Pike Fishing for Beginners: Tackle, Baits & Safe Unhooking

Pike fishing for beginners looks harder than it is. The tackle is simple, the baits are cheap, and autumn is the time to start. What matters most is handling the fish properly, and that part is easy to learn.

Before You Start: Three Rules

Three things come before tackle, baits or venues. Get them wrong and you will hurt fish.

1. Always use a pike wire trace. Pike teeth cut through mono and braid instantly. Fishing without one means fish swim off with hooks in them.
2. Never fish for pike without your unhooking tools already out of the bag: long forceps, side cutters, an unhooking mat and a big landing net. Lay them out before your first cast, not after your first run.
3. Never use a pike gag. They are outdated, they damage the jaw, and they are illegal in Scotland.

Sort those three and the rest of this guide is just detail.

When and Where to Catch Pike

Pike feed hard from October through to March as the water cools. Many clubs and stillwaters run a traditional pike season starting on 1 October, so check the rules before you travel. Most anglers learn how to catch pike in autumn for that reason: the fish are switched on and they are easier to find.

On rivers, streams and drains in England and Wales there is a statutory coarse fish close season from 15 March to 15 June inclusive. Some stillwaters and SSSIs set their own closed periods on top of that. Read the freshwater rod fishing rules on gov.uk, then check your fishery's own rules as well.

Pike feed in short bursts rather than all day. First and last light are reliable through autumn. In winter, midday feeding spells are common, so do not assume dawn is always best.

Where to look:

• Drop-offs and shelves
• Weed bed edges
• Bridges and lock gates
• Marina and boatyard entrances
• Snags and fallen trees
• Anywhere prey fish are shoaling

On canals and drains the far bank shelf is often the whole game.

Pike Fishing Tackle for Beginners

Your pike fishing tackle list is shorter than the one you already own for carp. Seven items cover everything.

• Pike rod, 10–12ft, 2.5–3lb test curve for baits — or a 7–9ft lure rod rated 20–60g if you are going lure only. The longer rod launches a heavy deadbait; the short one is far easier to work a lure with all day.
• Reel, 4000–5000 size, with a reliable clutch — a smooth clutch does the work when a good fish runs at the net.
• 30–40lb braid, or 15lb mono if you prefer stretch — braid gives you the direct contact you need to strike early, mono is more forgiving on the take.
• Ready-made wire traces, 20–30lb, with semi-barbed trebles — buying them made up means you are not learning to crimp the night before your first trip.
• Pike floats and running leads for deadbaiting — one float rig and one leger rig will cover almost every water you fish.
• A large landing net, 36 inches minimum, with a knotless mesh — pike are long fish, and a small net turns a simple job into a mess.
• Unhooking mat, 10–12 inch forceps, side cutters and a gloved hand — this is the part of the list you never skimp on.

A pike wire trace is the one item here you cannot improvise, so buy a pack of ready-made ones and keep spares in the bag.

You will find pike rods, predator reels, braid and mono, ready-made wire traces, trace wire for making your own, pike floats, pike landing nets, unhooking mats and forceps and side cutters in the matching categories.

Everyone aged 13 or over needs an Environment Agency rod licence before they fish.

Deadbaiting for Pike (The Easiest Way to Start)

Deadbaiting is the best entry point. It is cheap, it is static, and it lets you concentrate on handling your first fish rather than on technique. Cast out, set the rod on the rests, and watch.

Baits that work:

• Mackerel — oily, tough and heavy enough to cast a long way.
• Sardine — very oily but soft, so fish it close in.
• Smelt — small, pale and easy for a pike to take, with a strong cucumber scent.
• Herring — soft and oily, and hard to beat under a float in coloured water.
• Lamprey — bloody and reliable when the water is cold.
• Coarse deadbaits such as roach — natural food, and often the answer on hard-fished waters.

The standard pike deadbait rig takes about a minute to set up. Use a wire trace with two semi-barbed trebles: nick the top treble into the root of the tail and the bottom treble into the flank. Fish it under a float in shallow or weedy swims, or on a running lead where you want the bait pinned to the bottom. Both versions catch, and neither needs any fine tuning.

Strike early. Do not let a pike swallow the bait. Wind down and lift into the run as soon as the float goes or the line pulls. Deep-hooked pike are the single most common beginner mistake.

Leave livebaiting alone. Many fisheries ban it outright, and it is against the law to move live fish between waters without an Environment Agency permit. Deadbaits and lures catch just as well, and neither leaves you explaining yourself to a bailiff.

Lure Fishing for Pike

Pike lure fishing keeps you moving. There is no bait to buy or store, and you can cover a canal or drain in an afternoon.

Soft shads on jig heads. These are the most forgiving lures to start with. Cast out, let the shad sink, then lift and drop the rod tip so it hops along the bottom. Choose a jig head heavy enough to feel the lure but light enough that it is not snagging every cast.

Spinnerbaits. The safety-pin shape makes them almost weedless, so they are ideal around weed beds and fallen trees. A steady retrieve is all they need. They shine in coloured water where the blades give the fish something to home in on.

Shallow-diving crankbaits. These run at a fixed depth on a straight wind, which makes them easy to control over shelves and along margins. Use them where the water is a couple of metres deep or less. A pause every few turns often triggers a following fish.

Large spoons. The oldest pike lure there is and still one of the best. A slow, wobbling retrieve flashes and kicks in a way pike find hard to ignore, and a spoon casts well into a wind.

Retrieve slow and steady in cold water, and faster with pauses when conditions are milder. Most takes come on the pause or right at the bank. Fish the lure all the way in and be ready for a hit at your feet.

A wire trace is just as compulsory on lures as it is on deadbaits.

Stock up on pike lures and soft shads before you go. If you want a warm-up before October, the same rod and the smaller end of the lure box will catch you summer perch on lures.

How to Unhook a Pike Safely

This is the part that matters. Read it twice before your first trip.

1. Net the fish and lay it on a wet unhooking mat, away from the water's edge.
2. Kneel astride the fish and turn it on its side. Do not sit on it.
3. Slide a gloved finger under the gill cover from behind, avoiding the gill rakers, and lift the head gently. The mouth will open on its own.
4. Reach in with long forceps and grip the hook where it enters, twisting it free rather than pulling.
5. If a hook will not come out easily, cut it with side cutters and remove the pieces separately.
6. Support the fish in the water until it swims away under its own power. Never throw a pike back.

A pike's mouth is full of teeth, but the fish is far more likely to be hurt than the angler. For your first few trips, go with someone who has done it before and let them talk you through it on the bank. The Pike Anglers' Club of Great Britain handling guidance is worth reading before you go.

Pike Fishing in Winter

Cold water means pike feed in short, predictable windows rather than all day. The middle of the day is usually more productive than dawn once the frosts arrive. Fish through lunchtime rather than getting up at five.

Deadbaits come into their own in winter. Oily baits leak scent even in near-freezing water, which gives a pike something to follow when it is not moving far to hunt.

Move if nothing happens within 45 minutes. Winter pike do not travel far to find a bait, so you have to take the bait to them. Two or three swims in a short winter afternoon beats sitting on one all day.

FAQs

What tackle do I need to start pike fishing?
A 10–12ft rod of 2.5–3lb test curve, a 4000–5000 reel, 30–40lb braid, ready-made wire traces, floats and leads, a 36 inch landing net, an unhooking mat, forceps and side cutters. That is the whole list. Basic pike fishing tackle costs less than most carp setups because there is no bivvy, bait boat or bank of alarms involved.

Do you need a wire trace for pike?
Yes, always. A pike wire trace is the only thing that stops pike teeth cutting straight through mono or braid. Without one, a fish that bites you off swims away with hooks in its mouth, and there is no water or method where that is acceptable.

What is the best bait for pike?
Mackerel is the most reliable all-round deadbait because it is oily, tough and casts well. Smelt, sardine, herring, lamprey and coarse deadbaits such as roach all catch, and it pays to take two or three types. On hard-fished waters a roach often outfishes the oily baits.

When is the best time of year to catch pike?
October through to March. Pike feed hardest as the water cools, and many clubs and stillwaters run a traditional season starting on 1 October. Remember the statutory coarse fish close season on rivers, streams and drains in England and Wales, which runs from 15 March to 15 June inclusive.

Are pike dangerous to handle?
No. A pike's teeth will cut you if you are careless, but a glove, long forceps and a mat make it a routine job. The real risk runs the other way: pike are fragile, and a badly handled fish is far more likely to be harmed than the angler.

Do I need a licence to fish for pike in the UK?
Yes. Everyone aged 13 or over needs an Environment Agency rod licence to fish for pike in England and Wales. You will also need the fishery's own day ticket or club permit, and you should check its rules on baits and close periods before you go.

Get Kitted Out

Pike fishing for beginners is simple once the safety kit is sorted: a trace, a mat, forceps and cutters, and the rest is just fishing. Get those in the bag and you can start this October with confidence. Browse the pike and predator range to get set up.