Trotline thoughts

[Murray]

Every night I've been out someone is putting out a trotline right smack in the middle of Lake Greenwood. They put 2-3 out so you have to weave in and out on the main body. I'm not a big trotliner, is this common?

[cajunwannabe]

I run 'em here on Lake Murray in 15 -18 feet or less of water. Jugs on top, mainline and hooks 4-6 feet underwater. If someone hits mine....they had to work pretty hard to do it.

[Swamp Rat]

I like to run mine in shallow water as well - 6-10 feet, parallel to an undeveloped shoreline with a relatively clean bottom (mine will find every stump within a mile). Mark the ends with the appropriately colored marker float - the line itself will be deep enough to avoid prop entanglement.

Working on a new method:

End Anchors - Concrete weights with nylon rope long enough to reach the deepest depth I would be fishing - float (and tag, on one end) will be fixed to one end. The OTHER end of the rope will slide through the eye bolt on the anchor, with a long-liner (gang-rig) clip on the end. Slide the rope through and clip it to itself to adjust depth.

Trotline will be of standard configuration, but with long-line clips on the ends to make it quick to "clip" to the anchor lines, at whatever depth I choose. I DO like to suspend it a little off the bottom.

[Geetch]

Why not just tie the end to a tree on the bank? Why use floats?

I ask this because I know nothing about running a trotline and have seen some tied to trees on the banks of rivers.

[dukhuntr]

Have to have float by law to mark it. Has to be certian color and size.

But trees on bank or in the middle work fine.