The St. Croix Premier is a great rod, good choice there. If it were me, I'd
consider going up to a medium heavy rod for the big pike (but the medium
will handle 20 lb pike). I'd also consider the Pflueger President in 6735
(or 6740 if you were to go with a medium heavy rod). My brother-in-law owns
a Sahara and I own a President - we both preferred the Pflueger and we're
die-hard Shimano fans. One note about the rod/reel combos that are
mentioned - they are versatile and would make great bass/walleye rods also.

"westynorth" wrote in message
...
I'm taking my 8 year old son to Canada this summer to fish for large
Northern Pike. This will be his first fishing adventure and I need to buy
him the appropriate gear for a successful experience. I don't have a clue
as to which brand of rod & reel to get him, or how long the rod should be,
or how many ball bearings the open spinning reel should have, or anything
else for that matter. Maybe I'm over complicating it. All I know is that I
plan on casting with lures, and the fish will be between 10 to 20 pounds
(I hope).

Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your consideration,
Westynorth