A Lake With A Trick. Pike On A Fishing Rod

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Fishing tales

On a dull November day, I sat with fishing rods on the shore of a small lake and, looking at the motionless floats, thought about how the life of its inhabitants had changed dramatically with the onset of cold weather. In summer, near the grass in shallow water, numerous flocks of fry circled, which were chased by predators every now and then. Especially the perches. Now there was neither one nor the other.

Yes, and the transparent blue water was drawn not by summer heat, but by piercing cold. The withered aquatic plants, broken off by the evil autumn wind, further exacerbated the gloomy mood. And there was a reason to be discouraged! For half a day - not a single bite. But in the spring and summer, perches, rudd, roaches, undergrowths were excellent here. Where are they all? Where have you gone?

Towards noon, hearing behind the rustle of pebbles crumbling from the hillside, I looked around and saw a tall guy in a quilted jacket and wading boots. At first the fisherman seemed to me a complete stranger, but when he approached, I recognized him as a bulldozer driver Victor from a neighboring quarry.

Having greeted affably, it seemed to me that he looked with a smile first at me, then at the fishing rods and concluded:

- It looks like zero bites and zero fish. Is not it?

I nodded and, as if making excuses, said:

- November is the off-season, what a bite here …

My interlocutor again looked at me with a smile and, as if disagreeing, explained:

- Of course, today the weather for fishing is neither this nor that. However, as soon as there is a thaw, and then it will be replaced by frosts, there will definitely be a bite. And then you can go fishing. Want to?

- But how do I know about it?

- I'll call. - He fixed my number on his mobile and, already about to leave, added: - Be sure to stock up on live bait.

- But where can I get them, if you see for yourself, it doesn't bite at all.

- Come with a fine mesh to our quarry, feed the crucians and collect them at least a bucket.

… I did just that. I planted carp live fish in a large wooden tub and waited for Victor's call. He called two days later. And in the early morning, when the night was still hiding in the coastal bushes, we met him on the lake. After examining the live bait, my companion nodded approvingly, and we moved along the edge of the water. Victor slowly walked along the shore, carefully examining the water surface. At the same time, in some places he lingered, while others left quite quickly.

I, while not understanding anything, dragged along and after several stops could not stand it and asked:

- Victor, what are you looking out for so closely?

- The fact is that this is a lake with a trick, - he explained, - there are holes in it where the fish is currently kept. This is exactly where the haze is above the water. And the thicker the steam swirls, the more perches gather in this place.

And he said that in the autumn frosts, feeling a sharp drop in temperature, a trifle rolls into the pits for wintering. And after her appear pikes and perches. Here we have to find them.

We passed several holes until Victor stopped near a tiny pool, above which a bluish-yellow haze swirled.

“This is perhaps what we need,” he concluded, unwinding the fishing rods.

He decided to fish with three rods at once. I limited myself to one. Frankly speaking, I had little faith in the success of our fishing. And at first it turned out to be so … The crucians revived in the water in vain kept dragging the floats back and forth, there were no bites. But as soon as the edge of the sun appeared from behind the jagged wall of the forest, Victor's middle fishing rod swung sharply, and the float immediately disappeared under the water. The fisherman hooked and pulled out a kilogram pike. Soon he caught another pike - a smaller one.

Immediately I got the bite. Grabbing the rod, I felt a strong resistance, and after a short struggle I was holding a half-kilogram perch in my hands. As the sun rose, the biting intensity also increased. Victor did not have time to remove the fish from the hook of one rod, as followed by a bite on the other. He had to catch only one rod. The active, I would even say, stray bite lasted forty minutes. But as soon as the sun rose higher, and the air warmed up well, the nibble, as if on command, stopped. For the next half hour, we didn't have a single bite.

- They took away the soul - and okay … - concluded Victor, putting the fish in the bag.

“So much for November - the off-season,” I thought, walking along the path following my companion. - It turns out that the offseason is only for those who know little, and even less - can."

That's it …