Northern Pike in very stained water?

I like to fish a small pond in Minnesota. It is located in the bog so it is very dark. The lake is about 4-7' deep around the outside, and gets to 15-18' feet in the middle. Around the 4-7' there are thick lilypad patches. What type/color of lures should i rig up to catch bigger northern pike? also during the summer will the northern pike be located in the deep part of the lake or around the lily pads?

Northern Pike in very stained water?
All decent answers from everyone...Something no one has mentioned are topwater lures. Try running a large black zara spook over open water, over submerged veggies or near your lilly pads. You can also use dark colored buzzbaits in these areas as well as right through your lilly pads (buzzbaits are pretty weedless so cast past pockets of open water in the pads and run the lure right over the open pockets.) Id also add a power grub to your buzzbait for an extra little zip to your presentation. The reason for the dark color and this holds true to other lures as well...in heavily stained water, light has trouble penetrating the water due to particles in it. Normally pike love flashy and quite frankly obnoxiously loud and gaughty colored lures. With stained water as well as low light conditions you want to shy away from bright colors and use blacks or dark colors because the fish sees the silloette of the lure better rather then the color of the paint on the lure. It makes sense if you think about it...without the light comming through the water its not gonna light up your lure or reflect off of the shiny surface of your blades on your spinner.

Also with stained water, you want to make multiple casts into good areas so the fish can locate the lure. Sometimes youll get em on the third or fourth cast just cause the fish needs time to find it.

I dont know if youre familiar with topwater lures but if not...the main thing is when you have a strike, wait till you feel the weight of your fish on your line before you set the hook. Fish will miss the lure sometimes, turn around and hit it again. If they miss just keep your retrieve and they may hit it again.

I hope this helps you catch more toothy wolves of the water. Good luck and let the big ones go so you can keep fishin for em in your little pond!
Reply:Spoons and anything shiny or noisy. This should triggger a strike. Also being in MN you can use live sucker minnows. Try rig a sucker to a larger hook with a leader and a bobber. Make sure it is just off the bottom. This is how I would go after the BIG ONES in MN.
Reply:well you always want to use colors of the minnows that other fish eat (sunfish, perch, bass, chubbs, etc) using a perch colored rapala/crankbait works incredibly well for Northerns. Northern Pike like the colder waters so its really your best bet to get as deep as you can. try those Lillypads they should be holding all sorts of beautiful game fish with nice size to them. well I'm sure you will catch many fish and I wish you well!!!
Reply:Try size 5 or 6 spinners and large crankbaits and minnow in shades of green and you can find them in low or deep water where ever the food is.
Reply:Northerns love jointed Rapalas..... give one a try. I like the "perch" colored ones, green and yellow.... And there will be lots of northerns in the shallow areas, but the big guys will be in deeper water.



Good luck fishing, and have FUN!
Reply:There are two lures that i can think of that would work very well in this situation. The first is a large jointed rapala as Sharon has said. There are two wonderful colors to use it dirty water.Perch color and fire tiger. You dont have to worry if this place has perch in it or not, it will still catch plenty of northerns. The second is a large spinnerbait. Use on with gold blades and it would be better to get on with 2 or 3 blades, since it is staind water. You will find the biggins in the deeper water or near springs. The small ones will be hear to but the sometimes wander up in the shallower water.



Other lures you probably should try are:



1. Muskie jigs: Get yourself some muskie sized jigs and add a matching 5 or 6 inch grub to it. I learned this excellent tip off of in-fisherman tv. This lure choice will most likely give you the best chance to get the trophy northern pike.

2. Bass Jigs: Get yourself some bass jigs if you dont have any already and add a soft plastic leech or goby as a trailor. Another excellent tip from in-fisherman tv.



I cant garentee these last two lures will work great but the are worth a try. Cast these into the deep water.



good luck!
Reply:Use a chub or worm on a harness.
Reply:You will find the Pike where the natural spring empties into the main pond. They will be where the cooler water is in the summertime. So in deeper water (cooler) or where the underground spring is.(cooler) You may find one or two throughout the weeds. But mostly in the cooler water. Use live bait. Or you can go with a spoon or if the water is very stained go with a inline spinner with the biggest thumpiest(is that a word?) blade you can find.