Spearing Northern Pike
 

This is my first season spearing for Northern Pike.

I decided to make my own decoy to begin the whole process. Once I finished it I was ready to actually "fish". I have sat in the shanty 4 times and seen about 7 Pike. Only had the chance to get 3, two of which were legal.




Here is the decoy I was working on, and the results. I got the idea to make the decoy from another forum and thought this might do it justice.

dag-gum man, you fish more ways than anybody i know, lol. Impressive and congrats!

That's quite a TOAD STICKER you got there, Buckhunter...:biggrin:....

Never had any experience spearing through the ice, in fact I don't believe it's legal here in NY, except possibly for rough species like carp and suckers... I'm sure it would be fun to try, where legal.. I can imagine trying to wrestle a BIG pike through a hole in the ice on a stick....

It would be sort of tough to catch and release, though...:biggrin:....

That is the one thing that does stink about spearing, not catch and release. This does stink because we have a few fisheries that could easily produce 40" and 20# Northerns (and do), but spearing is a tough sport to pass on. Specially since it is my first year and I don't want to choke when Mr. Big comes along.

I bet there good eatting..hey are you going to sign up for the tourny Buck?

Some people love them, I on the other hand, give them all away. Very boney fish, and when I have such an abundant supply of Bluegill (one of the best eaters IMO), why these guys.

Both of these went to a gentlemen whose property I will be turkey hunting :arms:.

I hope to get around to some bass fishing this year, might be doing a lot more tournament this year... After Steelhead season of course. Won't be fishing many bass until May...

Chuck..Northerns are EXCELLENT eating, but as Buckhunter says, they are full of small, Y shaped bones, which are a nuisance... They are, in my opinion, one of the best tasting fish...

I have learned to trim out the Y bones and although it takes a little more time to filet a fish, it is well worth it... Google it up on the net and you'll find a lot of info on removing Y bones from pike...

Giving them away is easier :rolleyes:, I'm just too stubborn.

Hehehehehehe.. You have a good point...Especially since you have all those succulent BLUEGILL filets...

Larger pike are easier to deal with than small ones... I filet them out and cut out the Y bones and keep the boneless meat for frying, etc. I cut the strips with the Y bones into chunks and raw pack them in pint jars and procces them in a pressure canner... The processing softens the bones so they dissolve and I use the canned fish for fish patties...Better than salmon, IMHO...

Hey fellows ..I use to catch some nice sized Chain Pickeral in VA..boney..to the extreme but I would put vinegar in the chest cavity ..wrap in foil and bake on low about 275..for a long time..the bones would be soft like sardines and the meat was excellent.