My Labor Day pike.

keithdog · 09-03-12, 06:32 PM

A bit of a story to this on. I went out planning to catch a HAWG bass. I was on the water by 4AM and getting a little action on a black spinnerbait. Just as the sun started to peek through I picked up a couple small bass on a jig. The Jitterbug wasn't producing at all so I took it off and put on a Rattlin Spook, one of my favorites! I took a couple more bass that were around 3 pounds each. Then I worked my way down to a floating swim platform anchored in about 8 foot of water. I often get a couple bass at this platform, so I cast the Spook out beyond the platform and started working it right alongside it. Suddenly, the water erupted and the fight was on. I thought it was an average bass at first as it didn't seem to be pulling all that hard. But when I applied some leverage, the pike took off and spun my boat around. For what seemed like 15 minutes, it was a patient tug of war with the pike towing my boat around where she wanted to go. When I got the fish close to the boat and realized it was a big pike with a Spook loaded with trebles, I paused for thought. I had no net and forgot to load the gaff that is for just such occations as this one. I grabbed my digital scale because it has the lip grabbing pincers for gripping the fish by the lip. Every time I reached to grab the pike by the lip it would take off. Finally I had it by the boat and looking worn out. Reached in with the scale and grabbed onto the lower jaw and started lifting it out. When the pike was about half way out of the water, it bucked like a bramma bull and fell back into the water, taking the scale with it and sending it out to the bottom of the lake.

DANGIT!!! Now no scale and how was I getting this thing landed? I worked it back up along side of the boat, slid my hand into the gill plate and lifted the pike into the bottm of the boat, just like Al Linnder would, where she went wild thrashing around. lol Word of warning, pike gill plates and the gill area will poke numereous painfull holes in your hand and fingers. Anyways, I can't tell you how much she weighed since she threw my scale into the lake, but I know she is larger than the 12 pounder I have on my wall at home. I caught a few more bass on the Spook that were chasing shad. But once the heat of the bright sun started bearing down everything shut down.

nofearengineer · 09-03-12, 06:43 PM

That's a heck of a pike, Keith! They are definitely not lippable haha. I have had some success grabbing them "over the shoulders" and under the belly, but nothing that big. Did you keep her?

woody · 09-03-12, 06:44 PM

Hey keith, that's a great story about an awesome fish.

-Mark

keithdog · 09-03-12, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nofearengineer

That's a heck of a pike, Keith! They are definitely not lippable haha. I have had some success grabbing them "over the shoulders" and under the belly, but nothing that big. Did you keep her?

I usually grab then "over the shoulders" too, but I've tried it on large pike before and it's pretty darn tough. They are so slimy, that when anything bigger than a few pounds bucks, it's hard to hold that grip. And yes, she is boned out and in the freezer!

keithdog · 09-03-12, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by woody

Hey keith, that's a great story about an awesome fish.

-Mark

Thanks Mark.

lilmule · 09-03-12, 07:09 PM

Nice toothie critter

bamabassman · 09-03-12, 07:31 PM

awesum keith...nuff said bro!! hahahaha!!!

USMCbassman · 09-03-12, 07:32 PM

Wow....nice fish!

bcklash · 09-03-12, 07:44 PM

Awesome

nobass · 09-03-12, 08:03 PM

woe there feller thats one heck of a big carp you got there

keithdog · 09-03-12, 08:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nobass

woe there feller thats one heck of a big carp you got there

Shhhhhhhh Don, the rest of the fellers don't know no better. haha

bassboogieman · 09-03-12, 08:12 PM

Nice pike, Keith. Few meals in that one for sure.

kennethdaysale · 09-03-12, 09:08 PM

Whoa ! Well Keith yesterday you said you wanted a lunker, that fish qualifies. When you say rattlin spook do you mean the one knocker? My fav!

joedog · 09-03-12, 09:23 PM

Great story!
Great fish!

Bummer about the scale!
The gill plates are better than the teeth but not alot.
I've experienced it alot this summer.
Is there a good way to handle a pike when no net, now grip, no scale?
Thanks for the share!

keithdog · 09-03-12, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennethdaysale

Whoa ! Well Keith yesterday you said you wanted a lunker, that fish qualifies. When you say rattlin spook do you mean the one knocker? My fav!

No Ken, not the One Knocker, but the Rattlin Spook. The Rattlin has 10 tungsten bbs whereas the One Knocker has one.

Jrob78 · 09-03-12, 10:29 PM

Awesome Pike Keith! I can only imagine trying to get that sucker in the boat without suffering some kind of bleeding injury. You need to put some kind of float on your next scale.

keithdog · 09-04-12, 06:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jrob78

Awesome Pike Keith! I can only imagine trying to get that sucker in the boat without suffering some kind of bleeding injury. You need to put some kind of float on your next scale.

Good idea Jrob, or attach a small cabel I can clip to the boat.

lilmule · 09-04-12, 08:48 AM

Ah as it is suspect being able to pull the boat a tad was enough give to keep the line from breaking,and wear it out.So not far off attaching a float and or cable.

WaffleJaw · 09-04-12, 09:40 AM

That thing is awesome!!...Nice catch Keith!...Those are great photos as well!

geoffreys7 · 09-04-12, 09:41 AM

Really nice fish, I've always wanted to catch one.

RustyFender · 09-04-12, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lilmule

Ah as it is suspect being able to pull the boat a tad was enough give to keep the line from breaking,and wear it out.So not far off attaching a float and or cable.

Huh?.............................

Dogmatic · 09-04-12, 10:53 AM

That's a lunker in my book, nice fish! Gotta get a float for your next scale, and does this catch tie into our talk about the need for leaders?

Dave63 · 09-04-12, 04:41 PM

Nice pike!!!

MississippiBoy · 09-04-12, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lilmule

Ah as it is suspect being able to pull the boat a tad was enough give to keep the line from breaking,and wear it out.So not far off attaching a float and or cable.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RustyFender

Huh?.............................

Took me a second...here's my interpretation:

I suspect that since you were in a light jonboat, the fish was able to tow you around some and wear itself out, without putting enough stress on the line to break it. Also, it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to attach your scales to the boat with a cable, or put a float on it.

keithdog · 09-04-12, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dogmatic

That's a lunker in my book, nice fish! Gotta get a float for your next scale, and does this catch tie into our talk about the need for leaders?

I didn't have a leader and luckily, I've never been bitten off from a pike when they hit a topwater. But I've been bitten off several times using a crankbait.

09-03-12, 06:32 PM	#1
keithdog BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: IN Posts: 8,308	My Labor Day pike. A bit of a story to this on. I went out planning to catch a HAWG bass. I was on the water by 4AM and getting a little action on a black spinnerbait. Just as the sun started to peek through I picked up a couple small bass on a jig. The Jitterbug wasn't producing at all so I took it off and put on a Rattlin Spook, one of my favorites! I took a couple more bass that were around 3 pounds each. Then I worked my way down to a floating swim platform anchored in about 8 foot of water. I often get a couple bass at this platform, so I cast the Spook out beyond the platform and started working it right alongside it. Suddenly, the water erupted and the fight was on. I thought it was an average bass at first as it didn't seem to be pulling all that hard. But when I applied some leverage, the pike took off and spun my boat around. For what seemed like 15 minutes, it was a patient tug of war with the pike towing my boat around where she wanted to go. When I got the fish close to the boat and realized it was a big pike with a Spook loaded with trebles, I paused for thought. I had no net and forgot to load the gaff that is for just such occations as this one. I grabbed my digital scale because it has the lip grabbing pincers for gripping the fish by the lip. Every time I reached to grab the pike by the lip it would take off. Finally I had it by the boat and looking worn out. Reached in with the scale and grabbed onto the lower jaw and started lifting it out. When the pike was about half way out of the water, it bucked like a bramma bull and fell back into the water, taking the scale with it and sending it out to the bottom of the lake. DANGIT!!! Now no scale and how was I getting this thing landed? I worked it back up along side of the boat, slid my hand into the gill plate and lifted the pike into the bottm of the boat, just like Al Linnder would, where she went wild thrashing around. lol Word of warning, pike gill plates and the gill area will poke numereous painfull holes in your hand and fingers. Anyways, I can't tell you how much she weighed since she threw my scale into the lake, but I know she is larger than the 12 pounder I have on my wall at home. I caught a few more bass on the Spook that were chasing shad. But once the heat of the bright sun started bearing down everything shut down. Attached Thumbnails __________________ Just one more cast, and then some!

09-03-12, 06:43 PM	#2
nofearengineer BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Southwest IN Posts: 5,630	That's a heck of a pike, Keith! They are definitely not lippable haha. I have had some success grabbing them "over the shoulders" and under the belly, but nothing that big. Did you keep her? __________________ Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing it is not fish they are after.

09-03-12, 06:44 PM	#3
woody BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Jonesville, Indiana Posts: 3,597	Hey keith, that's a great story about an awesome fish. -Mark Last edited by woody; 09-03-12 at 06:54 PM.

09-03-12, 07:31 PM	#7
bamabassman BassFishin.Com Premier Elite Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: cedar bluff, alabama Posts: 15,292	awesum keith...nuff said bro!! hahahaha!!! __________________ so many lures, so little time.

09-03-12, 07:44 PM	#9
bcklash BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Elliston, Va. Posts: 4,372	Awesome __________________ The soap box, the ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box. keep us free:

09-03-12, 07:09 PM	#6
lilmule BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Buchanan,Tn Posts: 2,685	Nice toothie critter

09-03-12, 07:32 PM	#8
USMCbassman BassFishin.Com Veteran Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: Oceanside, CA Posts: 532	Wow....nice fish!

09-03-12, 08:03 PM	#10
nobass BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: clarksville, tn, Posts: 1,690	woe there feller thats one heck of a big carp you got there __________________ the only easy day was yesterday

09-03-12, 08:12 PM	#12
bassboogieman BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Parkesburg, Pa. Posts: 3,762	Nice pike, Keith. Few meals in that one for sure.

09-03-12, 09:08 PM	#13
kennethdaysale BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: rock hill, sc Posts: 2,315	Whoa ! Well Keith yesterday you said you wanted a lunker, that fish qualifies. When you say rattlin spook do you mean the one knocker? My fav! __________________ Sometimes you gotta risk it to get the biscuit.

09-03-12, 09:23 PM	#14
joedog BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: JANESVILLE,WI. 53545 Posts: 3,415	Great story! Great fish! Bummer about the scale! The gill plates are better than the teeth but not alot. I've experienced it alot this summer. Is there a good way to handle a pike when no net, now grip, no scale? Thanks for the share! __________________ "Fishing isn't life or death... it's more important than that."

09-03-12, 10:29 PM	#16
Jrob78 BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 4,671	Awesome Pike Keith! I can only imagine trying to get that sucker in the boat without suffering some kind of bleeding injury. You need to put some kind of float on your next scale. __________________ There are 3 kinds of people in the world…those who can count and those who can’t. HRN4L

09-04-12, 08:48 AM	#18
lilmule BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Buchanan,Tn Posts: 2,685	Ah as it is suspect being able to pull the boat a tad was enough give to keep the line from breaking,and wear it out.So not far off attaching a float and or cable.

09-04-12, 09:40 AM	#19
WaffleJaw BassFishin.Com Super Veteran Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Dallas,TX (DFW) Posts: 2,212	That thing is awesome!!...Nice catch Keith!...Those are great photos as well! __________________ [nelsoncustomrods.com]

09-04-12, 09:41 AM	#20
geoffreys7 BassFishin.Com Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 17	Really nice fish, I've always wanted to catch one.

09-04-12, 10:53 AM	#22
Dogmatic BassFishin.Com Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Bucks County, PA Posts: 714	That's a lunker in my book, nice fish! Gotta get a float for your next scale, and does this catch tie into our talk about the need for leaders?

09-04-12, 04:41 PM	#23
Dave63 BassFishin.Com Active Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Farmersburg, IN Posts: 341	Nice pike!!!

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