Jerkbaits for Pike

Matt got to meet Oliver Round this morning. We had got up before the sun, and the three of us got on the river before sun got on it. Sun got on Matt's face when he caught his first pike on his first cast, but I don't recall any on the water.

Oliver was using a suspending jerkbait. True to the same principle on the last outing, I offered no advice, though he saw I used a floater and commented on that. With a floater, I can do more. Let it rise to the surface. Work it on top by twitching it. And the jerking action when working it with the rod tip below the surface wants to go somewhere--upward. It gives you a certain control when imparting that action.

The disadvantage when working a jerkbait with the rod tip is that pike tend to miss hitting the lure when they attack. Pike recoil almost like a snake and then release muscular tension to shoot like a rocket for prey. Once the target is locked in, that's where the pike goes. So the fish has a hard time grabbing a jerkbait retrieved erratically. But they're very attracted to that action, so it's a trade-off. You'll attract pike but some will miss hitting the plug.

Even so, I missed a lot of hits while dimpling the plug on the surface. I haven't got all this figured out. There's more to it I don't know. You'd think a pike would easily target a dimpling jerkbait up top. The single largemouth I caught did so with ease. I used a plug with Mark Sosin's stamped signature on it; I don't know the name. The biggest pike I fought had hit that plug on two different casts. A third go at that plug resulted in the fish hooked and storming off on a very deliberate run underneath a deadfall. That run was not finished when the line went limp. I reeled in the line to find that the damn snap on the wire leader had opened. Cheap leaders, I concluded. I need to buy better, and in the meantime, tie a few myself with wire left over from Florida.

I switched to a floating, silvery Smithwick Rattling Rogue and noticed no increase or decrease in numbers of hits.

One of the three pike I did catch hit when I stopped retrieving and let the plug rise. In full view. A few feet from the bank.

Other pike hit like fireworks, making great splashes and showing their flanks, two of them bigger than those I caught. Matt also caught three, small ones. He also caught a largemouth. Oliver caught two pike no bigger than mine.

The river is a great place to practice casting accuracy, and good form at doing that well makes a difference in numbers of hits.

Matt takes the day's honor for catching one of his pike on his very first cast.

First Cast

 The Mark Sosin plug.

Ice Fishing for Pickerel