Sport Fishing USA — January 2018

1414 JANUARY 2018

ensure they’re tangle free. Once the

dredge is ready to be lowered, drop it

into the water and allow it to sink with

minimal tension at first. Deploy too

slowly and the dredge arms might skim

or skip on the water’s surface, causing

the rig to cartwheel, which results in a

tangled mess.

Hauling the dredge from the water

can be even more of an adventure —

because that usually happens when

there’s a hot fish on the line. Clear all

fishing lines and teasers before deal-

ing with the dredge, since it’s closer to

the boat and will require some careful

timing. The maneuver has to match

the fish’s behavior because the captain

will need to slow the boat (pulling in a

dredge manually at 5 or 6 knots is vir-

tually impossible). Obviously, you’ll

want to do this only when the fish isn’t

running toward the boat and quick

maneuvering doesn’t seem to be an

immediate necessity.

As soon as the boat slows, yank the

dredge out of the water as quickly as

possible and place it out of the way. On

many outboard boats, the motor well

provides temporary dredge stowage.

But be careful to make sure every single

line and teaser is completely inside the

transom or you could foul your props

while maneuvering on the fish.

Will that fish sometimes turn and

charge the boat when you have the

dredge halfway up? You bet. Will deploy-

ing the dredge take a lot of time and

effort? Yes. Is that dredge going to pick

up weeds, snag a line or three, or maybe

even get into the prop once in a blue

moon? Absolutely. But all the trials and

tribulations are well worth the trouble.

These things suck in fish like a baitball

swimming right behind your boat.

deep enough that the arms don’t break
the surface when surfing a wave. If they
do, you’re setting yourself up to tangle
with your flat lines.

INS AND OUTS

OF DREDGES

Deploying a dredge without the benefit
of electric reels usually requires slow-
ing the boat to a crawl while one crew
member handles the dredge itself and
another handles the line. The line han-
dler can support most of the weight by
holding the cannonball or sinker in his
or her right hand and the main line in
the left hand.
Crew member No. 2 supports the
main body of the dredge, lifts it over
the  side and makes any necessary
adjustments to the individual lines to

DOUG PERRINE (TOP LEFT), ADRIAN E. GRAY (2)

Left: A dredge should run in clean

water, and usually the deeper the better

to attract billfish and other gamesters.

Above: Deploying dredges from a small

boat means slowing the vessel to a

crawl and managing the dredge and

the line separately, when possible.

JANUARY 2018 / VOL 33 — ISSUE 1

GAME PLAN + FISH FACTS + GEAR GUIDE + NEW PRODUCTS

DIGGING FOR BILLS

Far too many anglers deploy their dredges and lines, then troll, troll, troll until the day is done. You’ll catch more billfish if you

actively “prospect” next to your dredges.

Prospect with a pitch bait, usually a naked chin-weighted ballyhoo that is held just behind the transom and then free-

spooled so it sinks right past the dredge. With the bait about 10 feet behind the dredge, thumb the spool so water pressure

forces the ballyhoo to swim back up to the surface. Let it swim there for a moment, then reel it in and begin the process again.

Although spotting fish that come in on the dredge presents the ideal opportunity, plenty of fish swim up to a dredge and

are never spotted from the boat, as anyone who has watched dredge-cam footage can attest. Constantly prospecting gives

you a better shot at these fish.