January saw my last two sessions with Keiran from Slough and as he had done so well with a rod and reel I decided to show him the basics of pole fishing. The venue was as usual Twynersh Fishing Complex and we fished the swim where he has had most of his success. On a previous lesson he caught some bream and was troubled by a large pike so I brought some pike tackle along as well, just in case.
He was very interested in the seat box and associated “ironmongery” but then us boys love gadgets and was soon fishing at about eight metres in nearly ten feet of water next to some lilly pads.
I had set him up with a number eight elastic, a pole float taking about three quarters of a gram (due to the depth) and a size eighteen hook to about a three pound hook length. The bait was a single red maggot and I was feeding pinkies and a little hemp.
Keiran was catching roach almost straight away up to about twelve ounces and had soon mastered the technique of shipping the pole in and out each time. He was enjoying the technique so much and I was having fun teaching him that I gave no more thought to the pike fishing until one of his small roach was taken on the way in and Keiran found himself playing a pike well into double figures.
He played it well for about two or three minutes while I waited for it to bite through the hook length and when this didn’t happen I started to feel that he had a chance of landing the fish, sometimes the hook pulls out of the fish that took the bait and into the pike’s jaw in such a way that the hook length is away from the teeth. He was doing very well and had even extended the pole to ten metres to give himself more scope to play the fish, slowly Keiran began to gain line and the pike, a fish of fourteen or fifteen pounds was approaching the waiting net. The light hook length had taken a lot of strain and had perhaps even touched the teeth on occasions and it parted at the net,allowing the fish to escape.
We were both very disappointed but I think he took it best of all and said “It’s not my biggest pike!“.
The next week we did the same, at the same place and this time I set up the pike rod first and the result was a smaller pike but a welcome one nevertheless.
He also caught a number of fine roach up to about a pound.
Keiran has learned a lot during his time with me and is well on his way to becoming a fine angler. I have enjoyed teaching him and look forward to meeting him again in the future.
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