Just found out about dark house spearing. What do i need to know?

[Jdawg sk1]

Just a few weeks ago I happened upon a pike spear in a fishing shop in Montana I then asked a local about it and he told me about dark house spearing. Since then I've been absolutely obsessed with the idea of spearing a pike, living in Saskatchewan this was a completely new idea to me as it is not legal here.

My plan is that next ice fishing season I will head to Montana which is only 15 miles away find a lake and do some spearing. I am planning on building my own spear on the water jet at work

I have an auger and a frabil frontier shelter is there anything else I need other than a decoy( and does anybody know a good cheap place to get a starter decoy. )

Can anybody point me towards a good spearing lake in the northern Montana area my closest town in Montana is turner.

If anybody is willing to take on a Canadian I would love to go with someone that is experienced(I'll bring the rye).

Thanks in advance.

[mrklean]

welcome to the wonerful world of spearing, check out some past threads tons of info as far as Montana not sure if anyone here has been there or not to spear?

[Scott M]

It's legal in Montana. I've heard good things about Fort Peck Reservoir. Not sure how far away you are from there...

Welcome to HSO.

[Jdawg sk1]

Only 322 km away definitely a doable weekend trip

[hawkeye43]

Tell you what. If you send me your address, I will send you a decoy. I have a great red and white that should be good for a pike or two. You could PM the address, I just cleared out all others. Let me know.

[MJ1657]

Hard to beat that offer!

[mnspearingguide]

Fort Peck is a awsome lake, I have speared it 4 times, You have to have allot of respect for that lake, or it consume you. I rescued a guy that went through the ice the last time I was out there. There is allot of methane holes on that lake. Also watch the main points that stick out in the main channel. I have seen bad ice by them too. Now that I have scared the boogers out of you. Its a great place to spear. Look for points, inside turns, but most importantly out there, look for steep breaks. That water is really clear, can see 18 - 20 ft of water. I went through Hell creek Marina, on the south side, Clint the owner is a great guy. I would look around the damm and glascow area for a resort that you can get out on. The ice varies every year, some years you can only get out a couple miles, and other years we were out 15 - 18 miles. Pick there brains and find out where to start and they will fill you in on the bad ice spots. On Peck, if you see sticks, logs, rocks, stay away, they are marking bad ice. Here in Minnesota we mark spear holes with them. Leave your blocks stacked up on top of the ice to mark you spear hole on Peck. Also Peck you can spear all species of fish except Sturgeon, and Paddlefish. All the rest is fair game, Walleye, Bass, Carp, Perch, Lake Trout, Salmon, and Pike, We have taken all those species, the Lake trout are a blast.

Hope this gets you going in the right direction. Look on e bay there is a ton of decoys on there, after watching some of them you will get a idea who and what things are going for.

[Gordie]

Jdawgsk1 first off Welcome to the great HSO family and secondly welcome to the second greatest addiction the world of dark house spearing. Have fun with it.

Here are few links to check out.

http://www.hotspotoutdoors.com/forum/ubb...ear#Post2998724

http://www.hotspotoutdoors.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/2959475/Never_been_spearing#Post2959475

http://www.hotspotoutdoors.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/2937914/why_do_you_spear#Post2937914

Also we have Montana forum if you want to visit that area and discus your fishing adventures there as well it would be much appreciated.

http://www.hotspotoutdoors.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/forums/86/1/Idaho_Montana_Wyoming_Turkey_H

[duck patrol]

Lots of lakes to spear in the havre area. Ft peck is an amazing fishery for sure tho!

[Archerysniper]

Welcome to the site and the addiction. A online search will get you a lot of good info to get started. This site is great for asking question,you will get great honest replies. I would take hawkeye up on that offer. Also try searching the web for the Minnesota darkhouse and angling association also know as the MDAA a certain east central chapter has a lot of info on getting started

[Jdawg sk1]

Well hawkeye I will take you up on that offer the only problem is I can't seem to send you a pm to give you my address but I'm sure we can figure something out.

Thanks everybody for the great info I can't wait for next season to give this a try.

[9tine]

Jdawg,

I live in Mt. and have speared for 40 years in various states (grew up in northern Michigan). From where you are at, you do not need to go any farther than Nelson reservoir, which is NW of Malta. It is great fishing for pike and walleye, both of which you can spear. Tiber reservoir (aka Lake Elwell) can also be good, but Nelson is great. Ft. Peck is huge and great fishing, but can be dangerous, as stated by someone else. Clint at Hell Creek Marina on Ft. Peck is a great source of information, and he also rents spearing shanties for $35/day. They are set up in good areas and ready to go. The spear that you are planning to make will work, but it will plane an deeper or angle shots. If you cast a few pounds of lead in a pointed cylinder shape behind the head of the spear, it will help a lot. Best of luck. It's a great sport.

[Jdawg sk1]

How heavy should a spear be I believe the computer said it should weigh in at about 8 pounds

[Gordie]

How heavy should a spear be I believe the computer said it should weigh in at about 8 pounds

That sounds about right ,I think its all about personal preference on the weight issue when I started spearing my spear was a custom made Amish style only way lighter now I use a much heavy spear that was made by Roger cook. I have also made a couple of heavier ones and like those too.

9tine that's for the helping out with the info

[hawkeye43]

Well hawkeye I will take you up on that offer the only problem is I can't seem to send you a pm to give you my address but I'm sure we can figure something out.

Thanks everybody for the great info I can't wait for next season to give this a try.

here send address [email protected]

[Jdawg sk1]

Information sent thanks hawkeye

[merkman]

8 lbs will be good.

That should be a great straight down spear.

3 to 6 lb fish getting hit with an 8 lb spear....

Well you get the picture.

.

[hawkeye43]

Joel, Sorry its taken so long, but the decoy goes out in the morning. :cool Enjoy it next year.

[Jdawg sk1]

Awesome I was almost beginning to wonder if my email reached you or it got stuck in a spam filter.

I talked to my local department of natural resources and they said I should be fine to practice my decoy techniques in Canada as long as I leave the spear at home.

[shamalex72]

[quote=Jdawg s

I talked to my local department of natural resources and they said I should be fine to practice my decoy techniques in Canada as long as I leave the spear at home.

[Jdawg sk1]

Got my decoy from hawkeye can't wait to use it its a 9inch with rattle

[Gordie]

Jdawg your in for some fun and be ready with your spear after you make that decoy swim around the hole. Enjoy and let know how you do.

[Jdawg sk1]

Just finished my spears total cost was 17 dollars in material.

[jasonmichalski]

Nice, good luck, keep us posted!

[LunkerCity]

Welcome to the sport J!!! I was just admiring your spears and was wondering what the thickness/diameter of your tines were? Is the head made from mild steel?