Stacking 2 deep lines on 1 downrigger?

Cold water game fish have moved deep around here, like 90-140 ft down. I do ok in my PA14 trolling one deep line off a modified Scotty Depthmaster, or running one deep downrigger line and one mid-water lead core line, but now i want to get 2 lines down deep.

My first attempt involved letting out the lure and 50 ft of leader while pedaling, clipping the leader to the ball, parking that rod in a holder on the same side as the downrigger, lowering the ball about 10 ft, letting out the second lure on the same side along with about 30 ft of leader from the second rod, clipping that to the PowerPro downrigger braid, lowering everything another 10 ft, and then lifting the tip of the second rod across the rear deck so I can park the second rod in a holder on the opposite rail from the downrigger. Then click line off both reels while dropping the ball to the desired depth. Aside from the awkward ballet dance, the problem with this is that the added drag of the second line pulls the 4# ball well aft of the PA14 and out of the FF cone angle, making it difficult to determine actual trolling depth. So I tried the same with an 8# ball. This hung more vertically, but after 6 miles of trolling it really felt like I was pulling an anchor behind me. I really don't want to run 2 downriggers. Running 10+ colors of lead core on one rod and a downrigger on the other has its own problems. A friend routinely stacks 2 lures on one rod, but he is trolling heavy gear off a powerboat and doesn't worry about the drag.

I hate to think that I finally found the limit of my PA! Anybody else invent this wheel yet?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

Jim, you might consider trying a Shuttlehawk.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4DoOpcp8uw this device really works.

The amount of drag underwater is also related to the size of your lures.......I fish a 4" or 5" quickfish/flatfish any where from 25' to 120' depth with a 4.25# weight.
I agree that after 6 miles, your legs get very tired and I am trolling in the 1.6 to 1.8 mph range.....its a real workout!

If your lures offer less drag, that's a plus, but I have found the larger, active lures tend to catch the larger fish.

Good luck!

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Dr.SteelheadCatcher
Warrenton, OR