With active pike fishing – when the angler is constantly searching for her, moving from place to place – the most interesting will be the areas of the estuary overgrown with grass.
The tactic here is simple: we are looking for areas where the water above the grass is at least 10 cm, we make a short throw with a properly selected bait – and we quickly make it in the upper horizon. The wiring itself can be performed evenly, or with a small “podgrovka” (say – jerking).
There are also promising areas where there are small glades in the grass carpet. As a rule, such water spots have a diameter of from 2 to 10 m. Detect them, wearing polarized glasses, no problems. And in order to catch them properly, it is necessary to adhere to the following tactics: carefully bypass the clearing, approaching from the leeward side to its edge about 5 meters (it is not recommended to go inside, as this may scare the predator standing here, and it will not be possible to complete – because the depth in these places is not more than 1.5 m).
It is necessary to make a short throw in such a way that the bait splashes down beyond the opposite border of the grass. In the same way to catch the glade in the center and along the edges. Very promising in this area is the posting with a periodic exposure of a small pause, giving the bait to plan safely in the water column. But we must not forget that the fishing line should always be in tension, because bite can follow at any second. If after 5-6 postings the predator didn’t show itself, then you can search for a new place with a clear conscience.
With passive fishing, it all comes down to finding one promising place, which is then thoroughly hunted by fan casts of various types of lures. It is only necessary to determine the probable area of parking or exit of the pike – as a rule, it is located in relatively deep (on the estuary scale) areas with changes in the bottom topography or on the border of grass and clear water.
There are usually observed two peaks of predator activity: the first one manifests itself practically from the initial casts – if the chosen place is already chosen by the pike for parking or hunting; The second is associated with temporary phases of activation (hunting) of a pike. Predicting the time of occurrence of one and, moreover, the other is difficult, and, depending on various factors (for example, on wind speed and direction, other weather conditions), they may be different at the same time, but in different parts reservoir.
The technique of catching deep areas of the estuary is approximately the following: we make several fan casts, doing the wiring so that the lure passes over the bottom vegetation. In order to properly navigate the speed and type of wiring, it is enough, as a rule, to perform 2-3 casting with the selected bait. To be limited to one type of wiring or the use of one bait is not worth it, their diversity increases the chances of success. As for the technique of harvesting the boundaries of pure water and grass, it is simple and reduces to casting along the boundary line. From the boat, this line is “read” easily – it can be seen from the diversity of water.
From personal observations, I can note the fact that the greatest accumulation of fish in the estuary is always on the side where the wind blows. But when the latter becomes significant or even pre-storm, then the pike for the most part already gives preference to the coast from which the wind blows. Although it would be more logical for her to be located exactly on the opposite shore, since there the wind current is beaten by a fry and other “bel”. It is easy to explain such a phenomenon: there is a sufficient amount of fish of any interest for pike near the windward shore, but here with very strong wind the water almost always remains clean. And it becomes a decisive factor for pike.
For a fisherman, this is just a plus, which you just need to use, because hanging out on a boat in the breaking wave of the leeward shore is a pleasure! In general, with increasing wind pike in the estuary is always activated, and at this time biting large specimens is most likely. When fishing for wobblers, uneven wiring proved to be the best, which not only provokes the predator to attack, but also reduces the chance of tees hooking on the underwater grass. It means a floating lure and a small pause during wiring.
Still promising coastal reed line. Many tried to catch there, but after 10-15 casts along the reed, not seeing a single bite, this was stopped. And in vain. Indeed, wiring the bait along the reed does not always provide the desired result, but the wiring through (!) The reed is still as effective. The fact is that in the estuaries, as a rule, there are two walls of reed. The first one is rather narrow, there are always small spills behind it (the aborigines call them “lures”), and already behind the lures the second, dense wall of the coastal reed begins. So, it is in such zamanuha and holds a large number of pike, and quite large! So the angler is required to force himself to catch where there would be no fish. Believe me, she is not only there, but she also eats pretty well!
In zamanuhah most effective performance can be achieved or uneven, with frequent jerks, wiring a fairly large, from 7 to 15 cm, a wobbler with a depth of 1 m, or similar in size twister with offset hook. Often, large pike stands far away in the reed, and it is not possible to lure it out with ordinary baits. Then you can use either a “non-stitching” with a hard single crocheted hook, or spinnerbate. Both should have a mass of at least 20 g. In this case, the bait can be boldly and forcefully cast directly into the reed, and this mass is quite enough for the bait to easily “fall” and not hang on the reed. Wiring should be done most slowly – so that the bait, having touched the reed, does not catch on it. Run it is pretty easy. And after biting, get ready to be pretty nervous because the already powerful southern pike, and even in reeds and at shallow depths, can produce such pearls that sometimes you even have to remove a boat from a poke to at least somehow resist the pike resistance.
Spinning is recommended to use quite hard and powerful, although I myself am a supporter of light spinning. The test range – from 5 to 21 g, maximum – from 7 to 28 g, is no longer needed. Length – from 2.4 to 2.7 m – in my opinion, the most optimal, with such fishing. The choice in favor of a hard spinning is due to the need for the pike to be pulled out through the grass. The restriction on the test is due to the use of light sailing baits, the casting of which is most often performed downwind.
The line is better to use wicker . My preference is definitely “Japanese.” The breaking load of the cord should be in the range of 4.5 to 7.5 kg, which guarantees a confident feeding of fish even through thickets, facilitates easier release of the bait caught on the grass (the southern grass, by the way, is very tough) and gives the additional bait to an easy bait, contributing to the relief of her casting into the wind.
It is best to make a leash from a flexible leash material and attach it (solder with phosphoric acid) directly to the lure of the bait. At the opposite end, you should install a small but durable swivel, to which the cord is attached. I recommend not to use the carbine (clasp), it will help you to some extent get rid of the problem to clean the “stigma” of the wobbler from a bunch of hanging grass and mud. We have a wobbler and so two tees – still torment!
Getting on a regular cargo anchor is hard, because the bottom in the estuaries is muddy, the anchor is tightly sucked into the mud, and it will be almost impossible to pull it out. And a couple of extra pounds of dirt and grass scraps, raised with an anchor, are unlikely to please you in a boat. For local fishermen, the anchor in the estuary is the so-called “spear”, i.e. long (up to 2 m, sometimes – and more) pole with a rope that is tied to the boat. Very comfortably.
Baits are different variations of lightweight rotating or oscillating lures, home-made or converted, in combination with various variants of loaded jig snap-ins and supplemented with shallow-deepening or surface wobblers. On this topic, we dwell a little more.
Rotating baits – from the most catchy lures for estuaries. To date, there are quite a lot of models of various “lightning wheels” of the lightened type, which can be successfully used for pike fishing. I personally don’t have any particular preferences for this or that bait, although I found some of them to be the most interesting. Namely: Mepps Lusox № № 2-3 (used without front loading – photo 1), DAM Libelle № № 2-3 (photo 2) and Nimpfa № № 1-3 from the Polish company Dragon (more precisely – HRT-photo 3) . Bad spinners with plastic (polypropylene) core, for example – Muskie Tail (photo 4) and Rooster Tail Lite from Warden’s (USA) and Ondex №№ 3-5 from the French Rublex (photo 5), have proven themselves.
On all “turntables” (except Lusox), I always change the regular tees to Owner or Gomakatsu. You can apply various options for both completely home-made lures, and converted “factory”. Alteration is a matter of replacing a metal core with a plastic one or removing the core altogether (photo 6). Sometimes I equip converted “turntables” with either a tee with an edge attached to it (photo 7), or an offset hook with a twister (photo 8). Both the edge (big enough) and the twister serve as a braking effect, slowing down the speed of the lure falling in the water column, and give the lure extra windiness, which has a positive effect when casting in the wind.
Oscillating spinners for catching “toothed” are also used of the lightened type – either with a hard-crocheted hook (a “non-hooked” one with a pressed tendril) or with a offset hook with a twister. What role is played by the offset twister, I have already told on the example of rotating spinners, I can only add that the twister also stabilizes the spinner with intensive posting. From specific recommendations on the models, I can mention the well-proven “non-clinging” (photo 9) firms Nemire (USA) and Rasanen 70/10 from the Finnish Kuusamo. Of the classic lightweight spinners in my arsenal, the spinners were Williams (Canada – photo 10, 11) and Falk Fish (Sweden) of the BIG Catch model number 2-3, all equipped with a twister.
I use wobblers in size from 5 to 9 cm, with a depth of 0.5 m. Posting – various variations uneven, because I consider it to be the most effective in any conditions, especially since, with a pause in the wiring, it is possible to hold a floating wobbler clearly above the grass. For the “special merits” I can note the wobblers Duel – Hardcore No. 0 (photo 12), Daiwa – Minnow Dartist and Maria – Princess GX.
As for the volume baits of the “popper” class, there is a very interesting fishing tactic, thanks to which promising areas can be fished either with very small depth over the grass, or if there is a lot of torn grass in the water, which does not allow for other types of baits. The meaning of this tactic is as follows: we remove all the hooks from the popper and, having checked its operability at the boat (in case of malfunctions, we clamp instead of the removed tees on the loops of the wobbler pellets weighing about 0.5 g), we make a cast – and perform the usual popper wiring . And if a pike attack follows, which is easy to determine, since because of the shallow depth, the “toothed” usually misses, leaving the breaker, then we quickly exhaust the popper – and with the second spinning we send a tee-equipped bait to the pike’s exit point. Usually, bite follows with the first turn of the coil handle. Although the popper itself in the “combat equipment” is no less interesting and productive bait, but with an average and even more so with a strong wind, its use is simply impossible.
Non-standard lures (in the sense of classic spinning) are of the same type of double twister offset hook, various fly traps and pike streamers, used without any additional loadings. All this can be very, very useful and, as practice shows, no less effective.
Perch fishing
Perch in the estuary is distributed, as a rule, in small “spots”, and it is possible to catch it with one or another success practically throughout the entire water area, but its greatest accumulations are still observed in areas with a depth of 1 to 1.5 m. and no wonder.
Based on personal observations in the spring – early summer on the estuary, I can say that the peak activity of the perch biting falls on the first 30 minutes after sunrise, for a time interval from about 9.00 to 10.00, from 13.00 to 14.00 (just lunchtime) and about 40 minutes before sunset. But, I repeat, this is my personal observation, and it, naturally, is not a law. I adhere to the following tactics of searching and catching perch: I find a section of the estuary with a depth of 0.5 m and above, then with appropriately selected bait I make several fan casts, about 2-3 casts at one point with a pitch between the points about 15 degrees.
If a bite follows at one of the points, then I start intensively firing a promising section, and if the bite continues, I try to determine the “boundaries” and direction of movement of the bevy. Having received the necessary information about the “border” of the flock, I always try to fish it around the edges, because The “southern” perch has a very active resistance when firing and produces too much noise.
Although I myself prefer Ultra light spinnings with dough up to 5 g, but the angler, not tempted by ultra light gear, still should not neglect the power reserve, because besides the hard grass, full-fledged pikes are often attempted on the perch lure. But overly powerful “perch” spinning to anything, he will not add confidence to you, and he will divide the pleasure from catching into two! Therefore, for catching perch, I recommend spinning class Light with a test of up to 14 g.
If the line is already used woven, then with a breaking load of up to 2.5 kg, there is no need for more. I use only a monofilament line with a fluorocarbon coating, with a diameter of 0.15 mm. But, again, inexperienced anglers do not recommend using thin fishing line – for the same reasons that I do not recommend spinning of the appropriate class.
The leash, in principle, is necessary, because biting pike for light tackle is far from rare, but, nevertheless, I do not use it – even with a fishing line, and with a cord – even more so. With a certain skill of vyvazhivanija pike, the risk of “cutting off” persists only at the moment of biting in case of a miss, and without it, the skill – the absence of a leash can quickly cause a sharp “deficit” in baits. You decide.
Baits for catching perch in the estuary do not differ in their specific features, they are limited only by the depth of application.
A rotating spinner can rightly be considered a universal bait for perch, and the estuary is no exception. I will not describe the great variety of “turntables” with which one way or another to catch perch, and I don’t need it. I will only note that the baits with Long type petals Nos. 1-2 according to the Meps classification were recommended in the best way. From my arsenal, Mira from Myran (Sweden – photo 13), Long from Dragon-HRT (Poland – photo 14) and artisan “sukhovsky” lures with a white frosted petal (photo 15) performed well.
A wobbler up to 5 cm in length (photo 16) with an active “game” and uneven wiring is another thing that you like perch!
Very well for the perch “work out” and the various options of jig snap-ins with microtwisther or tied to the jig-heads “fly” of the appropriate size.
Redfin fishing
The catching of the redder by spinning light or ultra-light class has long ceased to be something unusual, at least for Krasnodar people for sure. This is a very interesting and exciting fishing! Ruddling, as well as perch, can be caught almost throughout the estuary, but the most interesting are the grassland and coastal reed line.
The rudd is kept in the grass thickets or among the reeds, and a whole flock may show interest in the “passing” bait, from 3 to 15 individuals, and at the same time.
Spinning for catching rudd should fit into the criterion of the ultra light class, this is due to the use of extremely light baits and thin fishing lines, i.e. The test range of the spinning should not exceed 8 g, ideally the upper threshold is 5 g. The line is exceptionally soft, monofilament and with a diameter of not more than 0.15-0.17 mm.
The arsenal of lures for catching rudd is usually reduced to a different version of artisans or self-made spinners or “factory” size up to number 1, micro jig or equipment with artificial “front sights”.
The size of rotating spinners somehow classify quite problematic, but if we draw parallels with the classification of the company Mepps, then these spinners have a size from number 00 to number 0000 (photos 17, 18). And, naturally, the use of baits of this type involves the use of the most light and sensitive gear. As for the factory “turntables”, it is worth noting as the most working baits with Aglia type petals to No. 0, with Long type petals to No. 1 (photo 19). The only problem is that firms making stably operating lures in the “zero” frame size are literally a few, and Mepps are not among them. Of course, it is quite possible to catch redfin and spinners of a larger size, but this is still an exception to the rules, rather than a rule for exceptions.
Microjig is a white twister and a miniature gram jig-head (photo 20), or a hook with a pellet sandwiched on the shank, or just a tungsten jig. Uneven wiring with a short pause or wiring with small jerks – all this can bring the “walking” rudd to distraction, forcing to eagerly attack the twister.
Tacking with the use of an artificial fly is easy. A small weight of about 3-5 g is tied to the fishing line. Above the small weight we attach a leash from 10 to 30 cm in length to the fishing line, to which we tie a “fly”. The wiring is similar to the micro-wiring, but a pause can be made longer, giving the “front sight” the opportunity to soar in the water column.
