Catching pike crocodile on zherlitsy. Catching pike on zherlitsy in winter, video. It's been a long time since you had a really big catch

Fishing in the winter on zherlitsy increases the number of fans every year. The availability of vents at a price allows those who do not know how to catch high quality to take quantity. And by the way, the rules of sports and recreational fishing limit the number of vents allowed to five. But not many observe this, because there is no one to control it, and the consciousness of our brother fisherman leaves much to be desired.

I don’t agree with this either, because fishing in the winter with 5 pieces of vents is ... in general, you can’t do anything with this ... Unless you sit around and sit stationary to catch a scavenger or roach. Purposeful fishing in winter on vents with so many is absurd, even if this is the first or last ice. After all, there are very few days with a crazy bite, if they exist at all. The optimal amount per angler, in my opinion, is ten pieces. If there are more zherlits, then the sports passion and attractiveness of such fishing are completely lost.


Fishing in the winter on zherlitsy - preparation

The ability to catch, and to catch beautifully, with understanding, does not lie in the number of hooks, but primarily in the competent arrangement of vents in winter. It is this factor that plays the primary role. Fishing in the winter on zherlitsy begins with a place. Before placing vents, you should at least roughly understand the location of the terrain and the depth under the ice shell. Then, as accurately as possible, each vent should be tied to a promising area, whether it be a snag, a navel, a spit, an edge or a reed wall along the coast. For these purposes, I use a depth gauge and a good ice screw.

  • Depth gauge for winter fishing

The first fixture is made from an ordinary baiting rod, from which the whip is simply removed. A thick monofilament is wound on a fishing rod, on which cut-offs are marked with knots and beads. For example, I have large beads marked meter marks, small - half a meter. At the end is the usual lead "cheburashka" 40g in weight. This way I accurately measure the depth in each hole. And I always do this, because it is stupid to put girders at random. The exceptions are areas that I know very well, but even there, sometimes, I have to use a depth gauge.

  • Ice drill for winter fishing

As for the ice screw, it must be good and always sharp. If you break through a crust of 5-15 cm on the first ice and do not notice it, then it is not so easy to break through 30-50-70 cm of ice. And if it's the end of winter, when the ice is still wet... That's when you think about a good ice screw. I have been using the Rapala drill for a long time and to this day I do not know anything better. I drill holes with them where I see fit, without thinking about fatigue at all. Carefully examining the proposed fishing area in this way, I place the vents taking into account the entire relief and bottom anomalies.


Fishing in the winter on zherlitsy - installation

Most anglers place their vents just along the shore, no matter if there is an edge or something interesting, if there is fish there, it is still the main place. This is their main mistake, and fishing in the winter on bastards does not forgive mistakes. After all, the coastal dump is different. In one place it steeply and sharply goes deep into 5-10 meters, in another case it is a smooth drag from 10 cm to two or three meters over a distance of 50-100-200 meters. Different in composition and bottom. Somewhere it is pure sand or clay, and somewhere - silt with the remains of algae or pebble scree.

  • Promising places for fishing in the winter on zherlitsy

If you don’t want to drill and measure holes above the terrain, or there was news on the Internet resource about numerous sunburns near the coast, then first imagine where there are promising places for fishing in winter on vents. So, on most reservoirs and rivers with a slow flow, preference should be given to the coast where the depth starting from the coast is 1-3 meters and the coastal slope is not so sharp. Where reeds or cattails grow along the coast or along the coastline. Of interest will be snags in the form of old stumps or long-fallen trees and all kinds of ditches, perpendicular to the bank and located at an angle to it, the difference in which can be 0.5-1.5 meters. In such places, pike is located almost the entire winter season. Another thing is that its concentration will vary depending on the period of freezing. At the beginning of the season and at the end of the season there will be more fish, in the middle of winter - less, but in some kind of thaw you can have good fishing even in the dead of winter. Pike will often be small, although at the end of winter you can run into a trophy.

  • Installation of a bait for pike fishing

It is advisable to arrange the girders in a line, 20-30 meters apart. In the middle of winter, a distance of 10-15 meters is possible, since the predator does not move much at this time. If such places are not stretched along the coast, but are located on a vast penny, then you can come up with all sorts of combinations such as a chessboard. Maybe some "knight's move" will bring another trophy.

  • Catching pike on the vents on the last ice

As for the last ice, the tactics of catching pike on vents are somewhat different. On the eve of spawning, the pike begins to move in shallow water, where it searches for interesting and shallow water places. At this time, she noticeably shows feeding activity. However, its activity alone is not enough, because the concept of shallow water is different for everyone. Many put vents on a pike just near the shore at a depth of 2.5-1 m. At such a depth, there may not be any bites at all, but at a depth of 20-40 cm - a myriad of sunburns. Sometimes the pike is where it can barely get through.

  • Catching pike on zherlitsy in winter near the shore

Interest for catching pike on vents in winter at this time should be coastal polynyas, when there is still ice. The presence of reeds, reeds, a small pothole, an old stump or a whole snag, a flowing stream plus a soft rise nearby (5-20 meters from the shore) will be decisive. Fishing doesn't have to be passive. The constant movement of vents along the coastline will bear fruit. If within half an hour or two there are no bites, then the vent should definitely be rearranged along the flank.

  • Catching pike on the vents on the edge

Some people prefer catching pike on the vents on the edge. However, this fishing is more difficult, and many do not go into the nuances and catch as they please, or as they drilled and found a drop, they set it. The cherished dump is again surrounded by a chessboard with a distance of 10-15 meters, and that's it. Eyebrows are those places where the probability of catching a predator is high. But before starting a conversation about this, you should decide on which edges, or rather, in which parts of them you should look for this or that fish:

So, pike is mostly a predator of the upper tier, and pike perch is the lower one. That is, if the edge is from three to eight meters, then the pike should be looked for aground, and the pike perch - at a depth. Of course, this is not a strict rule, since there are moments when pike perch gets aground, and pike is only in the channel at a depth, but the fact that this is their main habitat is a fact. As for the dump itself, the probability that this or that fish will be there will be determined by the angle of its inclination. If this is an edge from 50 to 90 degrees, then hooking a pike or zander will be less likely on the dump itself. But perch - please. This is evidenced not only by practice, but also by logic.

However, as I often observe, the setting of girdles is far from being done in many ways. The zherlits are set up so that the live bait floats on the dump itself and that the zherlits stand strictly in a checkerboard pattern, like everyone else. Yes, there are certain rules, principles, etc. But a person's understanding of the expediency of this or that production should still be. If you are aiming for pike, then you can set all your flags like on a chessboard, but this board should not go beyond three meters (in the cases described above). Or it should capture strictly a three-ruble note and strictly 7-8 meters. In other words, if the edge is steep, it should be set either on the top of the edge, or strictly on the bottom, under the very wall of the slope. Another case is an edge of one and a half to two meters, for example, from 1.5 to 3 meters and a length of 2-3 meters. In this case, the pike can run along such an edge, and the arrangement with the impact of the stall itself will be relevant.

As for the sloping eyebrows, I can not stand them, because it is very difficult to understand where to look for a predator on them. I usually explore them in the summer, slicing the snake on the boat and staring into the echo sounder. The presence of snags, bottom anomalies in the form of braids, the poverty of the surrounding terrain, or a high concentration of leucorrhoea gives a chance to catch. In other cases, I ignore such brows.

A common mistake is when, after a bite on a vent, all the others are transferred to it. This rarely works. It is better to charge this vent again, and others, in the absence of tans, look for other places. That there will still be a bite on this vent, the probability is high. This is explained by the fact that the predator moves along its own paths. And you guessed this place by one of the zherlits. This happened to me more than once: two-three-four-eight pikes from one hole, and the neighboring ones are simply silent. I came to other fishing trips, left the zherlitsa standing alone in this place, and exhibited others in another place.

So, the most promising place for catching pike on the zherlitsa in winter is a steeply broken channel slope, its sharp turn, the confluence point of two flooded rivers. The vents should be installed on the pike in such a way that the live bait is in close proximity to the edge: at the upper or lower border of the channel edge, at the foot or on the top of the underwater hill, at the border of aquatic vegetation, on a patch of solid ground against the background of a silted bottom, in the channel ditch, on a secret "table" with a depth of 8-12 or 3-5 meters, and even better with a snag.


Fishing on girders in winter - permutation of girders

In any case, successful fishing for vents involves not only a competent arrangement, but also a constant rearrangement. And so that your live bait does not die in the process of changing the hole, it should be transferred by lowering it into a kan or a container of water. After all, he is already experiencing overload. Either we lower it by two meters, then by ten, then we raise it several times at a hasty pace. And in the cold, while you walk a short distance, it can completely die and lose its attractiveness for a predator. If there are no bites, then I never keep a zherlitsa in one place for more than two hours. Every half an hour I check the condition of the tackle and the safety of the live bait and look for other places, drilling and measuring promising places with a depth gauge, constantly looking at both flags. In general, there is no time to sit and watch. And the efforts have never been in vain, in any case, the remuneration for work will be received, even if with one small pike.

Fishing on vents in winter - use navigators

Often I manage to find very interesting places, or rather even holes. In such cases, I resort to the navigator. It's easy and simple to put a point with coordinates there. In the “Description” section, I give a brief description of a particular point (what I caught, when, from what depth, what is around, etc.), so that in a week, a month, or even a year, I won’t look at it like a sheep at a new gate, but immediately put a zherlitsa in the hope of a trophy. In addition, I sometimes enter the coordinates of the edge in order to drill less and lower the depth gauge to understand the relief. Of course, you can estimate by eye, but only if the coast is nearby and there are some landmarks. However, this is not so accurate, because you are not in the same place every day, and the water level also changes in winter. And if the fishing area is at a great distance from the shore ?! The navigator simplifies the search for already known places, areas where you have already successfully fished and spent enough time to master the place. At home, before going fishing, I enter into the navigator all the points of the winter season from one or another reservoir. To store points, view and analyze them, I use the OziExplorer program. With its help, I load a previously downloaded map of a reservoir or an area, a region, import points to it either from a navigator or from a separate folder. It is very convenient and quite simple. As for the model, I use the budget portable EtrexVentureCx. And more is not necessary. The map is visible on the display, a color image and easy operation with one finger!

In winter, it is easiest to catch a pike on a live bait, and the biting on a lure is not always stable. But the toothy predator often ignores the bait. This happens for various reasons. These are mistakes when choosing a place, rough equipment, incorrectly planted live bait, vagaries of the weather. Therefore, several main points that affect the biting of a predator should be taken into account.

Tackle for winter pike fishing

Pike fishing on live bait in winter occurs in stationary or mobile ways.

Catching pike in winter on zherlitsy is a stationary method. It consists of an ordinary plastic spool with a fishing line with a diameter of 0.35-0.5 mm, which is equipped with a sliding sinker weighing 6-10 grams, a leash and a single, double or triple hook.

As for the choice of hook, the opinions of betting anglers vary. Someone likes to catch on tees more, someone prefers single models. Perhaps it is best to use doubles of the appropriate size for the bait.

All this equipment is based on a base in the form of a rack, tripod, round platform, etc.

A thin steel plate with a flag serves as a bite signaling device, as well as a device that holds the equipment at a certain depth.

Before installing the vent, it is necessary to measure the depth under the hole. The easiest way to do this is with a heavy load weighing 40-50 grams. It is tied with a fishing line to a piece of cork, for which the tackle hook clings.

The load sinks to the bottom, and then rises by 15-30 cm. In this position, the tackle is fixed with a plate with a flag, and the fishing line is taken out of the hole by hand.

Now you need to remove the load, bait the live bait and lower it into the hole head down. He must independently reach a given depth, this will save the tackle from overlapping the fishing line. After that, you need to darken the hole with snow, check the free movement of the fishing line and wait for a bite.

When biting, the pike pulls off the flag, which straightens on a springy plate. But at this moment you should not hook, as the toothy one simply holds the live bait across in her teeth. You need to wait until, after a pause, the fish begins to go into cover, winding up the fishing line. Now she swallows the prey, and you can do hooking.

When fighting, one should take into account the resistance of a toothy predator, especially if there is no metal leash. It is better to give her a little fishing line, and then again calmly pull her to the hole. So that the pike is not afraid of the light, the hole must be darkened until the last moment.

When playing a large fish, it is necessary to use a gaff. Usually bait fishing involves the use of several gears. But success most often does not depend on the number of bets, but on the right place and a well-equipped vent.

When mobile fishing for pike on live bait one fishing rod is used, equipped like a vent, only a float or a nod acts as a bite signaling device. With such a fishing rod, the angler is looking for pike, bypassing hole after hole.

If the toothy stands under the hole, the bite occurs most often when the bait bait is lowered. And then it all depends on the skill of the angler.

Finding a place to fish

The main recipe for successful fishing in winter is to find a “pike trail”. Having felt the places of exit of the predator on the pond, you can safely hope for bites at these points in the future. No wonder you can catch up to 5-6 pikes from one hole per day, and the nearby vents are “silent” for the whole fishing.

A sophisticated way of fishing for a large number of vents, provided that you are sure in the right place.


Pike prefers to lie in ambush in winter, watching passing objects. As soon as prey appears within reach, the predator attacks with lightning speed.

On the rivers, the best places for angling toothy will be deep bays, ravines under rifts, mill whirlpools, backwaters above capes. In stagnant water bodies, fish should be looked for at the boundaries of aquatic vegetation, in channels between the island and the coast, under steep banks, near snags and flooded bushes.

The bottom relief is most quickly determined with an echo sounder, but if this reservoir is visited in the future, then you can explore it with the help of a spinner or mormyshka.

It is important to note for yourself interesting differences in depths, the presence of obstacles at the bottom, etc. It is useful to watch the local anglers, who know exactly not only the cool places, but also the time of the exit of the predator. Therefore, in a few hours of fishing, they will catch more fish than other anglers during the whole day.

How to catch a live bait and how to bait it correctly

Fishermen who use live bait to catch a predator know that the best live bait is the one that is caught in the same reservoir where pike is hunted. As a live bait in winter, many people buy crucian carp, which are distinguished by vitality, but they are inactive.

It is better to spend some time and catch the local fish.

To do this, you need a light winter fishing rod with a mormyshka, "devil" or "bastard". A thin fishing line 0.08-0.1 mm is equipped with such a mormyshka so that it bends the nod by 20-30 degrees relative to the axis of the fishing rod. A bloodworm is baited on the hook, and the tackle is ready to go. Almost any fish caught is suitable for the role of live bait. These are perch, and roach, and bleak, and gudgeon, and dace, etc. For some time, the fish can be kept in a plastic bucket of water. Places for catching live bait - shoals, windows in algae, depth differences, etc.

Winter fishing for pike is an interesting activity for professional and beginner anglers. There are quite a few ways to fish, but the most popular and effective is the vent. It is used during the period when the reservoirs are covered with a layer of ice. But it is difficult to predict whether the pike will be taken to the zherlits, because the wrong place or the use of the wrong bait bait affects the effectiveness of fishing. It is important to take into account certain nuances on which the catch depends.

Features of the girders

Tackles are under-ice and over-ice, but all types are of the same design. Zherlitsy always has elements such as:

  1. rack;
  2. bite signaling device (flag);
  3. reel with fishing line;
  4. hook.
Attention! An under-ice vent involves the use of a base that will cover the hole.

The rack is a wooden block up to a meter long. Sometimes steel wire is used for manufacturing, but the disadvantage of the design is that it will be difficult to hold it in winter. There should be two holes in the rack: for the coil and the bite signaling device, which looks like a spring. The flag is attached to the top with a cambric.

The coil is located below. On the inside there should be a recess in which it is necessary to fix the spring so that when it is pulled, it signals a bite. It is very important to adjust the girders so that they respond to weights of less than 200g.

You may well collect gear with your own hands. There are a lot of training videos on the Internet, so there will be no problems with how to make a vent, especially since the device is quite simple and can be made from improvised materials. Homemade girders are just as effective as those bought from a fisherman's shop, so it makes sense to collect tackle yourself to save money.

How to choose a live bait

The best option is to use the fish that pike usually tries. The best live bait is:

  • perch;
  • gudgeon;

The advantage of this type of bait is that it attracts the attention of the pike and stimulates the appetite. If live bait fishing is not possible for any reason, silicone fish can be used.

You need to know how to properly plant a live bait. Best of all - for the lip. So the fish will twitch a little, which will allow you to catch pike on it.

Installation of the girders

The rig can be set up correctly, but if you put it in the wrong place, you should not count on a good catch. There is a list of places where the probability of catching a predator is quite high:

  • eyebrows. This is the transition from the deep part of the reservoir to the shallow. On the river, the edges are clearly visible, but on the ponds it is more difficult to find the border, although it is also possible. The peculiarity of the place is that small fish are concentrated here, which are prey for pike. It is better to set the zherlitsa along the edge so that some are in shallow water, while others are in depth. You need to wait an hour or two, and it will become clear which place is catchy. Along it, the installation of the remaining vents is carried out;
  • reeds. This is one of the best places for pike, but it is not very easy to catch it, sometimes you have to wait more than one hour for the first catch. There are several reasons for this. The reed occupies a large territory, in the thickets you can not notice the bait, and it is not always easy to pull out the fish. It is best to place the zherlitsa a meter from the edge of the reeds;
  • snag. In these places, the predator is found constantly. But it should be borne in mind that a lazy pike usually lives in a snag, so the first bite can be a few hours after the placement of the vent.

If you know the bottom of the reservoir well and know where there are places that differ in relief, it is recommended to install tackle there as well. This is the best choice if you want to catch big pike.

The best fishing tactic is to find as many places as possible where fish can be found. So the probability of successful fishing increases.

pike strike

The fishing line is held by the hands to catch the fish. Do not pinch into a fist or wrap around your hand. If the predator is large, then no matter how thick the fishing line, the fish can break loose. Strong tension is not allowed if the rig uses leashes that oppose the pike teeth.

Cliffs most often occur when fish are brought to the hole. The pike starts to resist. It is especially dangerous when the predator touches the ice edge. In this case, you should not rush and it is recommended to give up some fishing line to try again.

These are all the secrets you should know before you start ice fishing. Even a not very experienced fisherman will be able to catch a trophy pike if he adheres to all the rules. If you know how to rig and where to place the vent, then this is enough to make the catch successful.

Interesting: not only pike, but also other predators, such as zander or perch, are caught on the zherlitsa in winter.

Fishing for pike vents in winter will be an excellent option for the angler. Unlike other gear, you do not need to constantly monitor them. Of course, the pike does not show much activity in winter and prefers to sit in secluded places. Therefore, knowing the characteristics of her temper, you can choose good weather conditions and successfully make a large catch.

For winter fishing for pike, girders are perfect

Predator Behavior

Winter fishing on ordinary vents for the desired pike, depending on the months on the calendar, has a number of features:

  • In December, as soon as the surface of the reservoir is frozen, the toothy one is not yet going to move to the depth. She is now standing somewhere in the middle of the reservoir. Continuing your autumn lifestyle. And also the water is still saturated with oxygen and its temperature is not too cold. The first ice is transparent, so the fisherman should be careful. The predator sees everything and can be scared.
  • When the temperature drops, especially in January, the fish becomes the most passive. In the dead of winter, pike hides in the most distant parts of the reservoir from the coast. She doesn't even eat. Fishing for any pike in deep winter on simple vents will not bring results in strong winds. But as soon as the slightest warming begins, the toothy one comes to life for a short time to hunt a little. At the same time, she is just as sluggish and does not seek to attack the bait. Therefore, in catching pike, patience is important.
  • In early February, the situation also does not change: pike places remain the same. But closer to the middle, winter is losing ground. Warming starts. The fish feels the approach of March and is gradually becoming more active. Moreover, small fish rush to the shore. The predator sees this and follows her. But at the moment of a cold snap or during pressure surges, the toothy one is still scared and does not respond to the tricks of the fisherman.

In winter, pike will stay on the bottom and away from the shore.

What is and what kind of zherlitsy are

Zherlitsa is a type of live bait tackle that is relevant all year round. Accordingly, there are winter and summer. In this case, we are interested in the latter. Tackle is installed on the hole. You can make it yourself - this will be the most primitive type of construction. More advanced flags for catching large pike in winter consist of additional equipment: a reel seat with a reel and fishing line and a signal device - a flag. The fishing line is equipped with a leash and a hook with a live bait attached to it.

There are a lot of types of zherlits. So let's look at some of them:

  • Classic overhead.
  • Postavushka. It is installed under the ice. Usually it is put at night and checked in the morning.

All kinds of tackle modifications differ from each other in their device, installation method on ice and fishing line attachment:

  • On the platform. The most popular species among fishermen. It can be installed under any conditions. And also a winter vent can prevent the hole from freezing for some time.
  • On 1 leg. Such a stick can be mounted on a snowdrift. It is made with the expectation that it would be possible to see from afar.
  • On 3 legs. It will be ideal at the beginning of winter, when the first ice has just formed. A prerequisite is the absence of snow. But this type of gear is unstable and can be blown away by the wind. Can be placed over a hole and frozen into ice.

The girders may have a different device.

The choice of the ideal tackle for pike fishing depends on the angler himself. There are also other more bizarre options, modifications. Among them can be noted overturning. It resembles a 3-legged zherlitsa. When biting, it turns over and thus signals the fisherman. Previously, the part that acts as a signaling device is painted in a bright color or a colored tape is glued. Some tackle is equipped with a special device and is capable of self-cutting prey, that is, making a sharp jerk when hooking.

How tackle works

A bite signaling device or a flag before fishing is installed under the reel. When a pike swallows live bait, it tends to swim away to a secluded place. At the same time, the line on the reel begins to unwind. The latter releases the flag on its own, and it rises. It is not necessary to cut the pike immediately: after waiting a short pause, so that it swallows the live bait deeper.

When and where to put vents

The weather for successful fishing should be a little cloudy, but calm. It is desirable that snow falls. In severe frosts, the pike refuses to peck at all. With a slight thaw, she leaves her hiding places to find food.

Fishing is affected by the weather

Before fishing, you must first inspect the reservoir and choose the most promising places to catch the coveted pike. It is important to understand that a predator in winter will not stand on that part of the bottom where there is nothing interesting. This means that you first need to inspect the reservoir for holes, snags, flooded trees or other irregularities in the bottom or in a snag. At the time of warming, gear is placed next to the reeds.

You can target small fish. Usually she rushes to the channel edges, beckoning the predator. Shore edges are also very promising in terms of pike fishing. But it is necessary to install the tackle in such a way that the live bait is on the upper edge. If the bottom of the reservoir does not differ throughout its entire length, then the vents are recommended to be installed in a checkerboard pattern.

It is important to know how to set up the tackle correctly. To begin with, using equipment, you need to determine the depth of the reservoir and fix it in the desired position. At the same time, you should fix the flag on the vent. Next, you need to get the fishing line out of the water again and plant the live bait already. After the bait must be lowered into the water. Lastly, the gear is installed in the working position.

It is recommended to cover the hole with some snow. This will make it less noticeable and prevent it from freezing quickly. And also it is worth remembering that the live bait should not be immersed to the very bottom. It is advisable to set the bait at a distance of 20-50 cm, and for trout the live bait should be even higher.

The success of fishing also depends on the correct installation.

rigging

You can use the following types:

  • Fishing line. It is better to give preference to her than braided. The latter is not very suitable for winter: it freezes quickly and can hurt your hands. The thickness is selected depending on the weight of the prey. So, if you plan to catch a small individual, then 0.25-0.28 mm is enough in full. If you want to catch a large one, you need to use 0.3-0.35 mm. For zherlitsy it is necessary to prepare a fishing line up to 30 m long.
  • Sinker. It is better to give preference to streamlined shapes. Its weight depends on the dimensions of the live bait: so that the bait cannot swim away with it and does not sink to the bottom. The optimal weight is 3-6 g, when fishing at a depth, up to 15 g can be used.
  • Leash. Should be durable and invisible in the water. Length up to 30 cm.
  • Hooks. Can be single, double or triple. It tastes like a fisherman. The main thing is not to save on quality. The price of the components to make such a tackle is not too high.

Choosing a live bait

It is advisable to first take the time and go fishing to catch the local fish. So the pike will be much more comfortable and she will happily rush to such prey. Otherwise, it is better to use live bait, since the pike will also not react to carrion.

When using vents as bait, live bait is used

What bait is suitable:

  • Roach.
  • Carp.
  • Perch.
  • Gudgeon.
  • Goby.

The live bait should not be too big. And also the bait must be planted so that it retains mobility for a long time. They hook the fish in a gentle way so that it does not make unnatural movements in the water column. Otherwise, she will scare away the pike. Therefore, it is best to install the hook either through the gills so that the sharp part looks out of the mouth, or through the back. You can also put on the lip or both at once.

fishing technique

As soon as the flag has risen, you should not immediately try to raise the pike up. So you will only scare her and she will fall off the hook. It is advisable to give a few seconds for her to swallow the live bait deeper.

It is important to properly fish out of the hole

When the fish just grabs the bait, it tends to swim away with it for some distance. There is a sharp winding of the fishing line. As soon as the movement stops, the fish begins to swallow the live bait. The pause may last for several minutes. After that, you can wind the fishing line on yourself a little. If at the same time tension is noticed, then it is necessary to cut. It is recommended to play very carefully and slowly.

  • When fishing, you need to use a strong leash. Because the predator will provide strong resistance when pulled out.
  • It is better to go fishing with stable atmospheric pressure.
  • The best weather is when it snows. No wind.
  • At the beginning of winter, if the reservoir is not covered with ice and warming has occurred, then you can look for pike in shallow water.
  • It is better to use a small live bait. This is due to the fact that pike have a slow metabolism in winter. She needs less food to be satisfied. She will have to spend more energy on a large bait, so the toothy one will ignore such a bait.
  • There will be a rich catch if you put the vent after freezing or on the last ice.

The bite is also affected by pressure.

  • Use a yawn to avoid hurting your hands when removing the hook from the mouth.
  • A good catch can only be in the first half of the day and early in the morning. Fishing at night will not bring results.
  • On the course, the weight of the sinker should be greater than on stagnant reservoirs.
  • In winter, the best place for fishing will be the mouths of rivers or branches from the main channel, where the undercurrent is enriched with oxygen and additional heat.
  • It is recommended to put vents first in the very center of the reservoir, catching the greatest depths. Gradually approaching the shore.

Catching pike in the winter on the flag has a number of features. First, you need to choose the right equipment. Secondly, it is necessary to choose a good place for the proposed parking lot. And also you need to take into account weather conditions and indicators of atmospheric pressure. Of course, for successful fishing it is important to know the behavior of a predator in the cold.

About catching pike on zherlitsy will be discussed in the video:

Perhaps, every fisherman will agree that the main factors determining the result of the hunt are the features of the arrangement of the vents.

Neglecting the rules for arranging a small number of vents will significantly worsen the result of fishing or completely eliminate the possibility of catching even one specimen. At best, the principle "at random" guarantees an ordinary pike, which will be ashamed to brag to friends.

Below is the information, the implementation of which in practice increases the probability of catching a trophy pike at times.

The distribution of vents is easier if you know the depth and topography of the bottom of the reservoir. The predator often goes to the zherlitsa at the flooded snags, mounds.

About indispensable assistants when catching pike on vents

Even on an unfamiliar reservoir in the coastal zone, there are no big problems with the search for promising points.

Coastal landmarks indicate the features of the bottom relief. For example, a flat bank is a marker of a shallow place, and a steep one is a marker of a deep place. The fact of the presence of underwater spits will be prompted by shallows overgrown with reeds. The latter usually goes deep into the reservoir.


It is not uncommon for large individuals to be far from the shore. In this case, a depth map will be very useful.

If there is none, the following will help with the search for fish points:

  1. ice drill
  2. depth gauge
  3. Navigator

Due to the wrong choice and inept use of the ice drill, it takes up to five minutes or more to get one hole.

If you watch experienced anglers, it will become obvious that it is better to use domestic ice drills, the diameter of which is 13 cm. It is advisable to have a pair of sharp knives in your assortment - 13 and 15 cm. First, the holes are drilled with a thinner knife. After determining the relief and the optimal distribution of the vents, holes for gear are drilled with a knife of a larger diameter.



Structural elements of a compact impromptu depth gauge that fits in the pocket of winter fishing overalls:
1. An ordinary fishing rod without a six and a shortened handle.
2. 60mm coil.
3. Bright 0.5mm monofilament line with every meter marked. For this purpose, you can use multi-colored cambric.
4. Powerful swivel tied to the end of the fishing line.
5. Clockwork ring, where a 60-gram weight in the form of a pear is wound.

Such an instrument is sufficient to obtain complete information about the bottom topography and various bottom anomalies.


What is a navigator for? The most productive points are recorded in it and their characteristics are given in the “Comments” section (weather, time of bites, type of live bait, mass of pike caught). With such information, even at night, you can quickly find fish points.

Site selection and arrangement of vents

Any freshwater predator tries to adhere to depth differences and other anomalies - flooded trees, snags, stones.

The pike watches over its prey in some kind of shelter. At the same time, cases of other hunting strategies of this predator are known. In this regard, you will be interested in the results of the author's observations on one Belarusian lake with a 10-meter strip of reeds and reeds along the entire coastal zone.

Immediately behind the reeds, the depth is 1 m, and grass covers the bottom. It seems that the location of the vents along the border of vegetation and the water surface is more appropriate. In fact, such a place turned out to be unpromising. All fishing was limited to single "shots". Although, to be honest, several so-called "pencils" were caught.

The distance from the coastal vegetation and the installation of gear at a depth of 2-4 meters did not give any result. Moreover, there was no grip as such.

As it turned out, even the local roach begins to delight anglers at a depth of 6 meters, and the bream at a depth of 8 meters.

After analyzing the results of hunting on the lake, the depth at which the pike was active was determined - 5 m.

In the future, regardless of weather conditions, the lion's share of bites fell on the period from 10 to 11 am. Rarely, pike was also caught at lunchtime, after which all the gear “falls silent”.

The size of the pike catch in this case is positively affected by the active search for the best places and the arrangement of the vents so that there is at least 15 m between them.

Tip: in an unfamiliar reservoir and the availability of time to wait for a predator, you can bet on places with silver bream and roach - the main objects of pike hunting.

In a narrow reservoir with a maximum depth of 7 meters, pike do not appear in the bed of a flooded river, near the dumps. And this is despite the fact that in such places bottom anomalies are frequent, for example, the same snags.

Roach, beloved by pike, adheres to 4-5-meter depths, which are typical for near-river areas. Success will be more likely on a muddy bottom. Even trophy specimens come across here, however, there are few such places.

The best option for arranging the vents at the dump in the channel is a checkerboard pattern. Remember, the pike uses places adjacent to the upper curb as a “feeding table”.


A few words about hooks and leashes

It will be possible to speak about enviable catches only with correctly selected elements of gear.

Leash and hook are no exception.

Beginners usually use metal leashes. However, a cautious predator goes better on tackle, the leash of which is represented by a 0.3 mm monofilament fishing line. Such a constructive element of tackle has a significant drawback - biting the forests with large specimens. This unpleasant moment is eliminated when using girdles with 0.6 mm fluorocarbon leaders.

When it comes to hooks, experienced anglers recommend Japanese Owner products. These hooks outperform most brands in terms of sharpness and damage resistance. Hooks Owner significantly increase the result of fishing and prevent annoying gatherings of pike.

In addition to the quality of the hook, its size and type are also important. Larger doubles are preferable when planting a live bait behind the back (the bends of the product are facing the tail of the fish). If the live bait is planted through the gill apparatus, it is better to have a hook a couple of sizes smaller.


This is where we will probably stop. We wish you good catches.