Early Winter Pike Fishing

[AmbitiousOntarian]

Hey Guys

Just looking for advice on where I can catch some early winter Pike around the Oshawa area? Any tips/tricks will help!

Thanks

 

[GBW]

why not go over to Frenchmens Bay when the ice is safe? I'm sure there are some in there right now too.

 

[AmbitiousOntarian]

why not go over to Frenchmens Bay when the ice is safe? I'm sure there are some in there right now too.

Thanks for the advice! I might try Frenchmens Bay on Monday if it's not too cold and windy.

Cheers
Adam

 

[Blair]

Hey Guys

Just looking for advice on where I can catch some early winter Pike around the Oshawa area? Any tips/tricks will help!

Thanks

I know your asking for "NOW" so the advice given (Frenchmens is good)
However: KEEP this in your Cap

EARLY SPRING (always double check regs) just after the first melt off is KILLER!
Get prepared for that, and do not miss it!

Cheers

 

[AmbitiousOntarian]

I know your asking for "NOW" so the advice given (Frenchmens is good)
However: KEEP this in your Cap

EARLY SPRING (always double check regs) just after the first melt off is KILLER!
Get prepared for that, and do not miss it!

Cheers

Thank you for the tips! I went out yesterday to Frenchmens and had no luck at all. Ice even started to form on the water and my line was freezing up. I'll definitely go back though just after the melt off and give it another shot.

Cheers

 

[GBW]

when the ice is in, you can still get them there.

 

[AmbitiousOntarian]

when the ice is in, you can still get them there.

I'll definitely keep that option open! I've never really been ice fishing before so it may be a good place to start.

Cheers

 

[GBW]

use CAUTION in that bay. all the run off from the road makes the ice weak. do not and I mean NOT go near the North end of the bay.

 

[evanm]

Hi Ambitious Ontarian,
I have caught pike at frenchmans bay around end of november last year. A key part to catching them is what bait you use. Bright color Crank baits seemed to work for me. You have to be very patient and best time to catch them is around sunset.
Hope this helps!

 

[MichaelVerdirame]

Hi Ambitious Ontarian,
I have caught pike at frenchmans bay around end of november last year. A key part to catching them is what bait you use. Bright color Crank baits seemed to work for me. You have to be very patient and best time to catch them is around sunset.
Hope this helps!

I've tried Toronto harbor pike recently without much luck. I think my main problem is not knowing where to cast and at what depth to work the lure. People always say "cast along weedlines or along structure". Let's take Frenchman's bay for example, I could just go out on the dock on the West side of Liverpool Rd. cast from all sides of it, trying to cover the most water. Is this a good example of "structure" to cast around?

 

[evanm]

I've tried Toronto harbor pike recently without much luck. I think my main problem is not knowing where to cast and at what depth to work the lure. People always say "cast along weedlines or along structure". Let's take Frenchman's bay for example, I could just go out on the dock on the West side of Liverpool Rd. cast from all sides of it, trying to cover the most water. Is this a good example of "structure" to cast around?

Yes docks and weedlines are great spots. I tried fishing pike at different times of the day in Frenchman's bay....early morning around 6am got a couple of follows but no bite, afternoons no luck, but around the sunset time and into the dark were the most successful. Pike are very active when it is quite and the sun is down!
I used crank bait that dives about 4 ft. But it depends how deep the waters you are fishing is.

 

[salmotrutta]

Pike are very active when it is quite and the sun is down!

Agreed, that can be a productive window for pike. As good or better than first thing in the morning. I've never targeted them in complete darkness, but I've seen them sitting right up against the shore in just a few inches of water in the middle of the night. This was in the summer, likely waiting to devour some unsuspecting prey.

 

[MichaelVerdirame]

Going back to the basics here, I want to clarify some things I'm not clear about. Pike usually move to deeper cooler waters in the summer but can move into the shallower bays as the water cools? What about the weed cover factor, in the winter there is much lens weed density in bays. How do these two factors interact? (less pike due to no weeds vs more pike due to cooler temps).