Don't you hate it when.....

[The VFC]

You patiently fish for silver fish for an hour or two, then ledger a modest sized deadbait near to the feeding roach for three more hours without a touch and some hooligan turns up and spins across your swim with a monstrous jelly thing?

Had 2 jacks too the bugger..... not that I'm jealous...... had to help the silly sod unhook them because "I'm normally a carp angler and thought I come for a chuck or two... they scare me a bit really..." no forceps, glove, unhooking mat and witha net about 2 sizes too small even for a 6 pound pike.

I do so love being ghillie to the masses.....

[Pedro]

You patiently fish for silver fish for an hour or two, then ledger a modest sized deadbait near to the feeding roach for three more hours without a touch and some hooligan turns up and spins across your swim with a monstrous jelly thing?

Had 2 jacks too the bugger..... not that I'm jealous...... had to help the silly sod unhook them because "I'm normally a carp angler and thought I come for a chuck or two... they scare me a bit really..." no forceps, glove, unhooking mat and witha net about 2 sizes too small even for a 6 pound pike.

I do so love being ghillie to the masses.....

I do worry about the " casual " Pike angler who lacks basic care knowledge for Pike.
At the moment they seem to be appearing everywhere,its that time of year.
All we can do is try and educate them on the bank

[Dave Burr]

Or carry a shotgun in your holdall :twisted:

[Greentura]

of course, when they turn up carp fishing with the same poor standard of preparation they are universally condemned by all, but it seems fine to for pike

[Gurn]

I have written on this subject many times before. I really believe that old esox gets a rough trot and believe it comes down to two reasons..Unfortunately one is traditional beliefs. I still have matchmen telling me that the only good pike is a dead one. The majority of people still think that it's fine to use six hooks in one bait for them. They are also still thought of as aggresive, robust killing machines when in reality they are one of our most delicate fish.
The other reason is fear. It amazes me how many anglers will fish for pike who are bloody terrified of them. I get asked regularly for the steel filleting gloves we sell for use as unhooking gloves and also for old style pike gags . Neither of these items are necessary if you are competent and confident handling these fish.
I have also had the same experience as you Jim where an angler has caught a lively pike and been too scared to unhook it. It makes me shudder to think what would have happened had we not been there to assist.
I do believe that Mick Brown is currently promoting a new pike safety initiative, let's hope that the angling media give it plenty of coverage. It's long overdue.
http://theintrepidpiscator.blogspot.co. ... -pike.html

[Isis]

The pictures in the angling papers do little to dispel the fear for lots of newcomers to piking.
They show pictures of 12" forceps, long nosed pliers, special gloves, side cutters etc etc
I carry all these on my days out, not for the fish that I catch but for those of others.
I use large circle hooks that can be taken out without even opening the pike's jaws.
Only once since early October (over 50 pike so far) have I had to go inside for one of my fish when the hook had caught inside the scissors. The second time was a pike I caught that also had someone else's trebles that had effectively sewn its stomach shut, with one hook of the treble in the top and one in the bottom. A second treble had caught in the scissors and a trace plus some mono trailed out.
I wish more anglers would give circles a try, it's much kinder on the pike.

[GarryProcter]

I'm interested in your use of circle hooks Isis, and it would be interesting to hear more about your experiences with them, if you wouldn't mind sharing.

[Isis]

You're welcome Garry.
My experience with circles has covered nearly four years now. I initially tested them against traditional trebles and found they were more successful so changed over completely.

The technique used to set circle hooks differs from normal as you just tighten up and apply pressure, or just reel in until you feel everything go solid. The hook doesn’t set until it passes out of the jaws, normally in the scissors. This leaves the shank outside the pike making unhooking easy using your fingers or small forceps.

Other threads on this forum have detailed this technique. It just needs confidence. MIke Ladle has used these hooks for many years with a lot of success. He tends to fish rivers for pike whereas I fish stillwaters.
Below is a typically hooked Esox
PS the hook is a Gamakatsu 221414 size 4/0

[Greentura]

Interesting. done an ebay search and only suppliers are in the US but at just over £10 with the postage for 3 packs of 6 it might be worth a try, mean looking things though, the hooks not the pike, well the pike too my best stands at 26lb 2oz and has for 31 years although i have had two other fish at that weight since, just not bigger and the last one would have been if it hadn't regurgitated a 1/2lb'ish roach in the net :brickwall: even that was 20 years ago though and i've not had one over 20 since. Back to ebay to stick in the order.

what's your hooking method for the bait, through the mouth and up through the top of the head would be my guess, am i right?

[Mark]

Isis put me onto these hooks a few months back :thumb:, I purchased 3 packets from the USA and haven't look at a treble since, highly recommended.