There is only one thing that comes close to going fishing in terms of things that I like to do. That would be going shopping for fishing tackle. Let’s grab our wallets and head for the store.

If I had to stock an empty tackle box with lures and presentations for the year, I’d make a few recommendations. Now of course, I realize there is no such thing as an empty tackle box. Most boxes are extremely overstuffed with lures that never have been used and more than likely never will be.

It’s just so darned hard to pass up a bargain, isn’t it? Well, a lure at any price is no bargain if it never gets used and never catches a fish. Remember that quality always tops quantity.

OK, let’s go shopping.

Plastics are a must. There are three types of plastic fishing that I do an awful lot of: wacky worming, drop-shot rigging and jig-and-plastic fishing.

I like the Jackall Flick Shake Worm for drop-shotting. They are soft and pliable and have tremendous action. For wacky-style fishing, the original Yamamoto Senko is a good product, as is the Yum Dinger. For tipping a jig, I’m happy using a crayfish imitator or just a simple twister tail.

Tipping a jig usually makes me use a black or white piece of plastic. Wacky worming and drop-shotting will make me use colors such as watermelon, motor oil and June bug. I used to carry all of the colors but usually only used these three, but a tackle bag full of soft plastics weighs a ton. It’s not worth the work.

Moving into the next aisle at the store will find me grabbing a handful of spinnerbaits in different sizes. I like white in the spring and black as the year progresses. I’ll grab a couple of buzzbaits, as well. I like black, especially when I am throwing a buzzbait late in the day as the sun is setting. I like buzzbaits where the propeller is the same color as the skirt.

Buzzbaits aren’t the only topwater presentations I use. As a matter of fact, I plan on using more topwater lures this year than ever before. A lot of people think that a perfectly calm day is the ideal time for a topwater, but I prefer a little chop on the water. Many people only use topwater presentations in the morning, and I think that is a mistake. There is no bad time to try using a topwater lure.

My go-to topwater is Bagley's Bang O lure. Just cast it out and let it sit until the water calms. When it is still, you give it a twitch or two and wait. Give it a crank or two and wait again. It takes patience, but it works. I probably will give a workout to a Rebel Pop-R and a Heddon Tiny Torpedo now and again, as well.

For the ultimate in topwater fishing, I must have a couple of frogs with me at all times. I like natural colors, and the frog must have a white belly. Snag Proof's Ish Monroe Phat Frog is my favorite, but the available frog baits seem endless.

All right, let’s move down in the water column. Mann’s One Minus runs about as shallow as anything you can buy. It’s great for when the fish are near the surface, but a topwater won’t do the trick.

The Floating Rapala is an all-time favorite of mine. I like black-and-gold and blue-and-silver as my preferred colors. The Floating Rapala floats when it hits the water but runs under the surface when you retrieve it. Speed affects the rate of depth, as well as the position of your rod tip.

The Rat-L-Trap is the most popular lipless crankbait sold. It is a producer. You can retrieve it slowly or burn it in as fast as you can crank. They run true. The depth can be varied.

Square-billed crankbaits are all the rage. These babies tend to bounce off of objects like rocks and logs, rather than bury themselves in. They also dig up a lot of sand and gravel when they hit the bottom, causing reaction strikes from wary fish. Strike King makes a Kevin VanDam model that is thrifty and works well.

The Mepp’s Spinner is my ultimate confidence lure. If I only had one lure to fish with and had to catch a fish in order to survive, this lure would be the one I’d pick. It produces with regularity, and I can’t think of a species of fish that won’t try to eat it.

I need a crawfish imitating lure, and the River-2-Sea Larry Dahlberg Clackin’ Crayfish is incredible. It does more than any lure like it and is definitely designed to attract big fish. I’ll use it wherever crawfish are present.

The reef Runner Cicada or Heddon Sonar Lure goes into my tackle box to be pulled out whenever I feel a bladebait will work. These run deep and have a lot of action and vibration. These work well for walleyes and should be tied on to our lines more often than they are.

That’s it. Let’s head for the cash registers and then go fishing.

FISHING REPORT

Northern Illinois: Dave Kranz from Dave's Bait, Tackle and Taxidermy in Crystal Lake reports: "The dams at McHenry, Algonquin and Carpentersville are going to see high and dirty water from all the rain we are getting. This will slow the action on everything but catfish. Use stinkbait for them and have some fun. Some bass are starting to hit at Vulcan Lakes at Crystal Lake's Three Oaks Recreation Area. The spawn is about to start. Drop shot Robo worms or jig with a Defender with your favorite plastic crawfish trailer for best results. McHenry County Conservation Area's the Hollows/Lake Atwood has panfish that always seem to be hitting on waxworms or redworms. I like to use a Pop-R lure on a windy day." For info on Northern Illinois fishing, call 815-455-2040 for an updated report.

Fox Chain O' Lakes: Chris Taurisano of T-Bone Guide Service (www.tboneguideservice.com – 630-330-0090) sends word, "Fishing has been very good the past week. Walleyes are post spawn and feeding heavily. Jigs and cranks are best. White bass and yellow bass are spawning and active on the same baits."

As of Wednesday, The Lower Fox River was deemed to be a "no wake" areas for now. The Upper Fox River and the Fox Chain were listed as open to boating with no special restrictions. With our unpredictable weather, you should always get up-to-the-minute water conditions on the Fox Chain and Fox River. Spring rains can change water conditions in a matter of hours. Go to www.foxwaterway.state.il.us or call 847-587-8540.

Lake Michigan: The Lake Michigan fishing report is provided by captain Caleb Weiner of Migrator Charters – 815-338-8093. "Fishing this April is off to a hot start. Good numbers of Coho salmon have been caught between 10 and 80 feet of water off Northpoint Marina. The best action has been on surface rods with Luhr-Jensen little red dodgers with peanut flies off of Yellow Bird planer boards. Along with the Coho action, some early kings are showing up as well. The RV Moonshine Wonder Bread and RV Flounder Pounders have been working to catch the kings and working for the Coho as well. Trolling speed has been on the slower end between 1.9 knots and 2.1 knots seems to be working the best. If you are looking to fill the smoker, good numbers of lake trout have been found between 180 and 240 feet. Eleven-inch flashers with Spin-N-Glo's and a white tail have been the ticket for them. With the water already warming up in the 40s, fishing should continue to get even better over the next few weeks."

Wisconsin: You can call Wisconsin's Lake Michigan Fishing Hotline at 414-382-7920 to hear the latest fishing information for Lake Michigan and its tributaries. Excellent Wisconsin Lake Michigan fishing is posted at http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/Fishing/lakemichigan/OutdoorReport.html.

Illinois: The Illinois Department of Natural Resources offers fishing reports on a number of waterways across the state. The fishing reports for lakes, rivers and streams are updated weekly at http://www.ifishillinois.org/fishing_reports/fishing_report_selector.php.

• Steve Sarley writes about the outdoors for Shaw Media. Write to him at sarfishing@yahoo.com. Steve does a weekly podcast about fishing called “WeFishASA.” You can find it at www.wefishasa.com.