Fishing Lures

[dverna]

My friend's wife has gotten into fishing big time and I would like to send her a "surprise package" of goodies.

They live in MN on a small lake. I know nothing about fishing so looking for advice on what to get.

They have bass, pike and I think perch in the lake.

If there are any other accessories besides lures that would be useful let me know.

Thanks for any guidance.

[Recycled bullet]

Needle nose pliers and diagonal cutters are nice to have.

A spool of fresh fishing line and Small circle hooks are good for pan fishing. Medium and large offset worm hooks are good for bass. Snap swivels are nice for switching lures without having to cut the line. An extendable net is good to have also. A white hat with a wide brim to keep the sun off your face.


Talk to your friend and make sure that what you're getting also aligns with her goals for fishing. It would be silly to give somebody a bunch of panfish gear if they're only interested in muskie and Pike or vice versa.

[gunther]

There should be walleye and maybe smallmouth there ,too. Small blue and silver minnow-looking lures that are surface baits ought to work. Deep running baits tend to get hung up, and add unnecessary frustration.

[country gent]

one thats handy is a set of hemostats about 6-8" long. Hit melt glue for quick patch on waders.

[GhostHawk]

Rapala crank baits are very nice to get as gifts. Also if they are going to be eating any of those fish a nice fillet board and knife would make a great gift.

[waksupi]

If you are a do it yourself type, make her some spoons. I get old tablespoons at second hand stores to use. Cut off the handles, drill a couple holes, add a snap ring and an octopus circle hook. You don't need to be real accurate for drilling the holes. I paint them John Deere green, then put red spots on them, four to the side. It makes a difference, three spots aren't as good!! These are a real pike killer, and out fish anything else we throw at them. Much like the old Daredevils, but the table spoon shape gives them much better action. Fish them fast or slow, twitch them, some spoons you can ever make swim backwards! For pike you need some steel leaders, 8-9" are good.Some good 20# braided line is good, too. I run 30#, as we have a combination of big pike and lots of weeds. These work for bass, too.
Some examples, the yellow also works, as does white. I wasn't impressed by the results of the orange blades, so if I want more attractant, I use an orange plastic bait on the hook.
https://postimg.cc/9r4fF2rd

[MaryB]

Chartreuse is the go to bait color for walleye and pike if they have perch in the lake. For walleye and pike this tipped with a fathead minnow is a killer bait. color is chartreuse... camera washed it out... I tie my own and parts can be bought online. Costs about 25-50 cents each... About 24 inches of line to start, tie the snell hook on, add the beads in that color pattern, use a GOOD clevis for the blade or line twist happens, Colorado blade for good thump at low speeds. Trolled just fast enough to make the blade tick over, I go right down the middle of the weed beds for pike and troll the offshore humps for walleye.

This will also catch perch... greedy little pests eat anything!

This is my go to for trolling for pike. Tied on 10 pound test spiderwire so the line is NOT visible. To many commercial variants are tied with 20 pound line that is THICK and they work poorly because of it. 90% of pike hooks are corner of the mouth so teeth cutting the line are not an issue, the super line helps too. Replace it if t gets nicks, I had a bag in the boat for damaged ones to salvage the components! Also killer on walleyes, opening day one year I keyed on a point in a local prairie pothole lake, just a 2' difference in water depth. Walleyes were stacked on it and we limited out on 3-5 pound fish in 3 hours!



For pike and bass up near shore/under docks I use a spinner bait like this. Cast it up onto shore then twitch it into the water. Often results in an instant strike in inches of water! I did that on one side of a dock, kid was swimming on the other side. Plopped the spinner bait off the rocks and into the water and a 5 pound pike smashed it launching 4+ feet into the air. Kids eyes got really big and he walked on water getting out of the lake!



Black and silver Rapalas, Mepps spinners, various other live bait rigs... Weighted(1/2 oz is great for this) slip bobbers/bobber stops, split shot and a plain old circle hook with a leech is another good bait on schooling walleyes. One local lake is an impoundment with LOTS of rocks that form a finger lake that is barely 1 mile wide at its widest but it is 10 miles long... the walleyes hold around the rock piles. Impossible to troll them but a slip bobber ad jig head/plain hook and split shot are killer fished around it. Being a slip bobber you can vertically jig the bait too! Weight makes it more sensitive to light strikes and makes casting much easier on windy days here on the prairie of MN.

[Shawlerbrook]

Mepps or other spinner type baits are alway a good choice. As far as crankbaits, Rapalas, like said above and Flatfish have been staples for years. Fishing top water Jitter Bugs on calm water is always fun where there are bass and pike.

[Bmi48219]

A good filleting knife, scaler, needle nose pliers, a fish fillet board, maybe Kevlar gloves.
If she’s going to consume her catch she’ll need the above. Go for good quality stainless steel.
What shell really need if she’s going to consume Northern Pike is instructions on how to eat pike fillets avoiding the ‘Y’ bones. There’s no better eating than Yellow perch and Northern pike.

[Hogtamer]

A journal for all the future “fishing lies!”

[Minerat]

Jig hooks for plastic baits 1/16th to 3/8s oz are the best, pink heads if you can find them with 1.5 to 3" watermelon single tail bodies work great for walleye and smallies.

[centershot]

If she's fishing toothy species like walleye, pike and muskies, a hook-out tool is far superior to a needle nose plier. She's still gonna' need the needle nose for other things though so don't cross them off the list!

[farmbif]

you probably cant go wrong on the mepps website. a couple grab bag specials will give your friend an assortment that may work very well

[Winger Ed.]

Include some of that high end braided 'spider wire' line.

The side of a fish's body is sort of like its ear.
They can hear line moving in the water like we hear a rope whistle in the air.

It's great stuff, much smaller than regular line for its size and strength, thus its more quiet moving through the water.
Plus, it doesn't get that 'memory' and want to curl the way other line does.
It wants to stay straight so much sometimes it will untie its own knots. Some guys have to put a drop of crazy glue on the knots.
It's so much more expensive than regular mono filament, most people won't buy it for themselves.

It also casts farther than mono does also.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

My friend's wife has gotten into fishing big time and I would like to send her a "surprise package" of goodies.

They live in MN on a small lake. I know nothing about fishing so looking for advice on what to get.

They have bass, pike and I think perch in the lake.

If there are any other accessories besides lures that would be useful let me know.

Thanks for any guidance.

What a nice gesture.
Some good info so far, especially Mary's advice.
I'll just add a bit of specific info that may help, because if your friend's wife is already into fishing, she probably has all the basic equipment.

I grew up living on a small Lake in central MN. One of the neatest and most exclusive things about living on a small lake, is the casualness of fishing, and the ease of just making a couple casts every evening at sunset. Typically evenings are calm, which is great for fishing with Poppers. Not a lot of people know about Poppers, but they are great fun and effective when the conditions are right. The Hula-popper is probably the most famous popper... It's used for large mouth bass, due to it simulating a frog...a Northern pike will also hit them, but more likely in springtime. Now there are poppers of all size. Small one's used for panfish look almost like flies for fly fishing, but you use the normal rod, reel, and line typical for lake fishing...BUT, you can also use a flyrod setup. Sunfish feed off the surface on any calm evening. Bass will be hitting in the fall, mostly.

I'd suggest a assortment of small poppers for panfish and maybe a Hula-popper, like the one shown in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WisD5TT97cA

[waksupi]

Include some of that high end braided 'spider wire' line.

The side of a fish's body is sort of like its ear.
They can hear line moving in the water like we hear a rope whistle in the air.

It's great stuff, much smaller than regular line for its size and strength, thus its more quiet moving through the water.
Plus, it doesn't get that 'memory' and want to curl the way other line does.
It wants to stay straight so much sometimes it will untie its own knots. Some guys have to put a drop of crazy glue on the knots.
It's so much more expensive than regular mono filament, most people won't buy it for themselves.

It also casts farther than mono does also.

The trick to keeping good knots, is to run the tag end through the eye twice then tie your regular knot.
https://youtu.be/XG_CNfTsiDQ

[M-Tecs]

Find out what lake it is and what the closest bait shop is. Either get a gift card or ask the bait shop for what's "hot" for that lake. Lots of good recommendations above but if they already have what you send them or they don't use what you send them it nothing more than a nice gesture.

[dverna]

You guys are awesome!! Great ideas.

The lady is really new to fishing with two years of experience. She has an uncle that is going to teach her how to clean fish...that is how new she is. So far it has been "catch and release" but she wants to cook a few up.

She fishes off the small dock or off their pontoon boat.

[Bazoo]

I aint tried these, but ndyakangler on youtube uses them and they look like they would be a great addition to a sportsmans arsenal. Been wanting to pick a pair up for myself.
https://www.amazon.com/Umpqua-River-...07QMB44GJ?th=1

I use the Lunkerhunt frogs with good success.
https://www.amazon.com/Lunkerhunt-Lu...g%2C155&sr=1-2

This looks like it'd be just the ticket sometimes, though I aint tried it yet.
https://www.amazon.com/Lunkerhunt-Dr...55&sr=1-5&th=1

All the rest of this is what I personally use currently or have used and had good success with.

I've used the spit'n imagine topwater for years, and it is great.
https://www.amazon.com/Heddon-SpitN-...31&sr=8-1&th=1

These worms work well.
https://www.amazon.com/SENKO-Green-P...8-6&th=1&psc=1

The 6" lizard, get at least one pack of white, and several of brownish/greenish
https://www.amazon.com/Zoom-Bait-6-I...59&sr=8-1&th=1

Pair those with 2/0 for lizards and 4/0 size hooks for the senko worms.
https://www.amazon.com/Gamaktsu-Worm...s%2C175&sr=8-5

Buzzbait
https://www.amazon.com/Booyah-BYB38-...%2C179&sr=8-44

spinnerbait
https://www.amazon.com/Pro-Spinnerba...s%2C179&sr=8-5

This is the good stuff for poppers
https://www.amazon.com/Storm-CB08130...s%2C178&sr=8-6

https://www.amazon.com/Storm-Metalli...%2C178&sr=8-10

Everyone needs one of these in black
https://www.amazon.com/Arbogast-Jitt...s%2C167&sr=8-9

hard to beat a good crankbait sometimes
https://www.amazon.com/Bomber-Finger...s%2C175&sr=8-3

https://www.amazon.com/Heddon-Image-...%2C175&sr=8-12

I've caught a mess of fish on one of these...including a couple of 6+pound catfish
https://www.amazon.com/Rapala-Jointe...0&sr=8-46&th=1

This is magic on bass, must get one of these
https://www.amazon.com/Rapala-Shallo...53&sr=8-2&th=1


ruler
https://www.amazon.com/Gator-Grip-GG...s%2C223&sr=8-3

Nothing wrong with braid, but I've always liked trilene. low vis green in 10 or 12 pound, 10 if I had to pick just one.

12 pound
https://www.amazon.com/Berkley-Trile...s%2C185&sr=8-6

10 pound
https://www.amazon.com/Berkley-Fluor...s%2C170&sr=8-6

https://www.amazon.com/Berkley-Trile...s%2C170&sr=8-9

https://www.amazon.com/Berkley-Monof...%2C170&sr=8-21

14 pound
https://www.amazon.com/Berkley-Monof...%2C170&sr=8-21

https://www.amazon.com/Berkley-Monof...%2C169&sr=8-12

Good for a quick trip, but holds enough for all day.
https://www.amazon.com/Plano-112000-...s%2C168&sr=8-7

Need a few of these too.
https://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Beetl...%2C223&sr=8-21

https://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Beetl...s%2C223&sr=8-3

Get these in white and chartreuse and green pumpkin color, some in both 2" and 3" They are good for the above beetle spins, and as trailers for spinnerbaits/buzzbaits and of course on their own jig heads.
https://www.amazon.com/Yum-Lures-YG2...84&sr=8-2&th=1

[MaryB]

Include some of that high end braided 'spider wire' line.

The side of a fish's body is sort of like its ear.
They can hear line moving in the water like we hear a rope whistle in the air.

It's great stuff, much smaller than regular line for its size and strength, thus its more quiet moving through the water.
Plus, it doesn't get that 'memory' and want to curl the way other line does.
It wants to stay straight so much sometimes it will untie its own knots. Some guys have to put a drop of crazy glue on the knots.
It's so much more expensive than regular mono filament, most people won't buy it for themselves.

It also casts farther than mono does also.

Where braid won't work because of color I use this https://www.amazon.com/Spiderwire-SC...NFHO67WOJ&th=1 what I tie my spinner rigs with and it holds up to northern pike abuse!