Trout Lures - Tassie Devils, Rapala and Loftys

Tassie Devils

The Tassie Devil is an Australian icon for good reason. It's a cobra-shaped wing blade that wobbles and flashes without any diving lip, so it fishes shallow to mid-water depending on how much line you have out and how fast you go. I troll them behind the boat on lead-core or with a paravane to get them down, and I'll cast and slow-roll them along the edges too.

Colour matters more than most people think. On bright days and clear water I lean towards natural greens, browns and the pink-and-black patterns. When the water's dirty or the light is flat I'll switch to something loud, fluoro yellow, orange, or the classic Y82 pink. If the fish aren't responding, change the colour before you change anything else.

Rapala hardbodies

A Rapala minnow imitates a baitfish better than almost anything. The floating-diving models are the most versatile: they float at rest and dig down on the retrieve or the troll, with the bib size setting how deep they run. Jointed models have a wider, sloppier action that can trigger a fish that's ignoring a straight minnow.

I match the profile to the forage. Where the trout are eating small galaxias or smelt I'll run a slim silver or gold minnow. To troll deeper I'll either use a deeper-diving model or add weight ahead of it. Vary your trolling speed until you find the pace the fish want on the day, then stick with it.

Loftys

Loftys are another Australian make and they've earned their place in my box. The Cobra-style lures wobble much like a Tassie Devil, and their bladed lures throw a lot of flash and vibration, which is gold in coloured water or low light when a trout is hunting by feel as much as by sight.

Blades sink, so you can count them down to a set depth before you start the retrieve, then work them with a lift-and-drop that flutters on the fall. That falling flutter is when a lot of the takes come.

Reading colour, depth and speed

Three dials decide most days: colour, running depth and speed. Bright light and clear water want natural tones fished a touch deeper; low light and stained water want loud colours and vibration up higher. Get the lure to the depth the fish are holding, then experiment with speed until one gets whacked.

On a guided day I'll show you how to read those conditions and set up two or three rods that cover different depths at once, so we work out what the trout want quickly instead of guessing.