Nice report. I was out on the 5th--slower than the 4th, but we wound up with 2 fish--both caught in the combat area, that I reluctantly went to after a full troll down the middle from Mukilteo. I've given up on stacking. I was getting tangled too often. I now have a second downrigger and just fish 2 lines no matter how many are in the boat. It might bring fewer fish but less on my nerves!

Stacking is a pain, I gave up on it several years back. Too much trouble when you get a fish on to get all that gear in. In addition to the two downriggers, we've got some fishing cut plugs real shallow with only 2 oz of lead. Cant let it down too far or you'll tangle with the DRs. When it does slow, a lot of the fleet will call it quits, so at least less competition. There will be Silvers dribbling in for several weeks, just not as many fish.

So I have some questions for everyone who reads this about stacking.
1. Does anyone run 2 stacked flasher rigs or is there just too much drag?
2. If you stack a lure/plug/cut herring without a flasher on one line and are going to run a flasher rig on the other, which one should go on the bottom to minimize snags and what setback do you do for each?
FYI we had 2 fish hit the lower rig on the stacked side and once got tangled and once did not. I think the time we got tangled was due to the fact that my father in law has never used riggers and didn't understand that the lines had to be immediately cleared when you have a fish on. So, guys who fish together and know what needs to happen when a fish strikes is imperative when stacking.
3. I have electric scotty downriggers and I know some guys use line beads and a conventional release to speed up the stacking process. I was using the double clip release designed specifically for stacking. I found it to be cumbersome and slow. For the guys who stack, what set up do you like for attaching releases?
Thanks guys (and gals I guess). I really appreciate the comments.

Never really stacked flashers but stack dodgers all the time for Sockeye and Kokanee. Never had any problem at 10 feet apart. But then we are only going 1 mph so there is no blow back. Stacking dodgers for sockeye really increases our catch rates. Many times the first fish hits the lower line and while fighting that fish the upper stacked pole will get a fish on it. I have been with other guys in the salt and none of them stack flasher.

I agree with others, stacking in saltwater when trolling 3-3.5mph is just too much work w/o much reward. The drag brings your gear up more than I'd like. I run two downriggers and will use a Deep 6 off the back, and pull that rod in immediately when a DR rod goes off. Kokanee and sockeye, yes, stacking works great. Plus, trolling slower, I'll have the top lines run the Macks Double D blades which are designed to travel away from the boat - and they are excellent, I've had zero tangles since going to them. If you do stack in the saltwater, IMO the deeper should be the flasher and needs to be set back farther, so when it gets a fish (hopefully) it will clear the top line. I'd separate by 12-15 feet. For stacking I use the single clip on the cable thingy.

We stack 2 flashers on a DR. My buddies man the DR and I drive - so it's usually a pain in their behinds rather than mine. We use the double clips - those seem to work better when pulling the gear up since they'll usually slide right to the bottom when the clip on the line hits the pulley on the DR. We've gotten our share of tangles but we've also had fish hit both the top and bottom, just not at the same time. I only had that happen once when we actually had a triple on - sheer madness. I like to keep the stacked flashers at least 30 feet apart with the bottom flasher further out. I think it helps give us an idea which ones are biting. We'll typically start out with 30' and 90' on the stacked DR and then 60' feet on the other DR which gives us a nice spread. I suppose we'll keep stacking for so long as my buddies can put up with it. It certainly can be a pain.

Hi Doc; nice to see you're back after those fish! As for me I find running two downriggers is enough depending on the experience of those on board. I do run a third rod in the middle with a Bud's Diver when I feel the need for a third rod. In my opinion simpler is better there is enough fire drill when two rods go off at once. I agree with kodacachers except I get as many fish without shattering the nerves. We do fish for fun; don't want to make it too much work!!

Tight lines - Alan

Nice work Doc!!! I along with the others, normally don't stack for all the reasons mentioned. I was out there on the 3rd and caught my limit. The action wasn't quite as hot as the previous week. They seemed to be biting short as I probably lost 3 or 4 to include one at the boat.

Great comments guys.
I looked at stacking in the salt last night and didn't really see too much info on stacking flashers, probably due to the inherent pitfalls we all seem to have had. I have fished with Mike Jamboretz in Neah Bay several times and I know he stacks as a norm out there. I'm trying to think back to exactly how we rigged the gear, I should know, he's kind enough, or is foolish enough to let me set gear for him when I have the chance to be on his boat. I'm going to go with the former. Anyway, he will run a tomic plug on one rod and a flasher/spoon on the other and we'll fish deep and almost NEVER get lines fouled. There seems to be a lot of variation in people's strategy whether the top line or bottom line gets let out further. I seem to recall on Mike's boat that we used the flasher on the bottom line with a typical setback of about 15 feet. Then the tomic plug went on the line after about 20-25 feet of cable paid out. The setback on the tomic plug (or sometimes spoon) was further, maybe 40 feet. When a fish hits, it's up to the crew and the man on deck to clear the second rod. The crew mans the rigger and the guy who was up to bat fights the fish and the guy who was on deck is retrieving the other lure, which is often still in the release. Sometimes there are doubles on, but I think the key is clear the other gear so you don't foul everything up and loose the fish too. I think some guys like to run a plug on the top line due to the bouyancy of the plug, if you slow down, then the plug floats up and the flasher sinks down. If the plug was the lower gear and the flasher was the upper, then the plug would float up into the sinking flasher when/if the boat slowed. For me, the bottom line is no stacking unless I have guys on the boat that know exactly what needs to happen, otherwise, I think I'll go with other's suggestions that lead and herring or some type of diver is the less stressful way to go. SO! that brings up another question. On the third rod, what is the best diver to get DEEP? How does speed affect one's decision on gear to be employed? Meaning, if trolling slowly, then lead seems to be a more predictable way to get deep and judge your lures position in the water. If trolling fast, then a diver seems to be the ticket since lead would just get blown way back and then (for me at least) it's tough to tell where your gear is actually running.

With Bud's Diver you can control the set-back from the diver (it has a release built in) and the weigh can be added or subtracted to suite the situation. It will troll at approximately a 45 degree angle putting it behind the other downrigger gear. Line out is approximately 2X the desired lure depth.

I checked out a video for shasta tackle's shuttle hawk. It looked pretty sweet, hooked to your DR cable, then deploys automatically and if a fish hits that line, then the diver returns to the surface and your lower gear keeps fishing. I guess all you need to do is put some line beads on the cable for a stop at whatever depth you want the shuttle hawk to fish at. I think it's time to invest in some "optional equipment" and i definitely want to look into the Bud's Diver as well. Thanks guys! PS, I was thinking of hitting the salt again this friday, with all that rain, does anyone think it's time to shift to the rivers (which I know next to nothing about) or stick it out in the sound. The catch numbers seemed to be falling post October 3-5. Thoughts?