Salmon are just showing up in the rivers, and there are still fish staging in front of the rivers that are less than 50 feet. Trolling stick baits with the lead core is a great way to target these staging fish. Just spool up with lead core, run the baits back 3-5 colors, and attach a 12-pound fluorocarbon leader. Spoons work well also, especially if you run into dirtier water where a glow moonshine spoon is a killer. The dirtier water often holds the bait fish, and the salmon are usually not far behind or on the clear/dirty water seam. Since these fish are getting ready to spawn, reaction bites are key, and you can provoke this by trolling at 2.1-2.3mph. You can also cast at these fish with lipless crankbaits by jigging them back to the boat around the harbor gap and pier heads in Port Washington, which makes for a lot of fun! When trolling in rivers, troll down current as the fish are facing upriver.
