Spearfishing is an interesting process that brings a lot of fun. It requires endurance and dexterity. The caught fish becomes a reward for the hunter, and a kind of method for assessing acquired skills. Even catching a pike is an interesting and memorable experience. This fish is restive and fast - when wounded, it is able to hide from its attacker. In addition, in some cases it can grow up to 2-3 meters.
To get such a trophy, you need to know some nuances.
Why pike is interesting
This type of fish is not uncommon in our rivers. Sooner or later, every hunter will come across a pike - it is always a desirable prey. The hunter will be intrigued by the following features:
- This is an interesting, strong opponent. You only have one chance to catch a pike. If you fail to make a successful throw the first time, the fish will have time to hide and hide in an inaccessible place. Sometimes danger awaits the hunter - if the potential prey has not had time to orient itself, it can go on the attack and rush at the person. Catching such fish is always a valuable experience that will be useful in the future;
- The danger of the pike lies in its jaw. It is strong, covered with a dense row of teeth of different sizes. They can bend down to allow prey to pass into their mouths and then rise up. The teeth cut into the flesh of the captured victim, fixing it. This allows the predator to securely hold its trophies. Sometimes, the “catch” may not be suitable for her, then she simply spits it out, leaving a deep injury at the site of the bite. The consequences of an attack for a hunter are serious - a hematoma or even a laceration;
- The predator has excellent eyesight. Its large eyes help to quickly identify the victim, but with the onset of darkness the sharpness is dulled. Identifying potential prey becomes more difficult;
- you need to carefully choose the place to shoot. The front of the head and belly are bad options. In the first case, if the aim is not very accurate, the harpoon will slip upon contact with a strong, slimy skull. A blow to the stomach is unlikely to kill the pike, and it will be able to escape. It's better to aim from behind. This way the harpoon can be firmly attached to the spine and the movements of the fish will be completely under the control of the hunter;
- and most importantly - a reward for work. Truly “royal” specimens may be hidden in the depths of the river. Some individuals reach sizes of 2, or even 2.5-3 meters. The weight of a large individual is sometimes calculated in tens of kilograms.
This seemingly trivial fish can become a real challenge for the hunter. Even if you know what you can expect from her, you should exercise caution. According to experienced fishermen, pike are not afraid even of the light of a lantern. The surest way to catch a predator is to take it by surprise.
Sharing our experience
For night hunting, I choose a section of the river with a landscape I know of a couple of kilometers, lie down on the water with a gun and a flashlight and go! Letting the current carry me, I occasionally steer with my fins so as not to stray from the route and examine the mass of nooks and crannies where the fish are kept. It would probably be appropriate to indicate what kind of fish because... its location in the river depends on this.
Chub stay in a faster current than a slower one, not deep (no more than a meter), more on a clean bottom, on clay ledges of cliffs, on the sand of beaches.
Yazzies are found in the same places as chubs, as well as on the rifts among the writhing stems of grass. It is sometimes difficult to get into the ide; it is a very sharp and nimble fish, but very tasty. It looks like a chub, but what a difference!
bream at night than during the day, on the current among thickets of “bream” grass similar to the long narrow leaves of Valistneria. On the calm water of beaches, but most of all in places where cows enter the water during the day to water (this is the main place of his night pastures). Signs of unexpected turbidity in such places are a quick warning of a meeting with bream (if not tench :-)). Bream stick to age groups and usually you shoot down individuals of the same size in a row (or miss them, depending on the size).
Tench is found in shallow, almost stagnant water in clearings among coastal sedges.
This “royal fish” is also found in bays with stagnant water and old riverbeds.
It’s a pity to beat Tench because he stands until the last moment, or slowly goes into the shadow of the nearest algae.
Pike is found almost everywhere except in heavily grassy areas, because... she needs a convenient position for attack, a good view and a place for a sharp start. It mainly stands in bays and “pockets” with its head facing free water. Sometimes it hangs in mid-water among the reeds almost vertically. It can stand at the bottom behind a fallen tree, or it can hang near the surface in its branches. Sometimes pike are found in the current on a clear bottom next to the coastal wall of sedge, on sandy beaches, around the bends of the river. You will never see a big pike among a herd of fry, as my friend says:
“They... will knock out her eyes!” In the summer, I rarely came across pike weighing more than 2 kg, but in the fall, when the grass dries down and morning and night frosts begin, the “bottom” pike comes to the shore.
The location of pike is the easiest to predict, so it is the main prey of a night hunter. Night hunting for pike is especially successful in late autumn during the third quarter of the moon.
This is a catch in 2 hours.
These are my cheerful and satisfied friends Victor and Victor accompanying me on the hunt with our catch.
Catfish are found at night mostly in the grass along the current and quickly hide from the light of a lantern in the shade of the grass.
Pike perch are rare in our area. In ten years I have met only two, one at 6.5 kg and the other at 3 kg. The first stood under the trunk of a fallen tree near the shore, the second was scouring the grass above the rift. Both were in shock after the harpoon hit them and did not resist at all.
Carp, carp, and burbot are found very rarely in our river. Carp in the summer months in calm waters near the shore, burbot in the fall on a clean sandy bottom.
Everything that I have already written is not dogma and concerns only my personal experience of hunting on the Oskol River. The more you hunt, the more you notice factors influencing the behavior of fish. This is, firstly, the time of year, secondly, the phase of the moon, thirdly, atmospheric pressure, fourthly, the strength and direction of the wind, as well as the behavior of the hunter and the power of his flashlight (during night hunting)... I’ll limit myself to this for now.
We cannot influence the first four factors, although we have the right to choose the time of hunting. It should be taken into account: on the full moon, fish are shy, on the new moon they are invisible “like in a well” (by the way, one of my friends, Victor, also says on the days of the new moon: there are no fish in Oskol!). The fishiest week is the week before the new moon. If you still really want to hunt on days that are “critical” for fish, I would prefer the full moon. When the moon is large, fish try to stay in the shadows, on the side of the shore above which the moon rises, and on the shady side of the algae relative to the moon. At the same time, it is advisable to increase the power of the flashlight while maintaining the “light-darkness” ratio, so there will be less risk of “lighting up” in front of the fish. During the full moon, the pike leaves early, not letting you get close. Changing the color of the flashlight glass to yellow, blue or green does not bring tangible results, but you struggle with the feeling that your vision has become worse.
Now, based on my experience, I will try to create a table on the reaction of fish (sensitivity) to the light of a flashlight.
| Common reaction | Name of fish | Explanations |
| They leave in advance at the first sign of your lantern. | Everything except the fry. | On the new moon. |
| The most stable: 1 2 3 4 5 Not stable: 6 7 | blind... perch chub crucian carp, tench pike, burbot ide, pike perch Bream, carp, catfish | joke  who needs it almost like perch laziness? cling to the bottom and are more stable in late autumn. ide is the fastest to turn around i.e. “Chingachgook will always be on time”! walk in circles, hide in the shade of the grass, press against the bottom, perhaps feel the light on their skin... I highly suspect |
| It happens that they enter the beam from the shadows themselves... they are interested | Ide Pike Bream | rarely, rarely Enters often for seconds, then makes a sharp turn and moves on... but too late. |
I would also like to say a few words to those who consider night hunting to be poaching.
I myself think that turning any hunting or fishing into poaching can only be done by the attitude of the person who is engaged in it. Swimming over empty nets standing in the river and collecting your catch on both sides of them, you inevitably begin to wonder who these poachers are?
Maybe these are village men who, on long winter evenings, knit webs of nets, capes, vents, spiders, lifts like “stupid” and who don’t know how to catch any other way and I feel sorry for them when in open water I compare their catch with mine...? Or maybe these are the ones who swim in a boat in the fall, dragging huge batteries and car headlights with them? So their catch is no more than ours. If it’s not about the number of fish, then tell me, what difference does it make to the fish itself, under what circumstances it was killed: day or night, winter or summer, with light or in the dark?
You will say that there is a difference for those fish that managed to escape from the hunter and had a chance to do so thanks to certain hunting rules. I almost agree with you... if only the fish could familiarize themselves with these rules for hunting it, or take part in their development. Would you yourself take part in developing the rules for hunting you? I think we have come to the main point that Man is inventive and very dangerous, and he realizes his wild instincts in the wild, where it is normal. We must admit to some extent that we are wild “drug addicts” who cannot do without hunting! But since we are endowed with intelligence, we must take care of the “plantation”, without which we cannot live. I consider poachers definitely those who turn hunting or fishing into a business, trying to pump out the maximum today, regardless of the damage caused to nature and fellow citizens around him. The reason for poaching may also be illiteracy, i.e. not knowing the timing of fish spawning, not knowing the rare endangered species of fish in your reservoirs, not knowing how to save a reservoir or destroy it. people who don’t know such things and don’t want to know to be especially dangerous. I guess I got carried away, and everyone understands what I wanted to say. Maybe I’m wrong about something... I would like to listen to the opinions of my fellow members of the “plantation”.
Good luck to all!
Hunting places
Pike fishing was mentioned back in the days of Ancient Rus', so it’s not difficult to find the fish’s habitats.
During the daytime, the predator hides in algae thickets. It is found in the thick of vegetation, among the roots of trees standing at the edge of the river, between snags and stones. Of course, this applies to small specimens. Large fish cannot move freely in such conditions and stay mainly at depth. For such conditions, it is important to choose reliable equipment, especially a mask. Wetsuits will help you feel comfortable during a dive.
Interesting fact: in the manufacture of wetsuits for underwater hunters, synthetic rubber – neoprene – is used. This material, depending on the impurities in the composition, can be used at temperatures from -55° to +90°.
A hunter will not go wrong if he looks for pike in the habitats of its victims. For example, often 1-2 predators chase schools of ides, trying to knock a couple of fish out of the school in order to attack.
Features of hunting pike underwater
Successful underwater hunting for pike has its own secrets and subtleties, without which it is quite difficult to catch the predator. The most important feature of such a hunt is that the catch must be the first to notice the prey. And if the pike shows more attentiveness, it will have time to hide before the catch gets within range of an accurate shot. During the period of pike hunting, it is important for the hunter to keep in mind the visual image of the prey; this effectively helps to detect the predator in a timely manner, even in thickets of grass or reeds.
If you have to overcome dense aquatic vegetation, it is very useful to freeze for a minute. Sometimes a curious large pike head may appear from the algae thickets. Indeed, in this toothy predator, curiosity often overcomes even the instinct of self-preservation. However, this may be an expression of the instinct to protect the territory from competitors. And it is likely that a trophy pike may perceive the trickster as a competitor encroaching on its territory, and this is already a great chance to get the desired trophy.
A large pike weighing 12-15 kg has practically no one to fear, which means there is a high chance that it will not run away, but will decide to watch the one who has invaded its hunting grounds, so that, if possible, it will drive away the unknown competitor. And if at such moments the hunter somewhat plays along with the predator and moves back, then the pike will slowly pursue him in order to drive him out of his territory. Therefore, underwater hunting for pike, which leads to success, is not only knowledge of the habits of the predator, but also, if possible, playing on its instincts.
The most basic task of an underwater hunter is to see the prey first, get within range of a confident shot, and accurately fire it.
Hunting period
As the weather gets colder, the pike tends to hide in the algae thickets. Some of the vegetation is gradually dying off. The fish is hiding among the remaining pondweed. As the temperature drops, the activity of aquatic inhabitants noticeably decreases. The pike takes a certain position: lying on the bottom, turning its muzzle towards the current. In this way, it can save energy reserves. This is convenient for hunters. They have a chance to gain time and shoot in the back without fear that it will fall off.
In many regions of the country, serious cold weather occurs as early as October-November. However, the pike does not immediately “quiet down”. At first, frightened by the change in conditions, she may suddenly attack the hunter.
In the first half of spring, fish activity decreases and spawning begins. She lies to the bottom again. It stays in this position for a long time: sometimes it is covered with river silt.
How to handle your catch
On the Internet, you can often come across a photo of a fisherman posing with his catch taken by the gills. Experienced hunters know that this is only possible with small animals. You can seriously cut yourself on the gills of massive fish, especially if we are talking about 7-12 kg giants. Instead, larger prey are taken by the eye sockets. The grip must be reliable - the predator will definitely make an attempt to escape, even while out of the water.
Caution should be exercised when baiting prey onto the kukan. You should not try to do this in the usual way with a sharp-toothed pike. Instead, both jaws are pierced. The fish's mouth closes securely like a lock. It is better not to pull the kukan with the prey to the belt. This way you risk the integrity of your equipment and wetsuit. A caught pike does not try to attack the offender on purpose. This tactic is observed in catfish. The pike is just trying to escape. To prevent this from happening, the kukan needle is threaded through the jaw bones twice and then attached to the front weight.
Catching pike is a pleasure for both experienced and novice underwater hunters. This beautiful, graceful fish is a worthy opponent and a memorable episode in the practice of an amateur or professional; it can become an honorable trophy for every hunter.
