Two Wye thirties as pike go on feed

The capture of two 30lb-plus River Wye pike proves there’s still time to smash your personal best before fishing on running water stops for three months at midnight on March 14.

In recent weeks the weather has been bright and mild, but this hasn’t stopped the Wye’s premier predators from having a feed.

The larger of the two huge pike went 31lb 6oz and fell to Nick Goode from Herefordshire.

Targeting a deep stretch of the waterway, Nick float-legered a herring deadbait and didn’t have to wait long before the orange tip sank below the surface.

“It fought so well, as Wye pike often do,” he said. “It took me right out into midriver and gave a great account of itself in the main flow – going on several large runs before coming to the net.”

To cope with the powerful lunges of any big pike hooked, Nick used Size 2 Sakuma treble hooks attached to 75lb titanium wire. 

A 60lb uptrace attached to 100lb Power Pro mainline completed the set-up. 

A switch of swims during a recent trip to a middle stretch of the River Wye helped James Wainwright put the next monster pike in the net.

It weighed 30lb 4oz and fell to a paternostered eel deadbait cast into a snaggy area in the river. 

The 34-year-old from Leicester said: “A friend and I got to the river at 7am to be greeted by a frost and mist across the water. After no bites in the first swims we decided to move.

“This proved to be a good idea, as at 11am I got my first take, having spooked a big fish in the shallows when I first arrived.

“I decided to fish just downstream near some marginal snags where I spooked this pike, and 10 minutes later my paternostered eel bait was inhaled with enthusiasm! 

“After a 15-minute battle when it snagged me up on several occasions, she was finally in the net!”