Spoon Feeder

Fishing guides are on the lake almost every day and after 20 to 30 years they are loaded with information on how to find and catch fish. I always thought it would be awesome for experienced guides to put on two day fishing seminars including the fishing. I talked to Darrel of Bink's Guide Service about this and he was open to the idea. He said he could handle five boats following him. It would be a combination of seminars and live fishing. Darrell would be able to make a bit more than his normal guide fees and you would be able to have two great days of fishing and learning for less than you would pay for a guided trip. I would appreciate your feedback on this idea, if enough are interested I will look into all the costs. It would include all lodging and food. You would bring your own boat. It would be based on two people per boat and cabin. Extra people the cost would only go up by the cost of the food for the extra person so if you could share a boat and cabin with two people besides yourself the cost per person would be lower. If this sounds interesting to you post here and also what you think a reasonable price for this would be per person. This would be on Lake Norfork and if the idea is successful we would do this three or four times per year so you can learn the various strategies to catch stripers.

This is not Darrell, I post Darrels info for him, but after the lake turns over there's three to four weeks of awesome fishing working the brush piles for all species. After that the night bite usually kicks in for Stripers and spooning during the day.

Hey Darrell, Here's the article I wrote about our fishing trip with you. It was published Sunday July 31, 2016 from the desk of Award Winning Outdoor Communicator TomCat Tommy Garner Summer fishing heats up on lakes By Tommy Garner A light rain fell as we ripped across Norfork Lake right at daylight headed to a secret spot where we were in hopes to find some hot striped bass action. Of course there would be some hybrid bass and white bass mixed in with the stripers and that was okay. Hybrid bass is a man made fish that came about by crossing striped bass with white bass. They have traits of both and grow to enormous size in the deep clear water lakes of Arkansas. We headed into a cove and I spotted a bird silhoutted against the gray sky in the early morning light. "Eagle or osprey?" I asked. "Probably an eagle," Darrell Binkley replied. As Bink backed of the throttle of the bass boat I could see that the raptor had a white head and tail. "Bald eagle," I said. "A mature bald eagle," Wanda added as we got our rods and reels ready for action. "I'm marking fish here. Get ready, you're gonna get hit!" Bink said. "I've got one!" Wanda said as she struggled with trying to keep an unseen predator from ripping her spinning reel from her hands. "If it's a walleye grab the net Tom" Darrell said. I reeled in my lure and reached for the dip net. "Never mind, that's not a walleye," Darrell said. "Get back out there and get another fish on Tom. We are right in the middle of them." I cast my spoon out and was letting it sink when I felt a fish hit it like a freight train. "Look what a hybrid," Darrell hissed as he saw Wanda's fish for the first time. I couldn't look because I had my hands full with something that was bent on pulling me off the deck of the boat. "Honey, look at my hybrid!" Wanda sang out in the dim light. "Can't look right now Wanda. I kind of got my hands full," I replied with my back turned to my estatic wife. I absolutley love fishing with Wanda. She gets so excited when she gets a fish on and she is good at it. Of course we love fishing together and we especially love fishing with our favorite fishing guide Darrell Binkley. We have fished with him for close to twenty years. We have never been disappointed and it was apparent that we would not be disappointed today. In my mind Lake Norfork is one of the most beautiful places in Arkansas and it is always a thrill just to be on the water whether you catch fish or not. Motoring right up to the bald eagle and watching him slowly sail away made the rainy morning with fog hanging over the trees seem surreal anyway. Wanda got the first fish of the day and it was a hunk of a hybrid bass and I finally landed the striper that I had on. I cast back out and immediately got a hookup with another fish. This one was not as big so it didn't take me as long to boat it as it did the striper. It was one of the biggest white bass I have ever caught. I threw it into the cooler and got my spoon back down in the school of fish. Fish started blowing up the water chasing shad near out boat and Darrell cast a spoon near the splashing water. Instantly a fish hammered his lure and he landed a nice Kentucky bass. "I just can't help but to throw to breaking fish," he said with a good natured laugh. Neither can I. The predator in me comes out and if a fish breaks the water chasing shad or minnows I am probably going to chunk at them. Darrell set the hook on something and in a minute he said "This is going to be a bass. Yep it is a good smallmouth". He lipped the three pound smallmouth and quickly released it. "That was not what I wanted to catch today," he said. "But Darrell don't you like catching smallmouths?" I asked. "Yes, but not today. I like to catch them in the spring!" he replied. You can not always tell what you are going to catch when you are fishing deep water in the summer time. Though there were bass breaking around us chasing shad, most of the bigger fish were down deep. We were fishing in the inside bend of a creek channel where we found big schools of shad on the depth finder. They show up as a blob or cloud on the screen and then you can see the bigger fish handing under them on the screen. When the action really heats up there will be slashes on the screen that resembles fireworks going off on the 4th of July. When this happens it is the fish slashing through the school of bait fish just the way they do when they are on the surface. It is almost impossible to dangle a heavy metal lure in the melee without getting hit. During the dog days of summer most of the fishing is turned completely off or it is very slow at best. Not so with deep water vertical spooning on the deep manmade clearwater lakes across our region when you know what you are looking for. Wanda and I have experienced this smoking hot summertime fishing many times. On this trip we caught a mixed bag of fish as we normally do. We caught stripers, hybrids, white bass, Kentucky bass, smallmouth bass and walleye. We had some big fish on that we could do nothing with. Darrell got a monster of some sort on, probably a striper that hit and immediately smoked his drag them broke his line faster than you can believe. When Darrell gets a hookup with a fish that he can't react fast enough to keep from breaking off it is a monster. We had another great day on the water in Arkansas enjoying some of the most beautiful scenery anywhere and we are already planning another trip in August. This kind of fishing takes some knowledge and effort to tap into but when you do you are in for getting your line stretched and experiencing one of the best days ever on the water. It does get hot very fast in the mornings but the fast furious fishing action is well worth the effort. Good fishing!

Same as Yesterday. White Many Shads.

BINKS REPORT IT WAS HOT THIS MORNING BUT I DECIDED TO TAKE THE WIFE OUT WALLEYE FISHING . AS YOU CAN SEE IN PHOTO WE HAD A GREAT MORNING ON THE LAKE. I HAVE BEEN SAYING FOR YEARS THAT THE HOTTER , THE SUNNIER THE BETTER THE FISHING WILL BE. TODAY WAS NO EXCEPTION WE CAUGHT TWO LIMITS OF WALLEYE IN ABOUT TWO HOURS ON THE SPOON. IT'S LIKE SHOOTING THEM IN A BARROW WHEN THE WATER TEMP GETS HOT AND THE SUN IS BEATING DOWN AND THEY ARE FEEDING DOWN DEEP ( DROP A SPOON ) BEST SIZE 1 OZ MANY SHAD Best depth 35 feet Best color white Best place the flat banks Best method vertical jigging Best time 6 AM Till 8 AM Surface temp 87 This was a first for Rum and she has never held up eight walleye at the same time to take a picture !!!!!!!!!! KEEP IT SIMPLE DROP A SPOON BINK'O

Bink took his spoons and boat to Bull Shoals today. Here are a few pictures.

Here is a link to the image, it didn't display very clearly. http://www.berkley-fishing.com/Berkley-ae-monofilament-vs-fluorocarbon-infographic.html

For 1/2 oz and bigger spoons I use a 5.6" medium heavy bait cast rod with an Abu Garcia Revo Rocket reel. For 1/8 oz and 1/4 oz I use a spinning rod and reel. The bait cast rod also has a pistol grip. These are hard to find now as they seem to have gone out of style. We have made prototypes of a 5'7" rod with a pistol grip that Darrell Binkley of Bink's Guide Service has been testing for a little over one year and it's working great. We will be going into production with them soon. The reason for the shorter rod is two fold. One, it helps tremendously with the line wanting to tangle on the treble hook and two, you can get a quick and strong hook set. The pistol grip will keep you from wearing out your arm. With this rod you can work a spoon all day with one hand and not wear yourself out. The Abu Garcia Revo Rocket has a high (9:1) gear ratio which allows you to reel in line fast when you get a hit. This is especially important when you are fishing deep. Once you set the hook you want to make sure your rod is always bent or you are likely to loose the fish. As far as the line I only use 10 or 12 lb Berkley Vanish Fluorocarbon. It is almost invisible which is important for clear lakes and it's low stretch which is also important for jigging spoons especially in deep water. I also tie on my spoons with a Palomar Knot. It's easy to tie and I think it's the strongest knot you can use. Here is a link to a short video on the Palomar Knot. http://www.berkley-fishing.com/Berkley-ae-how-to-tie-a-palomar-knot.html It say's it's primarily used on braided line but I love it on monofilament and fluorocarbon line. I got a lure tied up a few weeks ago bass fishing on a tree in the water, it was 8 lb test and my lure was tied on with a Palomar knot. I am 6'2" and weigh 230 lbs and it took everything I had to break the line. (I am almost 60 so that may have had something to do with it). I personally don't see any reason to go over 12 lb test even if you're fishing in timber, if you get snagged up it will just be harder to break the line.

BINKS REPORT HAD ANOTHER GREAT DAY ON NORFORK TODAY. HAD TWO CLIENTS OUT THIS MORNING THAT WANTED TO CATCH A FEW HYBRIDS THAN THEY WANTED SOME WALLEYE. SO WE WENT FOR HYBRIDS FIRST THAN WE WENT FOR THE WALLEYE. Best color many shad Best size 1 oz Best place back in creeks Best depth 35 feet Best method vertical jigging AS IN PHOTO WE KEEP 6 WALLEYE FOR THE TABLE AND THROUGH BACK AT LEAST ANOTHER 6 FOR ANOTHER DAY. WE HAD GOOD CONDITION WITH THE OVER CASE MORNING AND A LITTLE WIND. But i will say that the Many Shad Spoon was working the best at least 3 to 1 over the other colors spoons. When you can sit in one spot and catch walleye one right after another you are doing something right. KEEP IT SIMPLE DROP a spoon BINK

If you read my article on this forum on Catching Stripers year round on light tackle you may remember me talking about using a grub on a 1/4 oz jig head when they are 20 to 30' deep. Today they were around 40' deep in 60' of water. The same technique was tried except using a 1/2 oz Bink Spoon instead of a grub. You would cast the spoon as far as you can and count down about 10 seconds and then rapidly reel the spoon in. The stripers were hammering the spoons. You have to make sure you get a good hook set because there is so much line out but it worked great today. This would work well also if you're fishing with live bait, instead of waiting around for a hit throw a 1/2 oz Bink Spoon while you're waiting for a hit on your bait.

BINKS REPORT ANOTHER GOOD DAY ON NORFORK, CAUGHT STRIPERS HYBRIDS WALLEYE BASS CATFISH ALL ON THE 1OZ SPOON BEST COLOR WHITE WITH RED THROAT BEST SIZE 1OZ BEST DEPTH 35 TO 55 FEET BEST PLACE MAIN LAKE CREEK CHANNEL WE CAUGHT SEVERAL MIX BAG OF FISH TODAY AS IN PHOTO KEEP IT SIMPLE DROP A SPOON BINK

Caught on Lake Norfork with a Bink spoon.

Dan, Darrell Binkley sends me these reports and I post them here. He didn't say what the average size was. They look pretty big though. Kevin

BINKS REPORT 7/24/16 Had another great day on Norfork. I had two clients out this morning, one wanted stripers and the other one wanted walleye. So i decided to go after the walleye first because they are the harder species to catch. As in photo we kept 4 out of the 8 we caught one man one limit. After the walleye limit we went after a striper limit, there again as in photo we caught a limit of stripers. So all in all both clients were very happy. Best bait; Binks Spoon Best size ; 1 oz for the stripers and 1/2 oz for the walleye Best color; stripers white with red head walleye Arkansas shiner Best place; stripers main lake walleye back in creeks Best time stripers and walleye 5.30 am till 9.30 am Best depth; stripers 30 to 60 feet walleye 0 to 35 feet Best method stripers vertical walleye horizontal jigging This is the time of the year that spooning is at it's best and it's going to get better and better as the water heats up and the fish starts to school up and feed down deep. This method of fishing will catch all species of fish ( through the dog days of summer ) and beyond !!!!!!!! Keep It Simple Drop a Spoon Bink

Fishing report the same for today. (Sat 7/23/2016) TODAY TWO GIRLS 9 AND 12 YEARS OLD FISHING WITH BINK CAUGHT A LIMIT OF WALLEYE.

BINKS REPORT ANOTHER GOOD DAY ON NORFORK WE CAUGHT A LIMIT OF STRIPERS EARLY IN THE MORNING THAN WE WENT AFTER WALLEYE UP SHALLOW . AS YOU CAN SEE IN PHOTO WE HAD A GREAT DAY ON CATCHING WALLEYE ON THE BINKS SPOON. BEST SIZE 1 OZ FOR THE STRIPERS AND 1/2 OZ FOR THE WALLEYE BEST COLOR WHITE MANY SHAD SPOON FOR THE STRIPERS AND WHITE WITH RED HEAD FOR THE WALLEYE BEST PLACE STRIPERS MAIN LAKE OPEN WATER BEST PLACE WALLEYE BACK IN CREEK ON BRUSH PILES. BEST TIME 5.30 AM TO 9.00 AM BEST DEPTH STRIPERS 35 FEET TO 65 FEET WALLEYE 28 FEET TO 38 FEET KEEP IT SIMPLE DROP A SPOON BINK

Fishing report for today is the same as yesterday except 1/2 oz Blue Back Glow was the best color.

I have prototypes of 2 oz and 4 oz. Was thinking of the ocean but may work for deep stripers also.

I'm not sure if this is the right place to post this but it's Tips and Tricks so it made sense to me to put it here. I have received a few emails from customers complaining about the Bink Spoon snagging on their line a lot. Darrel Binkley did a lot of research to find out why this happens to some fishermen and not to others. What he found is the snagging of the line happens during the first 6 inches of bringing the rod back down after snapping it up. This is caused by bringing the rod back down too fast. This can also happen if you’re using too long of a rod. We recommend a 5’6” rod for jigging spoons medium to medium heavy. Longer rods will tend to snap back faster. To solve this problem either switch to a shorter rod or pause slightly when snapping the rod back before you let it come down. I would appreciate any feed back if you’re having this problem. Let me know if this fixes the problem for you.

GOOD DAY ON THE LAKE THIS MORNING. AFTER MENTIONING CATCHING 26 INCH WALLEYE ON MY RADIO SHOW THIS WEEK I THOUGH IT MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA TO POST THIS PICTURE OF ONE THAT WE CAUGHT THIS MORNING. BEST BAIT 1 OZ BINKS SPOON BEST COLOR WHITE BEST PLACE MAIN LAKE POINTS BEST DEPTH 32 FEET BEST METHOD VERTICAL JIGGING BEST TIME 6.00 TILL 8.00 AM THIS HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST WALLEYE OF THE YEAR SO FAR, BUT I HAVE ALWAYS SAID THE HOTTER THE BETTER FOR SPOONING. KEEP IT SIMPLE DROP A SPOON BINK

Dan, If you're looking for stripers go to Norfork, it's only a few miles further.

In August of 1997 I took my 17 year old son on a charter fishing trip off the coast of Massachusetts. We were told that we would be trolling for blue fish and striped bass. The rods were stiff saltwater rods and the bait cast reels were loaded with thin steel cable instead of monofilament line. They also gave us something to strap around our waist that had a steel cup in the center to insert the butt of the rod when we caught a fish. We trolled all day with umbrella rigs and caught several stripers and blue fish. It was fun but a lot of work horsing those stripers in. I owned a business in the 90’s that sold custom computer systems to call centers. I was telling one of my sales reps about our fishing trip and he told me about a fishing guide he knew in Arkansas that could give us the same experience except with bass rods instead of huge salt water rods. I had to check that out so in November of 1997 we booked a trip with Darrell Binkley of Bink’s Guide Service. Darrell fishes Lake Norfork in Mountain Home, Arkansas. We arrived in Mountain Home, met Darrell, and went out to see what this was all about. We worked banks that had flats protruding from them. We would cast stick baits a few feet from shore and slowly reel them back to the boat. We were told that if we felt even the slightest tick to set the hook. I’ll never forget my first hit. I felt a small tick and set the hook and the water exploded with a 25 plus pound striper. I was “hooked” immediately! I became good friends with Darrell and over the next couple years I learned how to catch stripers year around without any live bait or trolling setups. The intent of this article is to share with you how to catch stripers using light weight equipment any time of the year. The information in this article is based on Lake Norfork in Arkansas. The techniques discussed will work on other lakes but the timing may vary from lake to lake. In the spring when the water temperature reaches 62 degrees the stripers move up into the creeks to spawn. Stripers don’t actually reproduce naturally in most fresh water lakes but they go through the motion. During this time top water action is prevalent, especially early in the morning and late in the evening. This usually happens in late March to early April on Norfork. During this time, top water baits like Heddon Spooks or Bass Assassins work great. It’s not hard to locate fish, just look for the action and use your trolling motor to get close enough to cast into it. There’s nothing more exciting than having hybrids or stripers exploding onto these top water baits. This top water action usually lasts three to four weeks and then they start to go down deeper. On Lake Norfork you can’t get on top of these fish unless they are at least 30’ down because the lake is so clear your boat will spook them. During this time they can be caught with various swim baits. If they’re not too deep you can cast a Bass Assassin and let it sink for a while before you start to work it. This is my favorite technique but if they’re suspended around 15’ to 30’ a Mann’s Grub on a ¼ oz jig head with 6 lb test line works best. Simply cast the grub as far as you can and let it drop for about 10 seconds and then reel it back to the boat with a medium retrieve. Watch your line when the grub is falling, many times you will get a strike as it is falling. If you see a twitch in your line, set the hook and hang on. During this time when the fish are 30’ or higher in the spring there’s a good chance the night bite will be on. Start a couple hours before dark and fish until a couple hours after dark using stick baits like a Smithwick Floating Rattlin’ Rouge. Work the banks that have flats associated with them and cast your lure as close to shore as possible and retrieve extremely slowly. If you feel even the slightest tick, set the hook. Make sure you loosen the drag after setting the hook. These fish are so violent when they get hooked they can straighten out your hooks in seconds. Also make sure you use your trolling motor to move into the banks so you don’t spook the fish. It’s also a good idea to have several colors in your tackle box. Color really seems to make a difference. On dark nights with clouds or no moon the darker colors seem to work best and when you have a clear night with a moon the brighter colors work best. When the water temperature goes above 72 degrees the fish start to move deeper. This usually happens sometime in June. This is when striper fisherman that don’t like to troll or don’t like to use live bait usually hang it up for the year, but the summer months are usually the best time to catch trophy stripers. Jigging spoons, like the Bink’s Spoons, are the best way to catch deep fish and it’s easy to do. Early morning is usually the best time and also the most comfortable time to fish before it gets too hot. Plan on being on the lake at sun up and fishing until 10 to 11:00 AM. By this time the thermocline is established. In most lakes the fish are suspended just above the thermocline but in deep clear lakes like Norfork, photosynthesis can occur below the thermocline. When you have phytoplankton growth and oxygen levels high because of photosynthesis, fish will seek out deeper water. It’s not uncommon on Norkork to catch stripers in 90’ of water. The hardest part of catching these summer fish is finding them. Use your depth finder to locate active fish and then deliver the spoon to them. If the fish are active you will catch fish. As a general rule use ¾ oz spoons down to 40’. Anything deeper than that switch to a 1 oz spoon. The 1 oz Many Shad is the most popular spoon for catching deep fish. On clear lakes use the White Many Shad and on stained lakes use the Silver Many Shad. Other popular spoons on clear lakes are the white colors with different color backs. On stained lakes try the blue metallic, fire tiger, gold, or silver. The best equipment for spooning is a 5’6” medium heavy bait cast rod with a pistol grip. The pistol grip is not used much anymore but it makes a huge difference when you spend four or five hours snapping a jigging spoon. The wrong rod will wear you out in a hurry. A bait cast reel with at least a 6:1 gear ratio is essential. When you get a fish on in deep water you need a reel that will take up line in a hurry. My preference is the Abu Garcia Revo Rocket. The new models have a 9:1 gear ratio and recover 37” of line in one turn. Another reason to use a bait cast reel is because it’s easier to place your spoon at a specific depth. Most of the time the fish are suspended. If they are close to the bottom you simply let the spoon go all the way to the bottom and turn the reel as many cranks as you need to get the spoon to the fish. With the Revo Rocket the spoon will come up 37” for every turn of the reel. If you are fishing above submerged trees and you don’t want to risk snagging your spoon you can count how many times the line guide goes back and forth to determine how deep the spoon is going. On most reels back and forth one times equals 10’ but check your reel so you know. I also recommend low stretch fluorocarbon line like Berkley Vanish. It’s almost invisible to the fish which is important in clear lakes and the low stretch line allows you to get a solid hook set in deep water. I normally use 10 or 12 lb test. The normal method for working the Bink’s Spoons is to snap the spoon and let it free fall. The strikes come when the spoon is falling so you’re actually setting the hook when you’re snapping the spoon. If action is slow try changing your presentation. Try bouncing the spoon a bit before snapping the spoon. Rum Binkley, Bink’s wife has mastered this technique. I doubt that there is anyone who has caught more 30lb plus fish in deep water than Rum. This deep water spooning technique works until the lake turns over. This is usually during the month of October. When the lake is turning over fishing is tough, you will probably have more fun going hunting. After the lake turns over it’s time to get out the ¼ and 1/8 oz Bink Spoons and work the brush piles. Not only will you catch stripers and hybrids, you will catch every species in the lake. On Norfork, this includes monster crappie, large and small mouth bass, white bass, and walleye. Position your boat above the brush piles and drop the spoon into the brush. To avoid hanging up on the brush slowly move the spoon up and then let it free fall. The hit will come on the fall. If you feel resistance bringing the spoon up it’s likely a branch so simply let the line back down to avoid getting snagged. Fishing the brush piles usually lasts three to four weeks and then the fish start going deeper again for the winter. During the three to four weeks in November you also usually get the night bite where you fish the banks with the stick baits. In December through February the stripers are deep and jigging spoons are again the lure of choice. The presentation during this time is different. Instead of snapping the spoon like you would in the summer simply slowly move the spoon up and down. To sum it up you can catch stripers year around without using live bait or trolling setups. The only exception is when the lake’s turning over and you won’t catch them with any technique during this time. I would strongly encourage you to book a few trips with Bink’s Guide Service to learn these techniques. Darrell is usually pretty booked so get your reservations in early.

17 to 18 ' of water in a channel. All 1/4 oz spoons. This is a friend of Bink's in the pictures.

Clown was the best color.

We are hosting a Biggest Walleye Contest on Leech Lake, MN starting AUG 20,2016 and ending SEP 30 2016. Estimated prize pool over $5,000.00. Must be staying at Red Wing Lodge when you catch the fish. Paying out three places. For details go to www.leechlakeresorts.net Contest Prize Pool Estimated prize pool over $5,000! 1st Place Pays 60% 2nd Place Pays 30% 3rd Place Pays 10% Prize pool comes from 10% of all cabin rentals plus 25% of all beer sales between August 20th and September 30th 2016. -No entry fee. -Must be staying at Red Wing Lodge during time of catch.