Fishing with Frank will be back this spring. In the meantime, please feel free to email Frank and let him know your thoughts. He's busy writing a book that we will share a chapter with you soon. No doubt it will be a classic among fisherman (and woman) on Lake Champlain.
Ice Fishing For Early Trophy Northern Pike
Winter has arrived, so has the ice. If your like myself, you can’t wait to head out onto the ice. Let’s start by saying that early ice makes fishing big pike lot’s of fun. Of all the fish species there are, nothing will get a northern pike fisherman all fired up more than that great feeling of a big pike at the end of there line through the ice. Yes! You know what I’m talking about. The fish that is sleek in design, and eyes that seem to watch your every move. Let’s just hope your not a small fish swimming by or you may gust find yourself on the menu. On the other hand, if your using a small fish as bait, this could develop into a great partnership between you and the pike.
Trophy northern pike are almost always active with first ice. They are also cautious and you need to have stealth when your about to approach the area your going to fish. When the ice is clear, big pike can see quit well under the ice. As you arrive in the area where the pike are, you have no way of hiding from your overhead approach on the ice. Try to be as quiet as possible. The ice auger will make noise, but don’t worry, your pike are still there. After a short time of quietness, they’ll be right back around the holes you have drilled. Target your holes with different bait. When you have found the right bait, these areas are the high-percentage sots for big northern pike. Now if your cleaver and very sneaky while setting up your tip-ups or hand pole “slam; the sudden attack of your bait will almost knock you off your feet. Why you ask? Because big northern pike are not finicky nibblers. When the bait is right, pike just slam it. Plain and simple. With pike there are no exceptions to this rule.
How To Find Northern Pike On Early Ice
Big water plays an important part when it comes to finding big pike. Let’s say you have a lot of fishing pressure were you are, that’s were the big water comes into play. Weather there’s 2,000 acres or more, or maybe it’s a bit smaller, there’s still plenty of room. Lakes and rivers that are connected are good starting points. Those are the ones I myself will target on. Cove’s that set back from the main part of the lake are another part of my strategies for finding these pike. Getting back to the rivers were it meets the lake, river channels run right into the lake. Most rivers have a depression usually deeper than surrounding area bottoms, now when the river exit’s the lake, these are going to be your key areas. Depending on which river you are fishing, either all or some will have current. It may be fast moving or very slow, but believe me its still there. For big northern pike these are very good and important trophy pike spots, especially right after the ice forms and is safe enough to walk on. I find that once these pike have been located, its time to corner them. What I mean by that is to get your bait in a wide circular pattern rather than a straight line. Pick your spots carefully. The holes that are catching pike are a good indication as to where your sets should be. Most of these areas are where the big pike will run to spawn. Northern pike will not go that far upstream to spawn, rather they will stay in the lake and just hang around the mouth of the river. What I have mentioned are really great spots all through the freeze up period. When the ice starts to become thicker, northern pike will disperse to open lake. Keep in mind that there is a current on most rivers entering the lake, so use great caution and safety when trying this. You should never fish where there is a strong current, and always test the ice were there Is little or no current. I fish out far enough to catch fish and also be sure of my safety. You may ask why are the pig pike there, because this is where you’ll find small walleye, suckers, pan fish and other small bait fish. A perfect place to find your trophy northern pike.
When fishing clear water, there’s also an advantage with it. Northern pike can hunt and see fish from great distances. Your bait under the ice hooked to your tip-up can be seen very easily by pike unless the bait should be hidden in thick weed cover. Catching trophy pike in clear water means getting up early before daylight and drilling all your holes while it’s still dark out. When daylight arrives, just watch your flags on your tip-ups begin popping as the sun starts up over the horizon. One other thing I would like to mention, I always scout the ice the day before I am going to fish. By doing this, you are somewhat sure the ice is thick enough and safe when you start out before daylight. Also drill all the holes you can from your augur before first light so you don’t spook the fish. Again safety first.
Should you have a sonar device that will shoot through the ice, this will help you a great deal in locating and searching for channels and all around the edges of major weed beds.
Riverbeds and channels when they cannot be fished, you should be focusing on major weed beds. A lot of green weeds live year after year without dying out. Locating these spots take some practice, but you will find them. For avid fisherman, these spots are will known. When your on the lake and you find weed beds, look for different obstacles, like islands, shallow structures, rock points leading in back bays. Most of all, once you find weed beds and channels “don’t tell anybody but myself.” Try to use the best tip-ups you can find. After all, no one want’s to loose big pike from a cheap tip-up. When fishing with tip-ups, try using only a couple at first. Once the fish have been located, then run them all out. Be sure to use your rod for jugging also. Put on a sucker or a lure representing a minnow. Pike can see this from a great distance. They may not bite it, but this may cause them to bite your other bait. Ask your bait dealer if he has any smelt.