What pike fisherman has not ever dreamed of making fishing trips, of several days, to countries that they continually see in fishing magazines and TV.
Who has not heard of big pike again and again, year after year, in the canals of Holland, where by the way, for many years practiced catch and release, which has conditioned the repetitive capture of certain fish very good size and well known among fishermen.
Or how many times have heard that in the Great Slave Lake in Canada, season after season of fishing, hundreds of pike caught, with an average size being very high, exceeding over a meter.
And who has not read articles about the huge pike in Irish lakes, which thanks to the characteristics of cold water allow pikes to achieve very large sizes.
Nor can we forget the pike fish in the Baltic (Västervik), pike of authentic record, reaching surprising sizes and weights. Or the pages and pages of advertisements in fishing magazine, ads, etc... for fishing trips with guides or special packages for fishermen and their families. The offer is very wide, only we have to decide.
However, many of us do not realize the real potential we have in our country (Spain) where we can enjoy authentic fishing days after this ESOX in many reservoirs in the Peninsula, both in quantity and quality. It is not necessary to travel thousands of miles to catch a pike record, within the Peninsula there are several places where the chances of catching a huge pike are very high.
You only need to dedicate a few days of fishing to get a good understanding of these reservoirs. You will then find their best areas, and which technique is best to use. Remember, it is not always easy to catch large pike every day.
One of the best ways to learn about a reservoir is to get in touch with specialized guides. They know perfectly all the nooks in the reservoirs and know which techniques to use to achieve your goal.
Within the Peninsula you can find many reservoirs where pike are present, its presence in some is very high, another thing is the size, because not every reservoir has a good population of large pike. In order for a reservoir to have a stable population of large size pike it needs characteristics like good geographic features, depth, and a good source of food present in the waters.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CATCH AND RELEASE
Catch and release is very important, but more so when we refer to larger specimens. We want to keep this treasure to be cared for and what better way than making us a pretty picture and returning the fish back to the water.
It is very important to treat all fish in the right manner. The time of weighing is very sensitive, because large fish suffer when they are in the upright position, it puts a lot of stress on their internal organs, since that is not their natural position and they are also out of water. While in this position they also intake a lot of air through their gullet and sometimes they are unable to dive again. Therefore, try to have them in this position for the shortest time possible, and if we can weigh them in a retention bag.
On the Peninsula it should be noted that some reservoirs in which we find pike, are also home to good populations of large pike. Catching a great pike in these reservoirs is not just pure chance, but it does not mean that you will arrive and in the first days you will catch a large fish, but it is much easier than in other places on the Peninsula.
LA JAROS
This small reservoir in the Community of Madrid, it is continuously stocked with rainbow trout, and pike of good size, every year huge pike are caught weighing over 10 kg.
Due to the high quality of its water and good food, it allows trout and pike to reach such size.
Ullibarri-GAMBOA
Just 15 miles from Victoria-Gasteiz is this reservoir, the largest in Basque Country. It is constantly being restocked with trout and also has a good population of red crab. The Administration requires the sacrifice of pike, which upsets the locals, since pike are being observed dead on the shores of this reservoir.
Still, every year their is huge pike fishing due to the climate of the area, the quality of its waters and the abundance of food present, all of these factors help pike easily reach very large weights.
RICEBAYO
In this reservoir pike abound Zamora, a lot. This is a very large dam complex: it presents many different fishing zones, from very broad beaches, areas of cut, many entrances of rivers and streams, bridges, etc.
Thus, locating pike is complicated, and even more with the arrival of sapwood. The bleak "so far" have allowed pike, bass and catfish achieve very good population sizes. The bass have a very high aggressive attack without hesitation to all kinds of artificial lures, either in the bottom half of the water or right on the surface.
But we are talking about pike: one year on Wheels Pan, a village near the reservoir, a local guide told me that every year in the outcasts, made in the rivers entering the reservoir (including Esla) draw quite a lot of large pike; and some in excess of 10 kg. In the previous spring they had caught one very close to 18 kg. By the way, the guide also had mentioned to me that the best time to fish in the reservoir were the months of October, November and December.
"The one who had, he retained"
The Entrepeñas and Buendia reservoirs marked a time when fishing for pike. They lived better times in which many specimens were caught and most of them very nice size fish. However, today we can still enjoy a nice day of fishing in them, but they do not have a very abundant population of large pike.
Hopefully in the future in these waters the predator species will begin to resurface again slowly, despite the overfishing week after week, as these reservoirs are very close to Madrid.
GARCIA SOLAY Cíjara
These two reservoirs have considerable pike population and also very, very good nice size fish. Every year in these two reservoirs there is huge pike fishing. To catch them is very important to know the reservoir, their best times and areas. These reservoirs are very large and difficult to catch and find the nice size pike, because their location is dependent on the movements of their food sources. The experience of many fishing trips will provide you the knowledge necessary to locate these large specimens. Thus, you will figure out which fishing techniques are best to use. The fish are very nice and healthy, being totally thick, thanks to the large amounts of food that is in these waters. Even though a lot of fisherman are fishing these waters week after week, pike population is still very stable and the results are often very good.
ORELLANA
Orellana probably has the greatest population of pike out of all Spanish reservoirs. However, from my experience catching large specimens is rather complicated. After many fishing trips I am impressed with the pike fishing here even though there aren’t that many extremely large pike. Yes, there are very large pike here, but its population in this reservoir is much smaller than pike between 2 kg. and 4 kg. (Which are the most abundant). Nevertheless, the pike population is enormous here, if not the largest, and we can enjoy great fishing days on this reservoir. However, every year pike of good size are caught here, but not all very large fish, typically only a few met or exceeded the barrier of 10 kg.
DETAILS THAT MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
It is very important when fishing, and even more so when there are very large fish, that when we get closer to hot spots that we approach very quietly. These large pike have experienced it all.
If fishing from boats use an electric motor to approach from a distance, avoiding as much noise and vibration as possible. Casts from either shore or boat should be as long as possible. This way you are able to work more water and will have more chances of success. If we move around without projecting our shadow in the water the better, especially in spawning season, when large females are close to shore.
The choice of the lighter line is also fundamental. Use, low fluorocarbon for these large size fish and good quality hooks because we do not want to lose a good fish for not using the right material.
With respect to the braided line, I would use very high quality products, one that resists abrasion from rocks and has a high sensitivity.
The jig and our artificial lures should also be top quality, and if your current tackle is not, I recommend that you replace them.
Extremadura province is well known for excellent fishing. Apart from the aforementioned reservoirs it is also a good destination for fishing for pike at Sierra Brava, Alange, Oven Tejero and Zújar. They all have a good population of pike, with Zújar Alange being the place I have caught the largest pike.
