Jungle Pike Adventure: Landing a 104 cm Beast in the Weeds

Explosive strikes, shaking knees and the tactics that helped me bring a trophy pike out of the underwater jungle.

Let me tell you how I caught this beautiful 104 cm lady pike.
There are days when pike hide among the lilies, in other underwater plants or even in sparse reeds, and no matter how much you cast along the edges of these islands of vegetation… she just won’t take. She isn’t lying in ambush at all.

In such situations, especially where the water is deep enough (1–1.5 m), I like to fish with big soft baits rigged on offset hooks. Most often I use a McRubber 21 cm on a 12/0 or 13/0 offset hook, a McRubber 17 cm on a 10/0 offset hook, or a Pig Shad Jr also on a 10/0 offset hook. I use both weighted and unweighted hooks, depending on several factors: the depth, how dense the “blanket” of vegetation is, etc.

I anchor the boat 4–5 m from the vegetation, cast, don’t let the lure sink into the plants and start retrieving fast with the rod tip held high. When I reach an opening of water I slow down the retrieve, drop the rod tip and let the lure sink. At the edge of the opening I raise the tip again and increase the retrieve speed. At the edge of the “blanket” I let it drop again and retrieve up to the boat.

Very often, in the last 3–4 m the strike comes: the lady follows the lure under the weeds. But the most spectacular strikes happen right in the middle of the vegetation, when the water explodes and the pike attacks with rare ferocity. Imagine a pike over a meter long missing the lure but showing herself in all her beauty. You get an adrenaline shock, your knees shake, you cast again and almost hold your breath with concentration… you retrieve quickly, see the lure approaching, and suddenly, on the third cast, the water explodes again. You strike hard – and this time she’s on!

You keep the rod tip high because you’re in weed beds; she may jump – and she does! Seeing a 1 m+ pike jump out in a “candle” is pure splendor before it splashes back. She’s still on, you feel her pull! You release the electric motor anchor and let the boat be dragged into the “blanket” of plants. You keep firm contact with the lady with the rod tip high, trying to bring her up from the weeds. She comes up, and in one move your partner nets her. You pull the net towards you so she can’t jump out, and you have to sit down yourself because your legs are weak. The chances of landing such a monster pike out of this jungle of vegetation were slim, but you did it and you can’t believe it…

Great spectacle in the fine rain, after which calm settles on the waters again. Nature observes the subversive events with indifference, then silence takes over once more. Nature, the dark water, covers her and guards her secrets. Somewhere, a tired 104 cm pike rests after the trials of this strange day.