The trolling with side-planer has a long tradition in Switzerland. No wonder the company Stucki is considered the world‘s leading suppliers in this field.
The basis of this method is a specially designed plank (called „seal“ in Switzerland) that wants to go as far to the side of the boat as possible. Between this and the boat, a line is fixed to hold the fishing lines.
This line is made out of thick braided nylon or Kevlar (1.5-3 mm), so that it can be managed easily with your hands. This line is spooled on a large arbor Stucki Trolling Reel. The line is lifted by a trolling mast to be high above the water level. The seal can drift away up to 60 meters from the boat. This makes it possible to serve your lure far away from the noise and shadow of the boat and fish a large area with several lines. At the main line, the fishing lines are mounted with snaps. The number of permitted lines, their length and their maximum distance from the boat are governed by the cantonal regulations. On some waters it can be up to 20 lines per boat (distributed on both sides), but four to ten are much easier to handle. A fishing line is between 15 and 60 meters long and is usually made of transparent nylon. The diameter varies depending on water clarity, fish and bait between 0.20mm (delicate trout) and 0.60 mm (pike). When fishing for pike an additional steel leader is required.
The choice of bait is huge nowadays. Irresistibly are bait fish mounted on special trolling systems, but also mother of pearl, spoons, plugs, soft lures and spinners are very promising. Important for the success is the trolling depth, the boat speed, which must necessarily be matched to the bait used and of course the bait where color, size, and the action are crucial. Go out on the water and try it out – surely you will get some nice catches!