The One Pike

The water is about 80meters long and 25meters wide. It takes me about 20 minutes to cover all water with finesse - casting wise that is!

I know the (female) pike (around 1m in length) is in there, because I saw her spawning some weeks ago. The male pike I released on the first of May, when the protection period ended. That pike attacked my fly three times in a row, before I could set the hook well. Quite aggressive though.

The female instead yet ignored several flies, which I offered in different moves each of them. In no doubt she has realized my flies to be available several times! Also I went down to an extra thin leader. I know, that pike easily can sense a fly from 30-40meters distance. Sometimes they go for it over such a distance and sometimes not. Mostly it depends on the amount of food being available. If easy food is all around, pike won't go for huge distances to take the fly. If fast running and hard to get food is available only, pike sense the fly to be easy food based on the unnatural movements. That's when they come for the fly over a huge distance. 

Now in that small water holding "my" pike there is not much food at all. It's exactly this what makes it hard to catch that pike! Why? That pike doesn't eat often. If she would, soon there wouldn't be much to eat left. Though she doesn't eat often in order to survive in long terms. Now if she doesn't eat, it's hard to turn her into a feeding mood. Without that she will always ignore all kind of flies. Pikes don't take a fly out of reflex like many other species of fish do.

I now have fished early morning, late morning, early and late afternoon as well as late evening. Nothing, no action at all.

Catching this pike is not nearly about covering the water casting wise. It's about meeting her in feeding mood. Then it most probably will be one cast, IF my strategy (fly, fly movement and leader) will match her abilties to identify danger in my fly. If not I will be out of the game always.

I yet have to give it a go in the night time. Since the water isn't very clear, I don't expect her to eat at night time. But then again I am not the only angler fishing that water and maybe she already found out, that eating at night time is the most safe time.

For sure there is a lot to learn for me in chasing this one pike. I am of course not going to give up on her and will work on finding a new better strategy!

Besides chasing that one pike I was fishing for carp and other pike with Hansi as well as teaching single hand and double hand fly casting.

If you have been chasing one particular fish for some time, too - I'd really love to read about it! ;)

Great week to all of you!

All my best

Bernd

Last week in pictures...