Pike fishing?

Question

What do you think the best time of the day and lures are to fish for pike? And when have you had the best luck catching them?

Answer 1

There are three types of bait which are used regularly for pike fishing; livebaits, deadbaits and lures. All can be successful in the right place and on the right day!

LIVEBAITS
A live fish is the natural food of pike so it makes sense that it will also make a good bait. Any small fish will catch pike. We recommend fish under 8" (20 cm) in length to preserve fish stocks and to make presentation of the bait and hooking the pike easier. Some fisheries might not allow livebaiting in order to preserve their fish stocks. Livebaits must only be used on the water they have been caught from so you must always be aware of the fishery byelaws which you can find out more about here.

DEADBAITS
Since the late 1950s pike anglers have been using dead fish as bait, but they should not be looked on as an alternative to livebaits, rather as another method altogether. Some fisheries seem to respond better to livebait than they do to deadbaits (and vice versa) - so keep your options open.

Pike sometimes show a preference for particular deadbaits so it pays to use a selection of sea and freshwater fish. Freshwater fish can be used as bait, either freshly caught or frozen, and sea fish also catch pike. Large deadbaits can be cut in two and both the head and tail ends used as bait.
Mackerel, Roach, Herring, Smelt, Sardine (all good bait)

Roach, trout and eel are two popular freshwater baits, while sprats, mackerel and herrings have also caught plenty of pike, as have migratory fish like smelt and lamprey. But anything is worth a try!

LURES
Artificial lures can be used to catch pike in many situations and come in an amazing array of types, sizes and colours. Again they are not an alternative to natural baits, but an extra string to the pike angler's bow.

Always check the fishery rules before fishing to ensure that the baits you intend to use are allowed.

Good fishing! <*))))><

Steve

Answer 2

You would basically find pike anywhere you would find a bass. Pike are easy to catch when you figure out how and very fun to fish for, bass is better though. pike are even less pickier than bass. the lure Size needs to be quite big.

Try a large jointed floating rapala. For some reason, pike are generally attracted more to the jointed rapalas than the not jointed ones. I know this from expierience.

Other things you can try are:

-1. trolling with a spinnerbait
--2. put a hook through a small bluegill, perch, crappie, or shad on a big bobber and through it along a weedline. When a pike takes it dont set the hook immeadiatly. the pike will carry the bait a little ways and then your bobber will come back up. When it goes down the second time, he/she knows that it wants it. The first time they bring it down, they like to chomp on it a couple times. This technique may not sound like it would work but it is great. It didnt believe it til i tried it.
---3. Try spoons ex. red devils. This is probably the mst popular way to catch pike.

Now for the best time of day i would say middle to late morning and late evening. In the morning from about 9 to 11 and after 6 pm are when pike get really active

good luck!

Answer 3

Early morning and evening!
For live bait I like to use chubs,shiners or big sucker minnows from 4" up to 10"!
Lures of choice are big spinner baits,rooster tail in purple,red,brown or black,Big jerk baits,hair jigs and dont forget those top water lures.I make up a zara spook and change the tail hook to a single hook with either a hair shirt or plastic trailer on it!4 to 5 inch plastic grubs work great also!
When the waters warm these fish move off to deep water areas during the heat and can completely shut off for days so I spend the good daytime hours fishing for them! In summer I will also troll deep diving baits along deep water points and weed break!
However good luck!

Answer 4

I like early or late in the day, but pike do bite all day. Pike hit just about anything with flash and action, like bombers, or flashy spoons. You can also use chubs or LARGE minnows, under a bobber, about a foot off the bottom.

Answer 5

Why do people just assume they have to kill everything they catch? Just let the dam thing go. Dont be selfish. Plus pike taste like dirt. Edit: Ya but your killing everything you catch. Pike take years to reach a nice size. Againthough there bony and taste like dirt.

Answer 6

Pike fly fishing is the wave.

Answer 7

I have done best where I fish in late afternoon, almost dark. Actually about a 2 hour window before dark, then they gone to the Pub for a Beer and stop biting. I have actually had good luck with a Rapala Minnow.
http://img.epinions.com/images/opti/3e/bd/pr-Fishing_Gear_Accessories-Rapala_Long_Cast_Minnow_Lures-resized200.jpg
Also, a Fly Rod is fun. Most any small-medium fly works good for me at the Time I fish. Got to get where you can cast under low branches though. Sometimes just letting the fly float downstream works too.

Answer 8

Dawn and Dusk seem to be the best time I've found.I like to use a Johnson Silver Spoon with a pork or curly tail trailer.The spoon only has one hook and makes for easy removal and the spoon covers allot of water at a variety of depths from top to bottom. Don't forget the Steel or heavy Mono leader. GOOD LUCK and KEEP FISHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 9

best time...anytime from dawn till dusk. Pike will hit at night but your lure pretty much has to hit them in the face.

best lures...Pike like to ambush so they like to sit in weeds, under lilly pads and under docks, ect. You can catch them on spoons but the treble hooks tend to get stuck in the weeds alot. Try rapala minnow spoons with some kind of plastic or pork trailer or a spinnerbait in chartruse or gaughty colors. Pike are voracious predators and will eat a bait regardless of size but if you want to land big pike you need reliable hooks cause believe me...a big pike will bend the hooks out on your bassfishing lures. Ive caught pike on everything from beetle spins to big musky lures. Here are my favorite lures for pike...
The original Storm floating thunderstick... You can twitch this lure on the surface like a topwater plug or use a jerk-jerk action to bring pike up outta submerged weedbeds. Use loud colors like firetiger and chartruse. They will drill this lure and pretty much hook themselves. You can replace the hooks with beefier ones or you can risk it with the ones that it comes with. I usually use the stock hooks but i have had pike bend the hooks out so its your call. I used to use rapala floating minnows but switched to thundersticks because thundersticks are made outta plastic as opposed to soft balsa wood. Pikes teeth sink into balsa wood and thus you dont get as good a hookset as you would with the hard plastic thunderstick.
....the spinnerbait and buzzbait....i used Terminator spinnerbaits and buzzbaits as well as Strike Kings triple buzz. Spinnerbaits and buzzbaits are great for weedy areas that pike like to hunt in. You wont be hung up in the weeds all day and with these lures you can put youre lure in sloppy areas where the fish are. when they hit this lure (buzzbait) its gonna scare the crap outta you but thats half the fun. Just make sure you feel the weight of the fish before you set the hook. Sometimes theyll miss the lure completely when they hit so if you dont feel the weight keep a steady retrieve and theyll come back around to hit it again more often then not.
...zara spook....Try the zara spook and "walk the dog" for explosive top water hits. You can work the spook slower then a buzzbait thus keeping your lure in the strike zone longer. Also wait to feel the fish on. Ive had alot of pike completely jump OVER the lure. If they miss it, more often then not theyll come around and try to slam it again.

Give these lures a try. Use good quality equipment and quality line (I use falcon rods, quantum, and shimano reels, and Powerpro line exclusively) If you like to be safe you can use steel leaders to prevent getting bit off but i just tie straight on with power pro. The 50 lb test is at a 20 lb diameter so the line is beefy and strong but it fits on your reels nicely. I rarely get bit off and thats only when im too lazy to retie after catching numerous fish. Keep the lures loud and gaughty in color. Pike cant resist a bright crazy colored lure. Hope this helps you catch more wolves of the water. Good luck!!!

Id also like to make a comment about a tip that "sexy bass fisherman" made. Although using live bait is effective..."When a pike takes it dont set the hook immeadiatly. the pike will carry the bait a little ways and then your bobber will come back up. When it goes down the second time, he/she knows that it wants it. The first time they bring it down, they like to chomp on it a couple times."....<