Grand Rapids Man Crafts Hundreds of Handmade Fishing Lures & Decoys

GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. — In the land of 10,000 lakes a good fishing lure is the most important thing for any angler. But for one Grand Rapids man, it’s not about the catch… it’s about the looks of his hand-crafted lures and decoys.

“I think it was two years ago. I counted them, and there’s over 600 and I though holy moly,” said Dan Root, an artisan who makes hand-made lures and decoys. “There’s got to be close to 700 now.”

Dan Root has been making hand-made lures and decoys for the last 15 years. His lures can be used year-round, but his decoys are particularly helpful during ice fishing season.

“If you dangle these in the water and jig them,” said Root. “Once in a while you life them up, and then they make a circle. If they’re weighted correctly, a northern will come in and look at it, and then you spear the northern.”

His dad made his own fishing imitations, spending hours on the lake perfecting his craft.

Making their own fishing imitations was something Dan’s dad spent a lot of time doing when he was a kid.

“He would take my mom’s fingernail polish. And when he got bored in the dark house, he would paint different designs on his fish,” said Root.

Now decades later, Root has taken his father’s hobby and turned it into a side job. Root makes each piece by hand and challenges himself to make each lure life-like and some decoys larger than life.

“Well, I made those big ones and I didn’t have any room, so I quit making those,” said Root. “I needed an engine lift to make a seven-footer. It weighs like 200 lbs. I had to haul it out to my friends house because I don’t have room for that.”

Root sells all of his hand-made lures and ice fishing decoys through his website, larrythebear.com.

Root says he doesn’t do commission. “Because I get side tracked and then I don’t want to do it. It’ll take me a year or so,” Root said.

But as Root continues to carve, sand, and paint each piece; he looks to reel in folks with an ever growing collection of handcrafted fish bait.

“I got them in every nook and cranny and some way upstairs,” said Root. “You know, someday I might sell that (7 ft) one, but it’s hard to move around, he’s really big.”