by Chuck Nelson
Spring fishing on the Great Lakes is a spectacular fishery that is underutilized. Anglers of all ages can tie into a stubborn brown trout or acrobatic rainbow (steelhead) There's also a lot of spunky coho salmon and an occasional trophy brook trout. And, who can ever forget their first line-screaming king salmon. There's no doubt about it, spring time Great Lakes fishing is great. Light lines in the 6 pound to 10 pound range are necessary to capture these wary shallow water eating machines.
Mepps lures makes it very simple to take full advantage of what these great bodies of water have to offer. Early season - late March, April and May - gives the angler his best shot at close to shore, shallow water fishing outside of the fall time frame. Targeting areas around tributaries, warm water discharges and shallow water rocks is the key. These areas generally will attract the smelt and alewives which is what the trout and salmon are gorging themselves on.
Shore and pier anglers have limited access to the vast expanses of water, but it is here where some of the best action lies. Anglers often look at spinners as inland fishing or river baits and over look them for shore or pier fishing. Casting the #3 (1/4 oz.) Aglia Streamer is perfect. The silver or gold blade with a white streamer is ideal because of its size and color. It matches the forage. Do not over look the #3 and #4 original Mepps Aglia in silver, gold, hot firetiger, hot orange, rainbow trout and blue platium. Another spring time killer is the #3 or #4 Comet Mino with a silver or gold blade. Using a small ball bearing swivel with a cross lock or coast lock snap will enable you to change baits quickly and minimize line twist.
If casting spinners does not appeal to you, Mepps Syclops spoons in Sizes #0, #1 and #2 are what you want to go with. The erratic action of this spoon triggers strikes when no other spoons will. The silver, gold, skunk, monkey, blue platium, firetiger, hot orange and rainbow trout are the deadly colors for this early season trout and salmon fishing. The weights on these spoons are 1/4 oz., 1/2 oz. and 5/8 oz. Cast them using an immediate straight retrieve, or cast and count them down roughly one foot per second before beginning your retrieve. Syclops cast like a bullet and have an erratic action that big trout and salmon can't resist.
If fishing from shore is not your forte; not to worry. Mepps also has lures that will allow you to take advantage of the awesome shallow water trolling that's available this time of year. Trolling the Syclops Lites in sizes #1, #2 or #3 is the ticket here. In spring the dolphin, watermelon, smelt, carrot, monkey, flame thrower and skunk are the colors that you do not want to leave the dock without. Planer boards, flat lines and shallow set downriggers are the main producers for the shallows. Don't a sinker heavier than 3/16 oz. It will take the lure too deep and you will get hung-up or fowled with weeds. Keep your trolling speed in the 1.3 mph to 2.3 mph range. The lures will work at both slower and faster speeds, but this seems to be the magic speed range in the spring.
The same spinners that work while casting should also be added to your trolling arsenal. "Trolling spinners", you ask? You bet! Spinners can be trolled the same way you troll spoons. Use a 1/8 oz. - 3/16 oz. beaded keel sinker to keep the spinners down. The additional weight is needed as spinner blades give a lure lift, so they will ride higher in the water than a spoon. This is a dynamite little secret many boat fishermen do not share.
Many fisherman will throw their favorite spoons and soak either spawn, smelt or alewives for their spring shore and pier fishing. Boat fishermen primarily will troll crank baits, stick baits or, in some cases, a dodger, or flasher and flies. However, If you are open to new ideas and think outside the box, you may just be more than a little surprised at the positive results you'll encounter.
