THE JOY OF FISHING WITH MARTIN BOWLER
The pike fishing season is pretty short, so why not have a cast or two for this awesome predator before it’s spawning time?
THIS article brings to a close another chapter in my angling life, namely winter fishing and its associated species.
After this week, pike probably won’t play much of a role in my fishing because, as I’m primarily a southern angler, spawning is very close at hand for these fish.
If, however, I lived further north, or even in Scotland, this wouldn’t be the case. Remember this if you’re ever lambasted by fishing’s ‘thought police’. Glaswegian pike have a very different life to those in Guildford! For me, though, it’s a case of one last cast for these magnificent predators.
I’ve already mentioned spawning, and you should consider this when locating your quarry. That’s because, in all probability, you won’t catch pike in March from the same places you did in December. It’s a generalisation, but I’d look at the shallows, especially places which get the most sun and are shielded from the coldest winds. Focus a bit more on snags and reed beds, which is where the big hen fish will congregate, with several jacks in hot pursuit.
The atmosphere is supercharged and frantic, in fact it’s common for the females to bite their amorous suitors.
So, if you’re catching fish with chunks taken out of them, don’t move – the likelihood is that the biggest fish in the lake will be close by. Read nature’s signs and let the jacks do all of the groundwork for you.
I guess I’m no different to most pikers in saying that deadbaiting forms the basis of most of my fishing. I keep things very simple with a running rig and strong tackle – nothing complicated, and something everyone can do with a fresh mackerel or a herring.
When fishing on the bottom you should always use a weight and never freeline the bait. That would allow far too much movement, and could result in a deeply-hooked fish.
A float or an alarm/drop-off combo is another essential, and you must learn how to set it up correctly so it will register drop-back bites.
To test this, simply pull off some slack and, if the indicator doesn’t show this, then alter its position on the rod rest.
In my opinion, though, there’s a better way to catch these aggressive, lovelorn pike, and that’s with a moving bait.
The obvious choice is lures, which can be plugs, spoons, spinners or all manner of rubber creations. But there is another option that can, in the right situation, be more effective than any of these, although it is rarely used by the coarse angler.
Fly fishing is well worth investigating, because the free movement of fur and feathers imparts movem
