Canadian Pike! What to use?

I’ve fished the walleyes endlessly and threw into some rocks for nice smallies but I have never had a chance at pull against a 40+ 20lb pike. And I think that would be awsome. We are going to Red Gut Bay on thursday for 5 days and thought I would do some big game fishing. The question is what to throw? When I was a kid in boy scouts and did the boundery waters it was dare devils. I’d have to asume that in the last 25 yrs there has been some improvement. And if i have the right bait what kind of structure or cover would I be looking for. I know you guys have lots of good stuff I see pics on here all the time of big ones.

Thanks.

I am no expert but at this time of year I am casting 5 of diamond spoons or spinners over the top of weeds. When trolling I use believers running just outside of the weed edge.

My uncle has always used frozen Tulibee for bobber fishing pike in Canada. I’ve used frozen Cisco’s in the BWCA. I typically just let them sit on the bottom and watch the line, but bobber should work just as good.

I use the Big Doctor spoon easy to fish single hook easy to release fish tip one of the hooks with a twister tail. Big fish lure casting or trolling

I like spinner baits or even larger in-line like large Mepps may work. Had a lot of luck with floating or jointed raps.

Tony

The water temps should be fairly low so the bigger pike should be up shallower still.
Dardevle’s, spinnerbaits, bucktails, bigger raps/cranks and big rubber are all good ways to put big fish in the boat.
Finding emerging weed beds is usually a good start. Wood can produce like crazy in the spring. Pick apart any trees in the water. Pike can be hanging all around a tree.
If they are real lethargic- sight fishing rubber baits in the shallows can be the way to go!
Good luck!

I just came back from Rainy Lake… 5 days of fishing throwing chrome stick baits that suspend… the key was to retrieve the bait and pause then retrieve, then pause…

This put some real nice pike in the boat for us !!

I just came back from the annual Canada trip on Saturday (English River system) and the pike were shallow (2-6 feet) and lethargic. Water temps were still in the mid to upper 50’s for the most part. The new large flat raps were a great new pike lure for us this year. If I only had 1 lure for early season pike up in Canada it would be a #14 husky jerk. Lots of twitching of some type of minnow bait should get you bit by a big boy. Good luck!

What I have used up there in the past is spoons. No name brands seem to work the best cause they are lighter then the Dare Devil brand, which will sink down faster to the logs and tree fall. Keep an eye out for beaver huts they seem to hold a lot of northerns, or tree fall next to deep water. Colors, I like are five of dimonds, red and white, blue and siver, and copper. Hope this helps some.

Spinner baits, caught a lot of 30″ up to 41″ pike on pool 4 this spring on spinner baits and any thing else well eat them to up to and icluding a 13″ perch the wife caught on one the other day.

Do you have musky gear? — Big jerkbaits.

Bright orange reef hogs, Pigs, etc.. Something that suspends or slightly rises and has an erratic underwater “walk the dog” type action. Vary your retrieve to match fish’s moods. Expect VIOLENT rip-the-rod-out-of-your-hand strikes.

If no musky gear, then husky jerks, X-raps or the bigger floating rapalas on medium to stout spinning or casting gear- sweep-pause-sweep-pause.

I’d get all bright colors. glow orange, chartruese, glow orange, firetiger… and glow orange.

Can’t go wrong.

I have had the best luck with this… I’d put it against any Big Time Musky lure they make….. for Canadian Pike As far as improvement, the fish haven’t changed much

I head up to Northern MB a week from today for a week long Bear Hunt/Fishing trip… I will have one small plastic box, full of Blue Fox spoons (pictured below, the STAR of the show ), B-Fish-N-Jigs (orange grubtails mostly, for the walleye) and a bunch of steel leaders