Best Time for Chain Pickerel Fishing (Season & Time of Day)
Many anglers catch pickerel when they are targeting bass, but know when to fish for these toothy hard fighting fish can be a lot more rewarding. Fishing for pickerel year-round can be great, but understanding the best season and time to catch pickerel is important.
Chain pickerel fishing is best in summer and winter when pickerel are down deeper and late afternoon prior to sunset is usually the best time. The early morning from dawn until 2 hours after sunset is good too.
In this article, we will go deep into which seasons and times of day are best for catching big chain pickerel, both through the ice and in open water.
Far too many anglers ignore or try to avoid these underappreciated gamefish, but in my opinion, that is a mistake. Pickerel are one of my favorite fish to target and I want to share that passion with others.
To learn the top water temperature for musky, check out this complete guide I wrote. For a complete breakdown of pickerel ice fishing, check out this helpful guide.
Best Time of Year to Catch Pickerel
Chain pickerel can be caught effectively year-round but there are certainly better times than others to make it happen. I have found that pickerel fishing in early summer and winter are the best seasons.
During summer and winter, pickerel will be shuffling down into deeper water in search of more comfortable water that is oxygen-rich and full of baitfish.
Deeper water holds water that is cooler or warmer than shallower water depending on the season. For example, during winter when the surface water may actually be frozen, deep water is considerably warmer and more suitable for pickerel. Meanwhile, in summer, when air temps can be in the high 80’s and even 90’s, water 15-feet down is much cooler.
These 2 seasons will be your best chance at big pickerel. Pickerel will be hanging tight to dense cover facing outwards to ambush baitfish, sunfish, and other species.
In the summer, they will also be close to lily pads looking for frogs. Expect pickerel to be in water 8-20 feet deep in summer and 10-25 feet in winter along weeds (both submerged and emergent), sunken timber, and deep rock.
Hot Tip: Fish when frog activity is greatest. In warmer months, pickerel will key in on frogs and be most active when frogs are.
Seasonal Chain Pickerel Guide
Let’s breakdown how and when to catch pickerel each season of the year.
Winter
Winter is my favorite season for pickerel because I’m an ice fisherman. Pickerel fishing through the ice is awesome. Whether you choose to use tip-ups or jigging baits, these fish can be awesome to target.
You’ll find the months of January and February are better than December because pickerel will have burnt through a lot of their fat stores by now and are seeking meals to help them survive the winter.
During winter, the best time of day to catch pickerel will be early-to-late afternoon from about 1 pm until sunset. I haven’t found the night bite to be good for winter pickerel personally. Morning can be decent too but afternoon is my recommendation for you.
Use live or dead natural baits. Shiners, suckers, shad, or sunfish (if legal) are your best option. If you do choose to use lures, try to keep the movement to a minimum. Slow, gradual movements. Few things underwater move fast or sporadically in very cold water. Appear natural and less movement is better for pickerel.
Hot Tip: If you find submerged vegetation in 10+ feet of water, you can be very confident it will hold nice pickerel fishing. Even if the vegetation is decaying, it will hold baitfish and pickerel.
Spring
Spring pickerel fishing can be very good, especially towards the latter end of the season. In spring, the spawn will occupy much of their energy so they will not feed as well.
In early spring, pickerel will head to northern bays of lakes as this is where weeds start growing first. These northern bays will warm up first and draw in a ton of baitfish and gamefish first.
In late spring, you will have a lot of rapid weed growth and weeds starting to emerge from the water. Look for the thickest, nastiest patch of weeds near the open water. Big pickerel will position here to ambush prey and frogs.
In spring, I have found late afternoon from 2 hours before sunset until dusk to be the best time of day for pickerel. Morning can be decent too, especially later in the season.
Hot tip: Baitfish like shiners, minnows, shad, alewives, and suckers are the best spring baits for pickerel and bass.
Summer
Pickerel fishing is normally very good in summer months. Pickerel love weeds and aquatic vegetation will be very abundant in most pickerel rivers and lakes in summer.
You will find pickerel hanging around the deepest edge of thick weeds or lily pads where larger baitfish will funnel around. If you find good weeds along main lake points, these will be the best locations.
The best time of day during the summer for pickerel is early morning from dawn until 2 hours after sunrise and late afternoon from before sunset until dusk.
These are my go-to fishing windows. Frog activity will dictate when pickerel are most active as well. If your lake holds a lot of frogs, pickerel will be dialed into feeding on them in summer.
Focus on baits that mimic frogs, shiners, perch, and shad. These will be the food items pickerel are feeding on in summer. I especially want you to focus on frogs and shiners. Lures and live bait work equally well. Lures will allow you to cover the most water.
Hot tip: Main lake points with weeds or sunken timber will hold a lot of chain pickerel.
Fall
Fall is an interesting window for pickerel. Most anglers are worrying more about deer hunting or walleye fishing in fall, but pickerel will be actively feeding to pack on weight for winter.
If you find baitfish schooling up, you will invariably find bass, catfish, pike, walleye, and pickerel feeding as well.
Forget about frogs after August. From September through the end of October, baitfish is all you need to focus on. Crayfish (crawfish) also can be really good in early fall.
In fall, the best time of day to catch pickerel will be early morning from dawn until 2 hours after sunrise. You may catch pickerel down deeper as the baitfish school drops in the water column later in the day.
November is the toughest month of the year to catch pickerel in my opinion. Pickerel are a lot tougher to locate and catch now. They often head deep and orient around deep humps or rock.
Hot tip: Unless you have a boat with good electronics to find deep pickerel, go hunting in November rather than fishing for pickerel. It’s just a tough month.
How Weather Impacts Pickerel Fishing
Weather can have a big impact on pickerel fishing. Technically, it can have big impact on all species of fish. Weather breaks cause big changes in fish behavior. If you are in the middle of a hot dry spell, fishing will be ok. But if a storm approaches that disturbs that weather monotony, it will cause pickerel to feed aggressively, especially before the storm.
The low pressure associated with the hours before a storm is the best time to possibly fish pickerel. The cooler temps and reduced sunlight makes pickerel leave their dense vegetation and venture out in search of baitfish. Chain pickerel have good reduced light vision giving them a tactical advantage over most baitfish.
During rain, pickerel fishing can be good but it will gradually degrade as the rain continues. During the rain, fish with loud baits like spinners or jerkbaits that will attract pickerel over the sound of rainfall.
After rain or once a cold front pushes in, you’ll find fishing to be the slowest. Pickerel settle way down and only eat if bait bumps into their lips. Fish with bottom jigs, drop shots, and even ned rigs. Live bait is always good for pickerel, especially after a cold front.
Summary: Fishing is best before a weather break or hours before a storm moves in. Fish these with moving baits like crankbaits or swimbaits that cover a ton of water.
Best Time of Day to Catch Pickerel
The best time of day to catch chain pickerel is late afternoon from 2 hours before sunset until dusk or in the hours right before the first storm in weeks during summer. Pickerel are most active in reduced light conditions and when frogs are most active. If frogs are feeding heavily on insects near sunset, you can bet pickerel are watching them waiting for one to slip up.
| Season | Best Time of Day |
| Winter | Early-to-Mid Afternoon until Sunset |
| Spring | Late Afternoon (especially late spring) |
| Summer | Late Afternoon when Frogs are Most Active |
| Fall | Early morning/late afternoon Sept & Oct |
Night Fishing Chain Pickerel
Many anglers can reliably catch pickerel at night, especially in summer. Chain pickerel can be very active after dark especially on full moon nights. The full moon allows frogs to be silhouetted against the sky. If the insects are out and frogs are active, pickerel will absolutely be out feeding after dark.
The moon phase can really impact pickerel activity. On new moon nights, the pickerel fishing can also be good. But quarter moons are usually the worst nights for pickerel and bass fishing. Cloudy nights that block out the full moon can also dampen fishing.
To catch pickerel at night, fish with surface baits like poppers, frogs, and even senkos. Pickerel will be eyeing up the surface looking for baitfish and frogs. Live bait fished near vegetation can also be really strong too at night.
Hot tip: If frog are very active after dark, pickerel fishing can be very hot especially on full moon and new moon nights.
Overcast & Cloudy Pickerel Fishing
Overcast and cloudy days are awesome for chain pickerel fishing. On bright sunny days, pickerel need to hang tight to cover for shade. But the reduced light of cloudy skies will allow pickerel to venture far from cover and hunt for moving prey. Pickerel have very good reduced light vision and will be out looking for baitfish and frogs.
I recommend fishing for pickerel on cloudy days with moving baits. Crankbaits, swimbaits, umbrella a-rigs, jerkbaits, and spinners are awesome. A good topwater frog is very good too. Pickerel will be a little tougher to locate since they aren’t bound to vegetation where shade is prevalent.
