First Passaic River Pike!!

[Bassload]

Originally Posted by buzzbaiter

Everybody releases them and ALL of them have been harmed in some way. In fact many are harmed quite a bit. Lets not fool ourselves

Buzzbaiter you should rename yourself "BuzzKill" Congrats on your first pike NJD.

[buzzbaiter]

Not trying to be an debbie downer, I was simply pointing out that no fish is released unharmed and you cannot deny Pike get handled fairly roughly by those who catch them. I've seen way too many pics here of Pike bleeding profusely(not just the mouth but from the gills) or covered in mud, sand or leaves from being dragged/dropped on the ground. Those of us who have come to love this fishery the state has created want to keep it that way. Impossible? Maybe so but if you take some measures like single hook lures or even barbless, limit the picture taking to truly big fish(36"+) and don't drag/drop them on the ground or grab them with dry gloves or hands, we can spare a few unnecessary deaths of these river monsters. Anyhow sorry if I seem a tad critical just don't want to see this fishery decline to where one pike per trip becomes a good day.

[Red]

Excellent post Buzzbait...

[beezer]

A big pike isn't the easiest thing to handle especially out of a kayak.

I'm thinking about getting a net with rubber mesh.

I only use single hooks. Treble hooks can be a nightmare.

I hate killing fish!

[buzzbaiter]

One time painfully removing a single barbed fly from my index finger was all the motivation I needed to pinch every hook down. Losing fish sucks period - and I've lost plenty big bass, trout and pike because of it - but its safer not only for the fish but you as well. I also always wear sunglasses. I've had so many fish shake lose and send the lure right back at me and hit my glasses instead of my eyes.

As for Kayak, that's one reason I don't use one: when the fish you catch is nearly half the length of the kayak, what can u do? Its going to be a rough release. Plus I'm not a good swimmer

The bass lip grab is another pet peeve of mine. Its fairly safe IF you do it the right way which is hold the fish vertical NOT horizontal. Horizontal puts all the pressure on the lower jaw. That crunching noise you feel when doing this is tendons/cartilage snapping. A bass with a broken jaw is essentially a dead bass.

[saxmatt]

Good posts buzzbaiter. Even though it's the middle of the summer I'll add that I've seen many pike being mishandled on the ice. If it's below freezing the gills and eyes of any fish can freeze very quickly. Also if there isn't any snow the bare ice can scrape up the fish pretty bad. If you are planning on releasing fish through the ice do what you can to prevent the fish from flopping around and keep the eyes and gills wet by continuously dunking the fish during the unhooking process and photo shoot. I use a boga to help control the fish while unhooking and photographing, just make sure you have a hand under the belly to help support the weight of the fish.

[saxmatt]

and wtg on your first Passaic pike Bassman!

[Skunk City]

Congrats man! The first one is always the hardest. Now go out there and hook into a 40" .

[buzzbaiter]

I also pass on my congrats. I got my first one - about 15" - a few months back and its become an addiction. 10 trips and about 125-130 pike later I'm ready for an intervention

[tycomps]

good point about the bass lip buzz, there's an excellent example of that scenario that I immediately noticed contained within another post here that hadn't been pointed out. unfortunately I even see the pros do it, it may be an attempt to make the fish more photogenic by opening the mouth to extremes.