Trolling spoons are one of the most popular lures for catching trout and salmon on the Great Lakes. Other presentations may work better than spoons under some conditions but spoons probably catch more trout and salmon on the Great Lakes than any other lure. What are the best spoons for salmon fishing? We asked Captain Gerard Urbanozo that question while on his boat during the summer of 2024.

“There are lots of new colors out there but we do have some standard spoons that still work good every year. For example, Wonder Bread. This spoon almost never fails. It catches fish for us all the time and it's a good multi-species spoon. It'll catch steelhead, coho, kings, lake trout, and even some brown trout when they're around,” said Urbanozo.

Gerard fishes all over the world but he calls the waters around Winthrop Harbor, Illinois home. He enjoys fishing inland waters but fishing in Lake Michigan is special for Gerard. He fishes tournaments in the area, guides clients, and often fishes with his family. Urbanozo gets a lot of opportunities to see what is working and what isn’t. “Another spoon that's my favorite is a Caramel Dolphin. This is a Stinger spoon in a Stingray size. It's similar to the other Dolphin Series. There's also a Blue and Green Dolphin. So along with the Caramel Dolphin, I really like the Blue Dolphin also.”

Stingers are not the only spoons Urbanozo pulls behind his boat. He also loves the Moonshine Flounder Pounder. “The Flounder Pounder comes with an RV version and a plain version. I prefer the RV version on a bright sunny day. The RV is being helped by the sunlight to be more reflective in the water. On a cloudy day, I prefer the non-RV version. At night I like this bait a lot better. But both of these guys will work almost any given time. It also comes in a blue version.”

King salmon and coho salmon fishing are the main draw on Lake Michigan out of Winthrop Harbor. But it is very much a multi-species fishery. Steelhead are always a fun fight on the water and they plate up really nice as well. “Another one that I like. I probably mentioned it in the past is this guy here. The good old Bloody Nose. This will catch steelhead, cohos, and kings in our area,” added Urbanozo.

Urbanozo does most of his spoon shopping at Lake Michigan Angler. This shop has been a staple of the Winthrop Harbor fishing community for decades. Gerard is seeing the frog spoons leave the shelves of Lake Michigan Angler with frequency recently.

“Lately, a lot of frog spoons have been working great. So guys have been picking these up, anything with spots black spots or green spots. This one has 2 different colors a glow with green spots on one side and black spots on the other side. Even on flashers. Anything with spots lately have been working for us in the last few years. A lot of frog patterns have been doing really well for us.”

No matter where I travel in the Great Lakes, I see this last spoon being tied on rods. Gerard likes it too. “One of my all-time favorites is the Natural Born Killer or NBK. It's got all the good stuff on it. It's got green-black and a glow tape ladder back right in the middle.”

When pulling spoons, or any other presentation, knowing your down speed is important to maximize your catch. You can do this with a Fish Hawk system. Urbanozo prefers a fast troll, because he can cover more water. “The Stinger Spoons, especially on a faster troll, seem to provide a lot of flutter. But they’re steady enough that they don't blow out. On a sunny day, I prefer the silver backs. On a nice cloudy day or overcast day, I prefer the gold versions. Keep your selections to the conditions. On bright sunny days stick to your silvers. On cloudy days stick to gold-backed spoons.”