Try Something a Little Jiggy

If you watched any those 1960s sitcoms, like Leave it to Beaver or The Andy Griffith Show, things just seemed way simpler. Kids would head down to the lake with a pole, some line, a worm, and would come home with a bucket full of trout.

These days, coming home with fish usually takes a bit more work, pre-planning, gear and technique.

Heading out to a lake usually takes a couple of days of thinking in advance. This involves pulling out gear, matching rods, reels, line and tackle to that specific lake.

That is because there are many ways to catch a fish. Some people are consistent in their approach and others like to mix it up. In other words, some people keep it simple while others make it a bit more complicated.

Personally, I tend to stick to what has worked in the past and every once in a while I try something different.

It was time to hit our local tackle shop, Sports North, and see if there were some other options our there.

Efficiently multi-tasking as usual, Glen pointed out some massive, brightly coloured jigs stacked up along the wall. Called “Jumbo Jelly Tube and Jig Kit”, they promoted themselves as “a great lure for Laketrout and Northerns”.

These certainly fit the criteria for “different”.

Glen pointed them out because a recent customer purchased a bunch and did very well on Lake Trout on deep, Yukon lakes.

The location of choice this weekend was Pine Lake. Located just outside of Haines Junction, this lake is popular with campers, boaters and beach lovers. It also features Laketrout and Northern Pike.

After a dicey, potential tire-ripping boat launch experience, the lake greeted us with its glassy, calm, surface.

We made waves heading across the lake and toward the north-east side. The water was clear and calm making site fishing entirely possible for cruising or stationary Pike.

With the motor killed, we glided over a weed bed and deep transition area. A good place to start is where you look over one side of the boat and you see a sandy bottom gradually turning into longer weeds and a deep, dark abyss on the other side.

I pulled out the white “Jumbo Jelly Tube” and started jigging the deepest side of the boat.

Jigging is a technique whereby you find the correct depth and repeatedly raise and lower your rod. The constant movement and action of the jig, mimics fish and entices them to bite.

After a few minutes of jigging, my polarized glasses revealed some suspended Pike in the area.

I quickly ditched the jig and rigged up my fly rod. Within a couple of casts, the pulsating fly was stripped to within inches of a hungry Pike’s mouth.

It was too much for the fish and it took the fly hard. Site-fishing for Pike with a floating line and a chunky fly is my favourite.

It took about three minutes for me to drop the new, potentially productive jigging technique to get back to my tried and true.

There is always next time.

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