COLD WATER STABILITY
With
winter now fully upon us the fish are now feeling some sort of stability.
Water temperatures have been consistently low for a couple of months now,
and the fishing has definitely started to improve.
Contrary
to how it sometimes seems, most species don’t actually stop eating through the
cold season, they just don’t eat as much.
In the last few weeks I have been hearing about plenty of action on our
waters.
Highlights
include some fine Perch catches, taken both in match style fishing approaches,
with chopped worm etc. and good results coming from the roving anglers walking
the banks with a box of lures. It
was no surprise that the majority of weights taken in the Christmas match were
made up of Perch.
The
pick of the bunch though, had to be Siddie (The Kiddie) taking a 2lb Roach from
the bay at Wolfhall. A bit of a
surprise capture, but a fabulous result all the same.
There
has been plenty of Pike coming out from all reaches as well, and it’s with
this species I have been concentrating on myself.
Just
this weekend I took 6 year old Elliott out on the competition stretch.
He had 2 Pike, a 6lb fish and an 8lb fish, both taken on herring baits.
To see the look on his face as he did battle with his biggest ever fish
summed up perfectly what this sport of ours is to me!
3 minutes later with Elliott struggling to hold his monster for the
camera, the pride etched across his face told its own story.
Sticking
with Pike fishing, but on a more tactical note, there are so many little edges
you can give yourself. When you get
to your chosen area, don’t set up camp right on the water’s edge.
Get back from the water and try and blend in with the background and set
up there, now you won’t be sticking out so much as a huge advertisement for
the impending sets of trebles about to descend with a splash on the Pikes dining
table!
Also
take along a choice of baits. They
might have wanted sprats last week, but this week sardines or trout might be
first choice! If you haven’t got
it with you, you can’t try it!
Drifting
baits work well, but generally, a static bait will tempt the bigger specimens.
If the wind gets up, then a float ledger set-up can make the difference.
This is not just a method for large Stillwater’s, I can’t think of a
more effective way of keeping a bait static and natural, retaining good run
indication, tight against the far bank in gale force winds!
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When
the going gets tough you may want to experiment with flavoring your baits.
Personally, I find good old vanilla essence hard to beat.
Cochineal is a close second, plus it has the added advantage of being red
in colour. Both of these cost just
pence from your supermarket saving you pounds in a tackle shop!
Syringes are cheaply obtained from your tackle shop, or ideally; get
friendly with your local vet!
It
goes without saying always take great care with these items, keeping them away
from the kids, and disposing of them responsibly.
Well
there’s a few things to think about, although this is only scratching the
surface of pike fishing tactically. The
most important thing to get right is location, find the snags, and the Pike
won’t be far away!
The above are very simple, but too often ignored. It really is time we had another “twenty” from our waters, so go out and give it your best shot!
Till next time......
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