FISHING 411 with Mark Romanack EPISODE 8 BIG AL FISH FLASH               Move over ordinary flashers, dodgers and rotators, there is a new fish attractor on the market. Introducing Big Al Fish Flash stage right. The Big Al Fish Flash is dominating the salmon and trout scene on the west coast, but only a handful of anglers here in the Great Lakes region have discovered the Big Al advantage.             I decided to put the Fish Flash to the test on a spring salmon fishing trip that took place near Benton Harbor on Lake Michigan. To say I came away impressed is an understatement. Since filming this episode I haven’t gone trout, salmon or walleye trolling without using Fish Flash.             Attractor fishing is nothing new, but the difference in this case is how the Fish Flash functions. Instead of wobbling like a dodger or making a big rotation in the water like a paddle, the Fish Flash spins on a ball bearing swivel. This triangle shaped attractor spins quickly giving off many times more pulses of fish attracting light. The other advantage is because this attractor is spinning it has less resistance in the water and can be combined with almost any terminal tackle. RIGGING MATTERS             Because the Big Al has lots of flash, it’s important to rig Spin-n-Glos, spoons, cut bait or body baits a little further behind than is normally the case with other attractors. I recommend fishing terminal tackle six or seven feet behind the Fish Flash or in other words about the same leader length often used with diving planers.             The longer leader puts a little separation between the flash and the lures, yielding amazing results. The ways a Fish Flash can be incorporated into a trolling pattern are only limited by an angler’s imagination. Some of the most popular presentations include downriggers, diving planers and in combination with sinking lines like lead core or copper wire. DOWNRIGGER RIGGING             A downrigger is one of the easiest ways to put the Fish Flash into service. Lots of anglers simply attach a Fish Flash to the back of their cannon ball and then put their line release onto the back of the Big Al Fish Flash. This insures that every time the ball goes down it is providing fish attracting flash.             Another simple downrigger option is to attach a Fish Flash to the end of a favorite downrigger rod, then add six or seven feet of line behind the Fish Flash and terminate with your favorite lure. DIVING PLANERS             The diving planer is a work horse on most trolling boats. My favorite way to add additional flash is to rig a Fish Flash to the back of my diving planers using a heavy duty snap. I then attach my leader to the back of the Fish Flash and terminate with my favorite lure. Because the Fish Flash spins and has zero resistance in the water it won’t change the depth of divers. SINKING LINES             Sinking lines like copper line and lead core are ideal for the Fish Flash. Attach the Fish Flash to the end of your leader and then add another six or seven foot of leader to a favorite lure. THE MORE THE BETTER             When fishing attractors most captains will tell you go big or go home. Experimenting with one attractor may work, but the big benefit of attractor fishing occurs when you put a bunch of flash in the water. By incorporating the Big Al Fish Flash onto downriggers, divers and even sinking lines the total impact is amazing. Lots of flash in the water sends a message to fish that a school if bait is in the area. SIZES             The Big Al Fish Flash comes in several sizes and a host of color patterns. For species like lake trout, it seems that bigger is better. For other applications like coho, brown trout, steelhead and even walleye the smaller models make more sense. FINAL THOUGHTS             Using attractors to catch trout, salmon and walleye is nothing new, but the Big Al Fish Flash certainly takes this approach to a whole new level.  For more information check out the www.yakimabait.com site or go to www.fishing411.net.