Essential Fishing Lures for Northern Manitoba, Canada
When planning a fishing trip to Northern Manitoba, one of the most important items to pack is a well stocked tackle box. If you plan to fish for trophy northern pike and walleye, having the right lures can make all the difference between a great trip and one that is truly unforgettable. Here is a basic rundown of some lures that should be in every tackle box when fishing in Northern Manitoba.
Fishing Lures for Northern Pike
Johnson Silver Minnow
The Johnson Silver Minnow is one of the most productive northern pike lures for many reasons. It can be fished slow when pike are lazier and fast when they are aggressive. The Johnson Silver Minnow can be fished in weed beds and over rocky areas without the worry of endless irritating snags. It also can be fished shallow or deep depending upon where the pike are located. Recommend sizes would be 3 3/4 in. or 2 3/4 in. Popular colors are silver, gold and silver/blue.
Mepps Musky Killer Bucktail
The Mepps Musky Killer is more than just a lure for toothy musky. It can also be used to catch giant northern pike. The Mepps Musky Killer is a great lure for covering open water. A slow deep retrieve can can often be irresistible to deeper water pike. The flashing blade and pulsing tail are often just the trick to trigger an aggressive strike! This lure can also be worked fast over the tops of emerging weeds. The recommended size would be 3/4 oz. Popular color combinations are gold/yellow, black/orange and silver/red. One note of caution, try to avoid using the tandem versions of the Musky Killers when pike are very active. The tandem treble hooks can cause a lot of damage to a pike’s mouth and gills if you plan on releasing the fish.
Doctor Spoon
The Original Doctor Spoon has been a northern pike fishing “must have” lure for over 90 years. It is extremely versatile and can be fished in two different ways. A Doctor Spoon has a narrow end and a fatter end and the hook and eyelet can be switched to either end. When the line is tied to the narrow end, the spoon will dive deeper and in can even be trolled. When the line is tied to the fatter end, the lure can be retrieved slower and shallower. This versatility is what makes the Original Doctor Spoon a lure worth trying. Recommended size would be 4 1/2 in. or 3 3/4 in. Popular colors are silver, gold, silver/blue, firetiger and perch.
Fishing Lures for Walleye
Jig and Twister Tail
The most common fishing lures for Northern Manitoba walleyes are jigs and twister tails. These lure can be especially effective when walleyes are found near structure. The structure can be a sandy flat, rocky drop-off or the sunken point of and island. A jig and twister tail is simply casted and then bounced on the bottom with a slow retrieve. This is often an irritable presentation for hungry walleyes. Make sure to bring plenty of extras, when fishing underwater structure, snags happen often. Common sizes for jigs are between 1/8 oz. to 3/8 oz., depending upon wind and the depths being fished. Twister tails are normally in the 3in to 4in size range.
Cotton Cordell Wally Diver
When trolling or casting vast areas in search of active walleyes, a crankbait is often a great choice. The speed that these lures are trolled or retrieved will change the depth that they dive. Also, there are specific shallow and deep water crankbaits to further fine tune your walleye approach. For over 55 years, one of the “go to” walleye crankbaits has been the Cotton Cordell Wally Diver. Due to it’s simple design, affordability and durability, the Wally Diver has a long history of catching countless numbers of walleyes. Other popular crankbaits are the Rapala Shad Rap and Berkley Flicker Shad. Most common sizes for crankbaits are 3 in. to 5 in. and in a variety of natural or bright colors.
Lindy Rig
For over 50 years the Lindy Rig has been enticing walleyes to bite. This simple yet effective rig can be fished slowly along the bottom where hungry walleyes are waiting to strike. This rig consists of a heavy slip weight, barrel swivel and a 3ft. to 4ft. snell leader with a hook. Optional additions are brightly colored beads, spinner blades, floats and stinger hooks. Lindy Rigs should be drifted or trolled at slow speeds, normally under 1 mph. In most areas Lindy Rigs are used with live bait. Minnows, leaches or night crawlers all work great. Northern Manitoba and other areas of Canada have restriction on using live bait for fishing, so frozen minnows can be used or artificial baits such as Berkley Gulp. Always be aware of the local fishing regulations prior to fishing a body of water.
As you can see, there isn’t much tackle needed to catch lots of fish in places like Northern Manitoba. The key is having lures that are productive and versatile, so you are ready for any situation that may present itself.