Northern pike are found throughout the Bay of Quinte. You won’t find too many huge pike here like you do with the huge walleye, but there are plenty of nice pike in this area. Anglers catch pike up to and above 10 pounds all the time in the bay from spring through fall. You might not find too many pike above 40 inches here, but there are definitely some big fish here and plenty of pike in the mid to upper 30 inch range are caught here. While you can catch pike throughout the Bay of Quinte, some of the best areas are the bays within the bay and especially at the mouths of the rivers in the spring and fall.
Belleville Bay
Belleville Bay is located at the mouth of the Moria River and it is another popular spot for walleye, especially in the spring and fall. Anglers also target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, northern pike and panfish in the bay throughout the fishing season.
Big Bay
Big Bay is one of the largest areas on the bay and it is a popular area to fish. This is big water out here so you don’t want to be caught out here in a smaller boat. Anglers do well on Big Bay for walleye. You will usually see a lot of boat trolling for walleye so they can cover more water out here and find more feeding fish. Some of the popular spots to fish in the bay are Point Anne, Big Island Shoal, Minnie Blakely Shoal and Horse Point. Largemouth bass are found along the shorelines and in the smaller bays within Big Bay. Pike are here too. Smallmouth bass are usually found offshore during the summer and fall months and perch are here as well.
Hay Bay
Hay Bay is the long arm that comes off of Long Reach. To the eastern part of the bay, you will find lots of weeds and shallower water, which is great for largemouth bass and northern pike. In the west end, you will find deeper water. Walleye anglers usually troll the deeper part of the bay.
Moscote Bay
Moscote Bay is a weedy bay located south of Big Bay. The weeds attract plenty of largemouth bass and northern pike, so make sure you tie on a leader if you plan on targeting bass in this area. You may also run into some smallmouth bass and panfish in this area.
Trenton Bay
Trenton Bay is located at the northwest part of the Bay of Quinte. The Trent River flows into into this bay and the mouth of the river is a popular walleye spot, especially in the spring and fall. You can catch other species of fish here as well, but walleye are definitely the preferred species of fish among most anglers. When the bite is going good, there will be plenty of other boaters fishing this area.
Best Baits for Northern Pike
Northern pike are known for eating just about everything they can get the mouths on and there is definitely some truth to that. For the most part, if it swims, pike may eat it. There are some baits that definitely will catch more pike than others though. Spinners, crankbaits, spoons, swimbaits and soft plastics are some of the best lures for targeting pike. Live baits such as minnows and perch are great baits too.
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Best Rigs for Northern Pike
There are many different rigs you can use for northern pike, however, since pike are so aggressive, you really don’t need to use as many of them as you would if you were trying to get good at largemouth bass fishing. For most situations, you can keep it real simple with a jighead and a minnow or soft plastic bait. To learn about some of the rigs that you can use, take a look at our best rigs for northern pike page.
Best Techniques for Northern Pike
Anglers catch pike with many different techniques. Casting, trolling and drifting are most popular ways to target pike, but there are some other methods that also work well too.
To learn more, take a look at our best techniques for northern pike page.
Learn More About Northern Pike
Our northern pike fishing section has tons of tips on the best lures, live baits, where to catch them and how to catch them.
Visit our northern pike fishing website to learn more.
