fishing planet which technique for which lure

The Dardevle Five of Diamonds is an autumn icon. On the day Babcock and I fished together, I fired flies while he worked a spoon, and though the race was close for numbers, he bested me on size. The hand-painted pike jumping out of the water on the lodge’s front sign even has a five of diamonds in the corner of its jaw. As he explained, if he could fish only one lure in this pike wonderland, the five of diamonds would be it.

Everyone has known for decades that Dardevles are lethal on pike, but it was the devotion of lodge owner Pat Babcock to this particular finish that struck me. The first time I ever experienced the potency of a Dardevle in the yellow-and-red five-of-diamonds pattern was at Cree River Lodge in northern Saskatchewan back in 2014.

Ironically, it’s probably the lack of “new” in the spoon category that keeps many modern anglers from using them, and that’s a huge mistake.Įppinger Dardevle Five of Diamonds – Target: Pike Target pike with Dardevle spoons. Sure, the sizes, weights, and exact shapes vary, but no one has devised a spoon so revolutionary that it makes Eppinger’s classic design obsolete. It’s a simple, tapered slab of metal with a hook. Since Lou Eppinger finalized the spoon that would eventually become the Dardevle in 1912, the basic design hasn’t changed. The reason is simple: There isn’t really anything to reinvent, and it certainly ain’t broke. What you rarely see anyone trying to improve upon-beyond perhaps paint jobs and glitz-is the spoon. And while they’re more gimmicks than anything (for now, at least), we even have hard baits that swim by themselves thanks to their computer guts. We have plastic worms that reflect UV light. These days we have spinnerbaits with rattling crystal balls instead of blades. Pay attention to trends in fishing tackle, and you’ll notice that among lure-makers, there is a constant competition to improve upon what has already been working for many years. Learn more › Just about every predator species on the planet will smack a spoon. We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs.

Fishing planet which technique for which lure