Pickerel

[Smuth]

Any pickerel fans out there?

[Marty]

Any pickerel fans out there?

I wouldn't call myself a "fan", but I have 30 years of experience with them and might be able to answer a question or offer an opinion if that's what you had in mind.

[Smuth]

Marty

I like fishing for Picks, I was hoping somebody could turn me on to a spot. Central NJ lakes are pressured and sometimes tough to fish. Thanks for the reply.

What  is your favorite pickerel lure. Mine is a Cabelos aqua-glow purple/gold flecked worm. The picks seem to jump at that worm.

Stay Warm

-my wife's Grandma used to have a cabin on Rice Lake, almost across the lake from you. I loved going there. Eventually I want  to try Black Lake, but work gets  in the way!

[Marty]

What  is your favorite pickerel lure.

My experience is that they will readily hit anything you throw, from topwaters to bottom crawlers and everything in between. If I had to pick one lure it would probably be a spinnerbait by a small margin.

They are fun to catch and fight better than largemouth, in my opinion.

[Smuth]

Marty

Thanks I' ll try the spinner. Picks are fun to catch. I figure because they are mean and I just stuck a hook in its head.

Stay warm

[.dsaavedra.]

love em

[central.PA.bass]

i caught a couple this year on a R2S Bully Wa Frog..  it was pretty exciting

[Smuth]

I guess they do bite anything, I love the fight they give you, and they bite in the winter; Good Luck guys.

[bilgerat]

Hey Smuth, greetings from South Jersey. We are THE pick spot in the east.

Do yourself a favor, get away from the big lakes everyone knows about. Head into the Pinelands or find water off the beaten path and you'll find them.  Burlington County is loaded with spots. Just drive around and find them, that's how I find my spots.

As was said, they'll hit just about anything. Have plenty of extra tackle and pliers, you'll need them.

[Kingbass43]

Ok so where do u find these critters they look like a mix between a pike and a gar! im from the south so we may not have any down here

[Smuth]

Bilgerat, I heard the southern lakes hold picks, any suggestions?

Thanks for the tip

[Smuth]

Kingbass. Picks are similar to gar but with wider mouths. I think they are primarily a northern fish, but I'm not sure. They are fun to catch. At least once a year I get nailed dehooking the fish and have gotten some nasty cuts, but electric tape and a piece of a shirt work wonders!

[bilgerat]

Bilgerat, I heard the southern lakes hold picks, any suggestions?

Thanks for the tip

Smuth, I'm going to be honest with you when I tell you I don't fish any of the big well known bodies of water. It's not that I'm trying to hide any great spots or anything, I just hate fishing water that gets pounded. We stick to the out of the way spots. One thing I will tell you is I find most of my spots while traveling through the state. Stick to the county roads and secondary roads and you will find water. Keep a rod and a box of baits in the car and be ready to pull over and give it a shot. You'll be suprised how many times you'll hook up.

Burlington County is largely rural with plenty of prime pick water. That's why I suggested it. The picks dominate in Pineland lakes. I've fished cranberry bogs that were excellent fishing. Be mindful of posted areas.

Get some detailed county maps, pack lunch, fill your tank and leave home early.

As for baits you can be as simple or fancy as you want. 7" worms, inline spinners, topwaters, just be able to cover the whole water column.

[Smuth]

Bilgerat

Thanks for the advice. It sounds like a good way to kill a winter day, and find a few good spots. I'm looking forward to the trip!

Thanks

Again

Stay warm

[bilgerat]

Here's one to get you started.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=chatsworth+lake&sll=39.855849,-74.686882&sspn=1.381015,2.463684&gl=us&g=Burlington+County,+New+Jersey&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Chatsworth+Lake&ll=39.821095,-74.559917&spn=0.021589,0.038495&z=15

If you zoom out on the map you will see that County Route 532 (the road the lake is on) intersects Route 206. You will also see other water on the map. Some of it you can get to, some you can't.

Everything is frozen solid down here, you won't be doing any fishing anytime soon. You could still kill a day scouting water. Pack lunch because there is nothing around as far as places to eat. You are pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Beware of the Jersey Devil

Useless Chatsworth trivia for the day : Ocean Spray gets a large percentage of their cranberries from here. It's one of the largest cranberry producing regions in America.

[NewKidInTown]

What is your favorite pickerel lure.

My experience is that they will readily hit anything you throw, from topwaters to bottom crawlers and everything in between. If I had to pick one lure it would probably be a spinnerbait by a small margin.

They are fun to catch and fight better than largemouth, in my opinion.

I agree on all points made here 

[Smuth]

Bilgerat

THANKS, ironically I purchased county maps today, my wife will be happy! Thanks again.

The water is hard here except by the dam, threw for about an hour, got a nice tug but had to leave. Work always has a a way of screwing up your schedule!

I'm going to the fishing expo next week, wonder how much useless stuff I'll buy

Thanks Again

[RoLo]

For sheer numbers of pickerel, Chatsworth Lake and Bamber Lake have been our best waters.

On the downside, we've never boated any trophy-class chains from either water.

Though few are aware of it, New Jersey has produced two former world-record chain pickerel.

When I was a kid, the world-record was 9-lbs even from Green Pond, NJ (taken thru the ice on rod & reel).

This record was later broken by Lower Aetna Lake (Medford Chain of Lakes) with a 9lb 3oz pickerel.

New Jersey State biologists predict that the next world-record pickerel (now held by Georgia at 9lb 6oz),

will be broken again by New Jersey. They deem the most likely candidates to be the tidal brackish waters of Mullica and Wading Rivers.

These two are by far our favorite pickerel waters, the Wading River out of Chips Folly (near 542 bridge),

and the Mullica River from Lower Bank to Sweetwater.

We now live in central Florida which is chockfull of chain pickerel (Kissimmee, Toho, Walk-In-Water ~ ~),

but we have yet to boat any pickerel in Florida that approach the heavyweights we've boated in Jersey.

Roger

[Smuth]

RoLo

Wow!! 9lbers, must have be fun to dehook.

Heard the NJ went south to FA, sorry.

Good Luck in the lakes

[landscraper]

glad to see so many picerel fans out here in nj! the pines are loaded with pickerel infested waters. i would recommend hunting down some "sand plants". they are usually private so you need to sneak in, but they produce some of the largest pickerels and some huge numbers of bass and all other species. they are like nothing you normally fish here in nj. my friend caught a huge one this past year ,(i  posted it earlier) at the intersection of rt. 539 and rt. 72.

[Smuth]

Great Fish, must have been a tough fight!

[rondef]

Nice looking pickerel.

[Smuth]

Doesn't it make to want to fish right  now!

[Smuth]

Bilgerat

Made it down to Chatsworth, can you put a boat in; I didn't see any parking, do you park along the road. The ride was nice, but the lake is frozen :'(

Thanks for the info!

[bilgerat]

I own a boat (14' flat bottom) but have never had it in there. I never saw any signs saying you couldn't. I guess as long as you could get it over the guardrail it would be ok. I always parked on the other side of the road where the shoulder is wide without any problem.

Did you notice the stumpfield way out yonder ?!