When it comes to fishing, we all have our particular preferences in regards to what we like to target obviously.
As for me, well I like to chase fish with teeth. Whether it be Pike, Muskies, Snakeheads, Bowfins, Walleye or even Pickerel….. as long as it has teeth, I`m more than interested.
So the other day I loaded up my Yak at daybreak, stopped for a cup of joe and then made my way down to one of my fave fishing haunts……. The Passaic River to have a go at some Northern Pike.
The forecast was calling for the typical hot-as-hell, dog-day in August. So my plan was to hit the river early and call it quits by mid-morning.
I had set up two rod and reels, one with a spinnerbait and the other with a chatterbait which I like to use with my old baitcaster reel.
The morning started out like a ball of fire………well……sort of. See in the first twenty minutes, I flipped and lost three decent pike! Sometimes this happens……. they will swat and miss and not get hooked solidly.
But I knew what to do.
*You can buy these right at your local Walmart.
And since several of you out there asked me questions in regards to type of line, what kind of leaders etc. I made this little short helpful clip to answer your questions. I think you will get some answers here Gang;
After setting up the Trailer Hooks, it was game on! I landed a several decent ones right off the bat –
**One thing that I would like to emphasize if you are going to try for Northern Pike, Pickerel or Muskies in the dead of Summer is this; If you plan on practicing catch-n-release, you will have a very short window as to how long you can actually have them out of the water. I would say three minutes at best. Any longer and odds are they won`t revive properly. The warm air/water combo is very difficult for them, especially the larger fish…….(I have done this a countless number of times and all of the fish in the pictures above swam away. No problem.)
Heck even a few “youngsters” jumped on! Which is a great sign that they are flourishing nicely in the river thanks Craig Lemon and Crew of NJ Fish & Wildlife at the Hackettstown Fish Hatchery.
I also was fortunate enough to see a beautiful Barred Owl whil paddling down the river! I literally paddled right under this beautiful bird as she watched me with a close eye! *Watch this video I shot;
All in all, a fine day on the river indeed as I ended up with five Northern Pike and a LargeMouth Bass.
Hope the tips helped out and thanks for checking it out.
Ken-
Till next time…….
See all of my Adventures here