In recent years, New England has seen a dramatic rise in bonito populations. Bonito are biting well off the mid-atlantic coast, and should begin trickling into Northeast waters in about three months. These tasty and hard-fighting fish drew On The Water's Chris Megan and Jimmy Fee to the hooter off the shores of Martha's Vineyard during season 17 of On The Water's Angling Adventures.
Trolling for bonito is a very simple process, and doesn't require a lot of specialized equipment. A single deep-diving swimming plug, like the Rapala X-Rap Magnum, is a great choice when searching for bonito near drop-offs and deeper water. Trolling at 4 to 6 knots usually yields the best results.
Most rods designed for inshore fishing have enough backbone for handling bonito while trolling, with lightweight conventional setups being the norm. Shimano makes an excellent low profile, high power reel baitcaster style reel for this application, the Shimano Tranx.
Gear:
Rapala X-Rap Magnum:
www.rapala.com/rapala/lures/m...
Rod: fish.shimano.com/content/fish/...
Reel:
fish.shimano.com/content/fish/...
Leader:
10 feet of 25-pound-test Seaguar Blue Label (attached to main line with an FG Knot)
Watch the Full Episode here: • Casting and Trolling f...