NORTHERNS - INFORMATION, TACTICS AND PATTERNS
Part 1
In North America, Northern Pike and their related species were long regarded as problem species. Around 1960 this attitude started to change. In recent years Northerns have attained the status of a much sought after game fish. As a matter of note Northerns have long enjoyed this same status throughout the rest of the world. For years the bait and plug anglers have held sway in this country, with very few fly anglers actively seeking out these powerful game fish. In 1993, Barry Reynolds & John Berryman of Colorado published their book entitled “PIKE ON THE FLY”. This book caused many fly anglers to actively seek Northerns in their home water.
However, it interesting to note that before the arrival of the Europeans there were no Northerns found in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia or in the New England states. How this fact was determined I’m not sure, maybe the local Native Americans point out this fact to the visitors!!
In 1838, it was reported that Northern Pike were introduced into the Connecticut River as well as into a pond/slough that connected to the Black River. However, as early as 1637 Northerns are mentioned in colony reports both by Thomas Mortion’s famous “New English Canaan” and in the report of Alexander Whitaker of the Virginia Colony.
As an interesting historical side note: It is supposed by some that Northern Pike were introduced to Great Britain in the middle of the 11th Century. In the latter part of the 13th Century, Edward the First regulated the prices of different sorts of fish, and he placed Northern Pike higher than fresh Atlantic salmon. Northerns were said to have been so rare in the reign of Henry the Eighth that a large Northern Pike sold for double the price of lamb.
In 1861 John Murray, Keeper at Kenmure caught a 72 lb Northern on a fly in Loch Ken Kirkeud, Brightshire. In Mr. Francis Francis’ “Book on Angling” published in 1880 and in “American Water” published by Genio C. Scott in 1888 both books discuss the fishing methods for Northern Pike and Pickerel.
Northerns are found throughout Europe except in Northern Spain, Greece and the lower Balkans. They are also in Scandinavia and Russia. Some the very best Northern fishing on the continent seems to be found in Poland.
Depending on what volume you read, Northerns now are considered to be native to North America. However, it is noted that they originated in Europe 60 to 120 million years ago. Now I have always considered that to be a close, tight time frame!! It is believed that they swam through the brackish rivers of the Bering Sea following the receding ice cap to bridge the continents. The fact is that Northerns can survive in brackish water. Another theory was that fresh water will float over saltwater. Both theories may be true.
Northern Pike are often described as “Holarctic”, meaning they are found around the world in the northern latitudes. Four of the world’s species are found in North America: the Muskellunge, the Chain Pickerel, the Red Fin Pickerel and The Northern Pike. The other species are the Amur or Black Spotted Northern, which are found in the Eurasian area. There also is a subspecies of the Northern Pike that is found in Sweden, Canada and in a few central U.S. lakes called the Silver Pike.
The Northern Pike (Esox lucius) is also known as the freshwater cuda, great northern or jack. It is really nothing more than a wolf in fish scales. (So to speak) The Northern is the perfect freshwater predator. Although it prefers to ambush prey, it can move from a dead stop to 30 mph in one and one half the length of its body.
The underside of the Northern is generally white or cream colored. The sides will vary from dark olive green to olive brown or brown with gold flecks. There will also be seven to nine rows of yellowish or whitish spots. Both the dorsal and anal fins are set way back on the body and all the fins are oversized. The fins and the body shape mean that the Northern is built for speed. The duckbill shaped jaws have long sharp teeth and in the roof of the mouth there are pads of shortened recurved teeth designed to hold prey. The underside of the jaw has ten sensory pores.
FEEDING: More will be discussed later in this paper. For now it is enough to say that Northerns eat whatever they can, whenever they can. Northerns are primarily daylight feeders.
SENSES: Northerns are a top-level predator. They depend very strongly on sight to find food. Their eyes are highly movable, enabling them to track fast swimming prey and see in practically any direction. Because of the placement of the eyes back on the head, there is one area in which they are blind and that is close in, right in front of their nose. This is an important fact for the fly fisher to remember. However, Northerns can and do, thrive in murky lakes. In one study researchers even captured and blinded a few and still they thrived. This is not surprising as with many animals that lose a sense we often find that their other senses are enhanced.
The Northerns who were blinded thrived by using their lateral line sense, which includes the pores that run along each side of the body as well as those located under the jaws. Slight vibrations in the water, such as those produced by swimming baitfish activate tiny hairs inside those pores. Reliance on their lateral line sense explains, in part, why Northerns are drawn to flies that produce a lot of vibrations. Look at how many successful spin anglers employ the use of diving lips and rattles in their favorite plugs. The sense of smell is less important to Northerns than to most of the other freshwater species of fish.
FEEDING: WHAT DO NORTHERNS EAT?
Their diet is made up of forage fish, crayfish, leeches, frogs, mice, dragon and damsel fly nymphs and turtles, as well as scuds and the occasional baby duck or muskrat. Besides preying on any other species of fish that share their body of water, they will also forage on dead things. Also note that young Northerns, often called “hammer-handles”, will often eat prey nearly their own size, where mature adults tend to limit their prey to one-third of their length and about twenty-five percent of their body weight. Northerns always follow the same feeding behavior. As they prefer to sight feed when possible, they are lurking around cover. When a potential meal is sighted, the Northern will slowly curve its body into an “S” shape, looking somewhat like a striking snake. Then at the proper time it lunges forward. Once the Northern has gotten its curved teeth into the prey, the chance of escape is extremely limited. However, it is not totally unheard of or out of the question for a prey to escape. Many times while fishing waters that contain other species besides the Northerns, anglers have reported catching large fish with bite marks on them. I have seen this many times while brook trout fishing in certain areas of Canada, as well as on Fort Peck Reservoir right here in Montana. Once the prey is captured by the Northern it will then turn its meal around and shallow it head first.
GROWTH RATES: Under ideal conditions growth rates are very good for the Northern, up to sixteen inches in the first year. As they mature the growth rate slows. Some believe that Northerns live for twelve years. However, in the far northern areas of their range they live much longer. In warmer waters a Northern may reach thirty-six inches in six years. However in the colder waters of the far north, a thirty-six inch fish will be twelve years old. Bearing this in mind, how old do you think Northerns found in Canada are that run around forty-five to fifty inches? Water temperature and food availability are the two factors which control the growth rate in any body of water that the Northerns inhabit.
AN OVERVIEW OF A YEAR:
CYCLES OF THE NORTHERNS AS RELATED TO THE ANGLER
Let’s examine the entire year as it pertains to Northerns and the angler’s opportunities to take them with flies. We will look closely at the habits of the Northerns, where they live, what they eat, where and when they spawn, along with the various factors that will influence their actions and growth rates.
To start the year we will begin in the spring, just as the ice goes out. Once the ice goes out, the water temperature is really the critical component. The first major feeding time of the year occurs. This is called the Pre-Spawn. As the water temperatures warm to 32 to 40 degrees Northerns will move to the shallows from the deeper water of their winter location. Once there, they feed heavily--in part to make up for the lean winter months and to build strength for the upcoming spawn. These shallows are often in the areas that they will spawn in or very close to them. Remember, when they are feeding during the pre-spawn period, the water temperature is still very low and the fish are not as active as they will be later in the year.
As the water warms, Northerns will begin moving toward the shallow flats and back bays to feed. The males normally arrive first, then the female. Often the larger females will first hold just at the edge of the deep water, prior to the water reaching suitable temperatures for spawning. During this period the young males will feed heavily and can provide the fly fisher with excellent opportunities. To Northerns, spring means the time of year when the water temperatures warm and the pre-spawn feeding, spawning and post-spawn feeding. The warming water temperature finally drives Northerns out of the shallows and into the deeper water. This temperature is generally around 65 degrees.
It is interesting to note that in many lakes in northern latitudes the water temperatures may never warm enough to push Northerns out of the shallow water. This is a real plus for the fly fisher as springtime is the best time to sight-fish for Northerns.
As the water temperatures reach the 39 to 42 degree range the Northern feeding slows down to almost nil as they move into the preferred spawning habitat. Northerns prefer shallow bays with dark, weedy bottoms or even areas with a small feeder creek for spawning. The shallow, quiet waters warm first, dark bottoms absorb the sun’s heat better than sandy or even rocky bottoms. The shallow waters warm much more quickly than does the deeper waters of the lake. From the deeper water to the shallows the water temperature may vary from 8 to 15 degrees.
Northerns will feed prior to the spawning cycle for reasons previously stated. However once the actual spawning begins they seldom feed, though they may chase or follow a streamer, mostly they will turn away at the last second. Once the spawning cycle is completed there will be a time period of five to seven days where Northerns just seem to lay around in a state of exhaustion. Once this time period is past they will begin a heavy cycle of feeding!!! The spawning period will cover a three to four week period.
Northerns are random spawners. They scatter their eggs in the shallow water, most often over live or decaying aquatic plants or their roots. Sometimes Northerns will swim up tiny streams to spawn in adjacent marshes. They may deposit their eggs in only six inches of water. The eggs hatch out in three to four weeks. It is very important to remember that they will not spawn in the mouths of snow-melt rivers.
During the actual spawning Northerns prefer low light conditions. They are indeed prolific spawners. For example, a twenty-two inch female may lay 20,000 eggs, many of which will fall prey to small fish, crayfish, leeches, dragonfly nymphs and others. Northern pike colors don’t change during the spawning cycle and the individual fish shows very little territorial behavior. The newly hatched fry in no way resemble their parents. Newly hatched fry attach themselves to dead grass and twigs, sustained by the food in the yoke-sac. At a length of one and one half inches, scales begin to appear and at three inches the fingerlings are scaled. Most of the young Northerns will move to the lake during the first twenty-five days of life, before they are an inch long. At first everything eats the young Northerns, but those that survive slowly turn the tables and the hunted soon become the hunters.
Some Northerns in the southern part of their range will begin spawning at one year. However, most Northerns don’t begin to spawn until age two. In some of the extreme northern latitudes the fish are three or even four years old before they spawn.
Northerns have a broad tolerance range for water temperatures, water clarity and dissolved oxygen content. This makes them one of the most adaptable of the freshwater fish species. Though they prefer cooler water, they can survive in water that is in the low 80’s. If they can’t find cooler water they will grow slowly and don’t live as long. Because they can tolerate very low clarity and oxygen levels they are among the last game fish to die when a lake winter kills.
HABITAT-RESERVIORS - VS - NATURAL LAKES: Natural lakes are best because the change in water levels during the spawning cycle is natural, where reservoirs can go up and down and this may cause both the angler and the Northern problems. The biggest problem for the fish is the drying up of spawning ground or the actual dewatering of spawning grounds after the eggs are deposited. Problems for the angler are finding the Northerns under these conditions.
RIVERS: Though they prefer lakes, they will live in streams. They prefer streams with a gradient of ten feet per mile or a river with plenty of large back bays. Northerns are found in a good many rivers in North America. Like trout, Northern Pike prefers to avoid swift, heavy currents. A good river for Northerns is wide enough, deep enough and slow enough to make a float trip a very pleasant operation. The relatively shallow waters and consistent water temperatures of a river, means that Northerns are not forced to move around due to temperature changes, though there may be periods during a hot summer that will cause the fish to seek cooler waters such as spring holes and areas where other streams with cool water may enter. In rivers Northerns will inhabit deep pools or slack water, where they can hide until prey happens by. Furthermore, they will want to live in the water that is as slow as possible. In rivers the angler should look for them around wing dams, below falls, along the quiet edges of runs and in the deep, slow pools as well as in any back bays with suitable water depth. Also look at weed beds, in faster water look for the objects or structure that block the main force of the current. They can even be found in brackish saline waters where the river meets and mixes with the sea.
SUMMER CONDITIONS FOR THE NORTHERN
Once the shallows warm, Northerns will move out of the back bays and shallows. This happens for two reasons, first the actual water temperature, but the second reason is that the forage fish, which are not tolerant of warmer waters, will move out in search of cooler temperatures. As the forage fish go, so go Northerns, thus they follow the food.
By early summer Northerns have left the shallowest bays. They are then found at the edge of the shallow drop-offs, where the weeds have already started to grow, in channels between one part of the lake and others, or the channel between islands, and on the leeward sides of the points and islands. As the water continues to warm they move even further out. This generally means out to the first major drop-off edge. The smaller hammer-handles can be found in shallow water all year long. These fish will vary from one half pound to four pounds. The medium sized fish between four and a half and nine pounds are normally looking for cooler water and can be found in water from four to eight feet in depth. The larger Northerns of ten pounds or more will generally seek deeper water in the eight to twenty foot range, providing there is ample food.
Now this sounds pretty cut and dried but it isn’t. These rules are not cast in steel and there are many factors to consider. Where you find the various sized fish will depend on the latitude of the lake, the size and depth of the lake, the weather patterns and finally the food forms available. Often during the summer months the best Northern fishing may be found in six to sixteen feet of water. Best places are flooded timbers, weed beds, or at the edge of drop-off edges. During the spring they feed all the time, however during the summer months, mornings and evenings are believed to be the best time periods for fishing.
THE FALL, THE TURNOVER & THE NORTHERNS
Fall, this is the time period from the end of summer to the turn-over and to ice up. Often toward the very end of summer the angler will encounter what is called False Fall. This is when a storm or cool spell will cause the water temperature to drop, drawing both the forage fish and the Northerns back in the shallows. Then the heat of summer returns and the fish move out once again. But during the fall, as the water temperatures drop, Northerns and their prey will return to the shallows. During this time period the fishing can be very “spring like”, with the fish feeding heavily, but as the waters continue to cool so does the action. When the water temperature reaches 39 degrees the turnover will occur! The turnover is when the 39 degree surface water will sink to the bottom as it is denser than the warmer water. After the turnover the fishing action will continue to be very slow until ice-up stops the activities of the fly fisher. During this time period, many anglers maintain that almost all of the fishing will be done with wet imitations and various types of sinking lines. I don’t agree! Even as the days shorten, remember a couple of warm days may bring the Northerns back into the shallows to feed. The warmer shallow water will attract the forage fish and thus the Northerns. An angler armed only with sinking lines could find it very troublesome.
ICE-UP TO ICE-OUT OR WINTER TIME NORTHERNS
Many anglers fish through the ice for Northerns and enjoy good success. To each his own, but I seldom fish this way as cutting the long trenches in the ice needed to fly fish is very difficult and tiresome.
FISHING METHODS---TACTICS
During the early season the wind direction is important! Two reasons--as the surface water warms and is driven towards shore, thus the warmest water and best fishing will be on the downwind side. Also, these same winds can create a mud line along the shore, which abounds with insects, leeches and crayfish. This abundant food concentration will draw in the forage fish and thus the Northerns.
Fly fishing for Northerns during the spring and fall is very much gentleman fishing. This is when the best fishing will be found from around 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM. During the colder time periods the early angler normally just gets casting practice.
Spotting Northerns is like learning to spot any other fish species. Like looking for trout, be observant and move very slowly. When wading, look close before you move, stepping on a Northern tends to make them cranky! Remember that while a trout in a lake is always moving, the Northern will often be found lying motionless in the shallow water, waiting for a meal to move close enough. I have seen Northerns lying in twelve inches of water. So no wading like charging moose!! Northerns do not seem to be bothered by boats if they are handled properly. Cast around the compass then move the length of the cast and repeat, whether using a boat, float tube or wading.
During the summer months the Northern action will slow down if the water temperatures drop below sixty degrees. Therefore remember that weather fronts and storms can have a major effect on the fishing for Northerns. Having a good map of the lake you are fishing is also important and using a fish finder to map structure, channels, weed beds and the like can prove to be a great value for the prepared angler.
THE FOLLOW
The follow can be one of the most disagreeable aspects of fly fishing for Northerns, and the most frustrating. You know, when you have the Northern continually follow your imitation, yet turn off at the last second?
If a Northern is trailing your fly by a couple of feet, try speeding up the retrieve. Ask yourself, what a forage fish would do if it was being trailed by a Northern, surely not continue to swim sedately along--it would boot, scoot and boogie. It is important to learn to fish your fly all the way back. If you see a Northern, don’t cast right in front of its nose, cast off to one side. Because of the placement of the eyes, it can’t see anything right in front of its nose! If the Northern follows your fly and turns off, try casting a little more off to one side and speed up the retrieve. What you should never do is stop your fly!!
This is very true of wet imitations. For dries, well that will be covered later. Would a forage fish stop to admire the Northern? Surely you jest. If you still have a follower, try a different pattern, smaller or possibly a different shape.
THE RETRIEVE
In the morning use 12 to 18 inch strips if the water is cool. Northerns will tend to be sluggish and won’t pursue a really fast imitation. However, during the warmer parts of the day the Northerns will be more active, then use a 36 inch fast strip. However, be willing to experiment with the speed of your retrieve based on all the factors.
With floating imitations the rules change. With pattern types like frogs, mice and others it is likely that these prey are very unaware of what is going on underneath them. Rarely are they fleeing, although they may be struggling to find their way back to shore. Don’t strike too soon, just because you see the wake, wait until you feel the fish. Unless you want the fly back in your face!!
OTHER NOTES & COMENTS ON NORTHERNS
As a cold front moves in, Northerns become more aggressive. If the water temperatures are cooled by the front, the Northerns will simply slide out to slightly deeper water. The summer time areas that hold the fish can actually be within sight of the spawning areas. During the summer months if you sight a Northern and cast to it without results, remember it may have been full.
During the fall remember to work along the points and fish the saddles between the points and along the drop-off edges. Using large flies has been a proven method for me. Sometimes I use an imitation that is six to nine inches in length. During the fall also remember to slow down your retrieve speed as the water temperatures cool. Find the feeding zone and keep your imitation in it.
Remember, Northerns are full of surprises. Big Northerns are frequently taken easily in virgin waters. However it can be a different story where these fish have seen a wide variety of lures and flies and have survived to an old age! Tests indicate that Northerns can distinguish as many as twenty or more different hues. As a Swedish fishing author, Curt Linhe, wrote, “They didn’t get large by being stupid”. Therefore it is very important for the angler to understand the behavior habits and food preferences of the Northerns on the waters to be fished. Every area will have its own popular flies, lures or bait. An angler’s knowledge will be the determining factor. When preparing to fish Northerns in a new setting one important factor stands out--what forage fish and other species are found in the water to be fished. Remember, Northerns hunt from ambush and they rely on cover, most often weeds or submerged brush or flooded timber that will provide concealment from both prey and in some cases other predators. Northerns don’t do much cruising around; they are lurking and laying in ambush, then dashing from cover to secure a meal.