Times have changed. Probing the water column from the bottom to the surface with a white, leadheaded bucktail lay in the province of the serious light tackle angler of yesteryear. It was and still is a deadly technique for hooking an amazing variety of fish in water depths ranging from 20 feet to 200 feet.
Standard tackle for deep jigging would either be 12- or 15-pound-test line. Some beginners will insist on a 20-pound test, but the lures don’t work as well as the line test increases. Most of the top anglers use a stout, 7-foot rod with plenty of lifting power and a baitcasting reel, but a few rely on spinning. If the rod tip collapses, not only will you have problems trying to drag a fish up from the depths, but the lure won’t work as well.
The leadhead itself is the heart of the system. Anglers today opt for the new metal artificials, but my money rests on the old-fashioned white bucktail. Weight is a factor. You want the lightest weight that will get down to the bottom under the circumstances. With 15-pound-test line, the basic bucktail weighs 2 1/4 ounces. Unless the current is strong, you can reach the bottom in 200 feet of water with it. If the current becomes a problem, you can go to 4 ounces. Shapes differ, but the best bucktails have a knife edge on one side.
As an aside, if I were limited to one lure to fish for any species anywhere in the world, it would be that white bucktail with either a length of plastic hanging from the hook or a strip bait or a small baitfish. It can be trolled, cast and retrieved, or deep dropped. When you are deep jigging, you want a vertical retrieve. That means you have to freespool the bucktail without any drag directly to the bottom before you start the retrieve.
If you’re having a problem telling when the lure hits bottom, watch the line. When the bucktail hits the bottom, the line will go slack for an instant. Working the lure is done by lifting the rod and then reeling the slack as you drop the rod tip. You can work it all the way to the surface using this method. How fast you retrieve and how high you lift the rod become variables. Try different approaches until you find what works at that moment.
A good place to start learning to deep jig is around some form of bottom structure that a variety of fish call home. If you saw some of the catches light tackle experts used to achieve with this technique on 15-pound-test line in deep water, it would amaze you. Once you hook something of size, the next challenge lies in trying to lift that critter to the surface. When you do, you’ll be talking about it for a long time and you’ll have a smile on your face.