can anyone give me the best information available on pike for a beginner. i need information on the best lures, best places to try example/ canals,drains,lakes etc... i also need to know the best pound line to use and the all the tackle i need 2 get into piking. any info would b good. thanks ....

Leon has put some good articles on this site just search them out.Best advice I can offer is to find an experienced piker to show you.

I'm a beginner myself so you may get better advice, but...
Ask about piking locations in your local tackle shop. They'll probably have pikers and regular matchmen in there who know where the matches get hassled by pike.
Get kitted out right before Waller or Argyll shout at you - quality traces, forceps, long-nose pliers, wirecutters, unhooking mat.
Even barbless trebles can wreak havoc with standard mesh landing nets, so invest in something like the Harris Huntsman which won't terminally tangle yer hooks with a fish in the middle of it.
Suit your tackle to the conditions - in wide open water a light lure rod might be fine, but with plenty of weed in front of you it might be tricky hauling even a small pike up through 6' of lilies unless you can wade in ...
Play safe for the pikes' sake - fish on the heavy side at first. 15lb mono, light clutch, strike at the first sign of action etc.
And read the articles on AN

Good luck !

you need at least 15lb mono (which isnt on the heavy side for pike its the absolute minimum), many people now prefer braid. please dont go piking without proper unhooking tools, all the things glenn says are needed.
theres no substitute for someone elses experience so if you can go with anyone who knows the ropes you'll learn much quicker and not make any mistakes which could harm old mr esox.
where are you? you never know, some friendly soul on here may be able to help out!

Go to http://www.pacgb.com and all will be revealed! Well, almost everything! Location tends to be on the restricted list!

Peter's right. Take this short cut to the tackle and handling pages http://www.pacgb.co.uk/tipindex.html

(I know it says .co.uk but it's the same site - please don't ask why...)

I agree with everything already said, but I'd just like to add this helpful website, which I found very useful when I rediscovered pike-fishing last year:
http://www.pikeforum.co.uk/Shared/Forums.asp

Glen B, the Harris Huntsman of today has a frame that is a very different animal to previous models. Personally I don't think it is to be recommended now. I have had a Masterline Predator Net for some months now, well pleased. Under £30.00 too.

Peter - where did you buy yours?
I've been holding off piking till I sort a landing net, and Harris have been mucking me around over non-arival of some lures, so I didnt buy their net in the end.

cheers

Got mine from Tackle Direct at Beccles in Suffolk. They do have a web site/mail order division but if you can visit, don't know where you live, haggling is a good option that works.

Haggling in any shop can be fun, and profitable! Embarrases my wife no end!

The new model Huntsman has an incredibly flimsey frame for a pike net.