To catch more lake trout this spring, adopt a comprehensive game plan. Here’s how

Many springs ago in Northern Ontario, I had an experience that still shapes the way I target lake trout. I was on a hot laker bite when my buddy Darren happened to be coming through town, so I invited him out on my boat. Naturally, we went straight to my best spot. I fired out a cast with my all-time favourite laker bait, a white-tube jig, then showed Darren how I’d been working the bait to coax the trout out of the shallows. After 10 minutes and just one light one tap, however, my confidence began to fade. Then Darren tied on a spoon, cast it out and immediately landed a 35-incher. That was just the beginning. Before long, he’d boated eight fish to my one.

I figured Darren’s success was a fluke, but the pattern repeated itself at the next spot. I knew I had to change something or suffer a fate no angler wants: getting out-fished in their own boat. I’m also stubborn, though, so I refused to simply tie on the same spoon he was using. Instead, I needed to find my own bait that mimicked the way his spoon was working. I settled on a ¾-ounce jig with a five-inch swimbait, and immediately began catching as many fish as Darren.

That day, I learned that the secret wasn’t his lure—it was where and how he was fishing it. That lesson is now integral to my approach when searching for springtime lake trout in shallow water. Here’s my method for ensuring I leave no fish behind.