A couple more Pike Trips

I've been piking again, on Sunday just gone on the Lower river, and then today on the middle stretches. The first trip resulted in a blank, but there was a lot of water pushing through, with weed (and the barrage was probably open as well), coupled with the wind making it difficult fishing. Still, you learn with all fishing trips and it was good just to be out...

The second trip, to the middle stretches, was a different story. I tried two lines of attack, the first was a float-fished bluey deadbait under a nearside bush, the second was float-fishing maggot for dace. After building up the swim for an hour or so with maggot, i eventually got a couple of small dace, using my new rod - a Drennan Floatmaster, which i would add is an incredible bit of kit. I then hit into something a bit better, near a raft of weed, which was clearly a chub as it knew exactly where to snag me up! Never mind.

Out of the corner of my eye, i noticed my deadbait float started bobbing, and then moving. I hit into it quickly, and felt an initialy resistence followed by nothing. A quick lob back out resulted in a bit instantly, and this time i left it longer. I hit into it once more, and this time it hooked up. But, it then sprung out, and try as i might, the pike never came back.

Back to the float, and a couple more dace later got me thinking. I rigged up a livebait rig (i've never tried this, and felt a twinge of guilt, but it's another option with my piking which i have been consdering trying lately). A dace was swung out to the same position, and within minute the bobbing of the float took a more determined course. I hit into it, and landed this pike, presumably the same that had dropped my deadbaits.

No more fish followe this, but all in all a very interesting day, and i've finally tried and succeeded with livebaiting. Another string to my fishing bow...