You have the sunken island marked and the fish are there a short time in the morning and again at night. The island tops out at 8ft and you have been able to pull 3 to 5 eaters a day but the window of opportunity is small. The fish are only there at certain times. Do you sit and wait them out ? Or do you call it a day and head for the golf course.

A simple yet often overlooked system can often yield fantastic results and get you re-thinking what you have read about the most active fish in the system! I am not saying what has been written before or what you have been told by others anglers is wrong . What I am trying to say is that often times anglers get locked into a presentation that could cost them fish.

First off lets talk a little about fish finders or locators. What is the best unit? What features do I need? How much will it cost me for a good unit? Ask a 100 anglers and get 100 different answers. There are many good units on the market today, plain and simple. The key is to find a unit that has the features you use in your style of fishing. My locator of choice is the Garmin 240. I run a 240 both on the console and on the bow. Here are a few thing I look for in a locator- first off I want a unit that the menu can be easily accessed. I do not want to go through pages of menu's to customize my unit. I also want I unit that I can easily see and determine if the bottom is hard or soft. Next, I do want any cartoon fish on my screen. If your unit has fish icons on it- do not use it! A unit that defines weeds well and will also show the thermocline is also handy.

The most important thing is to put the time in to learn how your locator displays different structures, bottom types and fish and then trust your locator and what it is showing you!

Using your locator for those bonus fish.

Lets get back to that sunken island where we have located fish. There is no doubt that the fish on top are actively feeding but are they the easiest to catch? Looking at a locator the fish that are in the transition phase are actually the ones I will target first. Why? Either, heading for the top of the bar or back down the drop, these fish will not turn down a meal. Many times the fish on top of the bar will be laying flat to the bottom and hard to distinguish. Often times missed on the locator . The fish in the transition phase will often be a foot or so off the bottom, or at least not hugging it. This makes them easily seen on the locator and often the easiest to catch, again because they are not going to turn down a free dinner.

When to switch back from transition fish?

When I no longer mark transition fish off the deeper edges it tells me one of two things. Either the fish are on top of the bar feeding or they are down deep off the drop and not actively feeding. My tactic here would be to target the fish on the top and then pick up a few bonus fish that are deep.

Doing a threesome!

On smaller bars it is easy to cover all three scenarios at one time. Usually live bait rigging is the best presentation. Keeping the bait close to the bottom is key. I like starting off deep and then moving shallow. For no other reason than not to spook fish. I will have the bar or sunken island marked and then proceed to it quietly. I like cutting my main engine about 300 to 500 yards away from where I will be fishing. Starting out on the deep edges of the island working through the transition area, across the top and off the other side. Many times fish can be caught in all locations. Another thing is that you can eliminate the inactive side of the bar. (usually the non wind side) This can be some fast depth changes, going from 8 to 30 plus feet in a short time.

This method has helped me boat extra fish on many outings! Give it try next time you are fishing bars and sunken islands. Maybe it will put more fish in your boat.

Don Hanson
In-depthangling.com Pro Staff
Wisconsin Lakes Forum
www.hjioutdoors.com