a useful method

[fishypaul]

i thought it might help some if i outline my often successful method of piking,i
call my leap-frog method and it is particularly useful on rivers or large waters,
hotspots can be worth sticking at all day,but i favour the mobile approach.

i plan my route to start with ,one of the things i need is to have all the swims close together as i will at times have a rod in each swim,
i start at the far end of the route and cast out one far out and one close,(never neglect the margins).remembering to keep away from the edge,keep down and keep quiet,

i fish the first swim for 30 minutes,if i get a fish the time starts again,when the time is up the far bait is reeled in and cast out in the next door swim,5 minutes later i move the near bait into the new swim and the time starts all over again,
on the river i fish i often walk about half a mile away from the car park(which is right by the river) and slowly work my way back.

by using this method i cover a great deal of water and fish not only the best looking and comfortable swims but some of the uninviting ones as well , don't overlook the pokey looking cramped little swims,they may hide an esox magnus,

obviously being so mobile the last thing you want is to be loaded down with clobber,
the chair is usually left at home with the brolly,pod and stove etc,too much gear invites laziness and the temptation to stay put for comfort,
all i use is a rucksack,net and unhooking mat,it doesn't take long to jump from swim to swim like that.

by adopting this method last winter i had my best pike season ever,in the 6 months of the pike season i ended up with 3 twenties and 18 doubles.

it is a method that can be very tiring,the older i get the more inclined i am to just chuck out a herring and go to sleep waiting for the buzzer to sound,
but as you can see,results can be very good if you put in the effort.

[Fishing Forum Admin]

Nice read mate

[Norfolkboy]

Heard of this method being used before and is supposed to be great! Cetainly backs it up

Nice read Paul

[Cricket_Fire]

Good read. Do you think that type of fishing would work for other fish besides pike? Only reason I ask is because around here, there aren't that many pike.

[fishypaul]

Originally Posted by Cricket_Fire

Do you think that type of fishing would work for other fish besides pike? Only reason I ask is because around here, there aren't that many pike.

good question,i use this method primarily on the pike in my local waters,it is a method that may be suitable to a fish that is largely territorial,
i had seen many times on my local lake that one angler can catch quite a few fish in one swim and others blank,
it struck me that by being mobile i could locate the fish easier,working your way along a river can cover a whole lot of water and more importantly cover a large number of fish.

i'm not very familiar with the fish in your neck of the woods but i'm sure you could sort something out.

[Old Smoothound]

Nice post Paul,

Some really useful points in there. I am like you and need to be mobile and "search" for the Esox Magnus Also too old now to hump loads of gear around for miles!

[Simon TorbayFishing]

Very nice thread all round!

[mikey-1001]

Ive used this approach before and it is usually deadly ! A good way to fish water that is new to you, i find you cover alot of ground very effectivly, nice post mate !

[baitmaster]

we use that method to great sucess in our zander fishing on the fens we call it leap frogging it helps alot to find the hot spots for further attention on static sessions in the area, but it does put a few extra fish on the bank can i just say not to be reccomended to try during the night . i highly reccomend it .

not on the same lines but a little tactic i have employed in my zedding with good results which might apply to the pike boys who fish after dark for there given quarry especially if you use livebaits is to thread two or three pieces of glow in the dark corn on to a piece or braid and tie above the first treble or vb hook depending what you are using i have taken several zeds into double figures and pike aswell try it and see if it helps

[mikey-1001]

During my night sessions i often attach a few glow in the dark beads that are used in sea fishing......i cant say that its a deadly method but i dont often blank at night and any edge is better than none eh....!