Journal of a Minnesota Angler

Species: Northern Pike
Size: 19″
Lure used: white pearl super fluke

Date: 7/21/2009
Time: 8:30-9:30pm
Body of water: Poplar Lake
Location: Gunflint Trail
Weather Conditions: calm, slight breeze, clear with few clouds

Ken, George, and I hopped in the fishing boat and headed for the channel across the bay. We rounded an unnamed island and fished going West.

At West end of the unnamed island that forms the channel with Kloek island, I got a nibble on my white pearl super fluke, but the fish didn’t have a good enough hold of it for me to set the hook.

We went across the channel and on the East end of Kloek Island, George got a hit. I asked him if he set the hook because I didn’t see his rod go up. He said he didn’t need to as it was hooked well, but when it saw the boat, it took off and got loose. He said it was a Northern. He was using his beetle spinner.

Midway down the shore, George got another hit on the same lure and this time he set the hook. He caught a 7-8″ smallie.

In recess of the shore near the West end of the island, I got another nibble about 5 ft from boat just a few feet down. I could see the lure move from the fish, but it wouldn’t bite. George’s plastic grub was falling apart, so he switched to a watermelon colored tube.

Just West of the recess, I felt a couple of ticks, but could never really feel the weight of the fish. However, I felt enough resistence to set the hook and got it. It turned out to be a 19″ Northern. The whitle fluke was too badly damaged after that and I had to switch to a bubble gum fluke.

We went a little further West, turned around, got halfway back across before the bugs were too bad and we had to go home.

I was so sick of Northern by this time since I much prefer catching bass. I couldn’t catch a smallie to save my life. George was getting all the smallmouths. I’m not a big fan of eating Northern, but we had plans for all the Northern we were catching. My wife will be pickling them for the holidays. I’m looking forward to seeing how it turns out since I’m a big fan of pickled herring. I’ll post the results (and maybe the recipe) later this year.