Balsam Hammer Handles !!!

[ROOK]

Have a place on Balsam and heard that pike are getting in over the past few years. Someone on this site was good enough to let me know where they seem to be around more often. Took a few days off last week to see if I could put the hurt on the pike population in the lake. It took a lot of work but I did manage to remove 6 hammer handles over 3 days. Funny thing was, they were all between 19 and 21 inches each. Got bit off several times and they seemed to like minnow baits but I found a basic white spinnerbait was what they really wanted to hit. Once the water cools off a bit I may try my luck again.

That was one awesome summer week we just got - if we only get one good week, might as well be the last week of the summer. ROOK

[Tom McCutcheon]

Thank you sir for removing those little buggers. Keep up the good work.

Muskies Canada Kawartha Chapter is going to be helping the MNR with a trap net study next spring on Balsam. We are also going to be doing some sein netting throughout next summer to study the Young of The Year Pike and Musky.

This will be an ongoing project and we will keep you posted on the results.

 

Tom.

[F_ast]

I have seen several 30"+ pike in Balsam this year... not good. Needles to say, they are no longer swimming in Balsam. Muskies seem to be harder to find this year too. Another not good

[Rizzo]

don't hide the location! Tell me where you are finding pike and I'll toss a spinnerbait there for an hour or two the next time I'm fishing Balsam

[bassman]

What did you do to remove the pike?

[ciceri]

What did you do to remove the pike?

 

Catch them then keep them, then kill them and fillet them, then fry them up and eat them, or give away to family/friends/neighbors.

[Greencoachdog]

Pike need love too yanno!!!

[ohhenrygsr]

Catch them then keep them, then kill them and fillet them, then fry them up and eat them, or give away to family/friends/neighbors.

 

 

shhh Don't tell everyone your secrets

[ROOK]

They were removed and then subsequently eaten = very tasty. Fished the southwest end of the lake. ROOK

[aplumma]

Having pike is an issue ??? Does the forage base not support them? just curious I havent heard were pike were a bad thing in water up north.

 

 

Art

[Terry]

they are not native to the lake

they compete directly with muskie and in these lakes muskie disappear

 

it has happened to other lakes along this chain of lakes and this is the latest one to get them and it totally changes fish locations of all species

[ROOK]

Exactly Terry

Just ask everyone who fishes for musky in Baptiste Lake outside of Bancroft !!!!!!!!!

ROOK

[ciceri]

Tried there last night, looking for Walleye with minnows, not a single one, friend did manage the biggest rockbass I've ever seen in person, 1 pound!

[JPD]

I was told by Wil Wegman that the Kawartha strain of Muskies are very different than the Great Lakes strain since the Great Lakes critters are used to living with Pike, their spawning habits and areas they frequent are different to that of the Kawartha strain that have no Pike to contend with.

 

The first time they stocked Musky in Simcoe in the 90's they used Kawartha strain Musky and it failed miserably, the next round was with Georgian Bay fish and the did much better... I guess a Musky is not like all other Musky even if they all do smell like a bag of pennies

 

JP