Canada Pike Report
Water Temps: 58–67, warming over the five days.
Visibility: Less than three feet, tannic color.
Weather: We got it all, but weather was usually comfortable temps,
60–80 daytimes.
Times: 9AM till 8PM on most days, with a lunch break.
Fishermen: Mike M and John Glynn, John’s friend Tim, and myself.
Note: We know that many here, and in esox fishing in general, frown
on the use of jaw grippers and verticle holds. Please know that our
hearts are/were in the right place. Cameras were out and ready to
grab one quick shot and all fish were handled minimally, slime layer
intact. all fish were immediately released and swam away strong. We
apologize in advance if the holds offend anyone's sensibilities. We love
these fish....OK.....
After much anticipation, extensive planning, and four flights, we
finally arrived at Little Vermillion Lake in western Ontario. Reports
from the previous days and weeks were not good. Snow, rain, and
generally cold weather had made the usual spring bite very tough.
Even experienced regulars had a tough go of it, though many ended
up with at least one trophy. Not to be discouraged, we fished hard and
despite the generally neutral fish, we boated many fine pike. Three of
us got a personal best, so no complaints. Add to this a constant
barrage of small northerns and relentless walleyes, we enjoyed
ourselves learning and exploring this 12-mile lake. In the lodge’s 16ft
V-hulls, outfitted with 15HP push-button start Hondas, we could fish
the day away. These little four-strokes, even after being run nearly all
day, still had plenty of gas left in the 6 gal tanks. Impressive. Quiet
too, and perfect in reverse as makeshift trolling motors when we
decided to work long shorelines.
We searched for viable patterns over the first day or two, trying to
locate good fish, working main lake points, structure and cover in
bays, rock, rushes, etc. It didn’t take long to see that fishing was best
in the emerging grass and rushes, particularly around incoming water.
Even better fishing was found when spawning habitat was close by.
Our last two days were spent focusing on just such spots. Even in
prime spots hours could go by without a quality fish. We continued to
fish like hell and wait.
I was able to boat eight fish in the high 30s and break my personal
best twice. Mike had similar results with many quality fish. Tim, the
newbie to pike madness, of course caught a 42” monster, plus several
other good ones. We were all impressed with Tim’s dedication out on
the water, which rivaled our insanity, fishing in weather that included
brutal heat, pouring rain, and 4ft waves. Tim also became a Walleye
jigging expert and must have boated close to 50 on our last day. John
is a diehard piker, originally from Ireland, so he knows big fish and
techniques. He also had a 40 and 42. It was great learning more
about big fish handling and release from such an angler. Hammer
handles reigned and many were caught (or got in the way, depending
on how you looked at it). I had 28 under twenty inches one day…
.enough of that! Just about all our pike were caught in less than five
FOW and as little as a foot or two. There was no sight-fishing
however, as the water is too stained for that.
The lures….walleyes responded readily to Gulp grubs and ¼ jig heads,
while also being caught on pike lures occasionally. The big pike
responded well to slow-worked Suicks, and generally hit on top.
(Search for Kevin Geary and Suicks to learn the technique.) They
missed often and one in the low 30s even flew clear out of the water
like a porpoise chasing one. It was a common site to see tremendous
boils around the Suicks, even close to the boat. Another amazing site
was to watch one of my walleyes get grabbed under the boat by a
45+. Other productive lures for the pike were a variety of spoons, in-
lines, soft plastics, and spinnerbaits. The curious thing was how
unresponsive fish were to so many lures. Hard jerkbaits, topwater,
and especially all the typical pike/musky baits (Believers, Jakes, Reef
Hawgs, etc.) were essentially failures.
We all want to extend a big thanks to JP Bushey for his invaluable
advice on fishing the lake, as well as Sportman’s Lodge regulars
Connie (Tennesse Guy) and Bob Bramlett. Thanks also to Brett Geary at
Sportman’s Lodge. He runs a great camp. Fishing is good there all
season long, so book now, go catch ’em yourself this summer.
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