2009 » July » 3

By Chris Heller

I go fishing with all kinds of people. People of all different skill levels. People with all kinds of different backgrounds who fish certain ways because that’s what they were doing last time they caught a fish. So by all means, continue to fish on anchor in the Columbia the way you always have if it works for you. All I am going to do here is point out some things I’ve noticed people doing/not doing that might help some of you eliminate some problems out there on the water you run into with your gear, bait, presentation etc….we’ll consider different currents, bottom contours, visible obstructions/cover and how external forces can change one or all of the above.

Let’s start by talking about what the purpose of backbouncing is: In this application we’re talking about backing down or presenting your bait/lure down river…from a fixed or anchored position up river. Sure, everybody gets that. But what I see is that most people don’t understand or haven’t visualized what is actually happening with the bait/lure when bounced back versus casted off the boat….or simply dropped over the side.


This is the Diamond converted for big water (anchor system added…seats removed…long shaft 15 kickin’…)

Backbouncing has many benefits over the casting off the side/back of the boat method. Usually, much more skill, patience and concentration is required in order to correctly backbounce versus making a cast. Even though casting a heavy salmon or sturgeon boat rod with a big open-faced casting reel on it requires skill, more skill is required to bounce your bait/lure down river in a way that will ensure proper presentation…AND in a way that gives you constant communication with your rig.

I remember during salmon/sturgeon university in my teens working for Fishermans-Marine one of my mentors telling me to ‘fish your lead’….meaning: Always have contact with your lead and the bottom. This rule is also true with other methods of river fishing as well, such as; trolling for fall salmon, drift fishing free flowing tributaries….but it’s not nearly as important as it is when you are backbouncing.

How to effectively backbounce your bait/lure out behind your anchored boat:


Here’s DD and H2O backing down…concentrating on bottom contact…

1) Choose your lead: Like any kind of fishing, you need to assess the water you are about to fish for the amount of lead that is going to be necessary….usually, you’ll ‘guess’ based on past experience or people you have talked to about an area to try out. Once you get there, take a stab at the amount of lead you might start with based on the current running beside you.

2) Now you’ll free spool your lead and rig over the side/back of the boat. It’s very important while doing this that you keep a slow steady tension on the spool with your thumb and avoid a jerky fast release. I suggest to people to ‘dip’ their rod tip into the river as a way to accurate keep the tip steady. Your bait/lure will have less likelihood to twist or get foul-rooted on the way down…..especially during the fall season when you are fishing in up to fifty feet of water.

3) Once you’ve hit bottom, you’ll remain in free spool, but with your thumb pressed firmly on the line of the spool. You’ll begin by lifting and dropping the rod tip, slowly and steadily, in order to feel contact with the lead on the bottom. While you are doing this you are not letting any line out yet. Just lifting and dropping. By about your third lift and drop, you will know if you have enough lead or not.

4) If you start to loose contact with the bottom, it will feel like an empty lift and drop. This means it’s time to release line from the reel. Simply release the tension with your thumb until you feel contact with the bottom again, quickly stopping the spool again with your thumb. If you release the tension from your thumb and it takes an inordinate amount of time to reconnect with the bottom, it means you’ll need to reel in, and put on more lead….and run this process over again. Do you see why so many people just put a lead on and cast it out of the side or the back of the boat? It’s a lot easier. And a lot less effective.

5) Once you’ve found a lead that is lifting and dropping at a clip you like for the current you are in….you’ll continue your lift and drop…giving the river the line every time your lead calls for it. You’re effectively creating a ‘zig zag’ line with your rigging. While you are bouncing out, it’s important to think about what conditions that bait/lure are running into. Be smooth with your lifts and drops. Use the bottom of the rod handle to create a nice BOW in the middle of the rod when you lifting. This gives you an ability to really hoist that lead off the bottom while not disturbing terribly the presentation of your bait/lure. When you’re all done backing down…place your rod in the holder and watch to make sure your lead isn’t lifting off the bottom once settled.


Place the rod in the holder and wait to make sure it doesn’t lift off the bottom with the current of the big river (Columbia)…

You’ll know you have gotten good at backbouncing once you can successfully bounce out in low current flow. You’ll create your own style through experience from trial and error. But the benefits of bouncing out versus casting…especially when using a bait presentation for, say, sturgeon, are plentiful. The most important thing with all of this is two fold: First, make sure once you are all done bouncing out, that you are not lifting up off the bottom once the current settles into your line belly. You can test for this by picking your rod up out of the rod holder and lifting and dropping. If you loose bottom contact, then you need more lead.

Keep in mind that while you are doing all of this positioning with your bait/lure, you are either IN or IN and OUT of the strike zone….just due to the fact you are lifting and dropping over what is most likely a contoured bottom of varies rock, sand, clay types. The obvious benefit of this method is control. Controlling your bait/lure by ensuring it’s not getting twisted up or tangled. You accomplish this by lifting and dropping….listening to the river and giving it lead when it asks for it….and understanding what the dynamics of your rod are…and how to best exploit them to back your lead out.


The harvest of a quick morning of backbouncing on the right kind of tide can be deadly in the fall….

If this has been interesting to you, we can discuss different types of backbouncing and when to try them. Happy Fourth of July!

H3llcat