly different than the original. For one thing the rig now has a slightly larger profile than the one you’ve been seeing the past two or three years.

The hook itself is also now built of slightly heavier metal. It was the outstanding success of the original rig that brought these changes about. It didn’t take anglers long to discover that the Smile Blade® Slow Death Rig didn’t just clobber average size fish, it obviously had a strong appeal for those big hogs that often can be more choosy about what they grab.

Here’s another view of one of the best walleye lures you can get your hands on. Other sports fish often also find it of interest.

Another Mack’s Lure executive, and another of the best anglers I’ve known ever since he was a kid, is Bobby Loomis. Bobby is the director of sales and marketing for Mack’s. Like Schmidt, Bobby says experienced anglers, especially on waters where the walleyes run big, are especially going to welcome the changes in the Smile Blade® Slow Death rig.

“The original Slow Death hook is a fine wire design designed to be fished on the bottom with minimal bait so it rotates like something dying on the bottom as it is slow trolled.” As I’ve already mentioned it did that job and then some.

But as Bobby also pointed out, world class walleye fisheries like those you’ll find in the Columbia and the Snake Rivers for example require the Smile Blade® Slow Death rig to be fished at deeper depths and heavier currents than you’ll usually find in fishing for walleyes in other areas of the United States.

One of the key secrets to any kind of fishing success is matching your gear to the problems we’re up against. That’s why we have lines and leaders with such a wide range of breakage tests. Rods also come in wide range of different strengths. Fish in or around Alaska for

Don’ be surprised if you hang a hog like that pictured here when you fish certain of the big rivers in the West. The current Washington State weight record for Columbia River walleyes, for example, is 19.3-pounds. That’s where this one came from.

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Continued from Page 3example and you’re going to need a much stronger rod for halibut than you do for salmon.

That’s exactly what Mustad and Mack’s Lure have done with their new Smile Blade® Slow Death rig. Those overgrown monsters it’s not uncommon to hook in the Columbia won’t straighten out the hooks on this new model.

Schmidt and Loomis will tell you the new Slow Death hook also has a larger bend. This is something else you’re going to like about it. “The larger bend,” Loomis says, “permit you to run a full length nightcrawler, plastics or whatever you want to use with it and the the rig will still rotate the way you want it to.

Loomis also says “I fished the new rigs last fall a few times and the way they work is fantastic. I had some of the best days that I have ever had up here in North Central Washington State between the rotation of the Slow Death Hook, the high UV beads and our Smile Blades®. The combination works really well.”

That’s saying a mouthful for a guy who has the long time fishing experience of my friend Bobby Loomis. You can find more details about this remarkable fish catcher right here in the Products listing at this Mack’s Lure web site.

I’ve already got some of these new rigs in my own tackle box. I’m convinced you won’t go wrong doing the same thing.

You’ll need a cap like that shown here to keep the sun out of your eyes when a lunker walleye grabs the Mack’s Lure Slow Death rig you have doing its thing out there behind your boat.

Trolling The Sonic BaitFish™(SBF)

By Captain Pete Rosko

30 years ago, I received a phone call that dramatically changed my mind set on how to fish a metal jig, including the Sonic BaitFish. The call was from Capt. Ed Ruuck, a respected Lake Michigan salmon trolling charter skipper. Ed wanted to share what occurred on a recent Chinook salmon trip with a Crippled Herring, the first metal jig I created in the early 1980’s. Prior to Ed’s call, I never bothered to consider trolling because I was having too much fun catching Pacific salmon, and Lake Erie walleyes, by vertical jigging. I was shocked after listening to Ed, sharing his story about my 2oz pearl white Crippled Herring.

Here’s how that event unfolded. A group of five boarded Ed’s boat, that early morning, to troll for Chinook salmon. One of the five anglers recently returned from San Francisco where he purchased a 2oz pearl white Crippled Herring metal jig. After several hours of trolling with an assortment of trolling spoons, Capt Ed was still waiting for that first bite. About that time the fellow with the Crippled Herring (still in its original package) started bugging the skipper about trying his lure instead. This went on for about another two hours until Capt Ed couldn’t take it any longer. In order to stop the badgering once and for all, Capt Ed figured a way to finally silence the guy with the Crippled Herring. Unlike his trolling spoon set-up, “cagy” Ed attached the Crippled Herring directly to the downrigger ball, about ten feet behind it. That was it, no attractor of any kind, just a plain Crippled Herring. Then with a smile (probably a smirk) the good captain returned to trolling

once more. Well, it did not turn out exactly as Ed planned. There were some good salmon that ended up being caught, nine as a matter of fact. Eight were caught on that lowly Crippled Herring and one was eventually caught on Capt Ed’s favorite trolling spoon.

Thanks to that call from Capt Ed, I have trolled metal jigs in Alaska, the Pacific NW and the Gulf of Mexico. What I have learned is that a metal jig can out fish traditional trolling lures most of the time. The reason is its erratic and darting action. It does not need an attractor, especially a dodger, since a side-to-side acting attractor deadens the lively action of a metal jig including the Sonic BaitFish. At times, for extra flash and sound, I will add a small Indiana blade on the back side of the single hook on the SBF. It’s attached with a small snap to the split ring. Do not use a snap swivel because a 360 degree spin does not work as well as a side-to-side blade action. I always try to simplify any of my techniques including trolling. I do not bother with downriggers unless I’m on another boat with them. I flat-line troll or use divers on my vessel. My favorite SBF trolling finishes are glow chartreuse for walleyes, cutthroat trout and kokanee then glow white and silver blue for rainbow trout and all salmon species. Don’t forget the two new fish-catching additions to the SBF family…the 1/16 and 1oz sizes.

As always, thank you for subscribing to the Mack Attack. It is our sincere wish to increase your catch rate, and enjoyment on the water, through our monthly tips. Capt. Pete

Bob Loomis holds up a Small Mouth bass he caught while trolling for Walleye with the Sonic BaitFish.

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Question of the Month

Have a question? We’d love to answer it! Contact us at MacksLure@Mack-sLure.com if you have a question you would like to see featured!

Q: How do you stack rods on a downrigger?A: That’s a great question!

Stacking rods on a downrigger can serve as a great tool in that it puts multiple lines in the water, depending on the rules set forth by your Department of Fish and Game. Trolling with multiple lines in the water also covers more water where fish may be. As a general rule, you should stack your lines 10ft apart, so it doesn’t tangle with other lines attached to the downrigger. First, let your first line out to whatever set back you desire, attach it to the downrigger clip, then drop the ball 10ft below the surface. You can then use a stacker clip to set out your

Hailee Huddleston and Matea Ivory are holding up their catch of Kokanee on Lake Roosevelet located in Central Washington. Great job girls!

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Video of the Month

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line, and another, and another. Take caution when dropping the downrigger to desired depth as dropping it too fast will tangle lines. Another way to stack lines on to a downrigger without bringing up the deeper line is by using a Shuttle Hawk™. Let out your first line as normal, then drop 10ft. Instead of using a stacker clip however, place a stopper bead on the downrigger cable, then drop your first line to the desired depth of which you want to fish. Setting out the second line, attach the Shuttle Hawk™ to the downrigger cable, then clip in the line with the release. The Shuttle Hawk will automatically dive to the stopper bead 10ft above your lowest line. Once a fish takes the lure on the line with the Shuttle Hawk™, it will automatically come to the surface, allowing you to keep the lower line in the water and still trolling. NOTE: The Ultra Release™ on the Shuttle Hawk™ will have to be adjusted according to the diameter of the line that you are using for the release to work effectively. Once tuned in, the release will automatically pop off the release, allowing you to play the fish.

Photo of the Month

Get ready for Steelhead season! During the month of September, receive 10% off on all Rock Dancer® Bucktail Jigs. Enter code “18RDJ” to receive your discount.

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Rock Dancer®Bucktail Jig