Houseplant

Yes me! The salmon in the photograph was taken on ledgered bread crust at Romney Lock Cut, Windsor in 1992. As I remember, small brown trout regularly put in an appearance in matches. I totally agree with the sentiments about the Thames. The sheer size (and depth of it in places) is inspiring. I grew up fishing on the Thames and miss it terribly. There was a swim in Old Windsor where several 1.5lb+ perch were guaranteed in a short session.

"If taken straight to the kitchen from the ponds they can taste muddy, Jimmie says, so they need to be swilled with spring water for a day or two". just out of interest, alive or dead?

it's an interesting article. whether you agree with the sentiments or not, i think change may be on its way. someone mentioned put and take carp fisheries a little while ago and i could really see this happening (and why not?).

sounds like a lovely rod! i only use 3 or 4 piece rods, two piece rods are such a headache to store and transport and are unnecessary these days (unless you're a tournament caster!) i have a 1.75lb grey's barbel rod. i regularly use it for carp fishing and wouldn't hesitate to use it for pike fishing if the need arose. obviously, you'd need to be sensible. if you want to toss half a mackeral over the horizon, it's not going to cut it. a small deadbait/livebait fished at short range or even trotted on the pin would be fine. as for reel, the smallest baitrunners go on this kind of rod quite nicely.

Hair rig!

roach, preferably alive

i was going to say exactly the same thing! this spot is very nice and easily accessible: http://www.alburyestate.com/syon.aspx

Yes. I should qualify, all my piking is done on rivers these days and for what it's worth, I always use a braid mainline. Is it just me or is it so much more fun to fish a free roving/paternostered live on a small water compared to lobbing out big baits over the horizon. Each to their own of course

sorry, it would seem that i'm a twit and not very up-to-date with new tackle. i thought the product in question was a self-locking float!

don't know what you all mean by 'striking' and don't want to teach anyone to suck eggs, but i don't strike for pike in the traditional sense, just tighten up and hold if the fish is running. if it isn't running, then a gentle sweep in the opposite direction usually does the trick. the benefit is that you normally (but not always) get a good idea of whether you have a hook hold or not. if not and the fish comes off, then i just leave the bait where it is and mr pike normally comes back for more.

anyone tried these contraptions for pike fishing?

Thanks for the reply. It is a shame and as you say, a warning.

Something like a decent 1.75lb TC carp/barbel rod with a through action and a 5010 sized baitrunner. If you're inclined toward larger fish, it'll land anything that swims in our rivers and lakes (and probably seas too given the current state of affairs) and still a pleasure to use.

I've fished the dams in Cyprus on and off for the past 15 years at least. When they were first stocked with fish, they provided some excellent sport. Massive bags of carp and bass always ready to jump on a spinner or fly. Sadly, today, I don't find this to be the case. If the Cypriot coarse fishing websites are to be believed, poor rainfall, over-abstraction, bass fishing tournaments where large number of fish are killed and a run down stocking program are to blame. Have to say my own experience bears this out and today, I didn't even see signs of fish life on one of the dams. Anyone else fished in Cyprus recently? At least it's nice and sunny here , but back in the UK soon

I've had a fair few decent sized pike and zander on wobbled fish fingers, so it might be worth a go. actually, that's total cr*p!

I like AN, strangely, because it is small in terms of number of posts. I spend most of my recreational time online on my other passion which is scuba diving. The diving forum (Yorkshire Divers) I use is massive and it is virtually a full time job keeping up with the number of new posts. If I have a spare couple of hours, I'm fortunate enough to live in a place where I can go fishing, rather than sit at a computer reading/writing about it. The same can't be said for my other sport. I also look at Fishing Magicwhich is good. As a I said, AN is my first choice, so keep up the good work. However, I feel that the layout could do with a little updating. Andrew

It's an old picture, but this is the state of the meadow behind my house at the moment. It's been like this most of the year. I dream about catching a fish from it, but since I struggle in the adjoining river, I fear it will remain just that! When the river is in flood, there's one swim where the river freely communicates with the meadow, so no doubt some fish do find they're way in, but I should imagine the herons finish them off pretty quickly.

controversial i know, but when i feel the need to use an alarm, i use a micron m with a fox (carp) swinger and the baitrunner engaged you're all going to tell this that this is going to cause dropped runs. it hasn't for me, in fact, i can't remember the last time i had dropped run. however, i don't fish hard-fished waters and would humbly suggest that if you're getting a lot of dropped runs, it might be time to give those pike a rest.

Good sentiment, but bad idea You want to land EVERY fish you hook, even from a welfare point of view (i.e. removing the hooks). If the lead/feeder is free running on the mainline, then it's not an issue as it will not be attached to the fish wherever the line breaks. If it's not free running then some sort of safety clip/set-up is required. If that doesn't suit you, then a lead/feeder on a link made of weaker line than the main line is required. However, the latter is the least safe option and exact breaking strains will depend on the size of the casting weight and the species you are after. For simplicity, go for the free running set-up. Here's an example. Personally, I substitute the stop for a swivel if fishing for larger fish with heavier lines: http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/Rig-Section/Le..._Leger_Rig.html

it's just plain crap really. *mental note: move to a country with decent weather as soon as possible.

oh dear. my local river looked like it had calmed a bit. i went and bought some bait and now it's pi*ss*ng it down again. think i'll have the same dilema in the morning

Don't worry, I did the same on Sunday. I can handle rain or strong winds, but both together PLUS a flooded river with dead sheep floating past, no! As a teenager, I would regularly smash a hole in the ice in pitch darkness so that I could pike fish or stay on the bank for a week on a wobbly sun lounger. Not anymore and I don't think that's a bad thing.

well, you learn something everyday

do they taste like chicken? sorry, couldn't resist that! guess it could work, i remember reading somewhere that mice are used as bait for catfish. personally, i wouldn't fancy it. imagine the state of the things after a few hours in the water. besides, although i don't doubt for a minute that pike eat mice, i'd try and provide them with their more commonly targeted prey, fish. know what you mean about wastage though. how about buying live mice, i'm sure the snakes would prefer them too.

on my local river which is full of jacks, the only way i've been able to tempt the double figure fish is a largish deadbait fished HARD up against the near bank a few hours into darkness. i fish with one rod and stay awake. i don't think that bivvies, bedchairs and a good night's sleep are the way forward when pike fishing for obvious reasons.