Pike and zander fish-in

[Anderoo]

Think it would be feasable to combine the Zander Fish In with the Pike teach In Anderoo? Those who missed out on the Pike teach in as I couldnt get the vennue sorted could turn up in the day and I could do some on the bank instruction for those wanting it? They could then Zed fish that night or just camp then pike fish the next day? what do you think?

 

That sounds like a really good idea to me - it would certainly make sense to combine the AN predator get-togethers. If you need a few pike, the Wissey is just down the road. Although if the cut-off carries on in form, there may be no need to move at all. Yep, great idea

[Kappa]

Put me down as a maybe, I'll have to ask permission first

 

Rich

[Angly]

Teach-in too, excellent!

 

Would it be extremely foolhardy to rely on my brolly for shelter (what did KLAA anglers do pre-bivvy I wonder days...)?

Edited January 14, 2009 by Angly

[Anderoo]

Please see amended first post with current details.

 

Thanks

Andrew

 

(Angly, you'll probably want something better than a brolly, it might be cold and it will almost certainly be windy!)

[yorkio]

Excellent - thanks for not giving up on this one! I'd still love to try to make it along for the teach-in. I'm probably not going to be able to stick around for the fish-in though, as I don't have a bivvy or a tent or a suitable vehicle to kip in. And to be honest, I'm not entirely sure how appealing I find the idea of sleeping out in February anyway!

[Andrew Burgess]

Androo or Budgie - I not sure if I can make yet. I will let you know nearer to the date!

[Anderoo]

According to a friend (he'll be joining us for one of the nights) who still lives in the homelands, the Level is the best bet. The Cut-off is producing plenty of pike but very few Zander, and we found the same thing last year too. However, any other up to date info will be gratefully recieved. Meeting points and directions will be provided to those who are coming, I don't really want to advertise exactly where we'll be on an open forum.

[Fenman]

A local angler had three pike to just over 20lbs from the Old Bedford River at Salters Lode, near Downham Market over Christmas. This is a KLAA water - and it's right next to Well Creek where fishing is free. Both are narrow and shallow, but both seem to be producing decent pike. Just an idea if the other venues aren't producing.

[Anderoo]

In case this is helpful, here is some basic info. I would never claim to be a great zander or pike angler, so everyone please feel free to advise on rigs, tactics and bait

 

Rigs and tackle

Like perch, you'll want to keep resistance to a minimum and to avoid big changes in resistance. I've never used floats because zander fishing is essentially night fishing and watching starlights would send me a bit crazy, but I expect floatfishing would work well. For legering, I use a wide bore run ring and a fairly heavy lead (2oz), and just a bead to protect the knot to the wire trace.

 

If legering livebaits, I like those little bouyant leger stems, which keeps the line off the bottom a bit. If legering deads, I just use a simple running leger, as described above.

 

For traces, I use a pair of size 10 or 8 trebles (depending on bait) and 15lb Drennan soft wire. I haven't tried circles, but apparently they work well. A friend of mine uses doubles with good results.

 

Indicators can be rear drop-offs (like piking) or bobbins on a long drop. Dropped runs can be common, and in this case I prefer bobbins and strike before the fish has a chance to drop the bait. Whatever you use, I'd set them up as sensitively as possible. Sometimes the drain runs off, and there's quite a heavy flow (this usually clolurs the water and can be a good time for a run). Bobbins can be pretty useless then, so it's back to drop-offs. You'll need bite alarms too, otherwise you may miss a run and deep hook a fish.

 

Any rod capable of casting a bait and 2oz lead 40-50 yards is fine. I use 2.25lb tc carp rods. Ditto reels. I use the smallest baitrunners with 12lb line.

 

Obviously you'll want a big net, mat, forceps, etc. (and hopefully scales and camera!)

 

Tactics

The best time is definitely night. Sleeping and predator fishing don't mix, so I suggest catching up on sleep in the daytime, although I usually end up cat-napping next to my rods at night if it's quiet. The drains are very uniform, but the best spots to put a bait are usually either tight to the marginal reeds or at the bottom of the marginal slopes. Near bridges can also be good. Really, any kind of feature is worth exploring, even if it's just a few metres of slightly thicker reedbed. A bait in the middle can sometimes work too.

 

If you see bream or catch bream in the daytime, keep feeding them and fish that area for zander later. They seem to follow the bream shoals around. I'd suggest a rod at the bottom of the far shelf and one at the bottom of the near shelf, and if using a third rod, one tight to the far reeds or in the middle.

 

Staying quiet and not thumping around on the bank is also a good idea! Also, there are miles and miles of drain - give your neighbour plenty of space.

 

Bait

Live or dead coarse fish, basically. Roach, skimmers, rudd, perch and eels all catch. I've always had a lot of faith in eels, but it's up to you whether you use them or not, as they're becoming rarer. You can usually catch silver fish with maggot/groundbait in the day and either use them as livebait or freshly killed deads. Frozen coarse fish will catch too and I'll be taking some in case I can't catch any fresh ones! As for size, I've seen zander caught on half a small roach and on a dead rudd weighing over a pound, but I tend to use baits about 4-6" long. It usually depends on what you can catch...

 

 

For daytime pike, a float paternostered livebait in the margins usually takes some beating. For the tiddlers (and possibly bigger bream and tench) maggot or work over groundbait works well, either float or leger. It is deep water, so legering is easier. My friend was catching small roach and perch last year on a pole, ready for the night's zandering, and after a while hooked something solid which plodded around for a couple of minutes, then realised something wasn't quite right, and shot off downstream, stretching his elastic to about 30ft before completely smashing him up It was quite a sight, and probably a big tench.

 

Hope that helps, and feel free to add, amend or correct anything here I really hope we get some action, especially for those who have never caught one before.

[Dick Dastardly]

Nothing much I would add to that mate. For those wanting to pike fish during the day a few sea deadbaits are worth bringing as well.

Freshly dead or live coarse baits are definately the way to go for Zeds though so some bait catching gear and maggots like Anderoo mentioned are a must.