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Posts: 222
Location: c.wis | hello all, just figured id throw this out there with the hardwater season in full swing most everywhere- I was just curious how many of us esox anglers c+R for pike- now I realize pike are tasty and many of us like to eat them. most lakes in my general area have been over harvested, thus leaving stunted fish populations. I was curious to see what everyone had to say about the pike in there areas- every winter I see many pics of people with theyre limit daily. IMPO I dont think that the fisheries can sustain that kind of harvest unless its a large body of water- figured id post this and see what everyone elses opinion was on the pike fisheries in there area- I was reading some posts on lake-link about my home waters(petenwell flowage) and was wondering what everyone else had to say on the topic. id like to see a slot limit on pike to sustain the resource for the future of the fishery- in additon with the popularity of muskie fishing, C+R has really taken off and would be interested to see if the other anglers would take on this mentality. obviously pike are a blast through the ice and are real suckers for tip ups, just curious to see who all uses quike strikes, or if everyone is still using tried and true trebles? Im not looking to start debates, just looking for opinions on the topic- tight lines and keep dry this winter
Edited by eric001 12/5/2010 10:37 PM
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Posts: 32935
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Depends on the water. Some lakes will never turn out big pike, just like some will not turn out big muskies. There is a lake in Vilas where Pike harvest was halted completely and then severely reduced over a test period, and the average size of the fish didn't increase much at all.
We generally turn back the big Pike we catch, for more than CPR reasons...many of the big pike waters here are full of mercury, and I don't care to feed that much absorbed toxins to my grandkids.
Our favorite eating pike are low 20" to mid 20" range. On some waters we fish, we return all Pike, on others we take a couple home each trip.
What drives me nuts are the groups who bring 10 kids to increase the tip up field, and keep every pike caught harvesting as many as 60 a day...then wonder the next year why the fishing isn't as good.
We use trebles, and rarely have a badly hooked fish. If we do get one we would have rather released that's badly hooked, it takes the honors in the middle of the dinner table.
No one should expect us to release every Pike we catch or try to lecture us that we should. I like eating them, and spread the harvest out over two dozen lakes, rarely taking more combined walleyes, pike, and panfish than we can eat in a single sitting. The Pike fishing actually is better now than it was for a couple decades in the waters I fish. | |
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | There are programs out here to remove every pike. They are non native and are a threat to the native species. I'd love to fry up every one of those removed! | |
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Posts: 182
Location: musky waters of SE, WI | Alot of the lakes in northern wisconsin have tons of small pike and keeping a bunch of those helps the lake i think cause they're all stunted growth. But i hate seeing guys going out on like you said petenwell and keeping all the bigger ones like 34" or whatever and above. Ive heard alot of guys complaining that lakes like that have started to get worse for catching big ones cause everyones keeping a bunch of them.
Being a musky man i love fishing for big pike in the winter, thats usually all i fish for and i never ever keep any of them.
Edited by Ryan_Cotter 12/5/2010 11:09 PM
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Posts: 906
Location: Canada | The Kawartha's have recognized the pike to be an invasive species and I hope that if you plan to eat it you will keep them otherwise it's unethical to bonk them and throw them in the garbage, invasive species or not. I like to eat the odd Pike here and there but would not take any from the local creeks, rivers or streams I fish, as those bodies of water wouldn't handle harvesting them. I've never ice fished before believe it or not but I think this year I am going to try it and maybe even pull a pike up through a hole in the ice, I'd like that. | |
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Location: Lake Tomahawk, WI | Like Steve said, we're selective about harvesting pike, or any fish for that matter. Certain lakes are action fisheries, we keep a fair share of pike on those types, releasing the bigger fish. Would like to see some sort of a protected slot, 5 fish bag with only 1 over 27" or something like that. Would also like to see a catch and release season from first weekend in March until ice-out, while I'm at it I'd like a Ferrari too. 
JS | |
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Location: minocqua, wi. | i agree with jason except i think he should show a little love for number 4 on occasion.
i get out with a bunch a kids and we chase flags all day long and throw the nerf football around. between venison and winter pike i save a lot of money on the grocery bill that offsets my heating bill and won't apologize to anyone. kids learn to catch/shoot, clean and eat the way it was intended and it's our tradition. that said, we take what we need and always return 25" plus pike to the water. 22" - 24" is the "sweet" spot! last year we caught 3 over 35" on an area lake which would be great all the time ... a slot could produce that on a lof of our lakes.
we'll usually take 6 or 7 fish off the ice ... more than that and my back aches after cleanin' em. | |
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| i notice a big difference on some of the lakes we fish in northwest MN that have protective limits on pike vs those that do not. on designated muskie lakes where pike spearing is banned and a 24-36" slot is in place, the size of pike has steadily climbed the last few years. it used to be mid-20"ers, then a couple years ago we started seeing 30"ers, and now we're catching "bonus" pike in the 35-37" inch range. my wife and i caught 3 pike over 35" in 20 minutes this summer - and that's some #*^@ fine pike fishing! on the lakes with no slot where spearing is allowed? a 24" pike is a "good one". we love to eat pike, so i'm not opposed to harvesting pike by any means, and i even see room for pike spearing to exist within reason. that said, it's really nice to have some lakes where the pike are allowed to reach their trophy potential. | |
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Location: Mauston, Wisconsin | I love to eat pike, even more so than walleye. I'm with Steve, Mike & Sled, 20-28" is the sweet spot for eating pike. Like Steve, and a lot of others, I don't keep every eater size pike just like I don't keep every eater size walleye, SM bass, or any other fish. As an fairly experienced fisherman, I think that's misusing the resource, but that's just me. Heck, I've had trips to Canada where we didn't even eat a fish, and that's not because we were'nt catching them.
A note for those eating 30" to +40" fish out of Petenwell, Castle Rock, WI River, and the like! Think top tier predator, PCB, mercury, nasty paper company chemicals. I hope you are not feeding your pregnant wife or kids those chemical laden pike. The WI DNR has a fish consumption warning webpage where you can check to see specific warnings. They didn't put that webpage up to make work for themselves or save the fish, i.e., it's in their best interest that you & your's actually are sucessful, i.e., part of their job is to make sure our resource's are there for the people of Wisconsin to use and enjoy.
Those folks taking their limits of pike day after day in the winter are predictably the first ones bitching about the lack of big pike a few years down the road. Just like the walleye, pan fisherman, etc. The walleye guys on some parts of the WI River bitch & moan about the muskies eating their walleye's, yet they are catching 100's of 14" & under walleye's per day and because they see a muskie chasing or hitting a struggling -14" walleye. The same guy's keep every legal fish, and yet he muskie is the cuplrit. It really makes me wonder where the big fish went?
Have fun!
Al
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Posts: 16632
Location: The desert | CU301DSV - 12/5/2010 11:47 PM
The Kawartha's have recognized the pike to be an invasive species and I hope that if you plan to eat it you will keep them otherwise it's unethical to bonk them and throw them in the garbage, invasive species or not. I like to eat the odd Pike here and there but would not take any from the local creeks, rivers or streams I fish, as those bodies of water wouldn't handle harvesting them. I've never ice fished before believe it or not but I think this year I am going to try it and maybe even pull a pike up through a hole in the ice, I'd like that.
Would you throw zebra/quagga mussels, Euro water milfoil, gobies, carp, etc back in to your waters simply because it is "unethical" to remove them if you aren't eating them? How did the pike get in your waters? My guess would be unethically.
Edited by Pointerpride102 12/6/2010 9:09 AM
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Location: north central wisconsin | Good discussion Eric, and one that has not a clear cut answer especially for our area. see, we have a few lakes that have produced trophy pike, and lakes that never seem to have produced a larger pike(certain man made chains), and a river system that kicks out trophys on occasion bu not like it used to.
The river system(WI River) was once a trophy pike destination, peaking in the late 1970's and 80's, with populations becoming demolished by harvest around the same time frame. There was s light echo effect in the mid to late 90's when most anglers had forgotten about/given up on the river for big pike for 10-15 years. The fish were targeted heavily again for swhile, but the population of big fish had never quite rebounded to what it had been(they even made their way to a famous television show in the mid 90's).
A few things changed on the WI Rivers larger flowages begining about the time the big pike were fished down, and folks noticed the recruitment was down. The power company began drawing the flowages down in the winter months to allow for spring runoff in the spring, both fending off floods, and preserving every bit of potential energy harvestable to make it through the turbines and not the flood gates. With these drawdowns came the onset of poor pike spawns, which continue today.
There has been a movement, that even a couple of our local legislatures have/had joined in(till a couple of them were voted out recently), to push for an odd year drawdown and drawdowns that aren't as detrimental to aquatic life. The hope/intent is to allow for spawning of early spring species including pike, and protect a breadth of other veggies and insect etc. While the last couple drawdowns have not been quite as severe, we are still hoping for some odd year drawdowns of varied flowages, to allow one or more flowages to remain at adequate levels.
Along with that, after enough prodding from local biologists(not sure why they won't introduce it..lol), I am hoping to interview and gain support for advanced pike regulations on a couple of the known trophy producing resevoirs on the WI River in attempt to help recreate what we once had in both numbers and size. Our Musky club might be looking to gain funding to stock some pike again into a couple of these systems, with hopes that in a number of years we'll be able to enjoy some improved fishing for big pike again on down the road.
I had originally set out to push for a 40" limit per the biologists request, but I really want something, anything, that will improve upon what we have while not alienating the public. Granted, there are plenty of other lakes in the area to catch hammer handles for the pan, but a slot limit might just be what the doctor ordered for helping the pike get a stronghold here again. While the 32" size limit currently allows for pike to get through a few earlier years of spawning, it is not allowing them to reach their potential in one of the rare systems in the midwest that had produced trophy pike consistantly, years ago.
We may not intoruduce anything this next spring, but are hoping to have enough data/support/initiative to do so at least by 2012. any other suggestions are surely welcome. Eric, I know where you live and will depend on you for doing my leg work on this(lol).
Jason Schillinger
Edited by Reef Hawg 12/6/2010 2:04 PM
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| I agree with most here. Smaller pike are tasty, and there doesn't seem to be a shortage of them anywhere I fish. That said, I take a few for the table and that's that. I think slot limits are the future for pike and may other species, as well they should be. I realize implementation is beyond the scope of the DNR at this point, but one can dream. I've seen what intelligent slot limits have done for pike and walleye fishing in Canada, even in the short amount of time I've been fishing up there. I'd love to see more N. WI lakes managed for trophy pike potential, while still allowing for reasonable harvest of smaller fish. As others have said, the larger fish are often laden with all sorts of stuff I wouldn't want to eat, and they just don't taste all that great anyway.
My stance towards any fish that I eat is basically the same - take a few of the "eater size" fish for the table, and put the big ones back so they can reproduce and so they can be caught again. | |
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Location: Maple Grove MN | Here in Minnesota lots of big pike are taken through the ice via spearing. All the spearing community wants is to spear big pike. Remember the bill to open up Cass Lake to spearing. Why because there is big pike in there that do get caught and CPR'd by the summer musky fisherman. That's why they are big. The early winter first ice brings the big females in shallow, so they are easier to get. Fishing tip-ups I'm sure some big fish go back, but not many. Northerns tend to be very easy to upset the balance needed to keep from stunting the population, by removing the larger breeding females. Now that Mn has had some of the slots 24-36" must be returned to the water in place for a few years I would like to see the slot changed to 30-40" on the lakes that it has really helped. Maybe this would buy the musky guys some graces with the sprearing community to let up on spearing in Musky lakes. Give them a few lakes with known big pike (lift the slot)and let them destroy it in a year or 2 and blame the muskies. Would the DNR allow such a study?
Brent | |
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Location: The desert | brenth - 12/6/2010 4:02 PM
Here in Minnesota lots of big pike are taken through the ice via spearing. All the spearing community wants is to spear big pike. Remember the bill to open up Cass Lake to spearing. Why because there is big pike in there that do get caught and CPR'd by the summer musky fisherman. That's why they are big. The early winter first ice brings the big females in shallow, so they are easier to get. Fishing tip-ups I'm sure some big fish go back, but not many. Northerns tend to be very easy to upset the balance needed to keep from stunting the population, by removing the larger breeding females. Now that Mn has had some of the slots 24-36" must be returned to the water in place for a few years I would like to see the slot changed to 30-40" on the lakes that it has really helped. Maybe this would buy the musky guys some graces with the sprearing community to let up on spearing in Musky lakes. Give them a few lakes with known big pike (lift the slot)and let them destroy it in a year or 2 and blame the muskies. Would the DNR allow such a study?
Brent
If you fund it, I'm sure they would be happy to oblige or at least point you to a University that would be willing to take it on a graduate project, again if you fund it. | |
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Location: oswego, il | Pointer, I have always been curious about the pike in the western lakes and the disdain that fisherman and the dnr have for them. Maybe I am wrong but the populations out there from at least what I have read are not overabundant and grow very big. Everyone fears they will wipe out certain endagered fish in the area that they are. What I question is what about all the other non-native fish introduced into the waters out west. Trout, bass walleyes, stripers, are they not a threat to those same fish populations? So far I have not heard of the pike wiping out anything. | |
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| So far I have not heard of the pike wiping out anything. they sure as heck degraded the quality of more than a few muskie lakes in northern WI. non-native species compete (or out-compete) native species. that's bad.
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Posts: 1185
Location: Wishin I Was Fishin' | I love to fish for pike on the hard water. All the fish with me over 30" go back, usually the mark is more like 28", and I will only keep them, if my freezer or fry pan needs a fish or 2.
Funny thing, I would actually rather catch a 40" pike then a 40" musky.
Most waters do have too many big pike taken from them. Green Bay has the potential to be a great large pike fishery, but most people that catch a good one keep it. Last year there was a Pike slot limit question on the Conservation Congress hearings, that passed with a majority. However, just like other question votes, the DNR calls them advisory questions when it is not what they want to do and ignores them.
Part of my enjoyment of fishing Lake of the Woods is all of the nice larger pike you get to catch while musky fishing. I feel this is due to the pike slot limit they have. I think it is really working.
A few years ago the shad crashed in Poygan and some certain people were frequently posting pictures of iced limits of large pike on Lake-Link. Probably the same peeps complaining about the tough fishing now.
It is very important to bring the right tools with you on the ice to release fish: mouth spreader, nice long pliers, hook cutter and a camera. You should keep this gear on your person. A fish will quickly freeze it's gills and eyes first. Many people see a treble in the gullet and call it a dead fish. If you gentley pull, the gullet will come out a little alowing you to cut the hooks and remove all the pieces. Also, if the hooks are in the gills but did not tear any gills, you can carefully cut and work hooks out from the outside through the gill flap.
Edited by Jomusky 12/7/2010 7:19 AM
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Location: Hayward, WI | A large effort was made to raise the size limit on Chequamagon Bay northern pike a few years ago. It has the history and potential to grow monster pike. But when it came down to it the locals voted against it. They saw no reason to protect the population and wanted the regulations to stay the same. Sometimes I think the DNR just needs to do what is best for a fishery and not try to keep all sides happy all of the time. | |
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Location: The desert | ToddM - 12/6/2010 8:42 PM
Pointer, I have always been curious about the pike in the western lakes and the disdain that fisherman and the dnr have for them. Maybe I am wrong but the populations out there from at least what I have read are not overabundant and grow very big. Everyone fears they will wipe out certain endagered fish in the area that they are. What I question is what about all the other non-native fish introduced into the waters out west. Trout, bass walleyes, stripers, are they not a threat to those same fish populations? So far I have not heard of the pike wiping out anything.
It isn't as much the reservoirs that are of concern, though the introduction of an undesired species could have a very negative affect on fish populations and management. In regards to the endangered/sensitive species it is the river systems where many of the native endangered fish are. If our agency decided to bring in a non native sport fish, it has to be done where there is about a 0% chance they will be able to affect native populations or get out of the reservoir to affect native populations. Generally the non native fish brought in is a sterile hybrid so we can manage populations at levels that we want them, and if they do escape there is no chance of reproduction.
I have a buddy who works for the USFWS on the Colorado River recovery program. Much of his job is non native removal. Catfish, bass, pike all electrofished out and removed. These fish compete with and prey upon multiple endangered or sensitive species. Non natives make native restoration a larger challenge than it already is.
The reason you don't hear of pike wiping out specific populations is there are multiple factors that go into destroying a population. The creation of dams altering flows, thermal regimes, sediment loads etc. Water pollution, drought, and on and on and on. Non natives are only a player, but sometimes significant player, in the decline of native species. | |
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| as an avid Pike and Musky hunter it makes me sick when people over abuse the waters and take more than neccessary! 2 years ago on the private lake in N.Wisconsin we have a cabin on i pulled a 46" pike though the ice and my brother caught a 49" pike on this past memorial day! I love catching a big Pike just as much as a Musky. I give plenty of money every year to the lake assoc. for restocking of Bass and crappies and i wish people would stop just killing Pike and Ski's because they are eating the fish they are going after. | |
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| I keep 18" to 24" pike when I want a meal. All the rest go back. | |
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winter pike C+R