Author Topic: how shallow is too shallow? (Read 11299 times)

Bareback Jack · « **Reply #30 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:15 AM »

Biggest pike I've caught (22 Lb) was in 3 fow on a live minnow. I set most mine 3-15 fow and depending vegetation.

coldsteel · « **Reply #31 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:19 AM »

Quote from: Bareback Jack on Jan 11, 2012, 10:15 AM

Biggest pike I've caught (22 Lb) was in 3 fow on a live minnow. I set most mine 3-15 fow and depending vegetation.

that is a big ol' girl, do you like heavy vegetation or kind of spotty? I usually fish heavy if I can find it and try to have the bait right above it. I have not caught anything worth talking about tho (yet)

bigredonice · « **Reply #32 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:23 AM »

in my area, less than 3 FOW and you are in pickerel territory. Biggest pike I've seen in the winter were attacking suspended panfish in 20 feet of water.

harrops26 · « **Reply #33 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:27 AM »

My biggest pike 20 lbs was taken in less than 2 FOW

coldsteel · « **Reply #34 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:32 AM »

I usually fish about 6-8 FOW I think that I might expand my trap area from 3-15 FOW this year by the sounds of it deeper and shallower seems to be producing large pike.

Bareback Jack · « **Reply #35 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:33 AM »

Coldsteel,
I set-up off of it or around it.The problem we have in Montana is the lakes and Res go-up and down so much you end up with willows and other stuff growing there.That makes for a snaggy,tangled fishing.
The one mentioned above I sat for 2hrs working the line and fish free,got lucky I guess.I'm hooked on shallow for pike,I have caught alot in shallow water.
BBJ

coldsteel · « **Reply #36 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 10:41 AM »

thanks for advice, it makes sense... I mostly fish large weeded bays on Champlain or smaller ponds with similar structure and I do not use electronics haha I am still in the stone ages. I am definately going to try shallo this year.. Does it matter the time of year and how shallow you will go or do they stay pretty consistant?

33Canuck · « **Reply #37 on:** Jan 11, 2012, 11:42 AM »

I have caught many a 5-10lb gator in 3' of water, never hung bait much less than that but guess I should try maybe the monster is lurking in that zone

MRC2572 · « **Reply #38 on:** Jan 14, 2012, 12:06 PM »

to tell you the truth i have only caught one pike in more than six feet of water. Most have been around or just over three feet. Some of the bigger ones were even shallower. 22lb pike in just over two feet of water.

farmboy · « **Reply #39 on:** Jan 14, 2012, 02:51 PM »

Almost every time I head out I set one shallow line and one deep line. Depends on the day but if you have both shallow and deep water sets, the fish will tell you where they are at that day and you can then adjust your lines accordingly.
I have noticed that late in the day, just prior to sunset, the big pike often move up shallow. Some of my biggest pike have come just prior to or right at sunset and in shallower water.
I have caught pike in 2 feet of water below the ice and all the way down to 30 feet. In my opinion it just depends on the time of year and the body of water you are fishing. There are no set rules for fishing, seems like every time I head out I learn something new or disprove what in my mind was a 'set rule'.
I'm no expert, just my two cents.

mempfree · « **Reply #40 on:** Jan 18, 2012, 06:17 PM »

I would agree, on what Farmboy has said. I've caught a 12lb Pike in 20 Feet of Water, just under the ice, in late Feb, just about 1pm in the afternoon, with a five inch minnow, for bait

. I would say, set up, some Tip-up's, in the shallow water and deeper, water. Or, set all in shallow water, in the morning, then move then, to deeper water, during the day, then back to the shallows, in the late afternoon. See how that works. I just really enjoy, going out, being with friends and family, and if I get a big one. Well, thats the Cats Meow!

ochocenko · « **Reply #41 on:** Jan 19, 2012, 11:23 AM »

I'm with farboy too. I think the main "ingredient" in finding the pike, is finding the feed. #1, fish won't be in an area where there is no feed, and #2 if they are in that area, it's becuase they aren't hungry. Pike move shallower in the eve and early morn becuase thats where their feed is, be it walleye, perch or whites. Perch have poor eyesight and don't do well in the dark so they move to the shallows later in the day (the walleye follow as well to feed on them). Thats when the pike move up. I fish for perch and eyes religously in the winter. When I'm doing that, I always have a tip up set up somewhere close by (we in saskatchewan only get two lines per person). If the perch are in the area, the pike will be cruising around too, looking for a helpless perch. Thats why sometimes you will notice perch and walleye bites come and go fairly frequently (like 5-10 mins). Perch will be bitting fast and then stop dead. Thats when grandpa gator swims in to check things out. He will pass and the perch come back in their school. I've seen it lots on the camera. I like to try to keep my tip up shallower than where I'm fishing. Try to find any kind of ridge or structure and put it on the shallow side of the structure.

Having said all that, I fish only a few bodies of water in the winter and things could be dramatically different on other bodies. Just my two cents!

northernnyice · « **Reply #42 on:** Jan 23, 2012, 09:21 AM »

You got it right farmboy... Every time we decide we have figured something out for sure, the pike go and do something off the wall crazy that makes me start my logic back from scratch. We have figured a lot out about fish through all kinds of studies but there are so many things we will just never figure out about fish. With that said, my experience shows me that the more stained the water, the shallower the baitfish are running, and we get our big pike very shallow on large bays that are relatively weedy or some kind of a structural flat. In very clear water like the st. Lawrence, the big pike like about 15-20 fow with nearby access to very deep water.. For example a bay with a good weed line in 15-20fow that drops into the 40-50fow shipping channel, setting up on the shallow side of the weeds is killer. Just my experience. My 3 biggest pike have come in water less that 8 feet

ChillerThriller · « **Reply #43 on:** Jan 25, 2012, 09:05 PM »

This year has been a weird year for pike. During the day we have done well in 8-16 FOW, and in the last hour before dark we have been doing well on big pike in 2 FOW. We have also found that keeping quiet in the spread has lead to more success. Running around the tip ups in the shallow water drastically reduce bites. My 0.02.

fishon35 · « **Reply #44 on:** Feb 14, 2012, 08:52 AM »

I've seen some beauties come out of 3 ft. of water with the tip-up set at a foot and a half!

mytiburon · « **Reply #45 on:** Nov 13, 2012, 08:21 AM »

My best pike (23 lbs) has been caught in 2.5 feet of water, I have wrecked auger blades trying to get too shallow. Having said that I have found that it is generally slower fishing for the very shallow lines but if the flag on them pops your heart starts racing.Most of my fish is caught between 20-5 feet of water and some days they are even deeper.

bigredonice · « **Reply #46 on:** Nov 26, 2012, 12:13 PM »

After a winter like the last one, I'm pretty convinced that there is no too shallow. I caught 95% of my pike last year in 3 feet or less of water. My best holes all winter were in less than two feet of water.

Here's one from late ice, my hole, my tipup, but it got so warm that the edge of the ice couldn't hold me anymore, so a skinnier friend had to take this flag....only about 18" of water there...and that was the third pike from that hole...

Team Robinson · « **Reply #47 on:** Nov 28, 2012, 02:51 AM »

When I was young, all we had was pickerel and I got real good at finding them fast. When I moved to a pike water state years later, I found that these fish acted just like pickerel and I never had an issue finding or catching them. Cant say as I am the monster slayer (cause I am not) but I can always catch a good number of 24-28" fish which is good with me.

I always fish 6-8' and look for weeds that are about 3' below the ice. If I can see weeds from the top side, I will set a minnow about 1' over the top of those weeds. I dont set up on brown/dead weeds either... They have to be green and thriving.

I have fished in 4' of water but never have caught anything there. Maybe because all the giants are there scaring off the smaller ones

You guys have convinced me to try at least 1 trap shallow this year.

finlessbrown · « **Reply #48 on:** Dec 01, 2012, 02:47 PM »

Quote from: coldsteel on Jan 11, 2012, 10:41 AM

thanks for advice, it makes sense... I mostly fish large weeded bays on Champlain or smaller ponds with similar structure and I do not use electronics haha I am still in the stone ages. I am definately going to try shallo this year.. Does it matter the time of year and how shallow you will go or do they stay pretty consistant?

i fish champlain quite bit and it can be pretty predictable most of the time. i don't know about the north end of the lake but the south end doesn't fish very well in less than 4 feet of water. i'm not saying you can't get any real shallow but the majority of fish are around 5-6 fow to 10 fow. around first ice most of the fish are out deeper from 10- 12 fow, with fish moving shallow as the season goes on.

thefshdentist · « **Reply #49 on:** Dec 12, 2012, 09:22 AM »

it depends on the time of year for me. In march i have had my reels on bottom and caught pike.

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Author Topic: how shallow is too shallow? (Read 11299 times)