How to catch bass with spoons

Two methods for spoon-feeding bass

Anglers have used spoons to catch bass for decades, if not centuries. This style of lure has endured the test of time, and for good reason. They are effective and very versatile. Here’s two Carolina lakes where they shine, along with two ways to use them for hooking bass.

Sutton Lake: casting spoons

Dawn was only an idea when the flip of a shad disturbed the calm water. The next sound was the click of a spinning reel bail followed by a metallic tinkling then another splash as a casting spoon hit the water.

Reeling the spoon within a few inches of the rod tip, Bruce Trujillo loaded the rod and made another cast.

“Catching schooling bass is challenging,” Trujillo said. “Just because you see them doesn’t mean you are going to get bites. At Sutton Lake, where bass get pounded daily by every type of lure, you have to be persistent.”

He retrieved the spoon with steady rhythm for a few casts. When nothing struck, he switched to a stop-and-go retrieve. His rod shot up and the tip arced toward the water.

“That’s him!” he shouted. “Now, the trick is to keep him hooked.”

As the bass neared the boat, it tried to leap. Trujillo thrust his rod tip into the water.

“If the fish jumps, he’s gone,” he said. “Sutton Lake’s water is so clear that you have to use low visibility lines. I use 6- or 8-pound fluorocarbon. This is a 3/8-ounce spoon. A bass can’t stand that metal dangling from its jaw, making him want to jump to dislodge it. The weight of the spoon makes it easier for him to spit out if he clears the water.”

Persistence is the key to spoon fishing

It was a good 2-pound Sutton Lake largemouth. Trujillo used a net to land the fish before releasing it.

“Sometimes I use a 1/4- or 1/8-ounce spoon,” he said. “If you try to lip-land a bass hooked on that tiny treble hook, it can bend or break.”

Sutton Lake is one of North Carolina’s warmest. That means bass are chasing surfacing baitfish year-round. The Sutton plant’s discharge or “Hot Ditch” attracts bass in March, when some of the biggest bass of the year are landed.

The Hot Ditch hosts amazing displays of bass chasing shad. However, it is no longer open for anglers. Nevertheless, bass chase shad from the Hot Ditch mouth to anywhere in Pond 1 or 2, so anglers should cruise around until they see fish.

“It’s a conundrum,” Trujillo said. “You like to see schooling fish. Then, you can’t catch them when you find them. Most anglers give up too soon, going back to their favorite submerged patterns. They will make 100 casts to fish they can’t see and not catch, but not 100 casts to fish they can see and not catch.”

Bass kept chasing shad. Trujillo kept making precise casts. Every now and then, he hooked a fish.

“I start with a gold spoon, then vary the color and size,” he said. “Sometimes you hit a combination that catches a fish and you think you have it right. Then you make another 100 casts without a bite. The best thing you can do is make accurate casts. That fish is chasing shad and will be gone in a second. If you are making blind casts or landing the spoon too late, you’re wasting time. Wait for him to show himself, then clunk him on the head with the spoon.”

Lake Wylie: Jigging Spoons

Deep jigging is a great way to spoon feed bass in colder lakes. Chris Nichols (thecarolinaangler.com, 704-860-7951) lays some heavy metal on Lake Wylie’s bass.

“March is a great month for catching bass with jigging spoons,” Nichols said. “Early in March, when the water temperatures are in the low 50s, the fish will be in deep water. I look for them at 15 to 25 feet, using my electronics to find schools of threadfin shad and bass feeding on them. The water can warm suddenly in March. So you may have to look shallower during a warm spell. But, if a cold front hits, the fish return to their deeper water pattern.”

Using his electronics, Nichols begins searching for fish in creek mouths then moves shallower until he finds them. When he finds a school, he plunks down a spoon.

Spoons catch many species

“I use a 3/4-ounce or 1-ounce Hopkins spoon with no dressing,” he said. “It can be smooth or hammered and my color preference is gold. I think gold stands out as different from the silver-and-gray shad. However, if the water is dingy, I use a chartreuse spoon. There’s something about chartreuse that really lights them up when the water is stained. I think it’s visibility, but, whatever the reason, they hit it when they won’t strike anything else. The lower half of the lake has better spoon fishing because the water is clearer than the upper half.”

Nichols uses 7-foot medium-heavy All Star spinning and baitcasting rods, Bass Pro Qualifier reels and 8- to 10-pound monofilament Bass Pro Excel line. Lightweight lines allow the spoon to flutter and help detect strikes.

“You can watch the spoon dropping on your screen,” he said. “I let it sink on a slack line and allow it to flutter while I’m watching the line. The strike usually comes as the spoon falls. At the strike, I reel in the line and lift the rod, setting the hook hard. If the spoon gets past the fish, I pop it up 3 to 5 feet off the bottom, let it sink on a slack line and allow it to flutter back down.”

Nichols said many species strike spoons — crappie, catfish, white perch and others. Spotted bass are suckers for a spoon, more so than largemouth bass.

“Spotted bass are more aggressive in deeper water and react to spoons better than largemouth bass in spring,” he said. “One of the best places to fish is Buster Boyd (N.C. 49) Bridge. The channel is 45 feet, but some pilings are in 25 feet and that is the perfect depth for jigging a spoon.”

Spoons come in  many styles

The Acme Kastmaster-style spoon works well, with casting distance its claim to fame. Nevertheless, many other spoons work well for schooling bass, whether they are feeding on the surface or deep down below.

The Hopkins style is a flat spoon, the Little Cleo is a warped style and the Silver Minnow is a concave style. All of these spoons can be cast, jigged or trolled and have their own unique wobbles. They come in different finishes, and may have tail dressings of bucktail or other materials. Gold or silver metal spoons give off the flash or shine of baitfish. However, as the years have gone by, manufacturers have added many other color schemes to their spoons. A spoon can have a finish that resembles anything from a baitfish to the colors of a circus clown. Some spoons have hammered or dimpled finishes to increase flash and vibration.