Nice fish!

We got skunked yesterday trolling and jigging between the confluence and lock and dam #1. Going out again this afternoon. Any suggestions?

Thanks all!
I plan to get a line in Saturday. The water temp may be down around 50 by then. Hopefully I’ll have something to report in the pool 2 tread.

That’s great, I love bouncing a jig, but have never done it on a river. On Vermilion I’ve always moved fairly slow to keep my line mostly vertical and my jig bouncing off the bottom. Same idea on the river? Should I anchor or spot lock the seam and use a heavy(3/4 oz) jig to get to the bottom, or drift a bit with the current to stay vertical?
Any recommendations on color? I tend to go bright on Vermilion.
For trolling, do I compensate for the current when picking my speed? After 40 years on lakes, fishing a river is messing with my mind more than it probably should.
Kids are 10 and 7.
What temp does that hard fall bite start?
Thanks again.

Matt Moen wrote:

I did see a group of guys beach a 19’ inboard. He’d never been on the river and hit the mud just north of the barge channel going about 40. I was waiving and honking to get him to stop and he hit it going about 40. Luckily no one was hurt but it took me and another guy close to an hour to get them unstuck. He ran it up to about 6” of water.

Exactly where was the mud that he grounded on? I want to see if it shows up on my Navionics App. That app served me really well on Lake Vermilion, showing tons of detail that the physical charts don’t. Is it a good option for keeping me in the safe areas of pool 2? Are there any paper charts of pool 2 that people would recommend?

We got our pontoon settled into its slip at watergate on Monday and took it out for the first time last night. I realized this was my first time operating a power boat on a river despite over 30 years of boating experience.
Went up to Minnehaha Creek and then down to just past 35E. Dodged some sticks and one big log on the way. Can’t wait to start fishing.

Dusty Gesinger wrote:

Can also use the big motor for thrust in conjunction with the trolling motor for control. That’s what I do on my 20′ pontoon. I do have a 24v 80# system and wouldn’t recommend smaller, but I believe a pontoon is more effected by wind than current. Doesn’t hurt to try what you have and then make the decision if you want to upgrade to a 24v or 36v system. Do you have room for additional batteries?

I originally wanted to go with a 24v, but the dealer actually talked me out of it. That wasn’t too hard since I bought and had him install a Minn Kota charger and alternator along with the Terova and each component was at least 50% more for the 24v version. I’m still surprised he didn’t jump at making additional money off of me. Maybe as a pontoon fisherman he thought more than a little wind would chase me off the lake.
I agree that a pontoon may be less effected by current than a regular fishing boat of the same displacement when floating, especially if the pontoon is pointing up stream.
I have room for more batteries, but I don’t really want to sacrifice the storage space. Right now the battery, alternator, and charger are all under one port side bench. I don’t really like the idea of adding another battery in that spot, and certainly not two. However, I think spreading them out would increase the complexity of the install significantly. Maybe it could all be moved to the center of the boat under the L lounge.
I’m going to give the 12v a try. We just nailed down the details on the slip and I’m towing it down from the iron range on Monday. Can’t wait to get on the river!

Thanks for the replies. It sounds like I should upgrade, but even then I might not be able to use my favorite features, like spot lock and auto pilot, like I’m used to on a lake.

King Pout wrote:

used the Spot Lock and slipped with the current and the Minnkota worked great.

Good comment on using the motor to slow and control the drift. We could Lindy an area and then big motor back up stream. Maybe the 12 volt could still have some value.

Gitchi Gummi wrote:

If you can’t troll down slow enough, tie a 5 gallon bucket on a cleat and toss it off the bow. Get a drill and start drilling holes in the bucket until you find the sweet spot for drag.

Good idea. Maybe the drift sock would still have a purpose on the river. Might have to do one on each corner to keep the boat controllable.