This
article is but of a trilogy in three rigs to catching that Kingfish
fever on a Trolley. North Carolina to Florida, Kingfish, these fast
moving toothy critters of the sea, make an appearance along the
coastlines in a ritual migration in the spring and the fall. Coming
up from the tropics, in the spring with a return in the Fall, the
Kings are following a stew of baits from which the warm waters of the
Gulf Stream produces. Florida Kingfish cause a fever from the boards
of the piers, to the decks of many a boat, in both the thrill of the
catch to the contest of a lifetime, in mega dollar tournaments. The
most common practice in catching Kings are afloat in a drift or
trolling but when it comes to shore anglers, there are but three
methods in which to catch a kingfish; trolley, Anderson inline float
or with a kite.
Rigging the
Trolley:
Kingfish
at 48”, cools the fever!
Dependent
upon where you live and to the pier regulations of where you fish,
may regulate the way in which you are allowed to angle when the
Kingfish arrive as when they are here; Kingfish fever spreads like a
wildfire as those who partake are truly infected! On some piers, trolling for Kingfish is a way of life twice a year; whereas, on
others, trolly rigs are prohibited and each angler must work out the
best way to reach the Kings without crossing another fishing line; my
Anderson Inline Trolley rig does the trick or from the beach in using
a “Caught in Flight,” Kite!
The
most popular rig in angling for Kingfish from on a pier was developed
in North Carolina, called a Trolly Rig. The Trolley Rig, engages the
usage of two rods and though takes up more space on a pier than
fishing with one rod, as with inline angling, it allows for more
coverage in ones bait to cover, upping the odds in a hook up, while
securing the bait in a straight and narrow path to swim freely. The
first rod is the “Anchor” rod, as it is generally a surf rod with
an a sand anchor attached to the end of the line. The anchors are
homemade and come in every sort and size but for the most part they
consist of a weight, claws made from cloths-hangers and held together
by electrical tape. Usually a four to six ounce weight has four to
six pieces of cloths hanger wire, taped to it. The wire is then bent
and the anchor resembles a grappling hook. The best, I have seen, is
a segment of re-bar cut at three inches long and the wire attached.
The anchor is attached to the surf rods line and cast as far as
possible off the end of the pier, in as of a straight of a line as
possible because one wishes not to cross another trolley. After the
anchor is on the bottom, a number of slow deliberate strokes (pulling
the rod downwards), in trying to get hung up. Once the anchor is
“hung up,” the anchor rod is secured to the pier in an upward
position. This is achieved by placing the butt of the anchor rod in a
three foot section of three inch wide PVC pipe that is tied to one of
the boards, on the pier. A homemade clip or a Down rigger clip is
used in attaching the trolley rod to the anchor rod. The trolley rod
has its live bait attached anywhere from three to five feet below the
trolley clip. The bait is released as the trolley reel, the reel on
the trolley rod, as the reel is thumbed in freespool out to where one
wishes its bait to dangle. The passing King hits the bait, hopefully
takes the hook and the clip on the anchor rod releases, as the fight
ensues. It is a simple method that catches everything from mackerels
to tarpon and very large sharks.
General
Trolley Rig Set Up
The
problem of fishing with a trolley, lies in that, it takes up a lot of
room, you must use two rods per person for one bait and the baits are
visible by birds of prey over the lines. Many piers have a rod limit
of two rods per person. If Trolley fishing, once your two rods are
up, you need to catch baits; a third rod is needed. Signs on piers
state not to feed the birds for a reason; birds and fishing lines are
a nasty mess, usually a death sentence if not removed. They fly back
to the nest at night. The fishing line becomes entangled in the
branches. The bird is stuck in the bush; it starves to death! The
hook, if caught in the bird, as a fish, rusts away and falls out over
time, if the bird is hooked. Hooks do not kill, it is that hanging
piece of line that puts them down and trolleys are notorious for
fouling birds, as when they dive on the splashing bait below, they
see neither line. You as the angler may lose your anchor and your
trolley rig in a breakage to a bird. The bird flies off with his last
supper. To this reason, many a pier either strictly enforce the two
rod rule or No Trollies Allowed. The easy fix to this madness would
be for people not to feed the birds, in that alone will not prevent a
tangle but less would happen as less birds are out for a last supper.
The others would be for all piers to place an plastic over sized Owl
on the end of its pier. For some reason, it keeps many a bird away as
they wish maybe not to be eaten and the other procedure comes down to
responsible angling. I have but once seen it done, on my own rods, as
it requires more work to set up than most anglers are willing to do.
By running free-lined clips down the trolly, with colored strips of
surveyors tape in strips of a foot or so in front of the baits and
behind; the fluttering of the tape in the wind, scares the birds
away. With many a pier succumbing to either new
Bird of
Prey caught in rigging, this one gets help! Notice the wire leader
left
upper screen, pulling it to safety.
rules
set by Enviros or the need for more space, catching Kingfish fever on
a trolley is slowly becoming an extinct animal but with the invent of
my inline float system, angling for Kings will continue to be an all
time fun sport for those fishing from shore! Look for, “Onshore
Kingfish Caught Inline,” part II of our Kingfish Trilogy in
catching you more from the Online Fisherman, where information to
education is our way of giving you the entertainment for all to learn
by.
Best
Trolley baits include Ladies, Blue Runners & Bluefish
“FISH
ON!” Gary A. Anderson “The Mentoring Angler”
