My personal fishing experience helped me determine the best time of day for spinning pike. Pike can be caught almost at any time of the day or night, but still, there are certain periods of time when this predator is most active on most water bodies. The recommendations below are quite subjective. What is an axiom for one body of water may not be so on another. But in general, the information is correct for most lakes in central Russia. Verified by personal experience.
morning pike
In summer, pike are more active in the morning. Early morning right before sunrise is a great time for spin fishing. At this time of day, pike often hunts in shallow water, in thickets of reeds and water lilies, near trees fallen into the water and flooded shrubs.
A good bait for morning pike fishing in such places are various models of poppers. In calm lake water in the morning, this type of bait creates enough excitement to attract the attention of a predator. A hungry pike prowling in search of prey, as a rule, takes on a popper immediately if the bait is close enough to attack.
The best poppers for pike:
- Megabass Pop-X;
- Fishycat Popcat 85F;
- OWNER Cultiva Mushroom Popper 60F.
From sunrise until 11 am pike can be caught at a small distance from the coastal vegetation. For fast fishing of large areas I use Mepps Aglia No. 3-4 spinners of silver color.
daytime pike
After a morning hunt in the summer, the pike usually calms down and goes to daytime rest in the deeper parts of the reservoir, where the water remains cool during the daytime. In the summer heat, in the afternoon, it is almost impossible to catch a pike. She becomes inactive and does not respond even to the most seductive bait.
At this time of day, trolling in depth using deep wobblers can work. Sometimes in this way I managed to catch a decent pike even on a hot day, while trolling the time until the evening dawn.
Three of the best deep-sea wobblers for trolling:
- Rapala Deep Tail Dancer;
- Bomber BD7F;
- Pontoon 21 Deeprey.
evening pike
Before sunset, pike activity increases, the predator sets off for reconnaissance in its favorite places in shallow water. At this time of day, the effectiveness of spinning fishing increases again, in shallow water the same poppers work well as in the morning. With the onset of night, pike biting stops until the morning dawn.
So, when to fish for pike?
In my experience, the best time to successfully fish for pike in the summer is in the morning hours, shortly after sunrise. At this time, the predator actively hunts and the effectiveness of fishing can be quite good. In early June and from the second half of August, pike can take it all day long, in July I stop fishing by 11 am. With the onset of the heat of the day, this occupation becomes unpromising.