25 Lures for Lakers (Read 12185 times)
gymcoachdon
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Lures for Lakers
Apr 15th, 2017 at 3:08pm
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Title sounds like a name for a charity event....Anyway, i am heading to cabelas this afternoon, and based on info i have received will pick up few lures to use to hopefully catch my first lake trout.  I am entering French Lake to MCDougall, entering June 17th.  I am thinking of getting a couple taildancers and maybe little Cleo spoons.  So what size and color should I be looking for?
Open to other suggestions as well, although my tackle is already over 5 lbs.
  
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solotripper
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #1 - Apr 15th, 2017 at 4:00pm
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  Cant' get these at Cabela's, but you have time to order online/
I've always done well with these. Heavy for size and work well casting from shore or trolling.

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I like the Spring Frog in green or orange.

  
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Old Salt
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #2 - Apr 15th, 2017 at 4:35pm
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Keys for lakers: you want largest sizes, high flash, think Mylar. Deep, big cranks, spoons. I use X-raps, deep taildancers, shad. White, purple, blue, chartreuse are great colors.

On any given day, any given color or lure can be the hot ticket. You have to experiment with different options until you find the magic bait. Troll Pickeral, Upper Sturgeon, and McDougall. If you want more specifics, pm or email me. Cool
  
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Jimbo
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #3 - Apr 16th, 2017 at 1:29pm
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I agree with Old Salt's recommendations.  I would add this, though: not only can the hot color or lure vary on a day-to-day basis, the preferred lures AND colors can vary on a lake-to-lake basis.  Forage foods available to lake trout can vary by lake.  My tried-and-true lures that imitate those forage foods may work well in the park's northwestern lakes but not produce as effectively further east.  And vice-versa.

My primary lake trout lure-types are:
  *  Lightweight "fluttering" spoons worked in conjunction with 1/2 oz up to 2 oz weights (depending on depth fish are feeding) affixed 4-5 feet up the line.
  *  Fat-lipped, wobbling deep-divers (I prefer white OR blue & silver).

OS is right about "experimentation," especially as you learn new trout waters.  If you put the lure-types mentioned in this thread into your tackle box, you'll at least have what you need to begin experimenting on a day-to-day and lake-to-lake basis.

Also, a decent canoe-type depth-finder can help you with your lure selection.  My experience is that "feeding" lake trout will come up a long way to grab your lure.  It helps to know HOW deep they are, however, so you get place your bait in the general ballpark just above them.  When they are REALLY deep, I find myself clipping on those 2+oz weights and using Sutton fluttering spoons more often than not.  Nevertheless, I have been amazed to have LT's occasionally come up from summer-time depths to nab lures that can't be running much deeper than 15 feet.

Anyway, that's my two cents' worth added to OS's dollar.

Jimbo   Cool
  
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zski
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #4 - Apr 16th, 2017 at 5:37pm
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I don'r have a lot of experience but have never not caught LT on this version of the Mann's 30+
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Cabelas has the stretch version of the 30+ but not the shorter one. i've never tried the longer version
Best color has been Pearl with blue back
All trips have been mid-June
  
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Westwood
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #5 - Apr 16th, 2017 at 10:08pm
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Craig Zarley who was a presenter at Canoecopia thinks all you need is a jig between 1/4 ounce and 3/4 ounce with a white twister tail.  You vertical jig the jig unless it is spring and the water is cold then you could fish in the conventional way with a jig.
Water temperature is more important than depth.  There is, of course, a correlation between temperature and depth.  I use a thermometer which records the temperature every 5 feet.  A depth finder is also very helpful.  My understanding is that trout will come up to get a lure, but rarely go down to get a lure.  Trout like water around 50 degrees.
  
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DentonDoc
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #6 - Apr 17th, 2017 at 1:18am
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Westwood wrote on Apr 16th, 2017 at 10:08pm:
Craig Zarley who was a presenter at Canoecopia thinks all you need is a jig between 1/4 ounce and 3/4 ounce with a white twister tail.  You vertical jig the jig unless it is spring and the water is cold then you could fish in the conventional way with a jig.

I always start with this configuration ... ALWAYS!  I only switch to something else if this fails to produce.  (I'm not limiting to lake trout here.  I've hit the slam in a single day on multiple occasions using only this.) 

I'll always check to see if I have an adequate supply of jig heads and twister tail grubs (Kalins 5") and if I have any question about an adequate supply, I'll DOUBLE it.

dd
  
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gymcoachdon
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #7 - Apr 17th, 2017 at 1:57pm
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Curious, jigging for Lakers other than spring sounds like you would need a fish finder.  I won't have that option.  I plan on trolling a 20 ft tail dancer first, and switch to a 30 ft if I'm not getting bit.
  
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Old Salt
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #8 - Apr 17th, 2017 at 3:22pm
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You can certainly fish without sonar, but you're fishing blind. Sonar does make a difference when laker fishing. Sometimes they are along edges of holes, sometimes down deep, sometimes suspended. Your catch rate should increase if you can pinpoint where they are and how they are feeding. Cool
  
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solotripper
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Re: Lures for Lakers
Reply #9 - Apr 17th, 2017 at 5:17pm
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Since you don't have a fish finder and people have posted about using jigs/twister tail, maybe you could do something like this?

You can't have more than 4 hooks on a single line in Ontario except in certain instances/places.

If you could handle the extra drag, I don't know ( assuming it IS legal) why  you couldn't adapt this to different stick baits/jigs or maybe even combo of the two? 

Allows you to cover more water as you paddle. Start hitting fish at one depth, change over to single lure.

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