salokcinnodrog Posted February 20, 2014 Report Share Posted February 20, 2014 well I now know exactly how big the pike I lost last week was! I took my friend Colin for his first ever pike trip yesterday, and on his 2nd cast with a smelt on the float rod he landed a 9lb pike, a very tentative take, that the float merely twitched on. He wasn't sure about it, so I told him to hit it. A very scrappy pike then surfaced, and had taken the bait very confidently on the spot, and was for such a take, deeply hooked About 3 hours later he flicked a ledgered smelt under the tree to the left and within 20minutes had another indication of 3 bleeps, which he hit quickly and played himself a decent pike to the landing net. As I lifted the net under it, I could only laugh and he couldn't work out why. When I lifted it onto the mat, there was around 6feet of my line that had some very large abrasion rubs across it, and my trace in the corner of its mouth, which I managed to remove easily, although his trace was very deep and in the stomach. I immediately cut t he line from his rod, so that attached to the trace was just a foot length of line, and no rod hanging around. An over officious bailiff then started to make life very awkward. I have unhooked goodness knows how many deep pike, and always found that even with a big fish, a small pair of forceps I can free deep hooked fish by going in carefully through the gill rakers, someone gently pull the line/trace, and I can unhook the trebles with no damage. I had the bailiff telling me I should go in the front, with a pair of long noses, which with my head looking at what I was doing, my left hand holding the mouth open in the gill flaps the other side and astride the fish on the unhooking mat, and my mate gently holding the line to prevent it going back in as far as I was concerned was not an option. I also had him telling me to pull the fish backward and forward in the margins to flush it through! I unhooked and sorted, weighed it and got a mat picture within 3 minutes, which with an extra trace in, I reckon is acceptable, and when I held it in the margins for release, she swam away strongly I really feel for Colin as it was the fish of a lifetime, and his 2nd ever pike at 24lb, I could not get a decent picture as the bailiff was so panicky, and he wouldn't let Colin lift it for a pic. colinq 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteblount Posted February 20, 2014 Report Share Posted February 20, 2014 Some baliefs are proper jobsworths the one on our local is the same I tend to ignore him as much as I can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salokcinnodrog Posted February 21, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2014 When I first saw her approaching the net when I hooked her, you get the shivers knowing it is 20+. I had to laugh when Colin was expecting me to say around 16 as he had never seen a pike that size before. I just put my finger to my lips in a shush motion, like you do to kids. Col was feeling guilty that he had landed a fish that I wanted, but I told him that I had my chance, and fluffed it, whereas he hit and played it perfectly. I had no upset that he has now landed a pike 3lbs bigger than my largest, and I am extremely happy for him, which I think he feels difficult to understand, but I am just so chuffed for him. Maybe I should take up and become an angling guide Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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