Northern pike will go after anything, including fish half their size. This is one of the most aggressive fish that you can go after, and one of the most popular to fish for because of that. A lot of fishermen like to cast their lines out for pike because they go after literally anything. Spoons are no different, and they like to chase this lure because of how it plays to their aggression. Those in the know, often even catch some of the bigger pike on spoons.
Doctor For The Pikes
If you want to know the old tried and true pike fishing spoon, it is the red and white Dr. Spoon. This catches the eye of the pike, and as soon as he sees it, he can’t resist taking it. You find this lure in most tackle boxes in Northern Pike territory because it is one of the most common around. What kind of success you have, however, will depend on the day, and you have to choose a spoon color based on the time of day and the weather. If you don’t seem to be getting bites on one lure, try another color. Many times, it just takes a little experimentation to learn what works.
Why Choose Spoons
We like to use fishing spoons because of how they cover a lot of ground, and they do this quickly and accurately. Most people don’t even appreciate enough what a good spoon can do for you. The more time that you have your hook in the water, the higher your chances of putting a big one at the end of your hook. When you use them correctly, they neither go too deeply in the water nor do they run to close to the top of the water. You want them to run right through the middle of the water.
Fishermen like to use spoons because of their forgiveness. If you make a mistake when you use them, it doesn’t mean that you will scare the fish off. You don’t have to twitch them in a certain way to make them look more realistic, and you don’t have to worry that they will dive too low in the water. In general, if you just cast them out and try a couple of different retrieval speeds, you will have success with them. You have a few things that you can do to increase your chances of success, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you will have success or no success with it.
What Colors Have the Most Success?
In general, you can catch northern pike on any spoon, but you do have some colors that tend to have more success. Also, this depends on the weather, but the colors that tend to crank in the most fish are the spoons with the classic finishes. For example, the 5 of diamonds and the hammered nickel, brass, and copper with orange swirl all tend to do well. That said, some of the wilder and more vivid colors do better in sunlight, murky and overcast conditions – there is a color for every situation. Some of these colors include Fire Tiger, Chartreuse, Lazer Glow, Pearl Glitter, Blue Dolphin, and the Ultra Violets.
Does Spoon Size Matter?
What sized spoon you should use will depend. The biggest spoons don’t always perform the best, and in fact, you would find more success in some situations with 2 1/2-inch models over the larger ones. Northern pike love to go after the big meals, but in some cases, they will go after some of the smaller spoons. This is a good thing because the larger spoons also tend to be much harder to cast and take up more room. With that said, every fisherman who goes after pike should have at least a couple of different sizes in his tackle box to increase chances of bringing in the big one. As the testimonials on yellowbirdproducts.com attest, fishermen using Doctor Spoons have been very successful with the Northerns using a variety of sizes. From the hefty Big Game Series (Papa Doc) spoons at 5-1/2″ long and 2 oz, to the Thin, Weedless and even the tiny Ice Doctors.
