You are Here - Fly Fishing Around the World - USA
Peter Cammann, The Streamside Guide
Pikers
25th August, 2008
Unhooking a pike, with caution!I wonder if northern pike ever sleep. If they do, do they feel rested when they wake up? My bet is that they toss and turn, never feeling quite comfortable and end up cranky and irritable when they've finished their naps. They just always seem to be itching for a fight.
Varying water temperatures don't appear to enter into the equation and that's unusual. Like all fish, pike are cold-blooded animals. Their blood is the same temperature as the water they swim through and blood temperature affects their metabolic rate. But, unlike most fish, pike are active and generally in a foul mood all the time.
This is why northern pike are one of the best gamefish to fish for, all year long. I happen to know that I'm in a minority with this opinion. Several years ago, I was asked to do a two-part series on ultra light spin fishing for a national magazine. I pitched a story idea about using light gear on large species, like northern pike. The editor told me that a reader's survey indicated that the least popular feature that magazine had run over the previous twelve months had been about pike.
I guess they're just not sexy enough.
Like Christopher Lee or Boris Karloff, pike are perfect villains because they look like killing machines, which is exactly what they are. They attack just about anything that swims, including water snakes, frogs, small waterfowl, and rodents. If you remember the Walt Disney animated feature, The Sword in the Stone – what was it that chased young Arthur in the moat after Merlin turned him into a fish? That's right, it was a pike. I've also always figured that the character from 101 Dalmatians, Cruella De Ville was closely modelled on the personality of the northern pike.
Pike always seem to be set to attack and they fight ferociously once they decide to strike. If they appear irritated when you hook them in the early spring, when they're spawning in the shallows of river tributaries; you won't believe how ticked off they can be when you run across them in the summertime along the reedy banks of a large river or lake!.
I took a good friend of mine who lives in New Hampshire fishing on the Connecticut River on a particularly hot July day. The Connecticut borders both of our states, but it seems that folks from New Hampshire rarely fish the Vermont side and vice versa. Perhaps the fact that it has been illegal to do so for many decades may figure into this behaviour.
We put our canoe in right where the Williams River enters the Connecticut, near Bellows Falls (distinctly on the Vermont side of the river). This is a remarkably beautiful area and birdwatchers can have at least as much fun there as anglers do. While paddling down the Williams towards the mouth, we saw an enormous bald eagle work its way up the Connecticut from the south, up the length of the lowest portion of the Williams River.
As the bird drew closer, we could hear the beat of its wings, a remarkable sound given that we first heard it from several hundred yards off. It landed on a tree branch on an island downstream from us.
As striking as that sight was, we were disappointed by how quiet the fishing was. It was hot outside, about 100 degrees in fact. We tossed all sorts of hardware into the water, seeking out areas shaded by trees, but we just couldn't get anything to strike. We saw a few bass swim past our canoe, but they really weren't interested in us, or our lures. We kept working our way downstream, hoping to locate fish before we arrived at the Connecticut.
The eagle watched us cautiously as we swung by his island. We took the opportunity to snap a few pictures of him before he leaped off his branch and flew off. His wings made the deep whooping sound again as he made his way back to the Connecticut River. It occurred to me briefly that when he'd first spotted us he might have thought we had a half a clue as to where the fish were. That could have explained why he landed so near us and let us paddle in so close. It would also clarify as to why he left in such a huff. It was obvious that by then that we didn't know what the hell we were doing at all.
We swung into the Connecticut, brought the canoe alongside some reeds that were growing down at the river's edge and began to toss Johnson Silver Minnows towards them. The Silver Minnow is one of the best weedless spoons on the market. It darts and flashes with an unpredictable motion and the big metal weed guard makes fishing in or near heavy vegetation very easy.
They also seem to really mess with northern pikes' minds.
I got two beautiful pike in short order on my Silver Minnow. I hooked them by casting right up to the stands of reeds. The pike hit almost immediately after my lure splashed into the water. Unlike many other species, pike will check out disturbances in their immediate area rather than run from them. They're extremely aggressive as well as being the largest thing living underwater, sort of like an 800-pound gorilla with fins.
Pike aren't fools though and they can drive you nuts sometimes. You'll watch as a big northern follows your lure out of the vegetation, through the open water and towards your boat or canoe. Sometimes they'll suspend right next to where you're drifting along. They may be too wary to strike, but they're still confident enough to hold their position. They don't fear you, or anything else. Their first instinct is to go out and kick butt, which is probably the attitude that denies them a positive media image.
