Spoon Feed Them!
I have the good fortune of fishing throughout North America for a wide variety of fish species under a wide variety of fishing conditions, and like any angler, I have a few of what I call my go-to lures. When it comes to spoons, my lure or spoon of choice is made right here in western Canada, Len Thompson Lures. By matching the size and colour of a Len Thompson lure to the fish species and the fishing conditions of a given situation allows me to set the hook more consistently which makes my time on the water more productive and rewarding.
Walleye
When fishing rocky shorelines, rocky points, and sunken rock humps for walleye, spoons are often overlooked. Depending on how aggressive the bite is will determine the size of lure used but my three favorites sizes are #0, #1, and my favorite is the #2 Len Thompson Lure in solid brass, brass & flame, platinum-nickel, platinum-nickel blue, & all of the Super Glow Series. These lure patterns are my go-to lures when fishing in rocky locations especially windy conditions. I cast the lures and let it sink to the bottom then retrieve the lure just fast enough to skim over the top of the rocks. The flash and vibration drives the walleye crazy as they believe it’s a baitfish cruising the rocks.
Often overlooked when fishing suspended walleye is the #2 Len Thompson Lure in the original Five of Diamonds, solid gold, or any lure with perch yellows or whites imitating a whitefish. Spoons are not a common walleye bait, but trolling these lures through suspended walleye will often trigger multiple walleye bites.
Northern Pike
Northern pike is one of the most aggressive freshwater predators throughout western Canada and the northern United States and presenting any Len Thompson Lure an angler is sure to hook into a toothy northern pike. However, I have consistently caught my largest pike including my personal best 52” northern pike using a #2 in a wide variety of colour patterns. The quality hand-painted lures give off an incredible amount of flash and vibration that is irresistible to northern pike and muskie. However, my go-to lures for northern pike are Solid Brass, Platinum-Nickel, and although it’s hard to beat any of the Super Glow Series of lures in the #2 & #4 sizes, my go-to lure is the Grey Ghost in the Dimpled pattern, size #16. However, when fishing shallow bays in the spring of the year or heavy weed cover in shallow water during the summer months, my go-to lure is the Northern King trolling spoon.
The Northern King trolling spoon has a narrower profile and is much lighter allowing it to sink much slower and retrieved over top of the submerged weeds. The hand-painted finish on the Northern King lures attracts the pike’s attention and the Eagle Claw trouble hook assures a positive hookup.
Lake Trout & Salmon
When down rigging or three-way rigging for lake trout, I’ve had my best luck trolling a Dimpled Series in the Raspberry Granite, Holy Mackerel, and Brown Trout colour patterns in a variety of sizes. The dimples within the body of the spoon allow water to hit the concaved side of the dimple forcing water to race out and smash into the water racing out of the adjacent dimple. This combination of water crashing throughout the length of the lure gives off a thunderous vibration throughout the water column that lake trout and salmon can feel through their lateral-line and it doesn’t take them long to hone in on the lure’s location. This lure is especially effective when fishing in deepwater, stained water, or low light conditions.
Trout Species 1 to 10 pounds
When fishing a variety of stocked trout ponds, trout lakes, and trout river systems, it’s almost impossible not to catch any of the trout species within the waterbody that range in size from one to 10 pounds when casting any of the Super Glow Series size #6. Also, it’s not uncommon to hook into whitefish with these lures. The lures are hand-painted with a super glow paint that is charged naturally from the sun. However, you can supercharge these lures by turning on the flash of your smartphone camera and taking a close-up picture of the lure. The flash of your camera charges the lures glow paint. The Super Glow lures allow fish to see their target from long distances in stained water and deep depths where light is minimal or nonexistent.
One of the biggest misconceptions about Len Thompson Lures is because they are a spoon, it’s believed they are only to be casted, retrieved, or trolled. However, I’ve had incredible success fishing a variety of species jigging a Len Thompson Lure. Casting the lure out and jigging it back to the boat or shoreline should not be overlooked. They’re also a great ice fishing presentation for a variety of fish species.
