Pike Waters

[TnRiver46]

I def found them much easier to harvest in MN, there was one tricky set of regs that I think was on rainy lake but it still allowed to harvest some small ones. 
 

Michigan the only place I could keep the small ones was the inland lakes of isle royale, Lake Superior itself they had to be 24”. I caught one off a dock that was pretty close but it took me forever to get the hook out and my measuring tape was in a backpack so I just let it go. The thing sat there motionless on the bottom, upright in clear water. Then it was magically gone 

[gim]

23 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Here in MI ~ Pike possession regs are 2 per day and at least 24 inches. 

A couple of the smaller, weedy places I fish in the canoe,

I'd need to fish through 25 12-15 inch pike to get ONE over 24 inches.

 

Sounds like Michigan needs to update their regs if you ask me.  Keeping the more sizable versions and releasing the small ones only compounds the existing problem.

[RevoSEMIpro]

You could make the daily bag 100 a day under 24" and not see a change...

 

Even (most) folks that are willing to eat pike are not going to mess with cleaning hammer handles - juice just isn't worth the squeeze...unless you are keeping 10 and just writing off the sides, filleting out the back and tail.

[gim]

10 minutes ago, RevoSEMIpro said:

You could make the daily bag 100 a day under 24" and not see a change...

 

Unless there's a whole lot of @TnRiver46 around.  Then they might make a dent.

 

I have a couple friends who pickle the smaller ones.  Its pretty good but its also a process that takes time.

[TnRiver46]

17 minutes ago, RevoSEMIpro said:

You could make the daily bag 100 a day under 24" and not see a change...

 

Even (most) folks that are willing to eat pike are not going to mess with cleaning hammer handles - juice just isn't worth the squeeze...unless you are keeping 10 and just writing off the sides, filleting out the back and tail.

I just told everyone to watch for bones and i spit them out, seems like out of 6 of us I was the only one getting any bones.  I’ve also pan fried and eaten the fillets with a fork. I did cut them up into small chunks before deep frying like you would catfish so it was easier to see the pieces with tons of bones and throw them out 

[Swamp Girl]

I just eat pike slowly and remove the bones as I find them. Again, they're delicious. 

[gim]

You can remove the y bones when you filet them.  I'm not very proficient at it, but I have relatives who can do it blind folded.  Takes practice and a sharp knife.

[Further North]

8 hours ago, gimruis said:

 

Sounds like Michigan needs to update their regs if you ask me.  Keeping the more sizable versions and releasing the small ones only compounds the existing problem.

That seems painfully obvious...gotta wonder what's going on there...

[MassBass]

Consider that in some Maine regions, the Northern Pike is an invasive. When these monsters get into a lake that was historically a native brook trout fishery, forget it no more brook trout. Something interesting about the Pike, is that small pike are a warm water fish, but when they get big they become a cold water fish. So to target big pike over small pike may require different tactics depending on the season. For example bass anglers fishing shallow in summer will probably only encounter small pike. In that season to go for big pike in a lake you would have to fish deep. My biggest pike was caught in a river in late spring. River pike are probably comparable to river musky. They are more predictable to locate and usually more aggressive than lake fish. 

[Metallion]

I enjoy catching the pike as they put up a good fight, but I enjoy catching everything when I go out to fish. I am not just a bass fisherman, I enjoy whatever my catch. I only target them in the one creek near my house where they are loaded with them.