Damn Fleas

Fleas have been out for a while but they are just insane in certain areas of the lake

leadcore is not an issue to run

neither are riggers .I got 40 pound mono on main lines. some are using 60

dipseys...put the braid away and fight through with wire


fishing is great for kings and coho btw, but I just hate those fleas.

just fyi guys

good luck out there

Thanks Shank, we noticed that the other night, the dipsey lines with braid were brutal. We ran a 400 ft copper but nothing hit that line. The rigger rods with mono were also fine.

Maybe fleas are actually a good thing as they might be the first ones in the food chain for salmon… No?
So what’s your suggestion for riggers? 40-60 mono or steel, copper or something else? Money wise and convenience…
I only use braid for the riggers and it’s really painful with the fleas..

Apparently not...

https://www.mesabitribune.com/opinion/colum...26c8aa0317.html
Spiny water fleas invade lakes and take over the bottom of the food chain, effectively disturbing the ecology of the food web and presenting what experts consider a serious potential threat to the lake.

More specifically, according to information on the MAISRC web site, “they can decimate populations of Daphnia and other native zooplankton resulting in a decreased food source for native fish and an increase in algal blooms. They can also clog the eyelets of fishing rods, causing problems for recreationalists.”

40-60 mono for riggers......some say they get away with 30

you only need to tie on say 150 or so, not full spool to achieve some relief

used to use the flea flicker line which was oval shaped, but no longer available

and yes, the spiny water flea is invasive......so no good but easier to remove than the fish hook flea which is really nasty

easy to tell apart..spiny is usually a green tinge color to it, fish hook is a very pale color

I realize the larger the diameter the line is, the bigger the blowback on riggers, but for sure I would rather deal with blowback than clogged lines in 6 -15 minutes

Thanks, Longshank!
I heard some guys use steel line... It is supposed to be thinner than mono for the same strength?

I know Blood Run makes a sea flea line , I wonder if that would compare to the the old flea flicker line?

its about the thicker diameter the harder it is for the fleas to wrap around.
strength is not the consideration.

Just wondering, are these fleas are on the surface or through the entire water column?

So, if I am using the wire as a main line and a braid leader on which the slide diver slides on, would this braid leader catch the fleas as well?

Thank you,

Vlad