Northern pike Fishing Trips

Northern pike are a lake-trip fish with a big-predator attitude. They are ambush predators that hold in dense weeds and strike from cover, and they are easier to catch than muskie while offering similar sport. A pike trip fits a family lake vacation, a remote Canadian lodge or a winter day on the ice.

Pike can top 4 feet and 40 pounds. In Alaska, fish up to about 20 pounds are common in some rivers and lakes, and the state sport record is about 38 pounds. Pike can live 20 years or more, and a 15-pound fish may be 10 to 17 years old. Females grow faster and live longer than males.

Pike eat mostly other fish, and where they are common they help keep prey populations in check. Missouri once stocked them in reservoirs partly to control gizzard shad and carp. Pike avoid strong current and favor water with dense vegetation, so weedy lakes, bays and slow rivers are where to look. In cold Alaska water, their eggs can take about 30 days to hatch.

Where to go for northern pike

Minnesota lake country. Northern pike are among Minnesota’s featured game fish, with walleye, bass, muskie, trout and panfish. Explore Minnesota also names pike as an ice fishing target. See our Minnesota Lake Country guide.

Northern Michigan. Michigan has about 11,000 inland lakes, and the Michigan Charter Boat Association lists northern pike among the fish its captains target. See our Northern Michigan guide.

Ontario. Ontario has more than 250,000 lakes, rivers and streams. Northern Ontario promotes pike alongside walleye, smallmouth and muskie, and its lodges range from short drives to fly-in camps that focus on walleye and pike.

Alaska. Native pike live in Interior Alaska and along the Arctic coast, from the Canadian border to the Seward Peninsula and southwest to the Bristol Bay drainages. There is also a small isolated population near Yakutat. Pike in the Susitna drainage and on the Kenai Peninsula came from illegal stocking.

Farther south. Missouri sits at the southern edge of the pike’s range, and pike are rare there. Plan a pike trip to the northern states or Canada.

When to go

• Spring: pike spawn early, soon after ice-out, scattering eggs over flooded vegetation in marshes, grassy lake edges, slow streams and sloughs. Check spring seasons before you plan, since rules around the spawn vary.
• Summer: pike move among warm, shallow, weedy feeding areas. Fish weed edges and bays.
• Winter: in Alaska, pike overwinter in deep, slow water in large rivers. In Minnesota, ice fishing for pike is a winter trip of its own.

Our May and February pages compare spring and winter options. Ice and water conditions change from year to year, so check before you go. Montana FWP recommends at least 4 inches of clear, hard ice before you walk out.

How the trips work

Lake resorts. A cabin with a boat on a pike lake is an easy family trip, and in Minnesota and Michigan pike share many lakes with walleye and bass.

Guided trips. A guide knows which weed beds and shallows the pike are using that week, and can handle unhooking for newer anglers.

Fly-in lodges. In Ontario, fly-in camps reach remote lakes for walleye and pike. Ask what the package includes, from flights and boats to meals.

Fly fishing. Northern Ontario’s tourism office publishes guides to the best flies for pike. See our fly-fishing trips page.

Ice fishing. In Minnesota you can fish from a bucket on the ice, a heated fish house or with a guide.

Choosing a destination

• Family lake trip: Minnesota or northern Michigan.
• Remote fishing: an Ontario fly-in lodge.
• A different kind of wilderness: Alaska’s native pike waters in the interior.
• Winter: Minnesota ice fishing.

Before you book

• Licenses. Each state and province sells its own license. Ontario has 20 fisheries management zones with their own seasons. See our fishing license guide, and check the agency before each trip.
• Tools. Ask your guide or lodge what unhooking tools and leaders they use, and whether they supply them.
• Ask your lodge or guide what boats and gear are included, whether meals are included at fly-in camps, and whether they have fish-cleaning facilities.
• Guided or DIY. Our guided vs DIY fishing guide explains the tradeoffs.

See also walleye, muskie and bass.