Lure fishing for Pike

[msutton]

Dear all,

 

Firstly, thank you to the administrator for allowing me to be a member of this forum and enabling me to participate in what appears to be very lively discussion on my favourite subject!

 

I was wondering if anyone could help me as I am a bit stuck at the moment.

 

I recently started lure fishing for pike. I have all the correct tackle including a good multiplier, jerk bait rod, braided line and strong wire traces.

 

However, I have been having trouble locating the fish!

 

I have been considering buying a fish finder to look at the make-up of my local lake Wintersett Reservoir in Yorkshire. It is a vast water and was formally an open cast coal mine, albeit many years ago.

 

Typically for such a venue it is very deep in the middle and very shallow along the bank. Pike over 30lb's are known to live in the lake but catching them is quite a challenge.

 

The lake appears featureless to the untrained eye. I have been unable to find a drawing of the lake bed hence my posting here.

 

I know that in general for pike it is often best to fish to a feature, whether it be a deeper hole or a weed/reed bed. There are some on the lake but the water is very shallow in these areas and in this weather I cannot help but feel the pike would retreat into deeper water to avoid the cold.

 

I would like any tips at all that anyone could give me including lure choice for this time of year, whether or not to buy a fish finder (depth sounder...) and what time of day to fish.

 

Any assistance would be most appreciate. I am wide open to suggestions on other venues also.

 

Regards,

 

Martin

 

[ 22. November 2004, 08:34 PM: Message edited by: msutton ]

[Peter Waller]

Hi and welcome Martin. You are going in at the deep end by jerk baiting!

 

Right, where to start. Hang round the boats & see if you can go with someone in the know. If that fails then head for the Northern end of the reservoir. Yes, it helps if you have a depth sounder or fishfinder. Find where the water drops off and work your baits above and down to that area. Now the temperature is dropping fast a spinner bait worked on the bottom might be an option. Working a jig-head is also a worthwhile option. Good luck, let us all know how you get on.

[msutton]

Thanks Peter,

 

I am not a total novice at fishing lures, I have done so with much success with perch (3lb's worth!) in the same reservoir.

 

That was a long time ago though. I've done extensive reading on the subject of jerk baiting and I also have a bit of experience in saltwater so I feel confident.

 

What I lack in pike terms is watercraft.

 

Maybe I'll ask for a "fish" finder for xmas!

 

Anyone fancies a day fishing by the way, give me a PM and we'll see if we can hook up, coarse or lures and even beachcasting.

[Newt]

I like a smartcast sonar for this sort of thing. The only real knock on them is their fairly short range which is in the neighborhood of 100-130 feet maximum but that is reasonable for lure casting.

 

I'm not familiar with UK gravel pits so when you say "Typically for such a venue it is very deep in the middle and very shallow along the bank", how deep are we talking? Max effective fresh water depth for the smartcast is probably only a little over 100 feet.

 

Jerkbaits are excellent lures but since the angler has to impart all the action, they can be a little tricky to fish. I think you might do well to start with soft-plastic jerk baits.

 

[ 22. November 2004, 10:14 PM: Message edited by: Newt ]

[Dick Dastardly]

"Fish finders" dont find fish! the knowledge of the waters topography they give you used in conjunction with watercraft do!

 

What other fishing is done on the water Martin? I always advocate finding the features that attract the prey fish as once you find these the Pike will not be far away.

 

As Peter says you have gone in at the deep end with Jerk baits.Even though I like them myself I would sugest that the best lure for "searching" an unknown water is the humble 5" Copper spoon!

[Newt]

BUDGIE:

I would sugest that the best lure for "searching" an unknown water is the humble 5" Copper spoon!

Budgie - if you aren't sure about the snag situation on a particular water and intend to use your 'humble copper spoon' which I'd assume has a bare treble hook, I'd suggest you might need a box full of them if you intend to do much searching.

 

Maybe some sort of weedless/snagless lure might be better to get a general impression? 'Arm' style spinner bait, single-hook spoon with weed guard, large lip crankbait or similar? All can be fished to cover lots of water and you are more likely to get the lure back if it locates a snag for you.

 

I did read a piece on here recently about carolina rigging a large soft-plastic and using that for locating features and fish.

[msutton]

Interesting gents. I've got a modified Rapala minnow which is weedless that I can use. It's a spoon though and not the plug version of a minnow. I think I might give that a try.

 

Lots to think about. I will re-read your posts in the morning as my head is in several pieces at the moment given the hour.

 

Thank you all for your responses.

 

[GlennB]

Hiya Martin. Welcome!

 

Found on the deepest web :

 

"1836 - Decision taken to increase depth of Wintersett reservoir by 5 to7 feet by raising banks and lock walls. Now covers 130 acres and is 40 feet deep in parts."

 

Sounds like the fishfinder mentioned above should do the trick.

 

Tight lines!

 

Glenn

[argyll]

Sorry guys but I did a little checking. Wintersett has a sailing club that uses only part (100 acres) of the reservoir which suggests this place is probably around the 200 acre mark (Ok it was a guess) and looks pretty featureless. An awful lot of water to suss out quickly with virtually no clues. Furthermore it is described as 'extremely shallow close in all around and requires long casting with feeders' This is not a winter lure venue. Its a popular carp and bream venue tho' and whilst it might respond to a long cast deadbait, I doubt if you'll get any extra clues from the locals.

If you still fancy a crack at it then you'll need two things, a chart and a boat. Your reservoir is man-made and thus would have been surveyed before being filled. That means depth charts are available somewhere. At Grafham they are available for a few pence in the shop on site. These charts exist for most of the major reservoirs in the UK, so theres a good chance that Wintersett have them available. With such a strong boating fraternity there, its a racing certainty that they are available. If not they may know who can supply one, it may be the local authority or the yacht club. Get one in advance and you can at least make some plans before getting there. As to whether boats are available, you'll need to ask but I'm inclined to believe that unless you can get afloat, then you're probably wasting your time. If you're getting back into lure fishing after a lay-off, you need something a little smaller and more accessible on which to practice your watercraft. There are several smaller waters around the reservoir (I think to the north) that appear to have coarse fishing available. Best suggestion I can make is to buy the OS map of the area, check out a few possibilities, make a few phone calls and then go take a look. Spend a day checking out the various smaller bits of blue on the map. Unless someone has some good info on Wintersett it looks like a dead duck so far as lure fishng is concerned. Oh and the copper spoon is a good idea, so long as its a heavy copper spoon.

 

[ 22. November 2004, 11:45 PM: Message edited by: argyll ]

[Dick Dastardly]

A fair point Newt! The beauty of the simple spoon is that it can be both fished effectively at a multitude of depths and can be cast a good distance.Also if lost on a newly discovered snag they are relatively cheap!

 

However after saying that the only thing out of those that a spinnerbait fails in is the distance casting! its semi snag free properties would more than make up for that though.

 

[ 22. November 2004, 11:48 PM: Message edited by: BUDGIE ]