ugly stik musky rod?

[apz245]

Where do you plan on doing most of your fishing, if you let me know I can tell you some specific colour and bait patterns?

A general guideline is to try to match the hatch in the waterbody you are fishing. Start off with the usual, black/silver, white, perch,blue silver,orange/gold and pink( pike love PINK). Ice out pike can be very lazy but predictable. Your presentation needs to be slow. I suggest simple jerkbaits that suspend like Husky jerks. The key for ice out pike is the having long pauses (up to 30 seconds). Another good pattern is 5"-7" plastic jerkbaits with loads of scent on them worked very slow. With water temps usually being no more then 4 degrees for a week or two after ice out the pike usually don't move far from spawning sites and can be easily spotted while site fishing in clear water.

I have tons of experience with Musky mania and grandmas, I typically use them for trolling and jerkbaits in summer and fall for musky. They usually work well for musky. I don't use them for ice out pike at all.

Hope this helps!

Most my fishing is done near the town of Elliot Lake (between Sudbury and Sault ste. marie) aside from the Steelhead/Salmon I do in the fall and winter here in the GTA.
I'll be joining my buddies at Honey Harbour and Six mile lake this summer too. Those 2 places we went for November pike, and didn't have any luck, you gave me some great pointers in that thread.

I plan on buying a boat this spring if all goes well so I can really go anywhere within a few hours drive from Toronto (anywhere that a 12 foot aluminum boat will take me )

Those 5-7" plastic jerkbaits you mentioned, what brands should I look for? and how do you add scent? piece of minnow on the trebles.. or some artificial stuff?.

30 second pauses seems like a HUGE pause to me, I'll try it out for sure though, and let you know how it goes.

and as usual you've been lots of help, thanks again.

 

[iamnickevans]

Most my fishing is done near the town of Elliot Lake (between Sudbury and Sault ste. marie) aside from the Steelhead/Salmon I do in the fall and winter here in the GTA.
I'll be joining my buddies at Honey Harbour and Six mile lake this summer too. Those 2 places we went for November pike, and didn't have any luck, you gave me some great pointers in that thread.

I plan on buying a boat this spring if all goes well so I can really go anywhere within a few hours drive from Toronto (anywhere that a 12 foot aluminum boat will take me )

Those 5-7" plastic jerkbaits you mentioned, what brands should I look for? and how do you add scent? piece of minnow on the trebles.. or some artificial stuff?.

30 second pauses seems like a HUGE pause to me, I'll try it out for sure though, and let you know how it goes.

and as usual you've been lots of help, thanks again.

Berekly makes tons of soft plastics, Zoom and Storm as well. Any soft plastic that looks like a larger minnow (4"-7") is usually the ticket, but once again try to match the hatch.
Another great option that works in stained water is live minnows in the 4"-7" range, simply dragging them across or near bottom can be deadly especially within a few days after ice out. I have had 20 + fish days with this technique, the only problem is that you have to know exactly where the fish are located because they can be spooky.

As for scent, any minnow artificial scent or fish oil will do the trick, the more it stinks the better. You can apply scent to suspending jerkaits just as an extra option if the fish tentative to bite.

Another few lures to try are spoons and gliders, the spoons are good on spring days when fish tend to be more active or when you are near a river mouth with faster moving water. An area such as this can sometimes hold an amazing amount of fish in early spring after ice out and the temperatures warm. You want to spend most of your time on shallow flats and spawning bays which are usually near marshy areas that tend to be protected from high winds.

I have included a diagram below to give you a better understanding of where ice out pike are usually located, as the temps warm the fish will relate more to upcoming weed cover and adjacent drop offs and deeper water. I have also included a few lures I tend to use, as the water warms spinners, topwaters and jointed lures fished near shorelines can also be an option once mid May hits.

I hope this helps, Good Luck!

 

[apz245]

replied to my own post by accident:edit

 

[apz245]

As usual you've been tons of help, I'm gonna take this thread and the last one ("November Pike Fishing") and save it into a word document for Pike, after I try it out a few times I'll have it all memorized..

The pics of lures and maps you've posted especially have helped me out.

So i'm gonna grab a couple of hard jerkbaits,(husky, and I already have a couple of j13's) and some soft plastics in the 5-7 inch range for ice out, I'll throw in some long pauses and change up my technique a bit, and get some scents for my lures,

I already have my 50lb braid

 

[FishingNoob]

As usual you've been tons of help, I'm gonna take this thread and the last one ("November Pike Fishing") and save it into a word document for Pike, after I try it out a few times I'll have it all memorized..

The pics of lures and maps you've posted especially have helped me out.

So i'm gonna grab a couple of hard jerkbaits,(husky, and I already have a couple of j13's) and some soft plastics in the 5-7 inch range for ice out, I'll throw in some long pauses and change up my technique a bit, and get some scents for my lures,

I already have my 50lb braid

Don't forget the PINK!

 

[apz245]

I'll grab a few gliders too, as for spoons I already have a decent selection (maybe i can find a pink one).

so recap: for ice out pike-,soft plastics in the 5-7" range
-gliders and spoons near river mouths/when pike are active
-hard jerkbaits in the 5-7" range

and in general:

-slow retrieve with long pauses, fish in and around their spawning areas, and don't underestimate live bait

as for the rod I bought (6'3 14-40 lb line 5/8-4 ounce lure weight)
-stick to using it for jerkbaits and gliders (this works out kind of, as that's what you told me to use for ice out pike, eventually i'll get a 8 foot, 2-6 oz rated rod)

 

[apz245]

Don't forget the PINK!

I almost did, i've gotta try out pink, I think it could work well considering my best colour for pike has probably been fluorescent orange/gold combinations.

also i've gotta do a better job figuring our what the pike are eating, and matching the bait (i've tended to be lazy lately and just stick to the colours i like/have worked for me.

thanks

 

[apz245]

I'll grab a few gliders too, as for spoons I already have a decent selection (maybe i can find a pink one).

so recap: for ice out pike-,soft plastics in the 5-7" range
-gliders and spoons near river mouths/when pike are active
-hard jerkbaits in the 5-7" range

and in general:

-slow retrieve with long pauses, fish in and around their spawning areas, and don't underestimate live bait

as for the rod I bought (6'3 14-40 lb line 5/8-4 ounce lure weight)
-stick to using it for jerkbaits and gliders (this works out kind of, as that's what you told me to use for ice out pike, eventually i'll get a 8 foot, 2-6 oz rated rod)

correct me if i'm wrong on any of this, otherwise you've answered all my questions and then some, thanks again.

 

[iamnickevans]

correct me if i'm wrong on any of this, otherwise you've answered all my questions and then some, thanks again.

Here is a diagram of some soft plastic setups and how to use them.

 

[apz245]

diagrams help a lot, they were especially helpful with teaching me the terminology when it comes to identifying areas in lakes, this too answers a lot of questions. (its all going in my word document, thanks for letting me steal your secrets)

 

[FishingNoob]

I almost did, i've gotta try out pink, I think it could work well considering my best colour for pike has probably been fluorescent orange/gold combinations.

also i've gotta do a better job figuring our what the pike are eating, and matching the bait (i've tended to be lazy lately and just stick to the colours i like/have worked for me.

thanks

No worries I know what you mean about being lazy...

 

[sunny14]

++++++++++++++++++++

 

[apz245]

Hey I returned the rod I bought to bass pro, I wanted to go with something longer, unfortunately bass pro doesn't have the browning in 7'6, they only have the 7 foot, so right now I'm leaning towards a 7'6 shimano compre muskie rod, rated for 2-6 ounce lures

 

[iamnickevans]

Hey I returned the rod I bought to bass pro, I wanted to go with something longer, unfortunately bass pro doesn't have the browning in 7'6, they only have the 7 foot, so right now I'm leaning towards a 7'6 shimano compre muskie rod, rated for 2-6 ounce lures

I hope you enjoy it! Now only 6 months until musky season opens.....

 

[apz245]

I hope you enjoy it! Now only 6 months until musky season opens.....

yeah, 6'3 was short for sure, im glad i got to return it.

6 months isn't so bad when you have bass/pike in between

 

[fishermandan420]

yeah, 6'3 was short for sure, im glad i got to return it.

6 months isn't so bad when you have bass/pike in between

bass opens3 weeks after muskie!?! check out lebarons, they have some more "value priced" muskie rods. JBs fishing depot is another option. Brian there is great ( if hes in)

 

[dockmuskie]

Wow some great information in this discussion. Why haven't I read it earlier? haha

Getting me excited for muskie next year

 

[apz245]

bass opens3 weeks after muskie!?! check out lebarons, they have some more "value priced" muskie rods. JBs fishing depot is another option. Brian there is great ( if hes in)

hey, i checked lebarons , i'll check out jb fishing depot too for the okumas

 

[sunny14]

GOOD GRIEF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[apz245]

Just on the Off Chace that Someone might care to have a look at "Le Barons" Ugly Sticks"

Which IMHO "Ugly Sticks" are the way to go!

Or Ugly Sticks "Big Water Rods" From Shakespears Site..... As Below.

I have the Specs For all those Rods. if Anyone is Interested..

BYE!!

Hey, I'm a big fan of ugly stik, i have the salmon/steelhead rod, and had 2 spinning rods (1 got taken by the ministry).

Its just I havent been able to find one with the right lure weight (1-6 ounces) and length.. 7'6, all the 7 and a half footers seem to be for lighter lures

there's an 8 foot tiger rated for 1-4 ounce lures, that might be alright.. seems like a saltwater rod though