Tuesday, May 5, 2009

SUGGESTIONS NEEDED...

Hey Everyone... So, per last post, I am heading off to Canada in three weeks...yes THREE WEEKS...for some majorly awesome pike fishing. These fish are aggressive and fiesty, but they are also very beautiful with distictive colorations and eating patterns. Pike move with the water temperature and so we will be looking for bends in the lake filled with shallow weed beds. As I am thinking about my trip and all the stuff that needs to be done before we leave, the thing of most importance on my mind is my tackle box and gear. It is time to clean out the box and take some stuff that I know won't work out and put in more hammers and generics... :) I am interested in trying out some new lures while I am out there. I know that 99% of the time I WILL NOT take my hammer off my line. This lure is MADNESS when PIKE FISHING!!! I SWEAR!!! But...I would like to experiment with some of your favorite lures for Pike Fishing. I will post about my catches when I get back and so you can get a real review of your favorite lures and how well they did in the waters of Canada. So leave me comments about your favorite lures and make sure you give me the names, brands, and colors that work. I will try them out at Lake Waskiaowaka and let you know how they stack up against my all time favorite...THE ORANGE HAMMER!!!! Happy Lure Suggesting~ LIZZY aka The Fisherbabe
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8 comments:

  1. Have you considered going after the water wolves with a fly rod? I've been trying to catch one for about a year now locally, and I've just started tying a few large rabbit strip pike flies.

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  2. Lizzie - need more info. How far north are you going? Lake of the Woods area? Northern Saskatchewan? how has the spring been progressing where your going? By that, I mena has it been an early ice-out? Normal? Late? Makes a big difference. I'll probably lean toward jigs and suspending jerrkbaits, but need more info. Post or email me - I have some ideas. My pike trip doesn't come up until August

    Joe

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  3. OK Lizzie - here you go. this might be a long post but it's based on a past experience that could come into play on your trip.

    I fished Lk Minnitaki - below Lac Seaul in ONT - on the walleye opener about 24 years ago (God, I'm old). Usual routine was walleye near inlets, and pike were off beds and feeding pretty well in bays. This year - ice coming out of the English River, and pike were very shallow and lethargic. Our usual stuff - spoons, bucktails, crankbaits - didn't work. The fish were too cold to move after fast moving baits. It was a tough week.

    Fast forward to a few years ago. Same scenario in northern SASK. The difference - we were prepared. Jigs were the key, with suspending jerkbaits doing OK. We'd fish the 5/8 to 1 oz. jigs with 4'1/2" and 6" trailers on the bottom in shallow bays - often being able to se the fish we were after. The fish were getting warmed up in the shallows and, I believe, still feeding on dead fish from the winter. You could watch a pike nose up to your lure, jiggling on the bottom. Move it slowly, and - WHAM - a pike. I believe the best jigs for this are J-Macs. The suspending jerkbaits accomplished th esame thing. Use a Husky Jerk 13 or 11. Get it down to the fishes level, and let it sit there, giving it very slight twitches. The slow reacting fish will move over to it, and slam it as it moves the next time. Do it on a straight retrieve under these conditions - nothing.

    Bottom line - take a long a few jigs and HJ's. Hopefully you'll never need to tie them on, because your generic hammered spoon is being mauled constantly. But , if you need them, you'll have them, and they can save a trip.

    Another tip - you always fish wire / steel leaders for pike. Sampo / Berkley ... work fine, but they get kinked up after a bunch of fish, and need to be changed. the kinks become the weak point, and you don't want t olose a trophy pike because it broke a kinked leader. Buy a couple of Terminator Titanium leaders in 75# test. The titanium does not kink - it will look and feel the same after a week of hundreds of fish as it did when you took it out of the bag. The reason for the 75# is that the crosslok is bigger, and easier to open when changing lures than the 30 / 50# crossloks are.

    Can't wait to read the posts after the trip.

    Joe

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  4. Hey Joe...

    Thank for the awesome post and suggestions. I am going to look for the tackle that you recommended when I head up to Cabelas next week. I will give them a try and let you know how it goes.

    I always use steel leaders...lol I will not let a pike go because of that!!

    We are fishing on Lake Waskiaowaka in Manitoba this trip. I think the ice will have just gone out when we go because we are in the first group in.

    I am super excited about the trip and Can't want to post all the exciting stories :) If you think of anything else...leave me as many comments as you like!!!

    Thanks again ~ LIZZY

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  5. Hi Lizzy, This is a fine fishing blog you've got goin' on over here. :-) It's SO nice to see Lady's like you who LOVE to fish and are talented and caring enough to share that Love and those Adventures with others, on such a well done blog!

    Now, for sure-fire lures, make sure you have at least one, size 9 Rapala Shad Rap, in a plain silver/black back, shiner pattern, in your tackle box. This baby will suspend at any depth those early pike will be at. It comes alive at the slightest twitch of your rod tip too, so you don't reel this killer in fast.

    Along the same lines, of cold water = sluggish fish, you just might wanna pack a little bag of 6 or 7 inch Senko type soft plastics in any color you have faith in, along with some, say, 5/0 or 6/0 Wide Gap hooks by any of the major manufacturers. Pike will SLAM these things, when you fish them like you would that Shad Rap, slow with a twitch here and a twitch there. ;-)

    Well I'll be back to see how your trip went and all...

    Tight lines,

    lb

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  6. Good suggestions from Larry - I heartily endorse his suggestion of Senko-type baits. They'll do the same thing I was talking about with the jigs - slow, and stay in the strike zone.

    The more I think about how far north you're going, and how early it is, the more I think you'll need to go slower than the spoon will let you fish. Plastics really fit the bill at this time. You might try 4" - 5" tubes with light-ish tube weights - 1/4 oz. , maybe. Especially if the fish are in shallow bays. Standard pike baits are pretty heavy and need to be retrieved fast to be effective. Take a long some smaller bucktails, too - size 4 or 5 Blue Fox Vibrax or Mepps.

    God - I wish I was going on pike trip in a few weeks - I need to get away. Can't wait to read about it.

    Joe

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  7. LOL...I love all the suggestions guys...and I am definately going to try them out. I will do a comparison and contrast when I get back.

    Joe...I know it sounds CRAZY...but I went the same time last year to fish for PIKE and the ice had only gone out literally the day before and we were in Manitoba then as well and my ORANGE HAMMER was THE lure of the trip.

    I am very excited to compare all of your favorites to my favorite!!! You never know when you are going to find a true gem and it will be a fun experience.

    I have both Vibrax and Mepps in my tackle box already but haven't ever tried them for Pike so I will throw those on as well. Any Color suggestions on those?

    LIZZY

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  8. Hey Lizzy,

    You answered one of my BIG questions - you HAVE fished the same place before at the same time - TERRIFIC!. My biggest hope is that you never have to take the spoon off your line, and you'll come back the happiest person on earth! I just want your fishing group prepared for the possibility that what worked before, may not work so well this time. That way you're assured of a good trip.

    I've never been a big "color guy", but I have done very well on northerns using reds and / or chartreuses in the past. Or black. Or white . See what I mean anout not being a "color guy"?

    If I think of anything else, I'll let you know, but it sounds like you're READY TO GO!

    Joe

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