Float depth?

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Lee95
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Float depth?

Post by Lee95 »

What’s everybody’s preferred way of fishing two rods. Is it better to fish one bait hard on the bottom. And the second bait a few feet of the bottom.
martin(rockape)
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Re: Float depth?

Post by martin(rockape) »

My way of thinking is that pike are both ambush predators and scavengers and its fair to say that most of my pike have been caught with baits on the bottom. Doesn't do any harm to shallow up. They'll see the bait wherever it is. Ive had my bait taken within seconds of it hitting the water

I also shallow up enough so that the deabait trips along the bottom of the river bed in the flow.

A pikes eyes are positioned well enough to spot their prey anywhere.

Regards

Martin
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BillCollins
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Re: Float depth?

Post by BillCollins »

If you're floatfishing with 2 rods, it pays to fish one with the bait suspended and try different depths, including very shallow even over quite deep water. I've caught plenty of pike just 3-4ft under the float over areas 25-30ft deep. Keep changing things up with one rod until you find what they want on the day.
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JoeNickel
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Re: Float depth?

Post by JoeNickel »

It's more of an issue when water's deeper. If you're in a 30ft gravel pit, and fish aren't really moving around, you'll want to fish at the depth the pike are at (or feeding at).

If you're in a 5ft Norfolk Broad, then 3ft below the float, 1ft popped up of the bottom, hard on the bottom - it's all pretty much the same place, so probably less important. Sometimes they'll want a specific presentation, but ease of casting, simplicity of rig, bite indication are all also considerations. I'd always start with all rods overdepth, and maybe shallow up on one rod if I get nothing after a couple of hours.
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Christian97
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Re: Float depth?

Post by Christian97 »

To answer your specific question I would fish one on the bottom and one popped up but not to far. But I would be more likely to instead use two different types of bait, both on the bottom, one a sea fish, the other a coarse fish or smelt. This because my experience is getting the bait right is likely to be more important than how you present it.
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Mark Phillips
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Re: Float depth?

Post by Mark Phillips »

How long is a piece of string? Varies every time you fish, unless you fish the same water, same swim and in the same conditions every time you go pike fishing :knife:
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Dewclaw57
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Re: Float depth?

Post by Dewclaw57 »

Watching two floats can be a pain. I sit to one side so I can see both floats in one view. This is not always possible however so I then go for one straight ledger on the alarm and one float. Try to fish max one foot over depth on the float. Mainly fish rivers and canals so the depth is rarely consistent anyway.
Andy Tibbott
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Re: Float depth?

Post by Andy Tibbott »

Mark Phillips wrote: Sat Nov 14 2020 15:17 -
How long is a piece of string? Varies every time you fish, unless you fish the same water, same swim and in the same conditions every time you go pike fishing :knife:
Agreed its horses for courses, if ain't happening one way try another. I manly float fish rivers and even in areas I know quite well the conditions can change meaning I have to change methods. That said I usually start with two different baits on the bottom, a banker (if there is such a thing) and a "something else just in case".
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