OutdoorNebraska

NEBRASKAland Magazine • Fishing the Sandhills How to Fish the Sandhills Northern Pike Pike fishing picks up at ice-out, but can start slow. While the fish will take lures, they are often sluggish in the still- cold water, making smelt fished on the bottom or under a bobber, a good approach. As the water warms, weedless spoons, such as a Johnson Silver Minnow and spinnerbaits in yellow, black, chartreuse or white are the favorite lures of many anglers. Large Mepps spinners and Daredevil spoons, both staples for pike anglers elsewhere, and shallow-diving crankbaits will work early in the year before vegetation becomes too thick, or in deeper water where the weeds don't reach the surface. Soft plastics, including swim baits, rubber worms and creature baits, can be effective when pike are finicky. Tooth-proof leaders are recommended whenever you're fishing for pike. While steel leaders are most commonly used, they can affect the bite when water is clear, which it often is early in the year before algae blooms begin. In that case, lighter wire leaders are best. While pike can still bite through heavy fluorocarbon line, its use can be the difference between getting bites or not. Baitcasting rods and reels and strong, braided line can be invaluable when you want to keep hooked fish out of the vegetation. Anglers should start their search for pike near vegetation, especially isolated stands of bulrushes, cattails, smartweed and pondweed. The weeds may not be immediately visible. Early in the year, pike might be lurking in the tops of 2-foot tall weeds in 6 feet of water waiting for dinner to swim by. Don't be afraid to spend time casting to what may appear to be "open" water to search for these fish. As spring moves towards summer, when pike are in search of cooler water, they may be found in these weeds even farther from shore. In the winter, the use of tip-ups for pike can be both effective and entertaining. Countless variations allow a smelt and a treble hook to be held on or near the bottom directly beneath the hole. When a pike grabs the bait and swims off, a flag is tripped by the free-wheeling spool of line, eliciting a call of "Flag up!" among friends and a race to the hole. Pike typically cruise slowly around the lakes in search of food all winter. A line of tip-ups extending from the shore towards the middle of the lake can intersect their route. Largemouth Bass Largemouth bass take a bit longer to become active than pike, but a warm spell will send them into action early in the spring. Look on the north bank first. Bass spawn in the weedy shallows of Sandhills lakes when water temperatures hit the mid-60s in May. Getting to them can be a challenge. Look for pockets of open water tucked in the cattails that ring the lakes. The rest of the year, bass are often found around the edges of the lakes, especially in gaps in the cattails, but they can also be found anywhere there is an isolated patch Northern pike, like this one caught at Clear Lake on the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge, can be caught in many Sandhills lakes. PHOTO BY JEFF KURRUS

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