Learning to fish can be tough for beginners but there is a way to take a lot of fish and many species all year. The trolling technique is without a doubt the most deadly way to not only find and catch fish, but cover tons of water on any lake. Many years ago, I caught my first bass trolling the baby bass S and S Mirror Lure. That was in 1951 and we were trolling on Clarks Hill on the Georgia South Carolina border.

It was May and the fishing was great. We almost had the entire lake to ourselves. My dad loved to fish and we would spend every weekend on some body of water. Lake Lanier was 6 years away from opening. That summer we trolled all day with a 30 horse Johnson on a 21 foot Halsey cabin cruiser. We would fish all day pulling Hellbenders and Mirror Lures. Dad even used the Hellbenders to pull all white Shysters down to the fish with an 18 inch leader tied to the back of the big bait. We caught everything in the lake. At night we would tie up to old man Heaths dock and crappie fish. I catching fish all day and all night.

When Lake Lanier was opened, we came to the lake in 1956 and used the same trolling methods. It was unbelievable how many fish we caught all year, including during the

dead of winter. Imagine going to Lake Lanier in December for years and not seeing another boat. When the trout were in huge numbers in Lake Lanier in the mid sixties to the lake eighties, we trolled and caught giants. Three to six pound rainbows were common. After Lake Lanier became too crowded, we bought a cabin on a new lake in north Georgia called Lake Hartwell. Same tactics, same results and no people.

Trolling spoons, crank baits, stick baits and buck tails is easy. With a gas engine, just crank it and put it in gear. Rig up any three baits on either spinning or bait casting equipment. Pull any three baits from 50 to 70 feet behind the boat. Now cover all the water possible. When one bait out produces the others, make the change. Trolling requires almost no skill and minimal tackle. But there is one tool that is a must, a lure saver. My personal favorite lures saver is the David Fritts Lure Gripper. Now pull out an old marker buoy. Take the lead off the buoy and add the lures saver. When you get hung up, pull out the lure saver and get right over the lure to retrieve it. You will still see me on Lake Lanier using the same trolling techniques that my dad Walter Sturdivant, taught me years ago. And they still catch fish.