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I almost didn't go out Sunday but ended up catching ~40 small perch and 5 keepers, a nice pike, and then a monster pike nearly destoryed my setup.I had a Jaw-Jacker out with a 8" herring, but unbeknownst to me it had frozen solid, so when it got hit it didn't popup, or ring the bells. I ended up going out to stretch my legs and could hear my drag screaming, so I ran over and over half my line was already gone... Of course during this time she had also ran all the way over to my camp, and did a few laps around my camera cord and my jigging line. So I could feel that the fish was stuck on something after fighting it for a few minutes, assumed it must've been my camera, and then walked the 25ft over to my tent with my rod. THe bucket I had my jigging rod on was tipped over, rod gone, all my loose lures were yard saled around the hole, and my camera display was half pulled into the hole (thankfully it didnt fit). I managed to pull the jack up by the camera cord, and the tip up line snapped as she came up, but I got my thumb in her mouth before she could drop back down. Ended up being my PB jack at almost 37", but super fat. Sadly she had a treble right down her throat into her stomach, so I didn't get to send her back.Total disaster, it probably sounds made up. Thankfully my jigging rod was also wrapped up in the camera so I did get it back haha.Blackstrap does have some giants apparently!
Great story HatandBoots. If someone had been filming you as you sorted out this mess it would very quickly dispel the notion that ice fishing is boring. Pure pandemonium.I have started rigging big smelts on tip ups with heavy circle hooks rather than trebles to up the chances of a successful release. That might cost me the odd fish, but as you point out, it is a shame to have to take those big breeders out of the gene pool.
I used the North one, and I am sure your SUV would make it no problem. You could look at the South one and then decide which one you want to use. There was a car on the ice today, and he used one of the launches.