River Fishing Tips | Avon or Stick float for big roach and chub? - Paul Garner

Trotting is such an effective way to catch larger river fish and I don’t know why more people don’t do it! 

Trotting is a great method for larger river fish like chub

To me, it’s a job for the Avon float. Its body is buoyant enough to carry the weight needed to keep a bait down close to the bottom and the thick tip rides the current and is not dragged under when the hooklength touches the river bed. 

As a rule of thumb, use 1g of weight for every 2ft of depth. This may see you using large floats in deep swims, but it is essential to keep the bait down.

The pronounced shoulder means that the float can be held back, slowing its progress to around half that of the flow at the surface. This pace more closely matches the current close to the riverbed, producing a more natural speed as the bait is swept downstream.

A typical Avon float rig

Specimen Fishing Tips | How to catch 'picky' pike with Paul Garner

Do pike wise up to deadbaits?

My experience, backed up by some scientific evidence, is that they can, and avoid certain baits. If you are fishing a venue that sees a lot of pressure it can be worth trying unusual baits, or adding oils and dyes to alter their appearance.

There are often a couple of signs to look out for that I think might indicate cautious feeding. If you start getting dropped runs, or fish fall off during the fight, this can be a sign that they are not feeding confidently. Similarly, very gentle bites that only just move the float can also sometimes be from picky pike.

Fortunately, there are plenty of alternative baits to the ‘old faithfuls’ that you can try.

Bluey is a favourite of mine. These large baits are best used chopped in half and their soft, oily texture and bright blue colour make them ideal for pike.

Going natural with a roach, perch or skimmer bream deadbait is also a good idea.

I pick a bait that’s likely to be a big part of the pike’s natural diet, as they will be tuned in to feeding on these fish. Another trick to give you a completely different bait is to use a head section instead of the normal tail. This is particularly good with big mackerel and herrings. It looks different, and the head end also contains more blood, giving more attraction.