Learning the basics and even picking a few new hints and tips can go a long way in pike fishing. Pike can be an exciting species to target especially in the winter months when most fish become in a dormant like state. In this post I will cover the basic essentials of pike fishing and also some very useful hints and tips so without further ado lets get started!
Pike Fishing Essentials
The Tools
If its your first time pike fishing make sure you are correctly kitted out for this style of fishing. To pike fish correctly you should own a good pair of long nose forceps and a pair of wire cutters. These tools make it very easy to unhook and put back the pike without too much harm.
The Tackle
If you own any carp fishing gear then you just in luck because using a decent carp rod and reel can be all you need to catch pike. When ledgering you can use a bite alarm but it’s advised you have the bale arm open so the pike doesn’t spoke off your bait before it hooking itself.
The Bait
Its advised to always you fresh coarse fish baits which you can purchase from your local tackle shop or supermarket.
Where To Fish?
From experience canals are a great place to start full of small sliver which pike thrive on. Locations such rivers and stillwaters can also be great for large pike. When pike fishing on a stillwater its all about location so being mobile is must to find the fish.
Handling The Pike
Handling pike is essential to know before you fish for the species, for you and the pike safety. If you don’t know where to begin watch this video.
The Pike Fishing Rig
Float or Ledger
Both these methods can work well on most waters and normally tend to catch you the bigger pike than methods such as lure fishing. I personally favour the float method as its presented in the water naturally and is also very simple to set up. But if you’re fishing a stillwater ledger fishing may be more effective and is more of a sit and wait for the pike to approach you bait tactic, which can pay off with a capture of a large specimen.
Lure/Spinner fishing
Lure fishing can be great when you’re fishing a location that plenty of hungry pike. It can be very exciting at times and is a very mobile method. Lure fishing can be effective at most times of the year but is best during the warmer months with the fish moving around the water hunting and chasing their prey.
Pike Fishing Tips
- If you’re fishing a canal or river for pike they can often contain eels. And commonly said is that using a mackerel bait can attract the eels to your bait so if you get miss takes on a mackerel you may have eels in your swim.
- When fishing for pike take inconsideration the fishes welfare, when possible unhooking the fish in the water can be better for the fishes recovery, using the essential tools mentioned previously can aid in unhooking the fish for you and the pike’s safety. If you need to bring the pike on to the bank I advise you to have a unhooking mat ready.
- Don’t strike to soon.. being over eager when getting a take can cost you losing the fish, giving it some time to eat your bait before striking to make sure its hooked properly.
Pike Fishing Facts
- Traditionally the pike fishing season is between October to March, the reason behind this is that commonly fish shoal up in large numbers during the winter months making the pike very alert and go on the prowl. Pike can be caught in the summer months but if caught they normally are very underweight during these months.
- The current pike record stands at 46lb 13oz caught in 1992 by pike angler Roy Lewis
Thanks for reading our Pike Fishing 101 – A Simple Guide To Pike Fishing.
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