The black Bungee is designed for river fishing with Kwikfish. "You have to let salmon take a Kwikfish like herring," Ramsey says. "Guys using the heavier-weight black one in the rivers are getting more hookups per strike."

Ramsey points out that it's been well known for years that divers have different attraction value based on their color. "Just like flashers and dodgers," he explains, "the talk on the radios out in the ocean where people are trolling a lot of herring is not only about where you're fishing, but the color of the diver. And hot colors change. Having the Bungee in different colors is part of that."

Ramsey recommends experimenting with color, but he usually matches the diver and Bungee (red diver/red Bungee, chartreuse diver/chartreuse Bungee).

RIGGING UP
The Bungee has a swivel at the leader end, and a snap swivel at the other, so you can snap it quickly to a diver, flasher or dodger. Regardless of which one you're using, the best place for the Bungee is right after the diver/flasher/dodger and before the leader.

What Ramsey does is snap the Bungee on with a pre-tied 16- to 18-inch leader behind the Bungee that goes to a bead-chain swivel. The mooching leader, 18 to 24 inches, is tied behind that. "Having the bead-chain swivel in the middle performs better than it does at either end," he explains.

You can use this rig for trolling herring, Kwikfish, and even spoons.

The Bungee is made out of vinyl material wrapped around 80-pound doubled Dacron. "Once it stretches out to three times its length, it won't fail or break," Ramsey says. "They don't wear out too quickly. Of course, they won't last too well sitting on the dash of your boat all summer, with too much exposure to sun and the elements, or snuggled up against non-compatible plastic." But these handy little devices do hold up pretty well to the rigors of salmon fishing, and at $4 a pop, they're inexpensive to replace if they do become worn.

GETTING HIT
The hit and ensuing fight on a Bungee is a little different than what you might be accustomed to. "Wait on the bait," Ramsey counsels. "Let the rod go down. The fight will be a little different, because the Bungee cushions the fight."

Of course, the Bungee not only helps the fish mouth the bait longer, but it keeps the hooks from tearing out, too. "But what's real important," Ramsey adds, "the key to this to hook more fish, to make that Bungee really perform, is to use it in combination with super-sharp hooks. When that fish mouths the bait, you want those super-sharp hooks to get him. Use the Bungee with dull hooks, and you won't be any better off."

AND IN REAL LIFE USE...
While we were talking and fishing, the catching at Buoy 10 at the very low end of the river was a little slow that morning. And crowded. So we pulled everything up and headed east, settling in just on the eastern side of the Astoria Bridge. Bang! A super nice king that gobbled up that red/white spinner hit us quickly. A half-hour later, bang! Another one. Twenty minutes later -- bang! -- a big ol' silver. Ten minutes later -- bang! -- a tule king.

We didn't miss fish, and the fights were definitely cushioned which helped to keep our hooks from tearing out. A mad-for-the-hills king can really shake his head, and that Salmon Bungee can really help soften the blows.

By the end of the day, I, too, had joined the cult of Salmon Bungee jumpers.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Luhr Jensen has published a Salmon Bungee Tech Bulletin, available at most retail tackle shops or by contacting Luhr-Jensen: 800-535-1711 or www.luhrjensen.com