trolling (rodada) and steep-bank fishing in the pantanal
How to rig your gear, choose bait, feel the bottom, decide between anchoring and trolling, the best times, and respect for fishing guides and riverside communities.
what rodada (trolling) and steep-bank fishing are
In rodada (trolling), the boat drifts down the river carried by the current, with the motor only correcting heading, and natural bait trails along the bottom with the line nearly vertical. It covers a lot of river and finds fish spread along the channel.
In steep-bank fishing, the boat stays still, anchored or tied, next to a steep bank, pool or submerged timber, and the bait is placed at the foot of the bank, where catfish and pacu live.
assembly
The classic rig uses a sliding sinker: the fish takes the bait and runs with it without feeling the weight.
- Rod 1.8 to 2.1 m, moderate to fast action, for 20 to 40 lb, with a sturdy baitcasting reel.
- Main line of 0.50 to 0.60 mm monofilament or 50 to 65 lb braid.
- Thread an olive sinker (drilled through the middle) onto the main line.
- Thread a bead and tie a strong swivel below the sinker. The bead protects the knot.
- On the swivel, tie a 40 to 60 cm leader (empate) of heavier monofilament (0.70 to 0.90 mm). Where there are piranha, use wire.
- Strong hook, 5/0 to 8/0, depending on bait and fish. A circle hook reduces deep hooking and makes release easier.
tips
- Use the smallest sinker that touches bottom, usually 30 to 100 g, depending on current and depth. Too much weight snags and the fish feels it.
- On snaggy bottom, attach the sinker to a tag line weaker than the main line: if it snags, you lose only the sinker.
- On the steep bank, the rig is the same, with the sinker only to hold the bait in place.
baits
Fresh, well-rigged bait catches more. Bring variety, because fish change their preferences through the day.
tips
- Surubim and cachara: tuvira, muçum, minhocuçu and pieces of fish.
- Jaú: large whole bait, such as piau or curimbatá, in a deep pool.
- Pacu: crab, local fruit and dough. At the steep bank, also with the batida technique: the rod tip slaps the water, imitating a falling fruit.
- Barbado and jurupoca: tuvira, piece of fish and earthworm.
- Live tuvira: hooked through the lips or just behind the head, so it keeps swimming.
- Capture, transport and sale of tuvira, minhocuçu and other baits have their own rules in some states. Buy from an authorized supplier.
feeling the bottom and hooking
In rodada, the rod tip is what feels the bottom. The line must always stay taut.
- Let out line until the sinker touches bottom, then engage the baitcasting reel.
- Hold the rod tip at about 45 degrees, with the line taut.
- Feel the tap-tap of the sinker hitting bottom as the boat drifts down.
- It stopped tapping: the bottom dropped, let out a bit of line. It got heavy and dragged too much: the bottom rose or there's a snag, reel in a little.
- The bite comes as tugs: line gets heavy or suddenly goes slack.
- Catfish bite and run with it. With a regular hook, wait until you feel firm weight and then set hard. With a circle hook, don't jerk: reel in steadily until the line tightens and the hook sets itself.
- Get the fish off the bottom quickly, before it gets into the timber.
common mistakes
- Slack line: you can't feel the bottom or the bite.
- Sinker too heavy, snagging on every log.
anchor or troll? and the timing
Troll to search. Anchor when you find the fish concentrated.
tips
- Drift: long stretches of channel and continuous banks. Mark on the GPS where you got a strike and repeat the pass.
- Anchor: the head and mouth of a pool, a bank with fallen timber, where a river meets a corixo.
- Anchor upstream of the spot and let the bait drift down to it. Never anchor inside a strong eddy.
- Drifting requires an attentive guide so the boat drifts straight and the lines don't cross.
- Surubim catfish, cachara, jau catfish and barbado feed most from late afternoon into the night and before dawn. Pacu, during the day. During friagem, activity drops.
- Low water and dry season concentrate fish in channels and pools: it's the best time for drifting.
- Respect the spawning closure (piracema) and state rules: season, bag limit, size and allowed gear.
ethics with guides and riverside residents
The river is home and work for many people. Fish like a polite visitor.
tips
- The guide knows the river. Follow his decisions on safety, when to head back, and night navigation.
- Don't ask anyone to break a rule: undersized fish, over the bag limit, a prohibited species or a closed area.
- Tipping is customary when the service was good. Agree on the amount with the group beforehand.
- Slow down near canoes, houses and anchored boats. The wake knocks down banks, swamps canoes and scares off other people's fish.
- Don't anchor too close to another boat or pass between it and the bank it's fishing.
- Ask permission before landing on private property and before photographing people.
- Take your trash back with you, including line and bait packaging.
- Support local business: bait, meals and community services.
checklist
Check off what's ready. Saved on this device.
sources and references
- scientific Catella, A. C.; Campos, F. L. de R.; Albuquerque, S. P. (2020). Sistema de Controle da Pesca de Mato Grosso do Sul SCPESCA/MS 24 – 2017. Boletim de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento 142. Embrapa Pantanal, Corumbá.Official statistics on recreational and commercial fishing in the Pantanal of MS (context for the fishery; does not describe the drifting technique).
- scientific Catella, A. C.; Silva, J. M. V. da; Jesus, V. M. F. de (2009). Comércio de iscas vivas no Pantanal de Mato Grosso do Sul, SCPESCA/MS, 2005. Boletim de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento 90. Embrapa Pantanal, Corumbá.
- scientific Cooke, S. J.; Suski, C. D. (2004). Are circle hooks an effective tool for conserving marine and freshwater recreational catch-and-release fisheries? Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 14(3): 299–326.
keep reading
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