Magnets for Mammoths

Learn how water temperature can affect fishing for pike and muskie

Mid-summer and giant, knee-knocking northern pike go together like ham and eggs, champagne and caviar, or on my budget, peanut butter, and jelly. It is counterintuitive to what anglers think: the only time you can catch big toothy critters is early and late in the season when the weather and water are downright cold and nasty.

Give me a hot day in the middle of a gorgeous Northern Ontario summer, however, and I am in my glory. As I was the other day when grandson Liam slid the net under a magnificent 45-inch Sunset Country gator while a tropical sun beat down upon us.

woman angler holding an ontario northern pike

Winnipeg, Manitoba resident Karen Watt hooked this beautiful northern pike recently while vacationing in Northwestern Ontario's Sunset Country, by locating structure that offered access to deep and shallow water. (Photo credit: Gord Pyzer)

I should mention, too, that the spot where I caught the pristine pike is the same spot where buddy Bob Izumi joined me several years ago to film one of his Real Fishing Television Show and where I also guided the then Vice-President of the Madison, Wisconsin Chapter of Muskies Inc. to his personal best fish.

In other words, it is a big fish spot.

And what makes it such a mammoth magnet is an ingredient that the vast majority of anglers typically overlook. It offers quick and easy access to deep water and the plethora of forage fish that swim nearby.

Understand what I am saying?

gord pyzer holding an ontario northern pike

As Gord Pyzer explains, the best mid-summer pike locations offer quick and easy access to deep water and the forage fish that swim in it. (Photo credit: Gord Pyzer)

While the spot has a superb section of flat, shallow, warm water, the structure also breaks quickly into the main basin of the lake. And it is the secret ingredient that makes it and other spots like it, shine. If a big northern pike or muskie wants to dine on a whitefish or herring, it can slide out quickly and grab it. But then the goliaths can swim right back up into the tepid shallows to optimize their metabolic rate.

Talk about the best of all possible worlds.

"If they are going to catch a fish out there, they’re not going to stay out there because it is not their optimal temperature," says Dr. John Casselman, the renowned esocid scientist who for years played a pivotal role in Ontario's aquatic research program. "They’re going to go where the optimal temperature is because the growing season is short and they have to take advantage of it."

According to Casselman, who carried out the celebrated muskie cliethrum program with the late Dr. Ed Crossman, from the Royal Ontario Museum, the optimal water temperature for big northern pike is in the range of 16° to 18° C (60° to 65° F). So, when they slide off shore to grab dinner, they're slipping into colder water temperatures, and thus return quickly to the shallows. The best way for them to do this is by relating to structures that offer them quick and easy access to both venues.

young angler holding northern pike

Find the optimal 16° to 18° C water temperature that big pike prefer and you'll be rewarded, like Liam Whetter, with the trophy of a lifetime. (Photo credit: Gord Pyzer)

In other words, structures with fast breaks.

"Let’s look at muskellunge," says Casselman, who upon his retirement from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources was presented with the prestigious Award of Excellence from the American Fisheries Society. "They’re usually found in shallow embayments. They require a higher optimum temperature than pike, about 2° to 3° higher, so in an area like Georgian Bay, the very biggest muskellunge are found really shallow. I’ve watched these railway ties swimming in and out, optimizing their temperature."

young angler holding ontario northern pike

A trophy of a lifetime. (Photo credit: Gord Pyzer)

"Fish are tuned into their environment," Casselman chuckles, "whereas we are not. We put on a coat when we're cold or take it off when we're hot. Pike and muskies will feed out deep, but then come shallow to digest."

And that is when I asked Casselman the questionthe answer to which turns on my light bulb. If you're a big pike or muskie, I wonder, why not just stay out in the deeper water with the food? Why run back and forth?

"Running back and forth is really gliding back into the bay," he explains. "I don’t know how much energy that takes, but think about how they can optimize their metabolism if they elevate their body temperature from 18°C to 24°C.

young angler holding ontario northern pike

Liam Whetter with a big northern pike. (Photo credit: Gord Pyzer)

"You have to put the growing season into perspective. A big northern pike or muskellunge will spawn in the spring, then feed for maybe a month before it gets its condition back so that puts it into mid-June or even laterlet's say the first of July. They’re starting now to find food to grow, so they’re growing from the first of July until maybe the end of August. By the last week in August, they’re starting to develop eggs again. So, they need to optimize whatever extra time and energy is left over."

And the most efficient way they can do this, of course, is by relating to specific areas of your favourite lake, river, reservoir, pit, or pondmammoth magnets, I call them—that offer them quick and easy access to both shallow water and the food-rich main lake basin.

In other words, structures with fast breaks.

About Gord Pyzer

Gord Pyzer is the fishing editor of Outdoor Canada magazine and field editor of In-Fisherman magazine. He is the co-host of the Real Fishing Radio Show and host of Fish Talk With The Doc.

Recommended Articles

Top 5 Flies for Smallmouth Bass

The inside scoop on bass flies from the hosts of The New Fly Fisher.

Ontario Brook Trout

Fish these 10 sweet spots.

3 Great Ontario Walleye Destinations

Karl of Extreme Angler recommends must do walleye lakes in Ontario.

Five Brook Trout Flies

What flies to bring when fishing for brook trout.

Spring Fishing Tips for any Angler

Increase your chance of success

5 Places to Shore Fish

Fish’n Canada shows you where to go shore fishing in Ontario.

Wag Your Tail For More Walleye, Bass and Trout

Fishing with friends brings camaraderie and a lesson, or two.

Fishing and Foraging

Add some fresh foods and forage to your fishing adventures!

Top 5 Musky Destinations in Ontario

The Musky Hunter shows you where to land the best musky in Ontario waters.

Stalking Prehistoric Long Nose Gar

Hosts Angelo Viola and Pete Bowman took to the waters with the objective of 100% sight fishing.

Ontario Fly Fishing Hotspots

The Top 10 List

Lake of the Woods

10 Facts You Didn't Know

Year Round Fishing in Ontario

Who Says You Can’t Fish All Year in Ontario?

Four Seasons of Bass in Ontario

Northern Ontario is home to year-round bass.

Terrestrial Flies for Brook Trout

These fish feed like crazy and look for opportunities for a big protein meal.

Long Nose Gar

A Fish for the Bucket List

5 Keys To Canadian Muskies

The fish of 10,000 casts; an elusive predator fish with legend and lore.

Discover the 3 Best Bass Fishing Lakes in Ontario

Check out these lakes for hard-fighting smallmouth bass on your next fishing trip to Northern Ontario.

World Class Walleye

Fishing Day Trips on the Bay of Quinte

Spring Perch Fishing

Use These Tips on Your Next Ontario Fishing Trip