Why are pike so difficult to catch

Lockdown Part 4: Why Are Pike So Difficult To Catch?
0:00 - Chapter 1 - The Challenge
I have some of the best fishing in the south west on my doorstep, but during this second winter lockdown I am restricted from travelling far and fishing with friends and family. If you recognise where I am fishing, please don’t reveal it in the comments because giving away secret pike locations results in unsustainable pressure on those fish and won’t win any friends. A school pupil I’m working with asked me the “what’s your biggest ever fish” question and wanted to know why are pike so difficult to catch. His question had me a little stumped as there’s no simple answer, so the focus of this pike fishing vlog is to try and explore that question further. It’s a subjective question because the lad’s pike fishing experience amounted to about 45 minutes of watching a bung (float), and for him, that was very challenging. But my job as a professional angling instructor is to show the best way of guaranteed pike and there’s no single method of achieving that, which works in every situation. There are ways of increasing your chances of catching fish, and I try to cover as many of these variables in this vid. If you watch my angling videos, you’ll know that I like to give the fish a chance and that my preferred style of fishing is catching on lure or flies, so that’s my focus - I am mostly lure fishign for pike, but it would be totally wrong to ignore the merits of bait as it can often produce a big old fish. But pike are fragile creatures and I believe it benefits the fish as well as the angler to celebrate not what you catch but how you catch it. That probably sounds a little virtuous, but I challenge anyone who thinks a positive correlation exists between ‘serious angler’ and ‘big fish’.
1:21 - Chapter 2 - Inspiring the Next Generation of Anglers
A brief bit of education and introduction to predator fishing with a school, followed by a short session that I have afterwards and a lost pike on light gear.
3:20 - Chapter 3 - A lost pike on the canal
4:46 - Chapter 4 - Reasons why pike are difficult to catch
5:36 - Chapter 5 - Fishing My Local River
When you're limited to where and when you can fish, the results are not just dictated by the skill of the angler, but by the conditions that you're fishing in. When pike get cold, they stop feeding and it often leads to people asking where have all the pike gone. But as cold blooded apex predators, if temperatures suddenly drop the whole ecosystem can grind to a halt over night. Rarely do fish stop feeding altogether, but when fish get cold, they hide away so there's little point in pike hunting for their prey. Pike fishign with lures is typically more productive during the summer months when pike are more willing to spend energy chasing fish, but in the winter the challenge becomes more rewarding. Cold pike will happily sit in the silt and dying weed for days on end without feeding so if you're looking for pike, it's well worth slowing down your retrieve. The big question is whether to fish a big or a small lure. Either way, tripping the lure along the bottom can lead to a lot of snags so it in this video I explore what line for pike fishing is best under different circumstances.
14:18 - Chapter 6 - Success At Last
Although I love my pike fishing, I don't want to continue losing lures in submerged logs and roots. With limited fishign time, the pressure to catch a fish for the camera steadily increases and I decide to travel slightly further afield onto the Somerset Levels as lockdown restrictions are eased! There’s lots of reasons why people go fishing in difficult winter conditions that go well beyond catching fish. Taking a lure and focusing on the fish sports side things provides great exercise, as well as great challenge.
Fishwish is based in the South West of the England and provides licensed and insured fishing tuition, guiding and coaching. For more information please visit the website at www.fishwish.co.uk or send an email if you would like to purchase a fishing gift voucher.
For more of my fishing channel playlist, please subscribe to this Fishwish KZbin Channel and click the notification bell. Thanks for watching.
#fishwish #pikefishign

[@Afoolandhistackle]

Love this. It's everything that's good about fishing. Sharing it with others, and thinking about what the fish are after. Also loved the fact that you left the dog in there!

[@Fishwish]

Thanks for the comment. That guy with the dog didn’t even apologise. His son was seemed disappointed that I didn’t make an issue of it. You can tell a lot about a person by his dog.

[@Afoolandhistackle]

@@Fishwish Sounds like the dog, owner and son were a good fit for each other. Some people are just lovely!

[@willyhusaini7913]

Im glad for you are a person who never gives up mate.. nice video.. 🎣💙🤙

[@Fishwish]

Thanks and thanks for watching it, too. Social media makes fishing look too easy!

[@livingtheoutdoors]

Pike are fun to catch musky to

[@soultrader57fishingandmusi25]

Superb piece. I've got it all to do to achieve this standard! i tried to catch a decent pike on surface lure fly (my own ratty Mc Rat face) last sept, got just one take in 5 sessions, gave up trying to get any more as the weather had turned too cold by the time I'd done the fly tying section of the vid! like you, I can't sit there for long watching a float or tip. My local canal has been hopeless most of the winter, the small lure thing may have legs I'm thinking. Heartening to see experts struggle!

[@Fishwish]

Thanks for the kind words. It’s so nice to hear them after such a testing vid. Sharing my struggles resulted in the inevitable cocky responses but the way I see it is that if you never experience a bad run of luck, you’re probably just making the fishing too easy for yourself. Each to their own though. I feel your pain re Ratty McRat Face - I made (and recorded) a C3PO lure that still needs to catch a pike. I have just moved house so all fishing has been on hold, but I’ve been itching to get out with a pike fly rod for months. If I don’t get out for a proper session soon, my head might explode. Not many options though. Canal has ten drowned rats, socks and sanitary towels for every square meter of polluted water. Going to give it a go though.

[@teepriest]

Dog pissed on your bag!😂

[@Fishwish]

And the owner couldn’t even mutter a ‘sorry’!

[@teepriest]

@@Fishwish he blatantly ignored it and walked on!

[@FishingtailsCoUk1]

Good instructional video. Nice to see you catch your target species in the end.

[@Fishwish]

Thanks for the comment. Funny you should say instructional as I try quite hard to avoid that but yes those few days proved to be a real slow grind! I still get so many people laughing at the suggestion that pike can be difficult to catch.

[@FishingtailsCoUk1]

@@Fishwish I found them very difficult last year. But at the same spot on previous years I have had loads in a day. Not sure if they have been killed off or poached or just had too much pressure.

[@Fishwish]

Bit of both, I think. Quite often fish just switch to feeding nocturnally...if they’re still there!

[@livingtheoutdoors]

Great job man

[@Fishwish]

Thanks 😊

[@ChrispyyWings]

Here in Australia our pike are disgusting slimy fish which I hate to catch. Nice video mate

[@Fishwish]

That’s crazy! Then again, you’ve so many cool fish to target. Are they freshwater or is it a name that you give to a type of barracuda species? Thanks for watching btw

[@ChrispyyWings]

@@Fishwish it's a Saltwater fish. Looks similar to yours. Long and skinny but with a alegator mouth.

[@MusisiMancing]

Keren ini, great bro, keep up the spirit, a new friend from Indonesia 🤝

[@Fishwish]

Thanks for commenting. Tight lines from the Uk!

[@DenBotMedia]

thanks man, I love your videos

[@Fishwish]

You’re too kind! Thanks you!

[@MrSugrue]

Nice and honest video,I would say that Pike are harder to catch these days I have been fishing the rivers in the south west for pike for 50 years and it seems to get harder each year shame.

[@Fishwish]

Thank you Dave. Very kind of you to say that. Not my best vid in terms of the quality of audio and footage so thanks for watching. I did think there was a story in there though along the lines of what you’ve just said. I’m sure you’re right about the Avon and Levels having once had considerably more pike. I also think that the increased angling pressure has made them a lot wiser. A friend of mine showed me his fish photo album from the 80s and 90s and it was stuffed with 20lb plus fish from one of the big drains. He gave up fishing it about ten years ago because of the lack of fish. Fixed lines and fish removal continues to be a real problem.

[@MrSugrue]

@@Fishwish I still fish a lot in the winter for Pike and have had some nice big girls out over 20 lbs biggest in recent years is 25 lbs 12 oz but had loads of blanks

[@sheppeyfishtales]

Pike are a bit of a nightmare. I would say fishing for them is unreliable at best! I am always amazed at the size of the lures that lots of people use. Some of them are massive! I prefer the little natural lures personally. Great vid though 👍

[@Fishwish]

Toughest stint of fishing I’ve had in a while. I was probably a stubborn fool to persevere in the knowledge that such an extreme temperature change would knock the fishing dead, but I really enjoyed working for the fish...apart from the day spent on a S melly and very muddy urban drain in N.Somerset! That was grim! Thanks for commenting. Are you working or fishing tomorrow?

[@sheppeyfishtales]

@@Fishwish I was rather hoping to do both 😅. Half day at work and then I might drop by the River for an hour on the way home 👍 You?

[@Fishwish]

@@sheppeyfishtales I’m torn. Really want to do more pike fishing tomorrow but that weather forecast is grim and I thought the rivers would be flooding. Quite keen to explore some canal and still waters though.

[@sheppeyfishtales]

@@Fishwish Yes that weather is looking a bit grim. Definately out tomorrow but I'm not sure if the rivers will be brown and flowing hard 😢

[@mikefishtv]

Good bro ;) come my

[@EUAngler]

Great video! Did u work as a angling coach? Those dogs by the canals makes me sick sometimes and the owners to! When u fish by the canal you must look not for the fish but for poo just to dont step in :/

[@Fishwish]

Thanks. Yes I've been a professional angling coach since 2009 and you're right - the dog walkers on canals seem to be particularly bad at allowing their dogs to foul the towpath. The Canal and River Trust and local councils should be doing a lot more to tackle it. Before I can teach the kids, I have to bag up four of five dog shts.

[@EUAngler]

@@Fishwish I'm angling trust coach to :)

[@Fishwish]

@@EUAngler a pleasure is best shared 👍

[@fishwish1056]

same name????? :D

[@fishwish1056]

600 SUBS!

[@Fishwish]

It’s nice that people sub as they don’t have to if they want to watch more