Trolling – Hook and Line Fishing Methods Fact Card

What is trolling? Trolling is a type of hook and line fishing where hook or hooks are dragged slowly behind a boat. Sport fishing for salmon and a variety of mid-water marine fish is often done like this, often with a large “down- rigger” weight to get the hook down deep. Commercial trollers use down-riggers as well, but each line has a number of hooks on it. Generally the “bait” is an artificial flasher combined with either natural bait (herring or anchovy) or an artificial lure.

What do trollers catch? Salmon, tuna, and mahi mahi are some of the fish caught by commercial trollers These are all fish that swim in the middle or top parts of the ocean. Generally they are valuable fish. Sports fishermen troll to catch a whole variety of fish in lakes and the ocean.

What are the issues? Generally trolling is a responsible fishery, as it can be targetted to catch particular species and unwanted fish (by-catch) can be released alive. (Some fish with swim bladders do not survive well). On the Canadian west coast, small salmon trollers used to be the boats that really characterized the salmon fishery. Today, salmon are not abundant enough to maintain this fishery at the former level, and it is questionable if it will remain viable.

* You can find a picture of a troller on the “What kind of fishing boat is that?” sheet from Alaska. (http://www.cf.adfg.state.ak.us/geninfo/pubs/fv_n_ak/fv_ak1pg.pdf)