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Pike bait...Dead or Alive?


eyehead

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Anyone notice wether Mille lacs pike like dead bait over alive? Gonna throw some tip-ups out tommorow afternoon while im up!

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Currently there and doing well on light pike. Bought some smelt but have not tried it as do not try to fix whats not broke........ catching them anywhere from 7 to 11ft....nothing under 25 and nothing over 30. Good luck!

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full-27018-16037-2012_01_08_08_45_24_287

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man i'd like a few of those 25's to eat or a tick smaller

are you on the south end ??

cool pic of that one coming up

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SE side, Gregg. Yep, people don't know what they are missing, finally caught some eaters. Actually did finally try the frozen smelt, and did land the smaller fish off of it; the frozen bait was not nearly as big though. Cooking up this easily cleaned boneless fillet as we "speak".

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nice job..looks good for the pan

Ya I tried smelt up on winnie I couldnt get any thing on them we did get northerns on 5-6 inch live minows so I know they were down there

maybe theres a trick to using the smelt

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Mostly fish for them on early ice, so far from an expert, but usually do not put my dead bait down very far(top third of water column) and hooked in the bottom half with a single hook or jig. Big gumballs actually function like a circle hook when they run.

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Is there any place to drive out in Isle bay? And if so are there some good pike areas right in isle bay? Looking to throw some tip ups out Friday or saturday, i have never tried tip up fishin for pike on mille lacs. What depths should we try?

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I do not know about recent years but I used to have my perm parked on the "Gator Hole" in Wahkon Bay (west of Half Moon Island). We would pull some very nice 30"+ with an occasional musky.

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Have not fished Isle Bay but there are a couple of public accesses or probably best to call Chappmans or Hunter Winfields, depending on how big your vehicle is and ask about the ice conditions. As far as where to fish ....they can be anywhere form 5 to 35 ft right now...... but what usually works for me is to find a deeper hole surrounded by shallow weeds. I usually set up in low teens for the night/morning bite then work my way shallower during the day. Another good spot would be to find a void pocket in a weed bed, or even a weed edge, but that would take some drilling to find. As already mentioned not an officianoto, and usually get out a half dozen times for them early in the season, but with this ice/weather, not willing to move my house out to the 30 ft hole I would normally occupy, and might focus a little more on them this year. Caught 7 the other day and it was a good time, still looking for that bigger one.....stay safe and good luck!

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Will be hanging out on mille lacs next fri en route to the brainerd extravaganza, curious for your opinions of depths you're setting your dead baits. Some guys swear right on the bottom, others opposite and others still half way.

I've always heard (and seen on my cam) that pike tend to feed up so I don't know if I agree with the bottom as much but I don't have much experience with deads.

Thoughts?

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Well, used some big lively sucker minnows(decoy suckers)hoping to find that mid 40inch Pike and never even had a whiff Monday and Tuesday! Oh well, did get some really nice Eye's grin

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Eyehead,

must be some really big pig eyes if you were using decoy suckers wink How is the ice/action on Green this year?

Flag,

usually set my live bait about halfway down the water column and dead bait in the top one third. I do not have as much confidence in dead bait, but know people who fish for pike regularly that swear by it. They are opportunistic feeders and like those freebies .....

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Push,

I caught 5 eye's between 25-28 1/4" on fathead's under a tip-up. I dont know if it was the clear ice up there or what but they all came on tip-up's. Caught some smaller eyes jiggin, but nothing big with the rod and reel in the house. My sucker tip-up's never even moved!

Havent been on Green a whole lot....Was doing pretty good in 15-18ft and running flags even shallower. Ice seemed to be pretty good everywhere I went. There is a heave that starts from Browns point and runs south past couler's access that I wouldnt wanna get too close to! I went swimming in Febuary a few years ago, once is enough grin

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Thx push. As for eyes on Mille lacs, we've had the same experiences this year. Bigger eyes only coming on tip ups and more specifically with shiners.

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Fished LOW and Red this year also and the same gig.......I usually think i can jig even the most finicky eyeball, but not this year......dead sticks, rattle reels, and tip ups have been money, especially for the bigger crafty veterans!

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • Brianf.
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