Tube jigs fished to imitate a smelt, alewife, or shad fool trout and salmon all the time. I have caught a lot of fish by simply letting the lure fall all of the way back down to the bottom. So in this article we'll show you the best lake trout lures, and will also go over the best strategies and techniques for using them. May require replacing with beefier hooks for jarring strikes from big fish. Look for choke points that help funnel fish and prey into an area.
If you don't get a bite, simply repeat the process with another lift, fall and pause. As speed increases, the lure gives off a decided "sonic thump" that draws lake trout from afar. The swimbait is another lure that has transitioned from the bass world and spread throughout the entire fishing universe. Pearl-white tubes are the standard for Great Lakes applications since few manufacturers offer baitfish patterns. Designed especially for Lake Trout and other large gamefish.
Where we have been able to sight fish, or use an underwater camera for lake trout, we can often see where the fish simply ram the lure and then swing and turn sharply for another swipe. And finally, the jig—the clean-up bait used pretty much all around the world. On fisheries where lake trout are keying on tullibee, dwarf tullibee and white fish, white can be a solid color option, but other species can be an important food source as well. Green Rubbish Tube Jigs (5 Pack)$4. However, sometimes the fish don't like that movement, so I will inch it up the lead.
Bottom contact makes the lure sashay and move in all sorts of random directions, often triggering a positive predatory response. 60lb line is definitely might be happier with 15lb, and 8lb leader. This is all relative to the body of water. The opposite of monotonous trolling techniques is actively casting and vertically jigging with bass-style, soft plastic jerkbaits. I've never actually fished for lakers either (hoping to change that one day) but from what i have read and heard about white tube jigs about 3-3. When that happens, take your lure away from the fish by starting to reel it up to the surface, as though your tube is a small baitfish running away. And to make the presentation even sweeter, you'll catch whitefish as a bonus.
In windy conditions, a heavier jig will help keep your line more vertical in the water. Tube jigs continue to catch fish and are a go-to lure on many fisheries that we travel to. Can't beat that for three of Colorado's finest anglers. Lift and hold your jig a couple feet off the bottom. We learned about this style bait while fishing in the Northwest Territories. On many fisheries, dead baits are placed to lay right on the bottom, but you can experiment by hanging them horizontally off of the bottom a bit higher in the water column. Burping is easily noticed, as air bubbles rise to the surface from the fish.
So why are they called trout? Today there is an array of jigging spoons out there, and they all do a great job catching Lake Trout. 3/8-ounce with Stinger Hook. While many anglers make the mistake of retrieving the lure with long, fast rips of the rod, I believe the Vibrato induces most strikes from lake trout when dropped to bottom (or a certain depth of suspended fish) and given one short, fast pull at a time, between protracted pauses. You've never seen anything like this before!
Feeding lake trout will come in to investigate. Luhr Jensen Rattling Kwikfish (Size K15 to K16). Showing all 16 results. With 20-pound braided line, the lure also dives to at least 10 feet (or deeper with 100 feet or more of line out), ideal for early season or late fall trout running shallower structure. We use two jig types: jigging spoons and bucktail jigs (tubes are essentially jigs, too, but we often use them differently). The tube jig will lift during this motion and then drop back to a vertical position. When fishing near a fishermen using the technique with 10 foot noodle rods, a swishing sound thru the air can be heard followed by someone proudly saying "Fish ON!!! Other natural colors that include greens, motor oil, pumpkinseed and purple, can also be worth experimenting with.
Attach the lure to the fluorocarbon with a heavy-duty, duo lock snap swivel. The beauty of these lures is they are not limited to ice fishing. A tube rigged to imitate baitfish can swim 12 to 18 inches from side to side on each crank of the reel. Fly Tying Materials. Straight out of the HCL Vault is our newest jig pattern... introducing HCL's Cisco! Now I've never spoken with a trout, but I'm pretty sure that that and injured minnow is what trout mistake a tube jig to be with its seductive dipping and darting action. If there is one common trend that we are seeing on many fisheries, that trend would be downsizing spoons. Fishing deeper has become increasingly important as waters have cleared. Here is a selection of the best lake trout lures for trolling: Hagen Muskie Spoon (1 1/4 oz). Among countless soft jerkbait options, Z-Man's soft, buoyant, durable and non-toxic ElaZtech Jerk ShadZ has risen to the top of many anglers' preferences. Practice in shallow water where you can see the tube's action and how your retrieve affects it. Strikes are usually rapid and rod-jarring.
Must Have Colors: Whizzard Shad, Space Monkey and Pearl. Will 6lb test mono line be ok or should I change to somthing else? Big soft baits make the best ice fishing lures. Point your rod tip directly at the bobber and reel up any slack line. Jigging can be easier on the fish, because they are not tiring from being trolled behind a boat and are slowly rising in the water column at their own pace. Since then, I've learned the lure works equally well when cast from a boat. We can hypothesize that the older and bigger fish are getting conditioned to some of the larger, more traditional hardware. Best Lake Trout Tube Jig Lure.
Mustad Premium Hooks. Important Note: Read this and remember for the rest of this article! The Thundermist jigging spoon has a very simple design, but gets the job done. Strikes are typically sharp and aggressive—and the lure attracts bites from the largest specimens—making it a logical choice in many waters. A great way to make sure your tube stays smelly is to add a little piece of scent drenched cloth or yarn under the head of your tube! Other than being a fascinating fish that is built for speed and power, these fish live in some remarkable places. In this article, I am going to give you all the in depth information so you can be a successful tube jig fisherman. Lake trout can also be found suspended over deep water, with the help of a fish finder. 5"HOWITZER & 4" SIDEWINDER TUBES. Next is the bucktail jig—talk about old school!
I use 1/0 for most 3½- and 4-inch tubes and #1 for 3-inch tubes. We've observed this more than once, and if you talk to any Lake Trout fishing guide from a trophy fishery, they will verify this occurrence. When reaching down for large fish you need to reach your fingers into the upper gill plate without damaging the main gills. 3½-inch Marc's Prizm Minnow. Fun can be had when trying to entice a bite.
Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Lengths: 2 1/2, 3 ½, and 4 ½ inches. Weights/Skirts/Blades. Fast rate of fall with optimal flash and subtle vibration. Big, again, was the key. Rods should be 7 to 9 feet long and fast or extra-fast action. One of the key things to remember when retrieving a jig is not to overpower the lure.