River currents: Trenton opposed to Wyandotte are

[andy capp]

Is the current slower up there then Trenton Channel?

[Jimbos]

As long as your above Grosse Ile, it is. .....But watch, the current slows In the channel also where that little bay starts on the westside,just down stream from the stacks, where the boats race over the eyes in 3 feet of water all day and then drift back over them and try to catch them......:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[kroppe]

No expert here but I notice that the current velocity and direction changes quite a bit. From BASF to the second steel mill upstream there are humps, channels and seawalls that affect the current. Don't forget water discharges. What it means is that boat control is a challenge if you're not paying attention. I have a tiller type transom-mounted trolling motor and boat control is a full time job, for vertical jigging.

[andy capp]

My cousin has a transom trolling motor and alls it does is spin us in circles trying to keep the nose up stream. If you put the trolling motor in reverse , and point the nose down stream it helps a litte better. With out a trolling motor, me and a friend are looking for a spot with a little slower current to jig.

[Gone Fishing]

Kroppe, you might think about a remote steering set-up. It works best for hand lining but I use it for jigging as well. You still have to operate the shifter but I set up a remote for that also. It does help to have your hands free. Those darn fish always seem to hit when your reaching for the tiller or shifter. Here is a link to a sketch. I replace the tubing with an extension spring approx 12 - 14 inches with as many coils as possible.
http://dwfonline.com/remote_steering_fo_handliners.htm

[kroppe]

John,

That is one clever setup. You guys are going to corrupt me into a handliner for sure! ;) Either I go with the remote steering setup, or a bow mount with remote control steering.

To be honest my transom mounted trolling motor does a fine job for now. But it would be a big help to have hands free.

For jigging the boat direction is downstream, and with handlining the boat is moving upstream, right? For jigging, two issues come to mind, first is getting the outboard to run slow enough (to slip downstream) and the second is that I don't have a lot of steering angle with the outboard. The electric trolling motor solves both of these issues.

Definitely something to think about.....