30 lb Wabamun Pike Hunt
 

My previous posts were all titled "20 lb Wabamun Pike Hunt". I've decided to do a bit of goal setting, forget about the tiny 20 lbers, and shoot for a 30 lb pike next year.:) How did I do this fall?

The open water Wab season was cut short due to our very cold weather in later October. So other than the odd ice fishing jaunt, I have to wait for open water and the season opening in May. In about 5 or 6 visits to Wabamun from Sept. 15 to about Oct. 21, we landed a couple of 15 lb pike, lots of 10-12 lb pike, and had our 20 lb pike right beside the boat. Then it shook the jig just before being netted. But tons of fun and I learned a lot about pike and their habits, especially the bigger ones.

This winter I've ordered a number of "how to catch giant pike" books from our friends in England of all places. They seem masters of "giant pike fishing" and if they can catch them in that small highly populated island, I'm going to listen to what they say... Basically the method for the big ones is to use "dead bait". Not that you can't catch a huge pike on lures...we do all the time over here...but the big ones are more consistently caught on "dead bait" either on the bottom, floating just off the bottom, or in some cases under a bobber or float, and in some cases on casting with dead bait.

The basic idea of these British trophy pike anglers is that a large pike and a small pike are virtually two different species of fish. The smaller pike smash savagely at anything moving and are easy to catch on lures. The big 20 lb plus pike are very different. Think "channel catfish". Most of their feeding is by smell and they eat dead and dying fish off the bottom of lakes. They of course will still attack a lure if they are in the mood...but mainly they prefer to casually sniff the water, hone in on a dead or dying whitefish on the bottom for example, and scoop it up for dinner.

Smelly "ocean fish" are the preferred bait as they contain a lot of oil. So they use mackeral, herring, and smelts. Like over here, they recommend fishing a drop off just on the side of a larger shallow feeding area. For example, fish the 15 ft. level on a drop off right off a shallow 4-6 ft. weedy area, preferably on the "wavy side".

So armed with my new "British Trophy Pike Fishing" methods, I figure that 30 lber is just a formality this coming year for me :) And don't worry, I will post the photo. By the way the biggest pike I have heard coming from Wabamun from a person I can trust is 31 lbs. But everyone feels that there are numbers of 30 and even 40 lb fish in the lake, especially since it has been catch and release only the last several years.

If you have any ideas as to what has worked for you on the "over 20 lb pike" at Wab or elsewhere, feel free to share...

Creature baits. The biggest and ugliest the better! Havent caught any 30+#'s yet, but had a fair share of 20+#'s. Good luck! make sure you post a pic when you find her. Regards.

Ive got some baits I think will do good this winter, tried a decent sized sucker last winter and ended up catching a 4 pound pike with it, so I upsized. Hoping to break my new 25 pound PB with something a bit bigger :sHa_shakeshout:
here is a site you will find interesting and informative
http://pikeonline.co.uk/baits/the-swallowed-bait

There is no trick to catching big pike at wab. But to catch one over 20 your gonna need to have the boat in the water 16hrs a week from may to november and work that lake hard. they move from spot to spot thru out the year. There arent many big girls in there over 20. under? yes. 10-18 is common. I have fished that lake a lot. Im sure there is a 30Lber in there but unless you get lucky i think its just gonna be lots of hard work.

Biggest i have seen is 19# 3ounces caught by my best friend not me. Weighed it on a new digital scale. That fish was a monster.

Fish cops told me that a little girl and her dad reeled in a 43 pounder from shore by the power plant...not sure if it's true but that is what I was told

If they did it would be the new Alberta record. Can catch and release a fish and retain a record if you have pictures showing weight and measurements and have a witness vouch for it.

LC

Don't think pike from Wabamun would get much over 25 pounds, very skinny long pike at wabamun, hard for them to get much over 25 pounds.

i disagree BSGH; and i know you have put in more time than most at wab. The really "big" fish i have caught there (i consider over 20lbs to be "really big") have been short. well under 38". I have caught several pike near LLB in the same length class that tip the scales 5 - 8 lbs less.

I saw a guy with my own two eyes maybe fifty feet from my boat land a twenty seven pounder ON THE FLY my gawd it was huge and I myself landed a twenty one pounder once at wab

oh yeah just remembered twenty pounds six ounces last year by my bro on a tip up at the fallis spot

I would argue that. The 44" one I caught last winter almost didn't fit through a 10" hole.

holy ****! what did that pig weigh?

You will always find your biggest gators of the season through the ice.

They fatten up and fill up with eggs under the ice and turn into blimps.

That last picture of the gator is an absolute tank.

good luck on your quest elmo. after the time youv'e put in on wab looking for that monster you should be giving tips, not buying them from england. who knows how many times that trophy was tempted only to have some hungry smaller one grab your bait. call it timing or luck, if you put in the time it will happen.

Best of luck to you this season I will be personally going for a 15lb Burbot, a Walleye over 8lbs and a pike over 15lbs from the river.

Will be trying for a 3lb Perch as well from Christina lake or Winefred

Not as ambitious as your 30lb hunt But I figure from a river they are pretty solid goals.

I think your setting your goals a little high, 3lb perch would be the new AB record....

Agreed - also, to note, this clearly upholds the British Dude's theory as you are not trolling plugs or typically jigging a lure through the ice - you are using dead still (or mostly still) baits. That's what the big girls like.

As far as Wabamun having only thin pike - I completely understand that opinion as most of the 8 - 16lbers are, in fact quite thin HOWEVER the heaviest fish are the same length at WAb ir seems. Some of these 38" fish but can be 8-10lbs heavier (and well in the 20 lb range).

Last year a guest on my boat landed a 15lber that was like football - 33"-34" yet, an hour later a 36"-37" weighed in at 11lbs.

I figure if I go volume and Dynamite fishing I'll pull it off. Probably gonna go to jail... But hey records are meant to be broken.

Wow, thats a great idea... :sSig_cool2:

I'm joking naturally, and I likely will never see or catch any perch beyond 1.5lbs but its the one thing that I have an unrealistic goal for and damn perch are good eating so I'll continually try for it.

your walleye and pike goals are very realistic. good luck on the 15 lb burb and over 3lb alberta perch. your gonna need it. but hey.... thats what keeps us fishing!

I will agree with you, they sure are tasty!

The Burbot record is 18lb 11.8oz I've seen a 12er got caught right next to me so I will have to work for that one. But the beauty of where I fish is its 20 minutes from my job site so I can go literally everyday after work until I get it.

your up conklin way?

Naww. I work in a shop in town, but I can fish the bridge to nowhere, the treatment plant or swing to christina lake everyday. Although Christina and its tributaries are the only easily accessible area's for Perch. And it'll be much more likely for me to get my Burbot out of that lake then from the River as well. So I'll probably alternate Between Christina Lake and the Bridge, Go for my Pike/walleye one day then the Perch/ Burbot the next.

I didn't weigh it but the chart I have to give weights by measurments put it around 24 lbs.

what chart did you use? mine was 41 inches with a 17 inch girth and the chart said 26 pound 8 ounces I think. I settled for 25
http://www.csgnetwork.com/fishfreshwtcalc.html

I would not be the least bit surprised if that fish you caught would have been 26 or 27. It's got the length and the girth. Definitely a great fish no matter what its weight was!