About The Instructor

I’m Colton Trotter, the founder and lead instructor of Southern Scopers. I’m a competitive angler fishing at the college and national levels, including the Bassmaster Opens, and I’m proud to be an ABA National Champion. A big part of my success on the water has come from learning how to truly understand and use modern fishing electronics — especially LiveScope and forward-facing sonar — and that’s what led me to start Southern Scopers.

I’m based out of South Alabama, and most of my training trips take place throughout Alabama, but I can also travel to Florida or Georgia when needed. I like working with anglers on their home waters so the training is practical, personalized, and directly applies to where they actually fish.

I created Southern Scopers because I saw how many anglers invest thousands into electronics but never receive real, hands-on instruction on how to use them effectively. A lot of people have advanced units on their boats but are still guessing at settings, interpretation, and fish behavior. My goal is to remove that guesswork and shorten the learning curve with on-the-water, step-by-step training.

Training can be done in my boat or your boat, depending on what works best for you. Whether you want to strictly learn your units or actually find fish, I tailor each session to your goals.

During a session, I will optimize your electronics settings, walk you through a repeatable system for finding bass and identifying high-percentage areas to scan based on the time of year, and teach you how to tell the difference between fish and structure — including how to recognize when fish are actively feeding. I also can cover how and when to use down scan, side scan, and traditional sonar, and how each system works together to give you the full picture.

Along with tournament fishing, I share fishing and electronics content across social media, focusing on real screens, real adjustments, and real results. That same practical approach carries into every training trip. My goal is simple: help you understand your electronics, make better decisions on the water, and leave with skills you can repeat on your own.