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by Curt Kuester
Pike fun to catch
Spurned by some, and revered by the rest, the northern pike is now taking its place in the limelight of fishing. With the boom of fly fishermen just a few years ago, it was only a matter of time before these individuals started to seek out other opportunities, in the pursuit of excitement.
Those who live in the vicinity of a coastline naturally turned to the saltwater fishes for this outlet. The rest of these people, who live nowhere near the ocean, have turned to warm- and cool-water lakes, looking for something new.
For years, hard-core fly fishermen had kept it a secret. Now, the rest of the angling world is discovering these fish.
The strike of a northern pike is explosive and without hesitation. Their fighting ability is as close as anyone can get to that of the saltwater fish. Simply looking at the northern, one can see he is built for speed.
While these fish prefer to lie in wait for their meals, they think nothing of running down their prey if the situation arises.
These qualities that the northerns possess can make them an exciting target for the fly fishermen. When it comes to mealtime, any free swimming fish, duck or rodent will do.
Matching the hatch is not necessary when pursuing these fish. It is unnecessary for a pike fisherman to carry more than just a couple of different patterns in his fly box. The colors that one chooses seems more important.
The bunny fly, a large concoction of rabbit fur, is the most common one that the pike fishermen rely on. These flies, dressed in bright colors, such as chartreuse, white and yellow, will bring the most strikes.
Other patterns such as Lefty's deceivers, boufaces and epoxy minnows in sizes 4 to 4/0 and tied in various colors work just as well. Add to this list poppers and sliders, for when the pike are in very shallow water, and you would have the fly needed for any situation, to catch these predators.
The fly rod that is needed while chasing these fish does need considerable backbone. Any heavy freshwater or saltwater class rod in eight to ten weight is perfect.
A heavy trout-type rod will land the smaller fish; they just do not have the ability to work the bigger ones in. When pike fishermen talk about the smaller fish, it is the ones that are under 25 inches which are considered in that class of fish.
The Colorado state record is over 31 pounds, and the world record tops out over 50. These are exceptional fish, but most of the bigger fish in our area are around 15 to 20 pounds.
The heavier rods also aid in casting the large flies, which resemble a soaked rag on the end of your line.
With the teeth that these fish possess, steel leaders are needed. The razor sharp teeth of the northern pike can cut through heavy tippet with little or no effort.
Climax and Umpqua both make leaders with the steel leader already attached. Originally designed for bluefish and barracuda, these leaders have a place in the pike fisherman's arsenal.
If you are looking for large pike reservoirs, try Elevenmile, Spinney, Tarryall and Taylor. All hold good numbers of large fish.
William's Fork Reservoir near Kremmling has some of the largest fish found in the state. For pure numbers, Sanchez Reservoir near San Luis and Summit Reservoir by Mancos have tons of the smaller fish, though larger fish, up to 29 pounds, can be found in these lakes.
Now, with the pike in the shallow water looking for the easy meal, this is the time to give them a try. Just remember, keep your hands out of their mouths.
