Zone 17 ice out pike, Pike lure or Bass lure ?

I was having a discussion with a friend and I told him when I go pike fishing after ice out in zone 17 I'll be taking all my bass jigs, soft plastics, all crankbaits, and top water lures out of my tackle bag in case a CO gives me a hard time.
We got to talking and he says he's going to use lipless cranks , square bills, and spinnerbaits for pike.

I'm wondering if anyone has ever had an issue with a CO telling them they are target bass instead of their desired game fish ? And what ended up happening ?

I plan on using mepps #5's. Stickbaits. Swimbaits.
I want to use a spinnerbait but I know bass love them too and don't want to run into a CO who's having a bad day while using it.

The regs say it's illegal to attempt to try to catch an out of season fish... I'm not a lawyer but they don't really define what it means to "attempt" to catch an out of season fish.

I've caught pike, panfish, perch, and bass with a worm on a hook but I'd love to see the CO try to explain how I'm doing targeting out-of-season species by putting that in the water. If I was on the dock in Beaverton or in Victoria Harbour trying to catch perch with a 3" five of diamonds he might have a point. I imagine as long as you're licensed, say you're out for pike today, you're using a lure/bait/method that's accepted for pike, you don't have any bass in your cooler, and if you tell him if you caught a bass you'd switch up your lures or move on, he'll give you the benefit of the doubt.

I've never had any experience with COs and I could be totally wrong on this, but that's my take.

I dont think you need to empty your tackle box, I keep all my lures with me, doesnt mean Im using them.

If you had a senko tied on your rod and were fishing for Pike, well Id say thats going to be one hard sell. But if you had something a Pike could eat, than Id say your fine. BTW I dont think small bass crankbaits qualify as something Pike eat lol. Sure once in a while theyll hit anything, but to actually target pike you wouldnt use that.

most as in 90% of the pike I've caught have come on crank baits

Obviously you've not tried a senko for spring like before.
That's fine, more like for me then.

All the pike I have ever caught have come on spinner baits, jerk baits, and crank baits. The odd one on top water or a senko while bass fishing.
When I target pike I throw out mainly spinner baits and jerk baits. I never keep bass anyways and the incidental ones I have caught over the years fishing for other species go back immediately.
A CO would be fine as long as you dont have bass in your cooler and a boat full of rods rigged up with worms and craws etc.

I've accidentally caught bass OS on panfish lures targeting panfish, lures that are maybe a half inch....if they are hungry they'll pretty much grab anything that passes by. As for pike, as odd as it seems, I love floating frogs and nail many on them- well that and the baitball lures...As for CO'c as long as you are being honest and have nothing to hide, don't fret.

Pike and walleye open up before bass just about every where.. if I was a co I'd be more interested in your rod and leader. If you have a rod that can handle a 10 to 20 lb pike, and are using say 50lb flouro leader or wire leader it's pretty clear you're going for pike.

A co would probably try to watch you fishing too. If he sees you catch a few bass without moving or changing tactics, now there's a case.

You having your normal gear in your tackle box.. that shouldn't be a problem. Doesn't hurt to slim down and only bring what you expect to use though.

I have actually caught massive pike on a senko, but when bass are out of season I dont tie on a senko for fear of people thinking I am 100 percent going for bass.

Pike also love jigs. I even sight fish for these pike with senkos and jigs, but only when bass is open. kind of sucks

Senko catches almost anything.
Pike eat almost anything, any size when they want.
Bass is pretty much the same.
If you've got a musky lure on and you state you're going for bluegill.......
well you can figure it out.

If you are worried about the senko/bass idea try out the big 7" senkos. If you are using heavy flouro and a big worm with a casting setup you shouldn't have problems. If you a pitching 4" senkos with a spinning set up then up in the shallows before bass opener I could see a CO or other people giving you some flack.