There are several methods to present a bait to the fish you’re after. Drifting can be effective if the wind is from the right direction, but trolling and casting are probably, in most places and at most times, the most effective ways to put a bait in front of a fish. Trolling versus casting, here we go!

Casting is usually most effective in shallow water. In spring and early summer, many species of fish are in the shallows getting ready to spawn, spawning or just finishing their spawning ritual. Let’s say you know where there’s a rock, gravel or sand point in shallow water. To take it one step further, you believe that there are some walleyes hanging out around that structure. The spot is two to four feet deep and the water is fairly clear.

If you drift or troll over the spot, you’re going to spook the fish. However, if you stay within easy casting distance and cast to the fish, they’ll never know that you’re there. Or at least they won’t know until they discover your bait in their mouths. When the fish are shallow and in a small area, casting is very effective.

Casting isn’t just for shallow water. A few years ago while fishing a very popular, heavily fished lake, some friends and I learned that even in deep water, casting can be a better approach. We found a school of fish that we believed to be crappies at the tip of a point, about twenty feet deep. Some were suspended about 10 feet down, with others were close to the bottom. We hovered over them and worked our jigs directly below the boat. That often does the trick, but in this case, it didn’t. We tried other spots, but none held fish like this one, so we started trying different techniques.

Still without much action, ne of the anglers in our boat made a long cast with his jig and reeled in a crappie. He made another cast—another crappie. Apparently, the boat and noise from the boat directly above them spooked the fish. We moved the boat a cast length away from the fish and started catching them. On some lakes, at some times, casting to deeper water can get fish to eat your bait.

When it comes to walleye fishing, a favored technique when the fish are spread out or near the surface is to troll Hornet crankbaits behind planer boards. Planer boards attach to your lines and take your baits out to the sides and away from the boat. That allows anglers to troll in areas that hold fish near the surface without disturbing them.

Many states allow anglers to use multiple lines. When the walleyes are spread out, boards enable you to effectively get a good number of lines in the water. By doing so, we can cover a wide area, plus a variety of depths, and show the fish several different lure offerings. OffShore Tackle planer boards are favored by many of the most successful walleye trollers. They allow anglers to keep their baits in the fish zone more of the time.

When you go fishing, if you’ll remember to cast for shallow fish or deeper fish that you’ve pinpointed, and to troll for fish that are spread out, you’ll catch more fish.

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