3 Spoon Techniques for More Pike by Spence Petros

Getting out-fished by someone in your boat is a humbling experience, but when that someone is a 13-year old, a jaw can get awful tight. At least I wasn't alone, as his father was also experiencing the same luck as I was having...watching the youngster catch 3-4 pike to our one. I couldn't figure it out. We were fishing wide, flat, shallow bays that had scattered pike, and after a while, identical spoons were on all three rods. There was no first cast into an area that was best, or some edge the youngster was fishing we didn't know about. Yet something was going on under the surface that we hadn't figured out.

The Drop-Back

I began to do less fishing and more looking out of the corner of my eye, scrutinizing the boys every move. Like many young men his age, his attention span was not like adults, even though he was catching fish. He'd stop reeling to talk, to take a bite of sandwich or drink of soda, to readjust his clothes, or to watch an eagle soar past. Soon it became evident that when his retrieve was halted then restarted, most strikes would occur.

Now things began to make sense, but before deciding to clue his dad in on what was going on, I decided to give the "pause concept" a try. For the next 30-minutes I was
consistently into pike, and after building up a safe lead over his dad (25-cents a pike can add up in good Canadian waters), the secret came out.

What we didn't realize was that a lot of pike were following our lures, and then turning off as they neared the boat. Through the years we found this to be a common occurrence with post-spawn pike that hadn't really started to feed yet. But this was the late 70's, and the day when we first realized this was occurring.

When ever the young man stopped reeling the spoon would flutter down, but more importantly, the tapered spoons would backup toward the pike. Most pike were lazily following in a straight retrieved spoon, and would spook to the side as the lure neared the boat. But when the retrieve was halted, (and as we further discovered) the rod tip dropped back towards the spoon, the lure would flutter backwards from 18-inches to 4-feet, right back into a following pikes face. And if there is a best way to trigger a following pike (or musky) cruising behind a lure into striking, the in their face approach is tops.

The distance a lure will flutter backwards is determined by the style of the spoon, depth of the water, and how the falling, flat spoon planes as it sinks. Try this next to the boat. Have 5-6 feet of line between the lure and rod tip. Move the spoon through the water parallel to the boat's side, then stop and drop the rod tip back towards the lure. This gives the lure some line so it can back up the maximum distance. Clear shallow water will give you the best view of how the drop-back works. The best drop-back spoons I've used are the size 6 Lindy Gator Spoon, Eppinger TrollDevle, and the 1-ounce standard Dardevle.

The Drop-Back technique is a great way to trigger following pike.

Summary: Whenever casting spoons for pike, especially if conditions are tough, try dropping the lure back several times on each retrieve. This is a good technique to practice whenever casting a spoon.

Jig-Trolling Spoons

The weed bed was immense, probably 12-15 acres. And it consisted of leafy, cabbage weeds, with much of the growth in the 9-12 foot depths, a condition that usually causes the pike to cruise in and out through the open water between the clumps looking for food. This sprawling mass of vegetation could take some time to fish, since there was no wall-like edge that would tend to concentrate numbers of pike, and so much of the weed bed looked like perfect pike habitat.

When normally confronted by a big weed bed with lots of potentially good-looking water, trolling usually allows me to quickly check it. I would commonly run buck tails, big spinner baits, or shallow-running jerk baits over the top, and deeper-diving jerk baits and crank baits along the edge. Fifteen minutes of trying some of those techniques quickly showed they were a waste of time. Here was the problem. Weed growth was very inconsistent, sometimes it came to the surface, other times it was 3-4 feet below. Lures that ran at a specific, near-surface depth level would constantly foul up in the erratic growth.

My next option would be to run a spinner bait or buzz-bait across the surface. But what tossed this plan for a loop was that hundreds of dark, shadowy weed pockets existed throughout the vegetation. And due to the bright sky conditions, light winds and fairly clear water, you could sense the pike were holding in those weedy lairs. But there had to be a way of rooting them out, and I didn't intend on wasting hours of time casting to all those potential fish-holding areas. I had to figure out a fast way of working those weeds.

If the weed bed was smaller, I would have probably jig fished it with plastic-bodied lizards, reapers, big double twister tails, Sassy Shads, or other types of soft-bodied "creatures." At least these presentations would penetrate down into the weeds, and the single hook on the jig would allow me to snap and rip through any clinging vegetation.

Finally I had an idea, why not try a Johnson Silver Minnow, but instead of casting with it troll with varying speeds in a lazy S pattern. This prevented the lure from following the boat's path. When turning toward the lure it would sink into the weeds, but as the boat swung the other way the lure would be on the outside of the turn, going faster and swimming out of the weeds. The method worked like a charm, as the spoon was actually being jigged down into the weeds, then pulled out, while the boat was constantly moving over new waters in the search for pike.

Since this experience occurred 6 or 7 years ago, I've had excellent success with this technique, rooting many pike out of weedy cover that would not come up for a high-running, more horizontal presentation. But there are certain things that must be done for maximum success.

The plated hook on a Silver Minnow is dull and must be sharpened along the sides and tip with a fine grain file. South Bend makes a great one. Adjust the weed guard so it lines up with the hooks tip and extends out a little past it. If the hook point and weed guard aren't in a straight line, you'll grab a lot more weeds. Don't adjust the wire weed guard too far out from the point or it will be too hard to set. Adjust the setting according to the density of the vegetation.

Trolling silver minnows gives you a great way to cover massive weed beds and to get down into the vegetation.

My first attempts at setting the hook, while making turns with stretchy, mono wrapped around weed clumps, were disastrous. Most hook-ups on larger fish occurred after quickly gunning the motor to pick up line as the hook was being set. As the technique evolved, here's what I found to work best. Use no-stretch super line such as Berkley Whiplash or Fire Line. Don't use a shorter rod or one that doesn't have backbone. A musky "buck tail rod" that's at least 6 feet 9 inches, or a sturdy flippin' stick are recommended for maximum hook-setting power. Longer rods give you a long, sweeping hook-set that picks up slack line, they also keep the lure a little farther from the boat, plus they aid in controlling and playing pike.

Dress the Silver Minnow with pork or plastic. A dressing's length and bulk will alter how fast or slow the spoon will wiggle or sink. Be careful not to use a soft plastic dressing that slides up on the hooks shank every time a sharp forward rip is executed to clear weeds. Gluing some plastics to several spoons with a "Krazy" glue can solve this problem. The standard silver-colored "Silver Minnow" is a must, but gold, perch and fire tiger can also be hot, especially when the water has some color, or darker skies exist.

Summary: When faced with lots of weeds, trolling can help to quickly find the pike. But be careful not to go too fast in a straight line. A soft zigzag pattern allows the lures to constantly sink down and be pulled out of the weed clumps. It's this "jigging action" that roots out the big ones!

Flutter Spoons

When game fish are aggressive, fishing fast and horizontal is often the best way to cover water and catch the maximum amount of fish. But as the action starts to decrease, slower speeds and lures that fall, flutter or pause usually become more productive. A slower falling lure may also be more effective on suspended fish, or those holding tight to cover, as it gives them a little more time to zero in on the presentation.

Anyone with basic pike fishing experience knows that spoons are tops for these toothy predators, and we've already discussed two deadly tactics. But the ultimate "tease" technique, the tactic that temps even the most tight-jawed pike into hitting a spoon, is the one that gives us the slowest, falling, most tantalizing action. This involves casting with super-light weight flutter spoons; those wafer thin spoons that are usually trolled in deeper water for trout or salmon while using weights or planer devices to get them down.

Before going out and trying to cast these spoons on bait casting gear spooled with heavy line, three words of advice-don't try it! They are best fished with long-handle spinning rods that are at least 6 1/2 to 7 feet long, and a reel full of soft 10-14 lb. test mono such as Trilene XL, or better still 14-20 lb. test Fire Line. Two handed "snap casts" are recommended, where a right-handed caster pulls the butt section of the rod sharply towards his body with the left hand, while the right hand fires out the cast. This tactic increases rod speed to give extra casting distance. Look at a South Bend System 9 IM6 graphite spinning rod I designed (P-246) to get an idea of the type rod to use. A ball-bearing, wide-spool spinning reel with a tapered spool works best.

Flutter spoons have a lot of flash and movement with a minimal amount of forward or drop speed. You can slow the frantic fluttering action down a bit by adding a plastic or pork trailer, but I rarely do.

These spoons won't let you cover a lot of territory, but they are deadly under certain situations. One of them is when sight fishing for pike. Although this may sound easy it's not. In stained waters only slight shadows or dark spots on the bottom may be noted. In clear water the fish can more easily be seen, but a cast made too close will usually send them bolting away. Always cast at least 10-15 feet past the pike, and not directly over it. If the fish is moving, cast well in front. Even if you lead the pike too far, let the spoon sit on the bottom until the fish is within 5-8 feet. The lift up and allow the spoon to flutter downward. Sometimes the pike may just watch the lure sink, and nose up to within inches of the lure. Short little jiggles or soft "pops" will usually provoke a strike.

A flutter spoon can also be rigged on a follow-up rod. When a pike follows in a faster-moving, more horizontal presentation then turns off, a flutter spoon can be blind cast in the direction the fish headed. Let it sink 5-6 seconds pull it upward, then repeat. This slow-falling, crippled action is often different enough to trigger a response. Flutter spoons also work well when allowed to sink into larger holes in a weed bed or into the shaded areas between higher clumps. Let the light lure slowly flutter down into the pocket a few feet, or down between the clumps, then left the rod to pull it back out. These thin spoons sink much slower than a conventional spoon, and have a wilder, flashing action. This attracts pike and gives them plenty of time to react to the slow falling lure.

When fishing flutter spoons around weeds, use one with a large single hook, and put the hook on so the point faces the inside or cupped side of the spoon. This rigging will give you the minimum amount of weed snags and make releasing pike easy. With a little practice this single hook spoon can be cast over thick vegetation and skittered across the top, periodically stopping the retrieve so the lure flutters down into holes or along edges. The trick to avoid hanging weeds is to halt the lures flight just before it hits the water by engaging the reel and lifting the rod tip. Wire leaders should be used with all the spoon techniques discussed. Always use a quality ball-bearing snap-swivel to the lure. A size 4 Berkley Cross-Loc snap swivel is ideal. When casting a spoon, either with the drop-back technique or with a flutter spoon, a 12-inch leader is perfect. When trolling with the Silver Minnow, where a lot of pulling and ripping of weeds is going on, a 3-foot leader is better as it will slice through the vegetation and won't weaken. Put these 3 techniques in your pike-fishing bag of tricks and watch your catches soar!

wow !  'pause for the cause' works well for trout and bass too! don't over look a stop and go presitaion....

turnip , great obsevation on the kids fishing.....DANG woppersnapers, lol

'the pause for the cause' or 'stop and go' is one of three retrieves i use alot of! fast and slow are the other 2 most used...

did you ever try Back Trolling? it might give you that pause on the lure you want? as the water breaks around the boat it slips, causing it to speeds up and slows down, with water doing the work for you instead of turning(zigzaging) or speeding/slowing the motor.... i think all you need is a splash gaurd, sounds like you got everything else, like no strech line....   

awsome report!

great post Pete!

Wow, Great Read.

I will be putting this to the test come spring. :)

Thanks for the Great Info. 

Great post Turnip,

I have had some success with the fluttering pause technique on Trout this fall and winter.

Thanks for the kind words.  But I must be honest and tell ya I copied & pasted this info.  I think originally Erabbit sent it to me!

I am currently awaiting delivery on some Sutton Flutter Spoons that I hope to use for lake trout or perhaps salmon...

Well, I can do an attachment but still can't figure out how to put a pic in the body of my post...I have spent the last 45 min. trying to figure this out....And folks wonder why I post mostly on another site!

Finally!

When I'm fishin' for walleye and pike up in Canada, I use a blue/silver Acme Little Cleo tipped with a 2" plastic twister tail on a wire leader. Here's the outcome, every cast into the bulrushes brings in an angry pike. 

SCREAMIN' DRAGS TO ALL!

Thanks guys,

I will be sure to call them.  When I joined the NAHC, they offered hats and I bought a couple, but I didn't get offered hats in the NAFC when I joined. The fleece sounds good too.  I have alot of patches to put on as well.  Good Idea Turnip!

More hats, my Wife will be thrilled!      NOT!!!!

That's just ONE of those "adjustments" that grownups have to make during life (BIG GRIN)

stealthfisher wrote:

Thanks guys,

I will be sure to call them.  When I joined the NAHC, they offered hats and I bought a couple, but I didn't get offered hats in the NAFC when I joined. The fleece sounds good too.  I have alot of patches to put on as well.  Good Idea Turnip!

More hats, my Wife will be thrilled!      NOT!!!!

Dan "Stealthfisher" Doc NAFC LIFE MEMBER I FISH, THEREFORE I AM <*(((>>>< ><<<)))*>

Whether you wrote them yourself or cut-n-pasted them, those are some great tips, Turnip.  My favorite spoon for chasing pike... actually my favorite spoon of all time... is the dependable, venerable Red Eye spoon.  It was formerly made by Hofschneider, but is now made by Eppinger, the same guys that make the Daredevle you were using (check out Eppinger's website, they're there).  Not only do all of your spooning tips apply to the Red Eye spoon, but I also accidentally discovered something else while fishing for steelhead at the Waukegan IL Harbor:  the things SWIM BACKWARDS!  If you use a horizontal pull-back after the cast, then move the rod forward, the Red Eye will actually swim backward, right into the pursuing fish's face!  This technique is responsible for my netting countless bucketmouth bass, salmon, trout & pike... even a musky or two.  I've had most of my fortune with the 3/16 & 1/2 oz. sizes, but I've caught a few on the 1 oz. as well.  The nickel-plated is the best, the brass plated #2, but I've caught a couple of steelies on the yellow/red 1 oz. "5-of-diamonds" Red Eye, too.  I even bought a nickel-plated "musky" Red Eye that's about the size of a 1975 Cadillac hubcap, but, sadly, have never caught a thing on it.  Keep the line fresh, the hooks sharp, & keep spooning.  God bless all.  -Sonny, Life Member since 2002

It's funny how these spoons will work.  Most receintly I was on a pike hunt at Lake Champlain and started out using this spoon :

This is a one ounce Eppinger and the first fish to hit it was a LMB, then a pickerel.  Pike never looked at it!

Good read Pete.

The timing might not have been right on Lake champlain. The water being so high confused me. Not knowing the lake and how to react to the conditions didn't help. We will have to experiment some more until we get it right. lol

TTT!

Pete I catch a lot of Bass on the Dare Devil spoons, The 5 of Diamonds seems to work well on the Toothie Critters

In years past here on the Forums we've had a couple of short discussions about spoons for muskies.

I' PRETTY sure that most of you on here know that I feel that spoons have been a partially forgotten lure / technique for many game fish.

The resurgence of spoons and techniques for bass in the last couple of years kinda proves my earlier thoughts out.

Here's a good article about spoon fishing for muskie that I found today from a guy that does muskie charters for a living.

http://www.ontariomuskiefishing.com...poons.html

SPOONS

Give 'em something different

By Steve Wickens - Strike Zone Muskie Charters

I started experimenting with spoons for muskies in 1993, after having witnessed their effectiveness for big chinook salmon on several occasions. I asked my many of peers in both U.S. and Canada about using spoons for muskies, and each time pretty much got the same response… "Oh, they're great for pike, but muskies won't touch 'em." I found that a little hard to understand. It took some time and considerable experimenting before I was able to track down some suitably large baits, and even longer to figure the mechanics of how to run them effectively.

In July 1994, I scored my first muskie while trolling a spoon. She was a solid 43 ½ inch fish, that was suspended over open water. That spoon was an Eppinger 300 Husky Devle in five of diamonds. Before the end of the 1994 season, I scored a couple more decent fish on Len Thompson #4 spoons. With each progressive year, I began taking fish more consistently on spoons. I began to search out other models and other presentation tactics until I came up with my present collection of close to 100 spoons from a half-dozen manufacturers, and ten different models. On Thanksgiving Monday in October 1999, I had my most memorable day on the water with those spoons, catching and releasing 46 ½ and 49 inch muskies in less than ninety minutes of fishing! To date, spoons have accounted for over 60 muskies in my boat, with close to 50 of these of 40 inches or better; so much for muskies not liking spoons!

I have had some success casting spoons, but seem to end up with predominantly smaller fish. But troll spoons, and things take on a whole dimension. Trolling spoons takes finesse, a keen eye, and a thorough knowledge of boat speed and water current. Your worst enemy is too much current or speed, which will cause the spoon to flip round and round once its action "breaks". Fish won't bother with it, and even with the finest leader and swivels money can buy, your line will quickly get twisted into one awful mess. The best place to start is to put the spoon in the water with about 10 to 15 feet of line out and watch its action by gently increasing and decreasing the throttle. Once you know where the spoon's action "breaks", you have achieved your first victory. Current will change this action, depending on whether you run with or against it. If you plan on running spoons in a current environment, you MUST run them short and keep a careful eye on the action. Don't troll a spoon in the prop wash, close to the motor. The wash is a current running against the spoon. It will cause the spoon to break action just the same as running it too fast. If you choose to run a spoon in wash, put it back at least 50 to 75 feet to get it out of that wash current. The other killer is the "Crazy Ivan" turning maneuver that so many muskie anglers like to include in their trolling runs. Don't do this with spoons! The spoon on the outside will radically increase speed on the turn and break action. Keep your turns gradual and smooth.

Running spoons is pretty simple. Just toss them out there and let them do their thing. If you lower your rod tip, they lend themselves very well to some ultra-short line trolling, or you can put them as far back as you feel is necessary. Spoons tend to run quite shallow, normally in the top 6 feet of the water column without the use of weights or downriggers. If you have mastered using spoons on downriggers for trout and salmon on the Great Lakes, you already have a huge jump on your fellow anglers, because other than bigger and heavier spoons, everything is else is pretty much the same as what you would use for big chinooks.

Personally, I have had my best success flat-lining spoons along deep weed edges and over open water. During the period of unsettled weather and reduced fish activity that often follows a very violent and prolonged thunderstorm, spoons are absolutely deadly. I have yet to find another bait that will produce consistently during this time period. Just slow them down, and put the spoon right out in front of that weed edge and listen for the telltale scream of the drag. Some of my larger muskies have come during this time period when absolutely nothing else at any speed would produce.

Equipment wise, I like a long medium-heavy rod for running spoons flat. Downrigger rods are just a little short in the backbone department, but a dipsy diver rod in the 9 to 11 foot range is great. These rods have a soft tip so that you can see the spoon's action, but have a lot more backbone. My preferred line for flat-lining spoons is a superbraid like Power Pro or Tuff. My reason for this is that dacron and micron twist up badly, and are very tough to get even a small amount of twist out of. Monofilament can actually twist on the spool and jam in the line guide on a strike, causing the line to break if it gets badly twisted. I have twisted the Power Pro up pretty good a couple of times. I just cut off the leader, and let about 100 feet of line out the back of the boat, and then reel it back on the spool. Occasionally I might have to cut off the last 10 or 15 feet of line, but that is pretty inconsequential.

It is very important that you keep the hooks on your spoons razor sharp, especially if you run the big Eppinger 300. This bait is the Cadillac of trolling spoons, but that big 9/0 stainless treble is one nasty critter to sharpen up. But once you do get it sharpened, that is one impressive hooking piece of hardware. You will have to experiment a little with your drag. I like a little more "punch" when I'm running the larger spoons, so my drag is around 11 to 14 pounds. That big 9/0 has a massive barb on it, and takes some serious effort or inertia to plant it all the way (unless you let the rod holders do that for you).

There are about a half-dozen major manufacturers of spoons suitable for big muskies. The thin metal salmon flutter spoons are not a good choice, and muskies can literally bend them or catch their teeth in the ridges, grooves and holes. (Solid spoons only for muskies!) Gibbs makes an excellent downrigger spoon called The Croc. Len Thompson's #4 is a standby for pike in Western Canada, and works effectively, although the terminal tackle is not premium quality. Lucky Strike's #6 Canoe is a nice looking spoon, but is a little lacking as far as finish goes (paint peels incredibly easily). Lindy-Little Joe makes the Gator, which is virtually identical to the Len Thompson in size and weight. Williams makes the Whitefish, which can be run either on a downrigger or flat-lined. Eppinger is the market leader here, and makes four different models. The big 300, it's slightly smaller sibling the 700, the Cop-E-Cat 7000 (an excellent downrigger spoon), and the big Red Eye. (Eppinger produces well over 100 different colour patterns.)

If you're not sold yet, I have three more points to get your attention. Firstly, spoons hook almost as well as a bucktail, because there is nothing on a solid spoon for a muskie to bite down on. And spoons are more resilient, with a much longer longevity than bucktails or most body baits. But the real kicker is cost. You're looking at a minimum of $20 (with taxes) for a traditional muskie bait. You can actually pick-up some spoons for under $10. That gives you a lot more bang for your buck if you're on a tight budget.

Very few anglers fish spoons for muskies. This means few muskies have seen spoons, which is a major plus during periods of high angler activity, or on lakes where fishing pressure is severe. The next time you're out there, do the unthinkable. Clip on a big spoon, and give it a try; you just might be pleasantly surprised.

Steve Wickens strike.zone@sympatico.ca