The Spoonpluggers Forum

It' been pretty slow at the pub here. Pour yourself a cold one and let's talk about the very first time you went spoonplugging. Here's my story...

I was always an advid angler, and lucky for me a liked to troll (actually drag lures) before a knew anything about spoonplugging. From 1983 to 1987 i made a yearly trip to canada. This was supose to be where the average fisherman could go and load the boat with fish. After 5 years and some mediocore trips, my journeys up north were a bit disapointing. Back then fishing facts magazine was still very popular. I had gone to a few seminars back then by Spence Petros and Carl Maltz. Every now and then Buck Perry and "spoonplugging" would be mentioned. After i got back from my 1987 trip up north i was determined to improve my fishing. I stopped by a local sporting goods store and saw Bucks book and decided to buy it since i had heard him being mentioned from time to time. I think it was on a tuesday nite after work i started to read the book. I wasn't much of a reader back then, but after reading the first 20 or soo pages i had a feeling this was really going to be somethging. I read the book in 3 nights, and was blown away by it. I totally beleived everything because it seemed to be plain old common sense when you thought about what he was saying. That thursday nite i went back to the sporting goods store (Ed Shirley's) and bought a 109, a spoonplugging rod, no-bo, 5 pack and a few extra 200's and 100's. That saturday i went to "my" lake, Lake Wisconsin. I have fished that lake several times each year for the past 5 years. Would have some ok trips, but NEVER caught a limit of walleyes in one day. That was my goal, come back to the dock with a limit of walleyes. I rented boats back then. I knew the owner (Red) pretty well as a was a regular customer. To be honest with you i was embarrassed to be seen carrying that 109 full of no-bo (looked like horse hair) and short stiff trolling rod to the boat. That wasn't the look of a "cool" fisherman to be seen with that barbaric setup. I carried my old 1967 18hp evenrude down,(those old motors did look cool) started it up and headed out. I was very curious to see if the spoonplugs would run at the exact depths that were mentioned. I first clipped on a 200 and started out in deep water. i let out a medium line length that would get me to run about 10 feet. I was in about 15 feet of water and slowly headed for the shore, watching my flasher. Slowly i was getting shallower. The flasher was going on 10 feet and i remeber thinking to myself if it's running like the book said i should be just about on the bottom by now. Just as i had finished that thought, i felt a bump,bump,bump... WOW!! i remember thinking...this sh*t works! I was amazed that you could precisely control the depth of my lure. Over the next hour or so I repeated this with a 100 series. I was BLOWN AWAY that i was able to control the exact depth of my luers. And i'll NEVER forget that feeling when it first started to bump. I thought to myself, "it feels like sand"....WOW, i was blown away again. It seemed like you had a pair of eyes down there telling you what the bottom was. I was in complete AWE. In this period of a couple of hours of getting accustomed to the spoonplugs and feeling the bottom, a 5 fish limit of walleyes happened to find there way in the boat! I had absoulety no doubt that i'd be a SPOONPLUGGER for life after that trip. For the rest of that year i fished a different lake every weekend, about 15 new lakes that year. I had a blast and will NEVER forget that first trip out. I'll have another cold one again.... Those were the days....

Excellent story!
Mine was a little different, but similar. I had been fishing mostly small creeks and farm ponds, because I was afraid to venture out onto a HUGE lake. Mostly casting the shallows. Every once in a while, i would notice that there would be alot of fish chasing smaller fish and minnows in certain sections of the small lakes(very large ponds basically) and that it would happen in the same section each time, and i would also catch very quick limits in these areas, but always smaller bass with an occasional lunker.
One gift that my creator had given to me was the gift of good observation. It only made sense to me that if I was only catching smaller fish in the same places( and only one or two places per lake), that the bigger fish had to be close by. but where? The next time I had a bunch of smaller fish "chasing" in the swallows, I had decided to turn around and fish the deeper side of the boat.
In the meantime, I had just started to read Fishing Facts, a brand new magazine in my area of west central Indiana. I read about this old guy that said that the fish were either in the swallows, the deep or somewhere in between! Made sense to me! I began to eat up every article he wrote each issue. I ordered his book from Fishing Facts and as you did Jim, i devowered it in a couple of days.
I went back to my little lakes and applied the casting knowledge he taught,( I could not troll on these lakes). The first time I tried it, I caught a stringer of Largemouth in less than 5 minutes! All these fish over 3 pounds on about a dozen casts! It didnt dawn on me to keep casting and catching more and release them! I had caught my limit of 5 and just went home! Had to brag to my wife and fishing buddies!
Spoonplugging made me a hermit fisherman. None of my friends wanted to or would be caught dead with a trolling rod and a little boat!
I bought a small 12 foot Fisher marine boat and a 5 horse Evanrude motor. I started out just like Buck said to do. Right at the dock with the 500 series. The first day i tried trolling the swallows, I literally caught dozens of fish.
My problem to overcome, came in that I was so succesful in the swallows, that I didnt want to learn to go deeper!
My success went down rapidly! I became discouraged. Almost quit!
Luckly I called the master, and after talking to him on the phone, he encouraged me to stick to it and take the course and on the water instruction. I am glad i did. the rest is another story.
Steve

Harry, I'll have the usual and don't be stingy with the pour. Send one over to Jim while you're at it, his glass is empty. Give Steve on also...

I've got a good fish story.

Once upon a time, before I became a spoonplugger I was guilty of all the usual sins of fishing. Actually, fishing consisted of casting a lure towards the weed beds. When that failed me I'd put a minnow on a hook and bobber and get a cheap thrill from catching sunfish and sometimes I'd get lucky and catch a perch!

I read all the fishsing magazines and watched the nonsense of the pros on the fishing shows--- they were casting the shallows also. Then one day I read this article about the Solunar Theory. Sounded interesting and I wasn't catching any good fish so why not give it a try. For those who are not familiar with the theory it maintains that fish get active when the sun and the moon are in certain positions. Sounds wild huh? As the Ginzu chef says "But wait there's more. "

I made a plan to try this revolutionary new theory soon. I picked a day in midsummer and took off early from work. The lake I chose was close to my home and was actually a very large pond but had a good population of bass. And so I went and rented a rowboat (no motors) in high spirits anxious to try my new found "knowledge." I rowed across the lake to the far end where there was a bunch of weeds & pads. To my surprise there was one other boat there. We were the only 2 boats on the lake. I anchored a short distance from him and asked how he was doing. Not even a bite he replied.

Not to worry I told him-- the fish will start biting at 4:30 as that's what my tiny Solunar table booklet predicted. It was now 4:25 on my watch.He didn't answer but just looked away. As I think about it now, who could blame him? I had to sound like a nutcake!

At precisely 4:30 I made a cast to the weedbed with a diving plug. I had a fish on immediately. The other fisherman looked but said nothing. After I landed the fourth fish he couldn't take it any longer and asked if I would mind if he moved his boat to my area. Sure, I said. He moved his boat and caught 2 bass on succesive casts while I did the same. Then the action wend out like a light. Nothing..

We rowed back to the launch site and he couldn't stop asking me questions about this magic booklet I spoke of. I told him all he wanted to know while we packed away our gear. I could swear he was shaking his head as he left. The episode had to be one in a million!

Later I got into spoonplugging and Buck explains briefly his thoughts on the Solunar theory. Somehow I always felt that it was pure chance I caught fish that afternoon at the predicted time. As I said this happens once in a million. I always wondered if that other fishermen told the story to his friends about the acrewball that predicted when the fish would start biting?

I started fishing when I was big enough to hold a rod. When I was 7 or 8 my 12 yr. old sister wanted to take tennis lessons at the city park. I agreed to take lessons too because there were some ponds and a creek running thru it. I could fish while she was taking her lessons. Yea, there were a few times I forgot my racket! Our neighbor had a 10' jon boat, him, my dad, his son and I all piled in that boat with a small electric motor made many trips. I was always the live bait under the boat kid, fishing on the bottom. Casting was tough in that set up, but I usually caught most of the fish! When I graduated high school I bought my own aluminum boat and 9.9 outboard. There was a big sporting goods store not far away, I had one of there catalogs and would browse through every page in the evenings. I came across Bucks Green book and decided to order it. Thee was a bait shop a good ways from my house that I thought sold Spoonpluggs, I went there on a Saturday morning and looked around. I bought a few spoonpluggs, a 109 and rod. I went out to my car and was looking thru all the things I had just bought, couldn't wait to get home! All of a sudden a stranger is knocking on my car window?
He introduced himself, Buzz Hoover, a member of the Ohio Spoonpluggers Club! The funny part is, he and I were the only members of the club a hour south of where the meetings were back then. Everyone else was in the far NE area of Ohio. He took me under his wing and got me started right. I always thought back how odd it was that we met!
Starting to troll the shallows I was catching fish like crazy. After getting into schools of fish numerous time, the rest all fell into place!

My first exsposure to spoonplugging came about back in the late 70"s. I was looking around in a bait shop here in Madison called Captain Jacks when I saw my first spoonplug. The man in the shop told me about Buck Perry and how he used the spoonplug to map lakes and make big catches. Now even though I was only about 15 years old at the time I had fished alot and been led to believe you had to have a certain lure to be successful. Sometime shortly after that I bought the green book. I read the book through the next winter and the following spring I bought a used 12ft. boat with a 9.8 motor. That June I tried my first trip spoonplugging on Lake Monona. Being a fairly large, deep, semi clear lake with a weedline to 10 ft. I soon found out by the end of that first day after constantly being fouled by weeds and totally overwelmed I went home very disapointed. Not having anyone else to go to about spoonplugging to ask for help I went back to the green bible. The next trips out geared with markers to mark the weedlines and through shear will I was able to find a small point off a sunken island and on a straight line trolling pass across it I caught my first fish spoonplugging. It was about a 2.5lb. bass, needless to say I was thrilled. Seeing that it was caught by one of my markers, and remembering from what I learned from the book I anchored and started casting a spoonplug. I ended up catching 3 more the same size as the first. My sense of accomplishment knowing I caught them on purpose was incredible. I should have worked out deeper on the bar because I may have caught some bigger ones. From that day on I new that spoonplugging was the real key to my fishing. Beckman44

1967....I started catching fish right away....working the shallows. (The first boat I had was a 14 foot alumacraft with a Johnson 10 Seahorse on it.)
And even on down to 15-20 feet I was catching fish. This was a long time ago though when it was pretty easy to find dingy water in lowland type lakes down here. Lakes have cleared a lot over the decades.
The hell started when I hit clear highland lakes like Lake Lanier...with plenty of standing timber 20-25 feet below the surface. I would lose countless spoonplugs on wire line and call Hickory to whine.
Buck just kept sending me further and further up into the headwaters until I was actually almost in some rivers...then things got back like they're supposed to be.
Then in 1980 I bought another boat, selling the alumacraft and the 10HP Johnson.
I was actually FORCED into the headwaters because of my small boat...its only 15 feet, narrow, and has a 15 inch transom with a 1998 20HP Mercury on it that starts everytime with about 4 turns of the electrastart. (originally it had a 1976 15HP Johnson that Buck gave to me which got stolen). I couldn’t be safe down in the big water with all the wakes from the huge yachts and pleasure boats.
I bought the boat hull with 2 seats in 1980 for $200 from a dealer that went busted and then I created the interior to suit me. It is rude, crude, and uncouth...but it keeps me in the areas of a lake where I have the best percentage going for me.
Also, I haven’t had a monthly boat payment in over 25 years.
After a few seasons of using a camera to find fish, I've determined that all those bass I see where "the book says they won't be" are actually on structure down there but they are NOT on a "structure situation". That's why they are tougher to catch when I find them out in the middle of some big dumb flat.
Enough of this rambling for now...just felt like posting a little.
Douglas

Hey Doug, You finally came out of your den for the winter? Took my daughter fishing when she was about 7 or 8 years old. She wanted to ride in the boat as I was backing it down the ramp. I did the rope around the winch thing too. Only the rope didnt stay around the winch. I will never forget the look on her face. It went from a big smile to not much of one to a bit of a frown to in tears. I removed my wallet and went for a swim. Thank goodness the water was not freezing.'
I took my dad to lake wawasee one time and I had a pick up truck that was not 4 wheel drive. I did not know it but the ramp had developed a green slime on it and about the time that my back wheels got just into the water, I began to slide backwards. At one time we thought we had stopped but again we went back some more. By the time it did stop, we had about 6 inches of water inside the truck. I was already a bit pissed off but it got worse when I decided to step out of the truck and into the water to hook up a strap onto a good mans truck that offered to give us a pull out. Not thinking about the slippery ramp, my feet hit and both feet went out from under me and if you looked real close, you could have seen the steam come off of me.
I called the DNR and found out that the day before they had a poor guy loose his whole truck to the slime. The fact that they knew it was in that condition without making an attempt to do something about the green slime was my point that I made to the cop. And I made it rather well.
Live and learn. John

Crappie fishing was murder this year. Caught hundreds of them..most over a pound. Right up in the bushes and fallen trees using one of those new(?) collapsable cane poles with a minnow and a bobber. Just lay the minnow in the limbs and goodbye..down goes the float.
The shellcrackers have been hot now since the Crappie spawn is over. In 2 feet of water and destroying worms or little fake 1/32 jig type bugs on 4 pound test and a popgun rod.
Notice I make no mention of those "Green Carp" (my new name for bass) as I dont fool with them anymore. Too much work for me.
I enjoyed your video with the guy from the fishing show. I think you blew his mind. I think he came there really expecting to catch nothing at all.
You're starting to look old I could see that grey hair creeping into that beard. Need I tell you what goes next? Oh well, you'll find out soon enough.
Stay happy and keep 'em on the dodge.
Regards,
Douglas

Douglas, One of my absolute favorite fish to catch and eat are crappie. Denny and I made a good catch very early in the season right after ice out. The crappie are spawning at this very moment around here. The muskies have been done for about three weeks and the walleyes are nearing the end of their once a year fling. Got a 5lb 15 ounce lm bass(green carp) last sunday. Biggest one in a long time. Pre-spawn fish. Got around 50 of them in a couple of days. All at the weedline casting a rattletrap. A handfull on jigs too.
Yea you are right about the grey hairs. I guess they just come with the territory. Glad you liked the show. The conditions were a real mess. The wind blew out of the N/W for a few days and where we launch the boat was high and dry. Blew all the water out of my fishing area and I was down to my very last spot before we caught a fish. It was 30 degrees and the wind was blowing 15 to 20mph........ This was the day that they had open so there was no choice but to give it my best. In this case, they were in charge. A couple of weeks before that, I could have shook them up real good but thats just the way it goes.
Take Care and its always good to hear from you. John

John,

I saw you on the Fishing Show. You did a great job on bad weather conditions. Great for spoonplugging.

Harold C. Eaton

Hi Harold, I tried to call you last night. Deb and I were talking about you and I thought I would give you a jingle. The number in the directory must not be correct.
Give me a call when you get a chance and give me your phone number. Take Care John

John expert my call. You are right my number is wrong in theDirectory.

Harold C. Eaton

John expert my call. You are right my number is wrong in the Directory.

Harold C. Eaton

I started out with a 14' sears aluminum v-bottom pre-rigged for desaster by design. Had a little 8 h.p evenrude. Started fishing a small canal near my home somewhere around spring of 97. Trolled the first three sizes and had a blast fishing along the weedlines with 500s and 400s. At first it was kinda awkward to me, but after awhile I started feeling more comfortable with it. I learned to use that penn 109 using my thumb for a clutch. Many good memories looking back. One day I picked up my youngest son from school on a early afternoon. I took him to the canal as some know it, with me. He was around 4 or 5. I handed him a zebco 33 with the drag set a little on the loose side just in case of a hang. After getting out some line I handed him the rod as we trolled back in a prespawning area near a Island bar. We hadnt moved far when he said " Daddy Iv got a fish on my line",,,We were trolling fairly shallow with 400s and I really thought he had snagged some weeds. I said to him,, son, your just hung on the bottom,,,,then I noticed that rod tip doing the tug of war on the tip end, followed by a nice splash about 60 ft. back. That little resacal hung into a 3lb-3oz largemouth. I couldnt get him to stop smiling. Because it was getting cooler that afternoon and the fact that he caught a nice bass I decided to call it a day and end on a good note. We took it back to the boat landing for pictures.It made for some cherished memories. Thats one day that Im especially glad that I took off work early to spend an afternoon with my son. We will both remember that day for quite a while! I dont to this day remember how much money I missed because of taking off a little early , but I will say this with all honesty. and that is, my daily salary couldnt compared to the time spent with my son on that day that we shared fishing together!!!

Whopper Stopper

I started in 1967, when my father began spoonplugging after reading about the big catches Buck and Don Nichols made on the Fox “Chain” of Lakes in Illinois. I was 6 years old and my dad would tie a rope around my waist in case I fell overboard. We fished most of the Chicago area lakes but mostly the Chain. We caught a lot of big bass, walleye and northerns. I was hooked from day one and have never stopped fishing or spoonplugging since.

Back then, there were quite a few people that spoonplugged and I remember passing boat after boat of guys pounding the breaklines.

-Roger