Pelagic jig is not a familiar term for all spinning players, but unconsciously (or consciously) sometimes used method of fishing with
jig lures and not only. It means fishing with lures “soaring” in the water column – that is, jigs, spinners (in particular, castmasters ),
ratlins are carried out not at the bottom, but in another given horizon with a classical step, or without it, depending on the conditions.
- When the pelagic jig works
- First, catching pelagic fish
- Second – the place of fishing does not allow the use of bottom wiring
- Non-trivial fishing conditions – the presence of a thermocline, poor illumination at the bottom
- The depth does not allow fishing along the bottom
- What bait should be used
- Pelagic jig technique
- Dotted line with or without touch on the bottom
- Wave-like soaring
- Subsurface pelagia
- We collect the necessary tackle – what you should pay attention to
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When the pelagic jig works
There are several conditions and situations where pelagics can be successful.
First, catching pelagic fish
Horse mackerel is a classic pelagic fish that stays in the water column, never sinking to the bottom of the reservoir. Our, more famous and understandable perch, is also generally a pelagic fish, which often moves in a vertical direction in the reservoir, and therefore it makes no sense to catch it only with a bottom step. The same applies to chub, ide and, to a lesser extent, to pike and pike perch.
Second – the place of fishing does not allow the use of bottom wiring
The water area or the nature of the bottom does not allow the use of a classic step. These can be significant differences in depths, muddy or littered bottom. In such cases, it is better to hold the bait at some distance from the bottom.
Non-trivial fishing conditions – the presence of a thermocline, poor illumination at the bottom
As you know, fish keep to the most comfortable zone of the reservoir, most often this is really an area at the bottom. There the water is more oxygenated and cooler. However, sometimes the thermocline intervenes (in the figure, area two). Without getting into physical details, this is the area that separates the warm / cold water areas. And, if under normal conditions it is the area of cold water at the bottom that is more saturated with oxygen, then in the presence of a thermocline (most often observed on stagnant deep reservoirs (less often on rivers with a slow flow) in summer heat and / or in simply warm weather) cold water near the bottom gradually loses oxygen. And the fish gradually begins to move to the thermocline area – to its lower or upper border, depending on the sensitivity to oxygen starvation. And this is the area of application of pelagic jig, and not the classic bottom jig.
Such areas are well played by a high-quality echo sounder, but not everyone has it. Therefore, “ordinary” fishermen should look for such zones experimentally. Based on weather conditions, fish activity and experience.
The following types of predatory / semi-predatory fish are sensitive to thermocline: pike perch and sabrefish. Pike and perch are less sensitive.
Often it is the pelagic jig that becomes the key to passive pike, perch, pike perch, which wander in confusion around the reservoir, either in search of a victim, or in search of cooler water …
In practice, such a situation was often observed in June-August on small and medium-sized rivers on pits for pike. At the bottom, the predator completely refused to take the bait, while on the fall or rise of the bait at the final stage of the posting, active violent attacks followed – the pike itself dictated the timeliness of using the pelagic jig.
The depth does not allow fishing along the bottom
Frequent history in quarries, large rivers, seas, artificial deep lakes. For example, it is not always possible to fish with ordinary tackle on the bottom at a depth of more than 10-15 meters, and not everyone has a powerful tackle designed for such reservoirs. In such cases, pelagic fishing in the water column will come to the rescue. It is not for nothing that the anglers “road workers” came up with a multi-storey track, in which the baits are placed on top of each other at a distance of 1-1.5 meters vertically. Initially – zander tackle, but it is successfully used for catching other predatory fish. The same option can be used on a spinning rod, tying, for example, an additional twister on a diverting leash above the main bait by a meter and a half. But the aesthetics is lost, and therefore the pelagic jig goes into battle.
What bait should be used
For pelagic jig, gliding / floating silicone baits are used, as well as loaded ones, but with the use of a special wiring technique. https://youtu.be/6sKwdF4NyTs In general, it is not necessary to use floating rubber for pelagic jig, this is just one solution. You can also use regular silicone along with the use of special types of animation, which are described below.
With jerky types of animation of this form, jigs successfully tweak, like minnow wobblers, which is an additional irritant for the predator.
https://youtu.be/0T7MCzhrVuI
Pelagic jig technique
The set of animations, of course, differs from what is used in the classic jig. A, B, C (figure below) – stepped wiring options; D, D, E – options for soaring wiring (we call them pelagia) when fishing with jigs and other lures:
Dotted line with or without touch on the bottom
A cast is made, then a pause until the bait touches the bottom. Then the rod is blasted from the horizontal by 20-30 degrees, a short pause and another blast by 20-30 degrees and repeat until the rod goes into the vertical. We put the form on the horizon and take out the slack in the cord. The bait goes to the bottom and then according to the circumstances – either we let it fall to the bottom, or we repeat the whole stage, but starting not from the bottom, but 30 cm higher. Thus, you can catch practically the entire working horizon on a dotted line. A very working pelagia for an unfamiliar reservoir as a search for a fish stop. After an active predator has been found and the depth of its anchorage, we move on to the undulating pelagia, which in general is the main one in the pelagic jig. Worms, slugs, twisters are good baits, since this animation is very good for passive baits.
Wave-like soaring
Sinusoidal lead, which is set in the water column by uniform rotation of the reel and rhythmic / arrhythmic movement of the rod tip. The stronger the jerk, the closer this animation type will be to the jerk wiring. You can vary the types of animation – a very large field for imagination. Good front loaded jig wheels, rattlers, active silicone, compact casters like a castmaster. The pauses will give the wave the typical jig-step appearance, but in the water column. All predatory and semi-predatory fish that have left the bottom for the reasons stated above respond well.
Subsurface pelagia
Jig-bait placement at the very surface of the water or at some depth. It is good to use pelagic heads or floating silicone. Conventional jig rigs are quite difficult to run near the surface on an acceptable low-speed wiring. The most valuable type of jigging for surface and mid-water predators is chub, ide, sabrefish and asp. Boiler perch also flies in. On fishing with pelagic jig in the cold season – technique, features and tips: https://youtu.be/qUqUBdfRHAU
We collect the necessary tackle – what you should pay attention to
A regular fast action jig rod will do. Test 5-21, 8-30 grams. It is extremely important that the back was resonant and sensitive, responsive to all movements of the angler, in view of the fact that this is the only way to clearly guide the bait using one of the proposed methods without losing contact with it. The length of 2.1-2.4 meters, in our opinion, is optimal. The coil is an inertialess, high-quality assembly, clearly laying the braided turns. Only the braid, we will leave the
monofilament to the microjigs… Pelagic jig is an interesting way of spinning, a worthy alternative to the bottom step, and in some cases a more effective method of fishing. Applying different methods in his practice, the spinning player not only expands his arsenal of possibilities, but also makes fishing more interesting and varied. It works especially well in summer on warm water, when predatory fish moves not only along the water area of the reservoir, but also in the vertical direction, and does not always stand at the bottom.
