Spring Time Trophy Pickerel

23.5" aggressive pickerel

School is out for spring break and that means I have even more time to do some bass fishing.  The weather for my first day on break lined up for a perfect spring day, so I loaded up the Cuda 14, and went to the Suffolk Lakes.  I wanted to try some new spots, so I geared up for a long paddle and left at sunrise.

I absolutely love my new Kokatat Gortex  Full-Zip Jacket

I got to my first spot, and after only a few cast, my chatterbait was inhaled by a solid fish.  I wasn't sure what it was at first, but after a glimpse of a missile-like body I could tell it was a giant pickerel.  I carefully brought the fish to the boat, and landed the beast.  This was the biggest pickerel I have ever seen.  The fish measured out to 24.75in and and was really fat.  I snapped some pictures and went back to fishing.

24.75" Citation Pickerel

I kept with my plan and hit all of the spots I had found in previous research, and all of them produced fish. I caught several more big pickerel with the smallest being 23in.  Most of the bass I caught were small males, but I picked up a few thick pre-spawn females.  My biggest bass of the day, came on a 6in hard-plastic swimbait slow-rolled over a secondary point.

Chunky Bass on a square-bill

Another good Pre-spawn largemouth 

Near the end of the day, I had one more flat the fish.  I pitched a lipless crankbait up near a stump and started burning it back.  I saw a flash and my rod was nearly jerked out of my hand.  I saw another massive pickerel break the surface, and it had inhaled my bait.  I carefully fought the fish, and landed it.  This fish was a little smaller than the first pickerel, but still a giant.  This one was 24.5in and was really fat.  I took some pics, and released the beast.

Last fish of the day, 24.5in pickerel 

It was an awesome day on the water, and almost everything I threw produced fish.  The baits that seem to work the best were square-bill crankbaits, chatterbaits, and swimbaits.