I love the details! Now I know how to jig the saltwater but...
I just bought 2 Scottty manual downriggers ,came with the bases which my boat already has installed so I can slip them right on. Didn't come with any weights though, they are the telescoping version so how heavy of a weight should I be looking at? What weights are better than others? Again any tips would be greatly appreciated. Supposed to be nice the next week or so so I might get out and practice my downrigging skills. Can a guy catch anything worth keeping this time or year?
Thanks again
Richard

PS... If you see a 22ft Bayliner Cuddy (weird blue and bright red canvas top) around the Nanaimo area that looks like he doesn't know what hes doing, that's me

if you have manuals then 10 lbs is going to be easier to crank but 12lbs hold vertically in the current better. I would recommend getting a couple of each because when you're fishing the bottom like most people are this time of year you will lose one eventually. try a 10 on one side and 12 on the other. 10 lb'ers are also a lot easier to find used so are much cheaper.

What Rendraw said x 2.

You can retain Chinook right now....check regs there is a minimum size limit.

Don't know if you are using wire or braid for d/rigger main.

Put about 400ft on. Gives you some leeway in situations.

If wire you will be at the mercy of your line voltage to some extent. There are factors that govern this like...the shape of your zincs for starters.....make sure they are well cleaned.....do not use a wire brush on them. Make sure you isolate the ball from the wire with a plastic or nylon Scotty device.
The round balls or the balls with a tiny fin on them will give you less headaches than the pancake style with the huge backfin.

If you use braid you don't have the electric voltage problem much at all....
But you need the special red Scotty stoppers for braid. Braid is tough but IMO cuts easier than wire. So watch you don't chafe the braid on the side of the boat or any hull obstructions. Braid also has less "drop" strength...that is if you fumble a cannonball and it drops in air to where it is halted suddenly by the braid it will probably break.

That said, braid is IMO much less hassle than wire overall.

Tie the end of your braid to a length of Gagnon (get at Harbor Chandler) then tie the Gagnon to your ball with a heavy swivel.. balls have a tendency to spin at times and you don't want your main twisted.

I run the first stoppers (two...and connect your line clip in between them) about five ft. up from the ball generally.

If you are using dummy flashers then you want another pair of stoppers about 6 ft above those.

You can also connect your dummies right down near the ball and then use your first stoppers for the main release clip.

If you are fishing right now I would go with Boogieman flashers or Green/Glow or Glow/White or Blue/Glow/Chrome.

If spoons go smallish at this time....2" or 3".....50/50 Chrome/Brass, Green-White-Glow, Metallic Blue, Metallic Green. Sometimes a small "Nastyboy" Coyote will work (red,white.black). Silver Horde Glow/Green Splatterback and also the Silver Horde Irish Creme are very good...but go small right now....later on you can go bigger. The "Funky Chicken" is also good.
The Silver Horde "Coho Killer" is also a very good spoon to use for winter Chinook at this time. In same colors as mentioned. And as well the Gibbs "Gypsy" spoon (it is a small spoon) in all the colors listed.
About 6ft behind the flasher with 40lb test.

If hoochy....Green/White Glow, Splatterback, White Glow, Glow Cop-Car, and it's always good to have an "Army Truck" on board....

If needlefish hoochy.....speckled metallic Blue, green splatterback, Glow-white, Black-white Glow,
Overall length (back of flasher to back end of hoochy)....38" to 60". yep...60" sometimes winter springs can be spooked by a flasher close to a hoochy.
On 40lb test minimum.

A lot of the time winters are down near the bottom...but that is not written in stone by any means. Try about 200ft deep of water for starters with your ball down about 190ft. Don't forget that just because it says on your d/rigger dial that you are 190ft down does not mean that you actually are. There is what we call "blowback" on the main which raises it up a number of feet.

Check your tide guide.....best time is low slack and an hour and a half either side of that.

I prefer trolling WITH the tide...others also troll across the tide flow. Some troll against the tide but it doesn't work much for me.

Your d'rigger line angle will be different depending on whether you are going with,across,or against the tide. Generally you want about a a 40 to 45 degree degree angle on them. Don't rely solely on GPS speed. This tells you speed-over-ground but does not always accurately reflect the circumstances you are in, in regard to current conditions. A lot of times the wire angle is your best guide.

Make sure you read the fishing regulations for this area thoroughly, there are alot of closures around here. It would be very easy to pick a closed spot without knowing and end up with a fine. Good luck, Im sure we will see you out there this year!

Tightlines is 100% correct........

I forgot to mention there are areas that are "Closed To All Finfish Retention" and also "RCA's"... (Rockfish Conservation Areas)....

There are several around Nanaimo area......if you don't have a reg book then go on the DFO Pacific site...

They have it all listed on there....maps and all.....

Rockfish and Ling are closed for retention right now BTW....

Another tip for snags is to let out a bunch of slack, then wrap the line around a peice of wood (gaff etc.), and jerk the line quickly. Have got 80 % of most snags undone this way.