Greetings from North Wales

[Dave R]

Hi Guys,

Greetings from a Welsh Irishman, as another piker described me. Maybe that should have been my username. I grew up piking in Northern Ireland, catching my first 20 in 1988. I’ve lived in North Wales for the last 25 years. I tend to refocus on different types of fishing every few years (Bass, Tope, general sea, dare I say Carp, fly, some big game, etc.) and have been subject to the usual distractions (work, women) so my piking adventures have been interspersed with long gaps. I’m back in Esox-zone now. I rejoined the PAC and, unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be much activity on their forum so here I am.

I do love lure fishing and would dearly like a lure-caught lunker, but my results remain biased towards deadbaits. I also fling ‘fluff’ on occasions with mediocre results so far. So, there’s plenty of scope for improvement with artificials and I hope to learn a few things here.

Cheers,

Dave Rutledge

[Happy Hayes]

Welcome to the pit Dave
Plenty of knowledgeable people here
Enjoy
Regards
Tom

[Dave R]

Thanks Tom, so it seems. Must keep posting so I can view attachments - I’m sure some will be very helpful!
Cheers, Dave

[Dave R]

Thanks Tom, so it seems. Must keep posting so I can view attachments - I’m sure some will be very helpful!
Cheers, Dave

[stubbojo]

welcome dave to the pit
i also fish a lot in wales ,mainly bass, but would like to catch a good tope this season
as i hooked but lost 3 fish last summer ........so maybe you could point me in the right direction on that score ..

regards steve

[Dave R]

welcome dave to the pit
i also fish a lot in wales ,mainly bass, but would like to catch a good tope this season
as i hooked but lost 3 fish last summer ........so maybe you could point me in the right direction on that score ..

regards steve

Hi Steve,
Sure, I’ll be happy to discuss. I’m a newbie here and need to work out how to do private messaging - probably don’t have permission yet! Tope fishing is great fun. I mainly kayak fish for them and have caught many to 40lb plus on the kayak. Also plenty in small boats to 48lb. They fight FAR harder than pike - very strong fish. I still love pike, of course. I’ve tried toping from the shore without success so far (only bullhuss and the inevitable dogs). I concluded that I’ll can catch far more, and on lighter tackle from the kayak. Cheers, Dave

[stubbojo]

welcome dave to the pit
i also fish a lot in wales ,mainly bass, but would like to catch a good tope this season
as i hooked but lost 3 fish last summer ........so maybe you could point me in the right direction on that score ..

regards steve

Hi Steve,
Sure, I’ll be happy to discuss. I’m a newbie here and need to work out how to do private messaging - probably don’t have permission yet! Tope fishing is great fun. I mainly kayak fish for them and have caught many to 40lb plus on the kayak. Also plenty in small boats to 48lb. They fight FAR harder than pike - very strong fish. I still love pike, of course. I’ve tried toping from the shore without success so far (only bullhuss and the inevitable dogs). I concluded that I’ll can catch far more, and on lighter tackle from the kayak. Cheers, Dave

definitely better quality and size from the boat , but i like the challenge of a good fish from a rock mark , some of the local lads have had some huge tope last year
if i could land just one of any size ,i will be an happy man ......

regards steve

[Dave R]

The rock guys get some big tope but relatively few and it’s dangerous if you fish alone. I know some marks and don’t fancy it - too risky. Kayak fishing is not without risk (anchoring in a strong tide needs to be done very carefully) but I’ve had 8 tope in an evening on relatively light tackle, not far offshore. Also 20+ tope in a day in a small boat. Do you fish in North, mid, or South Wales? If North or Mid I know a few more benign shore marks where there’s a good chance of tope without risking your life.

[stubbojo]

The rock guys get some big tope but relatively few and it’s dangerous if you fish alone. I know some marks and don’t fancy it - too risky. Kayak fishing is not without risk (anchoring in a strong tide needs to be done very carefully) but I’ve had 8 tope in an evening on relatively light tackle, not far offshore. Also 20+ tope in a day in a small boat. Do you fish in North, mid, or South Wales? If North or Mid I know a few more benign shore marks where there’s a good chance of tope without risking your life.

mostly anglesea areas

steve

[John66]

Welcome Dave

[Dave R]

Welcome Dave

Thanks John - nice to greet you