Trying to pick the best northern pike waters is a tough call. Hundreds of Wisconsin's lakes produce good numbers of northerns every year, many of them trophy-class fish. No matter where you live in the Badger State, you don't have to go far to get in on the action.

Here's a look at some of the state's best northern pike waters for 2009.

SHELL LAKE
Shell Lake is a jewel among gems. Almost every lake in the area has good populations of northern pike. These deep, clear waters include Lac Courte Oreilles, Round, Whitefish and Grindstone lakes. All of them are first-class fisheries and Shell ranks right at the top.

According to Terry Margenau, the WDNR's St. Croix basin fisheries supervisor, Shell Lake has a good population of the toothy predators and is one of his top picks for the region.

Tom Klassa, the owner of Shell Lake Marine, also gives the lake a big thumbs-up.

"You can catch plenty of northern pike, especially in the winter," Klassa said. "They're pretty aggressive. When you fish for bass, you catch them. If you fish for muskies or panfish, you catch them."

But winter isn't the only time of the year to tangle with a 3- to 10-pound pike. Big fish are taken throughout the hot summer months in weedbeds with Rapalas and spinnerbaits. The weed edges produce throughout the open-water season. Weedless spoons, a big plastic grub hooked weedless on a 1/4- to 1/2-ounce jig or other weedless presentations can tempt the weed bite all summer long and into the fall.

Don't be afraid to try over-sized muskie baits. Northerns are capable of eating a meal a third of their own size and at times prefer not to waste time chasing smaller baits.

Under the ice a jig-and-minnow combination or a big chub on a hook are dynamite. Northerns feel comfortable under the ice and cruise just below the surface. An additional draw is that the dissolved oxygen is in its highest concentrations right under the ice. (Continued)

The lake covers 2,580 acres south of Spooner in Washburn County. A small fee is required at the developed boat launch near the downtown municipal campground.

For more information, contact the DNR at (715) 635-4089 or Shell Lake Marine at (715) 468-7662.

BIG EAU PLEINE RESERVOIR
The Big Eau Pleine is another top spot for pike anglers this year. Good numbers and sizes of northerns combine to make a great fishery.

The Big Eau Pleine covers 6,830 acres with an average depth of about 16 feet and a shoreline that extends for 66 miles.

A DNR survey focused on the northern pike fishery a few years ago yielded surprising results.

According to fisheries biologist Tom Meronek, 1,375 northern pike were captured. Small pike up to 20 inches were abundant and should be providing good catches this year. Nearly 20 percent of the pike measured at least 26 inches and 38 topped the 32-inch mark. The biggest fish was a 43-incher that will bend the best of rods.

The habitat is varied and the pike can be just about anywhere. They'll be chasing down a meal in the weedbeds in shallow water, the stumpfields south of the dam, in Pickerel Bay or off Big Elm Point.

Try a 1/4-ounce or 1/2-ounce muskie jig tipped with a 6-inch plastic shad near the surface or bounced along on the bottom for whatever the conditions dictate.

Using a fish finder to locate schools of baitfish is one way to pinpoint roaming pike that are moving with the prey. Northerns prefer to use ambush points in weeds and woody cover, but larger fish will sometimes hit the depths in search of open-water walleyes and other smaller fish.