Northern pike may be closely related to muskies, but they are not muskies. Their eating habits are very different. They display various violent behaviours. Pikes are also small. Yet despite this, I have noticed that many fly anglers want to treat pike like muskies when it comes to gear. This is especially true with beginners. The sight of 50-inch pike captivates them, leading them to believe that bigger and heavier tackle is the way to go. Speed chasing north is one of my favorite things to do, and I’ve done it all over North America. What I’ve learned is that less is often more when it comes to being successful. As fall progresses and water temperatures drop, I start to get excited about pike, but what I’m not looking forward to is spending hours upon hours fishing or strengthening my arms to chase them. You shouldn’t either. here’s why.
1. Skip the meat sticks
Muskie fishermen use fly rods with at least 10 weight. In some extreme cases, I’ve seen muskie fly freaks bump up to a custom 15-weight. I can assure you that it has nothing to do with needing that kind of power to fight a muskrat. However, in muskie fly fishing, you need a heavy rod to throw larger, heavier flies. It is also helpful to put the hook in their jaws because remember, you can only get one pellet a day, so you want to get every advantage you can. Finally, a strong fly rod allows you to put serious heat on a muskie and get it to the net quickly. If you notice, the muskies – both flying and traditional – don’t let the fish walk. They want it in the bag immediately. But as soon as you get down to pike, it makes little sense to use a 10 to 15 weight fly rod.
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If you live somewhere where pike often reach sizes of 40-inches or better, the story is different. However, the reality is that such fish farming occurs in very few places. For most of us in the pike area, you’re catching large numbers of small fish with the occasional trophy thrown in. So, exhausting yourself throwing a 12-weight on the chance to show off a 45-inch weight is kind of silly. Now you are dominating 90 percent of the smaller fish and reducing their fighting ability. Likewise, it’s not unusual to get dozens of shots at pike per day, so it’s not important to have a rod that nets every fish in 3 seconds – if you miss one or two, it’s no big deal. I use an 8-weight rod for pike, even if I’m fishing an average of 20 to 25 inches locally, or in Saskatchewan where a 50-inch shot is very realistic. If that 50 eats my fly, I’m not worried, because I know the 8-weight has a lot of power, and more importantly, I know how to properly fight a big fish with a fly rod, so it’s OK to live with a little less gun.
You can throw an 8-weight all day without getting tired, and I’ve used it to land my personal best fly pike, measuring 46 inches. By the way, that pike ate a 6-inch fly, not to mention the 12-inch feather, hair and flash that took 4 hours to tie. This leads us to flight selection.
2. Skip the Flesh Flies
A large muskrat can snatch a large meal once a day, perhaps even once a week. The point is, there is value in creating gym-sock-like flies that match giant baits, move more naturally, vibrate the ramp, and use all the tools needed to trip a fish’s trigger. Musk often requires serious persuasion to open his mouth. Pike, on the other hand, are generally more willing eaters (which is why I like them more than muskies). That doesn’t mean there aren’t situations and scenarios that make pike picky, but for the most part, if they’re hungry, they’re not very understanding. There’s a good chance you’ll rack up a pile of pike in a single day, and you can count on destroying a lot of flies. If you’re throwing $15 custom musky flies, it hurts.
I tie most of my pike flies, and I keep them incredibly simple because I hope to get one or two fish per fly before it gets thrown in the trash. My preference is a 5 to 7 inch streamer with some flash and a tail that has some action. It can be as simple as a few long hackle feathers, a pinch of tinsel and a ball of synthetic dubbing for the head. Another favorite is a Dragon tail With a sleek dubbing head – that takes less than 5 minutes to tie on.
These streamers provide a large enough profile to attract trophy pike, but they are not too large to lock up smaller specimens. They are so sparse and streamlined that they can be easily delivered on an 8-weight rod. If you don’t tie your own flies, invest in some Whistlersbunny snake, and simple synthetic baitfish Pattern.
3. Skip the cables
Since a muskie fisherman may only have one shot at a fish in a day (or a week), it is not uncommon to see them incorporating heavy steel cable or 200-plus pounds of fluorocarbon into their leaders as protection against bites. It’s an insurance policy, and I get it, but the reality is that muskie teeth are no sharper than pike teeth, and I’ve never found a pike – including 40-plus-inchers – to bite through a thin piece of steel wire.
My go-to for years has been on Cortland Tie-Able Stainless Steel Leader MaterialAnd while it is available in breaking strengths up to 50-pounds, I have yet to encounter a pike that can bite 20-pounds. The material is coated in green nylon to reduce glare and visibility, and it’s flexible enough to knot without slipping. This makes it easy to add just 10 to 12 inches of wire to the end of my leader without the need for crimps or a barrel swivel.
Most importantly, using thin, flexible wire gives your flies maximum action. When you’re working with a huge, material-filled custom muskie fly, it can move enough water due to its weight that an extra heavy bite wire can’t affect its action too much. But if you’re using small, simple streamers for pike, too heavy a bait may spoil the tippet action. If the light coil gets bent or twisted after a few fish, it is easy to replace it by cutting another piece from the spool. I also like to tie a little Duo-Lock Snap to the end of my string, so that when one of my flies is no longer chewable, I can quickly replace it and continue hammering.
