Thanks One and All. Count me in.

skpike – one of the Old *arts!

July 12,1999,I caught a 53″ Northern in SK on Walston Lake. It was CPR SK record for one year. I must agree with the idea that this is a doctored photo. Head and tail do not appear to match color or body size. Now you know where the name site name ‘skpike’ comes from. Almost two years to the day I got a 51″ on the same Lake. The good lord blessed me twice. All I need now is a 30+” ‘eye’. Maybe this fall on Mille.

I’ll try and post a picture of my 53″ if I can figure it out.

SKPIKE – Roger Budny

birky063 GREAT thread . I guess you thought you would be the oldest member of the group but we tied. DeLaSalle Institue, Chicago, Meteors, Proud to be of the Class of 1963. Shows that us old farts still can keep up with the pups.We should start our own group.The younger memebers could serve us at the gatherings, out of respect of course.

Why haven’t we heard from our leader Mr.James???

skpike
Roger Budny

James why do I get the feeling that besides getting new friends I would be getting a LARGE BAR TAB?

skpike

Thanks one and all. I will check it out.

SKPIKE – Roger Budny

Fellow members

Sorry I can’t make the lunch on the 17th, but I will be up there on the 10th of October. What I need is help with a place to stay for the night of the 10th of Oct. I will be arriving around 10 am and plan on fishing till around 4, coming in to a cook dinner for my guide and myself and going out to fishing the first half of the night until 12 or 1 AM. Sleep for a few and have a home cooked breakfast and head back home around 11 AM. to pick up the bride who will be visiting our Grand-daughter in Shakopee. Any names and phone #’s of kitchenette type two bed resorts would be GREATLY appreciated. I would like to stay in the Garrison area.

Thanks “skpike” – Roger Budny

Congradulations from the Budnys. May you two celebrate as many years togethers as Berni and I did on the 14th of August. 34 years together – two great sons, one wonderful daughter-in-law and of course the greats Grand-daughter, Lillian, aka ‘Lily Pad’.

Best to you both

Roger – skpike

It appears you got this one at night, but you didn’t tell us WHERE? Was it the river? Or was it up North?

skpike

Roger Budny

Let me ad my best wishes to those already sent

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAMES

Roger Budny — SKPIKE

Should have said something sooner, Matt. I have three reels and two rods. I will bring them up this week-end with some terminal tackle.

Dad

skpike

Thank you Gentlemen.

RiverRat 420 I tried Amozon and couldn’t find anything, but glad you did.I will be looking at getting the ones you and carpking mentioned. Thanks again guys.

SteveO tahnkjs for the compliment about Matt,hearing things liek that makes Berni and I as proud as we can be.

I really like the idea of a bait or two a visit. It won’t cost me that much as we live in Illinois and the kids live in Shakopee. But you can bet we will be trying to get there once a month…more time to fish…that is if Matt can pull me away for the baby.I guess I should start out with a gift pack of B-fish-N tackle. What do you think Mr.Holst?? I will have to hide it from the new daddy.

I will let you all know when the blessed event happens.

Thanks again

SKPIKE

Chris, I will have you in mind this weekend. Looking forward to sharing another meal with you, James and Dustin at the Red Door Resort this fall.

skpike
Roger Budny

Steve
If someone wanted to add the 5 or 6 best colors to have of this product to their Xmas list what would they be????

What are your opinions on “noise” cranks??? Rogues and Mann’s Minus series. The body shapes and actions are the same as the stated favorites and I would think the noise of the favorites digging into the rocks and bottom would be similiar to the rattle of these noise lures. Wouldn’t this help attract a responses or two. I know from experience that pike love the Mann’s series and always wanted to try them out on shallow staged ‘eyes’, but fishing with James and Dustin I never get around to it.

After this post and the one by Steve about the new Grappler size I will be afraid to drive past a Grander Mtn or Bass Pro. There goes the next trip money. LOL. But I gusess it is true “Lure catch more fisherman than fish”.

Eagerly awaiting the opinions of the “experts”.

SKPIKE – Roger Budny

Thanks for the list. You are right what’s one or two more when it come to new lures that work..

thanks Again

Roger Budny – SKPIKE

Steve if you could only buy 4 colors of the Grappler series what would they be???? I am talking about fishing Pepin north to ‘Mille’

SKPIKE

Got to ask the question. Ironsilk, Sensation,XT solar green…ARE THEY ALL THE SAME ????? Are we the ones getting hooked so to speak? I don’t get the chance to fish that often much less the chance to do product comparasions. It has been said more than once 80-some % of the tackle is designed to catch fisherman.
SKPIKE

Maybe this time I will be the lucky one. If I win Dustin I buy and prepare the beef tenderloin or would you prefer a leg of lamb to go with the walleye wing appetizers? I’ll be waiting for the good news.
Roger Budny – skpike

And me to the group.

skpike
Roger Budny

Can’t get a hold of Adam , “Mr. Lucky” to sign in and register. I am doing it for him. If you can remember you wouldn’t have that date open if I didn’t have other family plans with my better half for that week-end. If get pulled take Matt and Adam. I will prepare the dinner(s)for Adam to bring up along with the wine.

Roger “SKPIKE”

FRIENDS

With a login name like mine “SKPIKE”, the “SK” stands for Saskatchewan, and “PIKE” for pike, I am bound in conscience to respond to this forum. I have had my BEST luck with a modified OLD BASS IN LINE SPINNER, it was called a “Bassackward”. If anyone has any of these lures please private message me. The lure had a double set of tandem hooks dressed in a purple over pink bucktail fashion. The big difference was that the front tandem was brazed to the staff of the spinner and the hair was tied backward which gave it more bulk in the water, I removed the back tandem as the lake I was fishing was C.P.R. and barbless, the silver blade did get mashed once in my tackle box and had a dent in it. To look at it you would have to say,”This ain’t going to catch anything”. Well it did and it is now retired to the graphite mount of the 53″ Catch and Release provincial record from 1999 -2000.

I had also had very good luck using banjo minnows, Firetiger and Black/Red bodies, fished like you would a dead smelt. In the clear Canadian waters it was neat to watch the big guys sloooowly crusie up and stare at the bait on the bottom and than suddenly inhale it in – turn and slooowly cruise away until the circle hook set in the corner of their mouth. I was blessed a second time using this method with a 51″.

Mepps #4 and #5 in char/orange rubber skirt and #4 and #5 Blue Fox in blue chrome are very good too.

The HOT bait at the lodge I went to is another BASS bait. the MANN’S MINUS – 1. The shollow running ability 2′ to 3″ and LOUD rattle of this bait put it in the same class as the rattle trap.In five days of fishing I had over 30 pike over 36″ and uncountable numbers of smaller ones using these methods. All most any color worked but the firetiger and chrome colors had an edge.

I have used the MINUS -1 with success in the backwaters of the river.

Top water fishing for Pike is a definite BLAST. I use larger Zarra Spooks and smaller Muskie top water baits.

My biggest river pike is a 32″ caught on a Rapala deep diver PERCH over the corner of a wing dam.

Well, I only have to wait about 15,000 minutes and I and my two sons will be joining some of you on the river for the first time this year.

50+” inchers are the product of C.P.R. and practicing C.P.R. will allow our grandchildren can know and enjoy what we have.

SKPIKE
Roger Budny

Reading your FAMILY post brought back memories of ’70 -’71 Quin Yon and Da Nang. I was in headquarters company and worked in the mail room part time. My than highschool aged sister took to heart my story of how some of the guys DIDN’T get any mail. I can remember many long faces after another day of nothing. Well, she organized a letter writing campaign at her highschool and the boys in the 78th Engineer Battalion soon had mail to say the least.

I can tell you from first hand experience IT REALLY MEANS ALOT!!!!!!!!

Bless our troops and thanks for your fine work and example to the rest of us.

The same to the Stillwater people, KID and Todd.

GOD BLESS US ALL.

SKPIKE

You bet I would pay more for more enforcement. As a non-Minnesota resident I just paid for my annual license. It was forty something with the trout stamp that I will proably never use and I will use it for only acouple of days. I would double the fare for the priviledge of a couple of limits a year, the friends I have met here on the site and honor fishing with the likes of James and Dustin. NO that is not meant to get me a reduction in rates, its just meant to be a statement of FACT.

As far as wasting any PIKE, well some of you know me, NOTHING is better than a 50+”. The good Lord has given me the honor to have gotten two of those beauties.

Only 2 and a half weeks and I will be cured of this nagging fever.

SKPIKE

I think the most important thing is that this mention was a suprise to the FTR/EFN staff. One of the “big” guys seem to be able to see quality when they see it. The exposure to their readers is important to EFN and the groups ideals. CONGRADUALTIONS TO THE ENTIRE STAFF OF FTR/FTL/EFN. A JOB WELL DONE BY ALL.

SKPIKE
Roger Budny.

I’ll try again lost my first attempt at a response to the picture of James pike. Don’t over do it James!!!!! Remember I have you booked for a day next week. It is hard to type a response as all I can think about is the great trips I have had for Pike up in Canada.

Nothing finer than a twenty – thirty minute fight on lite tackle. Congrats, as usual a job well done and see you soon

SKPIKE

Thanks for the post. I will be in Redwing next week and was looking for a MN liscense. Now I know where to get one.

SKPIKE

I just signed. 5751 was the number. Thanks to all. I was just thinking, how many PETA members have seen a deer starve to death or how many have had their landscaping worth $100’s destroyed by an over population of rabbits?

SKPIKE

My drive is about 370 one way to Red Wing. Chicago area to the Red Wing area.

Needless to say it is not a weekly trip. But any time with James on the river or being at the Get-To-Gether is WELLLLLLLL worth the effort.

See you soon, teach a kid to fish, you will have a partner for life.

SKPIKE

Don’t want to sound like a big shot but in July I had the pleasure of 6 days in Northern Saskatchewan, Wollaston Lake, Minor Bay Lodge: 30 Northerns over 36″ the largest was 51″ which came after a 46″. The estimated total weight for these fish was over 600 lbs. (Lenght cubed divided by 3500 = lbs.)

Best on the river was a 27″ walleye — with James of course.

Best total day of fishing was the FTR Get Together.

Hook a Kid on Fishing and you have a partner for life.

It may seem a little odd but on the ‘Big T” day as the family and friends gathered at our house bowed their head for a moment of personel thoughts of thanks, one of my thoughts was for the great bunch of people on this site and the guys who have given it to us all.

Happy Holidays

SKPIKE

Roger Budny