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Still having darter trouble

8K views 9 replies 5 participants last post by  Striperjim 
#1 ·
Went out Saturday night to a local jetty with a really nice rip. I thought to myself as I got to the tip that this is the perfect place for a darter. I did what every one says to do, cast up current (in the direction the waters coming from) gave it a tug to get it to dig and reeled. Problem is I could not feel the darter working. I don't know if my retrieve is wrong or if I'm expecting to much. Any one have any suggestions?
 
#2 ·
how big /heavy was the darter???is this darter wood or plastic, some darters pull hard some dont... never hurts to add a little rod tip action too.... once you have the darter moving,stop the retrieve briefly then five the rod tip a light twitch, followed by another.... alot of times the plug gets blasted on the second twitch..
 
#3 ·
cast up current (in the direction the waters coming from) gave it a tug to get it to dig and reeled. Problem is I could not feel the darter working.
khary,
It seems to me that darters need some pretty good water flow across their face to get the action going.....if there's no, or little current, a pretty good sweep of the rod tip is needed to get the plug digging, followed by a pretty quick retrieve.
In a left to right current that you described, if you were casting up into the current, you would need a very quick retrieve, as the plug has to be moving faster than the water is flowing towards you. I would have tried casting out slightly to my left, and retrieve across the current, finishing up the retrieve with the plug coming back to me from the right.....the current would provide the needed flow to get the plug wagglin'. You should be able to feel the rod tip dancing just a bit, I use that to gauge how well my plugs are swimming, if I can easily feel that pulsation in the tip, the plug is working, even if I can't see it.
All that said, I've never heard of swimming darters downstream with the current, but since fish generally stage facing upcurrent, maybe this is something I should try.
Anyone?
 
#4 ·
in a heavy flow like is being discribed, I prefer to toss the darter quartering the current, free spool to the water I want to work ( bar or mussel bet, hole etc.) with enough line drag to get the darter working and then work it back with a series of short burst of retrieve and rests... this type of retrieve is far more effective than just casting and reeling in.... I had a 50 fish day last fall using just this method in the putflow of the Merrimack in a current that was approaching 6 knots!

All that said.. all darters are not created equal..... heavy darters are what most plug makers make, but with a few alterations, in wood type and face ange and body width, darters can be made to work in light or no current...

look at a beach master darter, they are much faster tha say, a typical "montauk" style darter... they also wil work the quieter water...

First picture is of a Muso/super strike...notice how thin the plug is.... this is a fast water plug designed to be cast across and into the flow...

Next, the bottom darter is a beach master,notice how fat the body is,this plug is more suited for quieter flows...

The next batch are my own,the darters at the top sport a different angle on the dive plane(3 in all)it is narrow,made of birch,heavily weighted and is a dog in anything but a screaming rip...

below them are three 5" fat boys, made of douglass fir and lightly weighted, the bodies are fat and two differant angles are used on the dive plane, this is an excellent darter off of the beach or in the flats, it dances and wiggles even on a slow retrieve.....

Spend some time experimenting.... you'll figure it out, then you will have one deadly wepon to rely on...
 

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#5 ·
I would start by casting down current and let the plug sit in the current and get a feel for what the plug does against moving water. once you get familiar with this start working across the rip like mentioned above. Also, what kind of line are you using? mono or braid? mono will decrease your feel, but not to the point where you don't feel the action.

As for retrieve, once you have the feel of the plug, try above mentioned variations as well as no retrieve. I have excellent results with just letting the current work the plug-provided you "Start the plug DIGGING" at the beginning of your retrieve. You can cast, let the plug drift to the sweet spot, Jerk the tip up to dig in, and let the current do the work. This slow retrieve, or no retrieve rather, has brought my quality fish, especially when blues move in.​
 
#6 ·
thanks for every ones replies!

Roc I was useing the Super Strike darters.

From what you guys have written I think I was probably not casting in the right direction. I was under the impression that you should cast up towards the direction the current was coming from. I will try to cast the other way next time I'm out as well as the rest of the suggestions. I'll let you guys know how its goes

thanks again
 
#8 ·
Should have written this eariler but have been far too busy.

In late may early June I started fishing with a few guys on Shelter Island who are sick. What we found out was that I was throwing darters that where to light in fast current as well as to parallel to the beach. I now try to go with heavier darters on fast water and lighter in slow. As well as not casting at such an extreme angle.

I can now feel the darter working, but have yet to get a fish on one. (that will change soon)

thanks for every ones help
 
#9 ·
Update


I have since caught a bunch of fish on the darter, and I now have a lot of confidence in the plug.
Thanks for everyone's help!
 
#10 ·
I've had success casting up current at 10 O'clock and letting it drift down current to 1 O'clock (target zone - sand bar edge) before reeling it in. The hits usually came at the start of the retrieve.
 
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