It’s Ice-Fishing time and I would love to post your stories, pictures and reports. You can reach me at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), join the Hooked on Yukon Fishing group on Facebook or waste even more time on Twitter@fishonyukon.
Pike Poetry from a Yukon Outdoor Woman
June 17, 2009
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This past weekend I found myself fishing with over a dozen women. It was my second year teaching the Yukon Fish and Game’s Yukon Outdoor Women Program. It was a great time with lots of laughter, stories, learning and fishing.
As we discussed fishing for Yukon Northern Pike, Zoe referred to some poetry called Pike by Ted Hughes. Here are just a few excerpts but I highly recommend reading the entire thing:
Pike
Pike, three inches long, perfect.
Pike in all parts, green tigering the gold.
Killers from the egg; the malevolent aged grin.
They dance on the surface among the flies.In ponds under the heat-struck lily pads -
Gloom of their stillness:
Logged on last year’s black leaves, watching upwards.
Or hung in an amber cavern of weeds.The jaws hooked clamp and fangs.
Not to be changed at this date;
A life subdued to its instrument;
The gills kneading quietly, and the pectorals....read the entire poem here.
Zoe also mentions that the ‘willowherb’ mentioned in the poem is the same plant as fireweed in the Yukon.
Some Random Thoughts About Yukon Family Fishing With Kids
June 07, 2009
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Took the family fishing yesterday to Little Atlin Lake in search of a pike dinner. The lake is about an hour from Whitehorse and requires a boat so it took a little more prep than standing on shore on a stocked lake. It was a great trip which everyone enjoyed; but I thought I would document a couple of thoughts so I could improve it for next time.
1) Snacks - gotta have more next time for the kids and probably something refreshing and frozen like a yoghurt tube. It was hot….click the headline for more….
Dropping in on Pumphouse Lake
June 04, 2009
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I love dropper rigs. Why not double your chances and see what is working, especially when you are searching for fish.
June 09, 2009 - Little Atlin Pike Report
It was to be a family affair. Get out on the water at 7am and hope that the wind would not pick up. I dusted off the 16 foot aluminum, heaved the 30Hp on and loaded the trailer. We left later than expected as the family did not appear to be as keen as I was. We arrived around 9am with not a cloud in the sky and the heat starting to warm up the water.
My wife and two boys jumped in the boat and we headed for the weedbeds on the north end of the lake. Still a ways out from the weeds I threw out some trolling lines hoping to catch an unsuspecting laker or maybe a cruising Pike. Not a touch but still good for the kids to get used to handling the rod.
The wind was slightly picking up so I pulled alongside the weed edge, turned the motor off and fished the drift all the way along. We saw a bunch of lure chasers right away but no strikes. Within about 15 minutes we had out first Pike on. It took a baby Pike rapala diver in about 2 feet of water. We tried some top-water lures with a couple of stirs but no strikes.
At the end of the day, just outside of the weedbeds provided the best action with a few more fish being caught on slightly diving rapalas.
June 08, 2009 - Jackson Lake Report
Last year I donated a fishing lesson to a breast cancer fundraiser. I got the call from Andrea whom you may know from Sportees. She wanted to take her two boys out fly-fishing.
We arrived at Jackson Lake just as it was starting to cool and get a little buggy. From the moment we got there we could see little fish sipping bugs on the surface all over the lake.
After a quick lesson, Andrea, Nathan and Matt were all casting into the strike zone where little grayling were sure to lurk. We tried a few different presentations including chironomids with strike indicators, some bead-head nymphs and even a mosquito dry fly. We got most of the action on the mosquitos. They were little but a great fish when you are learning to fly fish.
