Fisher's NetZone

PIKE BAITS

2006-12-10T21:11:00.000-08:00

There are three types of bait which are used regularly for pike fishing; livebaits, deadbaits and lures. All can be successful in the right place and on the right day!

LIVEBAITS
A live fish is the natural food of pike so it makes sense that it will also make a good bait. Any small fish will catch pike. We recommend fish under 8" (20 cm) in length to preserve fish stocks and to make presentation of the bait and hooking the pike easier. Some fisheries might not allow livebaiting in order to preserve their fish stocks. Livebaits must only be used on the water they have been caught from so you must always be aware of the fishery byelaws which you can find out more about here.
DEADBAITS
Since the late 1950s pike anglers have been using dead fish as bait, but they should not be looked on as an alternative to livebaits, rather as another method altogether. Some fisheries seem to respond better to livebait than they do to deadbaits (and vice versa) - so keep your options open.
Pike sometimes show a preference for particular deadbaits so it pays to use a selection of sea and freshwater fish. Freshwater fish can be used as bait, either freshly caught or frozen, and sea fish also catch pike. Large deadbaits can be cut in two and both the head and tail ends used as bait.

Mackerel
Roach
Herring

Smelt
Sardine

Roach, trout and eel are two popular freshwater baits, while sprats, mackerel and herrings have also caught plenty of pike, as have migratory fish like smelt and lamprey. But anything is worth a try!
LURES
Artificial lures can be used to catch pike in many situations and come in an amazing array of types, sizes and colours. Again they are not an alternative to natural baits, but an extra string to the pike angler's bow.

Always check the fishery rules before fishing to ensure that the baits you intend to use are allowed.

SIMPLE RIGS TO GET YOU STARTED

2006-12-10T21:08:00.000-08:00

Although pike anglers are always dreaming up rigs to deal with specific situations or to overcome particular problems there are a couple of simple rigs that are easy to set up with the most basic of tackle, and are both successful and safe for the pike. They will also work well in most circumstances!

Neither of these rigs involves the use of specialised tackle, and because they incorporate floats you will have no need for expensive bite alarms to detect takes - provided you keep a close watch on the floats!

The first rig is a float leger rig for use with deadbaits. Set the rig up as shown on the right, with the float slightly overdepth. As soon as the float starts to move off or goes under you should strike.

With all rigs ensure that your main line is at least fifteen pounds in breaking strain, and that your wire traces are well made from wire of at least 30lb test. Use a reliable knot to join trace to line.

The second rig is a paternoster which can be used with dead or live baits. With the paternoster link tied to the eye of the upper treble (as shown on the left) a livebait cannot swim up and around the mainline - and so the risks of a pike biting through the line when it takes the bait are almost nil.

How to tie a stop knot.

By removing the float, stop knot and two of the beads from the float leger rig you have a straight leger rig. In very windy conditions this will hold your bait in position more efficiently, as a float can be dragged by the waves. The leger weight can be increased to two, or even three ounces, with no loss of sensitivity of the rig as it is free running. If the bottom you are fishing over is snaggy add a short weak link of nylon between the swivel and the bomb. Always use a reliable drop off indicator to alert you that a pike has picked up your bait when you are using a rig without a float.

Flipping And Pitching

2006-09-30T22:53:00.000-07:00

These techniques are used on inactive bass so a stealth approach and presentation is essential. They're best suited when fish have a small strike zone and are in off-color or muddy water. Flipping is best suited for murky water and dense cover whereas pitching is the better choice in clear water and cover not as thick. Floating vegetation and heavy cover are ideal targets to flip and pitch.
Don't limit yourself to the usual "jig-n-pig" setup. You can also flip and pitch worms and small finesse baits. Rig a tube jig or grub on a 1/4 ounce jig equipped with a weedguard. Sometimes these smaller profile baits are the ticket to putting a limit in the boat.

The Pitch Cast (Pitchin')
This is best for targets between 10 and 30 feet away and provides a very quiet lure entry. Use a rod 6 1/2 feet or longer and a single-hook lure such as a worm, jig or spinnerbait. Face the target. Let out line until the lure is even with the reel. Hold the lure in your free hand at waist level. Lower the rod tip toward the water and put tension on the line. In one smooth, quick motion, swing the rod tip forward toward the target and upward, letting go of the lure with your free hand. Use only your wrist, arm movement is not a factor. As the lure moves from beneath the rod tip, release the line and continue raising the rod tip. (On bait casting gear, this cast requires a very light setting on the spool tension control, and you must know how to control the spool with your thumb, or the reel will backlash.) The lure should fly just above the water. Use a combination of line tension and rod movement to guide it to the target and to make it touch down softly. If you stop the bait just before it enters the water you'll almost always get a smooth entry. Immediately place your free hand on the reel and be ready for a strike.

The Flip-Cast (Flippin')
This is intended for pinpoint lure presentation to visible, thick cover between 10 and 20 feet away. Use a heavy-action 6 1/2 to 7 1/2 foot rod. Let out about 15 feet of line. With your free hand, grasp the line between the reel and the first rod guide and straighten your arm to the side. There should now be about 8 feet of line past the front tip. Raise the rod to make the lure swing back close to the body. Lower the rod top to make the lure swing forward. Use only your wrist, roll the butt of the rod to the inside of your arm. As it moves past the rod tip, continue raising the rod as you feed line with your free hand. As the lure nears the target, lower the rod top again and make the bait touch down softly and precisely on target by stopping the bait just before it enters the water. Let go of the line in your free hand and immediately place it on the reel. Make sure you're ready to strike before beginning your retrieve.

Fishing Tips: Casting Principles.

2006-09-25T00:18:00.000-07:00

The importance of accurate casting cannot be overstated. A few hours of backyard practice can make your time on the water much more enjoyable. Always remember that in every casting technique in bass fishing, you always use your wrist, not your arm.

Types of Casts
Overhand: Imagine that you are standing in front of a clock, and your target is toward the 3 o'clock position. Face the target squarely. Keep your elbow next to your ribs as you raise the rod straight up. Move it sharply back to the 10 o'clock position, then use your wrist to whip it forward, releasing the lure at about 11 o'clock. Follow through, using rod movement to control the cast.

Sidearm: Imagine that you are standing on a clock face. And your target is toward the 3 o'clock position, Face the target squarely, Hold the rod parallel to the water. If you're right-handed, move the rod at waist level sharply to the 7 o'clock position, then use your wrist to whip it forward, releasing the lure at about 6 o'clock. Follow through, using rod movement to control the cast.

Underhand: Hold the rod at waist level, parallel to the water and at a 45-degree angle from the target. Lower the lure 6 to 8 inches from the rod tip. In one quick, smooth motion, "draw" a half-circle with the rod tip, releasing the lure as the rod reaches the bottom to the circle. Use only your wrist and keep the tip of your rod pointed down. Follow through, raising the rod tip to give extra distance and lure control.

Tips
Position yourself only as far away as water clarity dictates; stay close enough for consistent accuracy.

Try to make the lure land on the water with as little noise as possible. Cast past the target when possible.

In windy weather, put tension on the line just before the lure touches down. This will straighten out the line and prevent it from blowing across obstructions.

Learn casting techniques that permit a low trajectory, such as flipping, pitching, sidearm casting and underhand casting.

Use a quality rod and reel matched to the weight of the lure. Rods with a stiff blank but relatively fast (limber) tip are easier to cast than extremely stiff or uniformly limber rods.

Cast with the wrist, not the arm and shoulder.

Lower the lure a few inches below the rod tip before casting; this gives extra momentum for the cast.

Be sure to "load" the rod tip, causing it to bend backward, on the back-cast, then whip the rod forward smoothly.

Fill the spool of any type reel to within 1/8 inch of the lip of the spool. DO NOT OVERFILL!

If you do get a birds nest on a baitcaster, try taking the spool out and pulling the line off the spool from the side. This sometimes works when all else fails.

Amaizing videos..

2006-09-24T00:23:00.000-07:00

amaizing isn't it?

General Tips & Information

2006-09-23T22:16:00.000-07:00

Fishing is the activity of hunting for fish. It is an ancient and worldwide practice that dates back about 10,000 years with various techniques and traditions and it has been transformed by modern technological developments.
Fishing continues to be a favorite pastime in the United States, in 2001, 16% of the U.S. population 16 years old and older (34 million anglers) spent an average of 16 days fishing. Freshwater fishing was the most popular type of fishing with over 28 million anglers devoting nearly 467 million angler-days to the sport.

Practice Good Stewardship of our Waterways:

You can help to take care of our lakes, rivers, and other waterways so that others may enjoy these areas for years to come by practicing some of the following actions:
Don't Litter... take along a trash bag or other receptacle for collecting your trash so that you can deposit it in the proper trash receptacle. Use proper dumping stations instead of tossing refuse into the water.
Make sure that you use the correct type of bait and fishing gear permitted in that area. There may also be limits on the number, size, and kind of fish that you can keep. Check with your destination ahead of time to see what the local regulations allow. If you use a boat or watercraft when fishing, check to see what kinds of watercraft are allowed at the body of water where you are going to fish.
Pay attention to local procedures and cautions for cleaning your watercraft after you leave the water so that you don't encourage the spread of npn-native species, such as the Zebra Mussel, to the next body of water you may visit with your boat.
Don't fish in areas where it is not permitted. These areas have been declared "off limits" to fishing to protect wildlife, vegetation, or for your safety.

Safety While Fishing:

If using a boat to fish, wear your life jacket and make sure that your passengers wear theirs, too !
Use caution when baiting and removing hooks
Do not fish on unauthorized waterways
If operating a houseboat, be careful of carbon monoxide build-up around the boat
Obey the posted speedlimits and wake warnings if using a watercraft when fishing
Bring along extra safety items such as water, flashlights, maps, and a cellphone or radio

Catfish CSI Reveals Cause of Famous Fish’s Demise

2006-09-18T22:50:00.000-07:00

Catfish CSI Reveals Cause of Famous Fish’s Demise
by Larry Hodge

(Sep. 18, 2006 - Athens, TX)... Like thousands of other people, Dr. Andy Gluesenkamp, Ph.D., saw news photos of a world record blue catfish in the arms of the man who caught her in January 2004."I was blown away by such a huge fish," Dr. Gluesenkamp said of the 121.5-pound giant. Cody Mullennix of Howe, Texas, pulled the fish from Lake Texoma on January 16, 2004. While the fish is no longer the world record, it remains the record Texas blue catfish.When he first saw Splash, as Mullennix named her, Dr. Gluesenkamp had no idea he would someday be involved in her story. But he works as a skeletal preparator for the Texas Natural Science Center (TNSC) in Austin, and after Splash died of unknown causes at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens in December 2005, her remains were sent to the Texas Natural History Collections, part of the TNSC, to be skeletonized.In the course of his work, Dr. Gluesenkamp and his colleagues discovered the probable cause of Splash’s death: severe damage to bone in her jaw area."It’s hard to tell if the injury was a break that got infected, or if the bone became so infected it simply fell apart," Dr. Gluesenkamp said. "She sustained that injury a long time ago. The bone basically rotted away. I would not be surprised if that was where she took the hook, and bacteria got inside the bone. I’m not a fish veterinarian, but I would bet dollars to doughnuts that the injury was what killed the fish."An examination of the bones by Dr. Dean Hendrickson, Ph.D., Curator of Ichthyology for TNSC, confirmed Gluesenkamp’s suspicions. "Andy was definitely right. Splash clearly had a nasty infection that had been festering for some time," Dr. Hendrickson said.Dr. Hendrickson’s analysis showed that the damage occurred in an area where two bones join. "This area is called the hyoid arch and is between the lower jaw and the gills," he explained. "The arch is involved in creating the pumping action that keeps water flowing over the gills and the strong suction used for predatory feeding. Infection from the injury apparently penetrated the bone and consumed it. At some point blood loss would have been extensive. While we don’t know for certain that the initial injury was due to being hooked, that seems to be the most likely explanation."Presently Dr. Gluesenkamp and Jessica Rosales, Ichthyology Collection Manager for the Texas Natural History Collections, are working to prepare Splash’s skeleton for display at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center.Following hand removal of as much flesh as possible from the bones, the skeleton was placed in plastic tubs with larvae from dermestid beetles. These flesh-eating insects, which are also found on the floor of bat caves, are the most effective way of removing all the flesh from a skeleton. "Splash probably has 5,000 to 10,000 beetles on her right now," Dr. Gluesenkamp said. "We’ve never worked on a fish this large. We had to delay the start of work until we built up our beetle colony to be sure we had enough to do the job."Once Dr. Gluesenkamp and the beetles finish their work, Rosales will rearticulate the skeleton—put it back together with hot glue, posed in a lifelike position. "It takes time, patience and modeling clay in addition to lots of hot glue," Dr. Gluesenkamp said. "I estimate it may take a week of painstaking work to put the skeleton back together.""It will take time, but the process is fun and is something that I really enjoy doing," said Rosales."Splash had such an impact on TFFC," said Allen Forshage, director of the East Texas facility. "Her first year here she increased our visitation by 43 percent. She was an amazing fish to look at. She would look at you eye-to-eye from her home in the dive tank. Her death saddened everyone here at the center, plus we had inquiries from around the country about her death. The findings about the hooking injury helped us understand why she died so quickly after we moved her in December 2005 because of repair work on the dive tank. We are going to add a new display which will have her replica (done by Lake Fork Taxidermy) and a really unusual display of her skeleton, thanks to the work now being done at the Texas Natural Science Center."Dr. Gluesenkamp said working on Splash has been the highlight of his career. "I have to say it’s been really exciting. I saw photos of that fish in the arms of the man who caught her, and to be involved with that fish two years later is a joy. I am really thankful to be able to work on a fish with celebrity status. Splash: Everyone knows her name."

Mackerel	Roach	Herring
Smelt	Roach	Sardine