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Drifting Around By Dave Kyte

On large still waters, particularly heavily fished ones, were there are also other water activities, there is always the feeling that if only you could get your bait just that bit further that's where the pike would be. Just out of casting range, on the opposite side of the lake where you cant get to the bank for the heavy vegetation or right out in the middle where you fancy trying, it's all possible with the drift technique.

Your choice of line is probably the most important part of your tackle and most specialist pike anglers are now using braid because fishing at long range means a lot of line to pick up on the strike and braid's lack of stretch gives a really positive hit. Also a lot of braids are floating lines and this avoids the use of a floatant, which is necessary with mono, to prevent a large belly of sunken line between you and the bait. Your reels should be big enough to hold 250 meters of your chosen line and the rod a two and a half-pound test curve, 12 footer as a minimum.

The end tackle comprises a vaned float from a well known maker such as Fox, size 6 trebles with a biting trace of 30 lbs wire, and if the water is deep enough then an up-trace can be added to avoid the possibility of fish in deep water taking the line, as well as the hook trace, as they attack the bait from underneath. An anti-tangle boom under the float and a drilled bullet complete the set up, along with a couple of swivels and a stop knot. If you know the water well then check the wind direction before you set out to make sure it is sure it is suitable. You don't want to arrive and find the wind in your face at your chosen swim. This method can cover an amazing amount of water but although it does require more effort than fishing a legered bait the rewards can be tremendous.

One of the problems however can be the existence of a wide shallow shelf near your bank and if it is not possible to cast or wade beyond it then the ballooning technique comes into its own. Although not a true drift fishing method what it does is put your bait in a position where it could not possibly be cast and the balloon also catches more wind than a float so it can be used in a greater variety of conditions. It simply requires a balloon to be attached to the top swivel with a paper clip and a heavy weight suitable for long distance legering, say around 3 or 4 ozs, sliding on the line. The whole lot is gently cast out and when it reaches the swim you want the balloon is released by a firm strike and the bait sinks to the bottom ready for the action but make sure a really tight line is maintained between the bait and rod tip so that bites are registered early and avoid the scenario of a deeply hooked fish.

The balloon method can also be used to drift the float out to a suitable distance in the same way as a lead and then struck off, to continue using just the float, if the wind is light in close or the margins are shallow. Remember that the more different techniques you can learn the greater your chance of latching on to the "big one" that will stay in your memories forever!