Spinning for Pike

[Matthew Martin]

Hey! I am new to spinning for pike and I have tried it out a few times on my local canal (Rochdale Canal). I been three or four times and had about six small pike. Silver and blue spoons and dark coloured plugs seem to get me the takes but I am wondering how i could get threw to the bigger fish? Some of the pike taking 3 inch spoons are like 7 inches long lol.

Has any body fished this canal? If so which are the best stretches for spinning and which tactics get you the most takes?

Any advice would be welcomed!

Cheers

 

[Towpath Tyke]

If I were you I`d be fishing the deeper areas for the larger ones, somewhere with sunken trees and bushes etc... But then I`d also deadbait it as well using a pike bung float and a dead sea/course fish! If you must spin, try a medium plug that resembles a pike or a perch!! []

 

[newies_maggots]

thats a bloody hard question....

just gotta keep PLUGGING away hehe, try dead baits and live baits, change to plugs rather than spinners / spoons

the biggies are out there, its just the case of finding them

 

[cess monkey]

Matthew, the trouble with using small lures an spinners is that pike and perch of any size will have a go at them.
Stepping up your lure size could help but small pike seem to have no idea of what size fish they can eat.
I have caught pike that were smaller than the lure i was fishing with, it does sort out the bigger ones most of the time but theres always going to be the odd snappy "jack" that seems hell bent on attacking anything that you put past its nose.

 

[Matthew Martin]

Cheers guys!

 

[banksy]

The second biggest pike I ever caught (17lb 8oz) took a size 12 trout lure !

To be honest, I've had much more success with a wobbled sprat, single hook in the head and a size 10 treble in the tail.

Though it's best if you can buy them fresh, they fall to bits after a couple of casts if they're frozen.

Can you still get those preserved baits in polythene bags? They STANK of formaldehyde, but still caught pike ! []

 

[Matthew Martin]

Anyone know any good pike waters in the Oldham area? If so what is the best approach?

 

[Minipeace]

I've done well in the past with ABU toby's spoons.
I've loads of spinners, spoons and plugs and I just tend to try different ones out when I'm spinning.
As for the large pike I think you may well have to deadbait for them if you want to catch them more than the jacks and smaller pike. Spinning does tend to catch the smaller ones as they tend to be very active and will chase anything, sometimes jumping out of the water when you lift the lure out.
Livebaiting is also very rewarding but you must check first to see if the club that runs the water you fish allow it as many don't.

When I spin I alter the speed of the retrieve. Fast, slow, stop then a quick wind etc..... With spinners you have some control on how deep you wish to fish i.e. cast then allow a few seconds to sink before winding. This depends on the depth of water you are fishing though. I also alter the height of the rod tip too which can effect how the spinner travels through the water i.e. the raise it. Most of the time I tend to hold the rod low to the water.

Over time you can collect a whole heap of lures, so many available and many do a specific job like depth or floating or rattle or the way they react when winding in.
Word of warning though on some plastic lures and worms(you can spin them too) that you may see. I brought some from a company a few years back which where plastic worms of different colours and found out the plastic reacted to plastic i.e. it melted some plastics and found out that Plano lure boxes where built with this in mind, and I also noticed on one packet had a cancer warning printed on it and the other packets had it removed. They where produced in the USA and so I never brought this make again.
Just made me think about plastic baits and the chemical reaction that some seem to have.

 

[Matthew Martin]

Is dead baiting rewarding in the summer months because the guy in the tackle shop said its useless?

 

[Ruddy Roach]

I would advise you DON'T fish with deadbaits in the warmer months (unless wobbling like pleasurenut suggested). It's asking for deep hooked fish imo as there may be a delay on seeing the bite/run.

 

[luremad]

My lure box is packed with lures mostly are storm shads as many small pike cant seem to fit the larger size in their gobs.
Spinners and spoons either small sizes or the larger sizes for me seem to attract near enough every little pike/perch in the water i am fishing so i ont use these very often.
Plugs i have varied success with it mainly depends on what water i am fishing that means what plug i am maybe going to catch on.
I try and fish to structures either bridges, overhanging bushes and trees or moored boats as these are perfect ambush points.
I dont find deeper water matters about what fish i catch although you wont catch many little ones as they dont like to be out in the open dont know why though.[][]
Hope these tips help.

 

[gibby]

Agree with luremad - cast around any likely ambush points, be they reed beds, lily pads, bridges and sunken trees. As a general rule, I've not found the size of the lure to make much difference. I've had 12" jack on on lures that must have been six inches long, and doubles on tiny little Mepps spoons when after perch. I also find that floating or diving plugs do best in the warmer months, and spoons and lures attract more takes in the winter.

If you want the larger fish, I would wobble a deadbait.

 

[nickg]

hot spinners for the rochdale canal;

Mepps Aglia Platinum - Red, Also Aglia Hot Tiger
Rublex Ondex - Size 5+ classic spinner, yuo can buy them with dark blades now. perfect, has lots of small/medium pike on this.
Blue Fox Vibrax - Silver, hooked a good pike on this spinner near Borshaw, didnt land it, then lost the spinner:/

plug, canadian wigger, silver

get to rochdale tackle shop, they have packs of 5 rubbery type lures for 3 quid! they look good, but havent caught yet. cost effetive if you do get them weeded up though.

 

[Miggy]

Originally posted by Matthew Martin

Is dead baiting rewarding in the summer months because the guy in the tackle shop said its useless?

do you use oldham aquatics? if so becareful of the advice u get from him, nice bloke but a bit miss guided when it comes to anything other than feeder fishing! go to roxy and ask in there, u'll get much better feedback from them[]

 

[Matthew Martin]

yeh thats the guy! Have you fished the Rochdale Canal lately?

 

[boots_n_braces]

move away from the jacks aswell mate, big pike eat little pike so they behave like any other prey fish around bigger pike.

If your catching them try fishing off to one side of were you are in any slacker water or under cover the chances are the bigger fish will be laying up waiting for the next meal1