So you thought you had to go to Canada to catch monster Northern Pike?  I thought so, until today that is.  Tucked away in southwestern Nebraska is a gem of a lake known to the locals as Red Willow because of the red willow trees that line the shoreline but it is officially named Hugh Butler Reservoir.  The lake, and our guide, hold the State Record for Wipers at a little over 20 pounds.  However, there is another fish in this lake that get as much attention or more – and that is the Northern Pike. 

In all my years of Canadian pike fishing I never wandered far from the shoreline and I always stayed in shallow water.  But our guide, Steve Lytle, knows far better that if you want a trophy – then go looking for them on your fish finder in deep water where there is some structure.  I’m used to scoping a bass on the fish finder where the blips leave you wandering if there really is a fish down there.  When Steve Lytle locates a northern pike 20 feet below you almost need a wider screen.

We hooked into 7 monsters in our 2 hours of fishing for big Northerns and we landed three of them between 10 and 12 pounds.  The other two hours were spent fishing for light tackle fish where we caught walleye and white bass.  We didn’t have the good fortune this day of netting a huge Red Willow Wiper but I’m sure if we had the time for a few more hours Steve would have found them.

So, the next time you’re complaining about that long drive across Kansas or Nebraska – take a break – give Steve Lytle a call – and spend a day in Canada – “Nebraska Style”.

Although we did not want to leave the water today we knew we were facing a 480 mile drive to Gunnison, Colorado where we would begin our West Coast Swing tomorrow morning.