Some Gear & Lures I Use

The wind and rain is howling outside, so thought I would catalog a few of the bits of kit and soft plastic lures I use. Haven't included everything, just an overview.

Snowbee XS Pro Wading Boots - This is my first pair of dedicated wading boots. I got them direct from Snowbee, Plymouth. Sized one size bigger than my usual shoe size, the fit is good with a neoprene stocking foot with a thick pair of socks underneath. Very comfortable, offer good angle support when climbing down the hills and across rocks. Rubber sole with studs, good allround grip for getting to and from your fishing spots. Seem to be lasting ok, I always flush mine out well with fresh water after each use. http://www.snowbee.co.uk/

Snowbee Prestige Waist Wader - My first pair of breatheable stocking foot waders. Previously I had been using PVC boot foot Guy Cotten chest waders. Altough good performing, the PVC waders were not practical for long rambles along the coast. Very hot and sweaty! These Snowbee breatheable waist waders are very comfortable. Good range of movement from the lower cut, and long walks are more bareable with less of a rise in body temp. I don't often wade very deep, more crossing gullies and taking a wave front on. Therefore it seemed to make sense to go for the waist wader. http://www.snowbee.co.uk/

Helly Hansen Voss Jacket - This lightweight waterproof jacket comes from Helly Hansen's work wear range. Very reasonable price, less than £30 delivered. Comes in a range of six colours, I went for a higher vis orange, in case I needed to be spotted if ever in trouble. Drawstring hood and waist, with poppers on the cuff. Great value for money http://www.hellyhansen-workwear.com/

Simms Headwater Tech Pack - This pack allows me to comfortably carry all the gear I need for a days fishing. The front chest pack is good for holding your tools, spare spools, jig heads etc... with a stiff 'tray' opening at the front to make rigging easy. The back section, whilst not that big, allows a couple of bigger lure boxes, with my digi scales, camera, water bottle etc... I fix my fish ruler using the clip as seen. Great quality pack, and does everything I need it to. I got my pack from http://www.sportfish.co.uk/

Berkley Tec Digital Scales - Good for weighing my bigger fish, quick and easy to use. Weigh in lb / Kg and store functions etc... I got mine from Veals http://www.veals.co.uk/

Snowbee Hard Rod Tubes - With the purchase of my Nories LRF and HRF rods, I wanted some good protection for when in transport. These Snowbee tubes come in various lengths and diameters. Nice quality, and do the job well. I got mine from Sportfish http://www.sportfish.co.uk/

Petzl Head Lamp - Cheap head lamp with good build. Useful for the night LRF when you want to keep your hands free. Has 2 levels of light, and easy click on off action.

Flurocarbon - This is my current selection. Not had a chance to use the Seaguar yet, but have read good reports about it. The 4lb Airflo has performed well with the LRF gear, and the Ultima has coped well with the rocks when on the HRF gear. I got the Ultima Fluro from http://www.artoffishing.co.uk/ and the other two from http://www.sportfish.co.uk/

Megabass Xlayer - As much as I try and use other soft plastics, there is no doubting that the Xlayers simply work. I have them in the Watermelon, Shrimp & Minnow and of course Ayu. I prefer to rig them weedless, flat side down. Pricey but effective lures.

Senko Worms - I love these. Simple and effective. Come in various lengths (I prefer the 4") and almost any colour you want. Lots of rigging options, jig head, Texas, Carolina, Wacky etc... They have proved effective for me when targeting the Wrasse. Very good value for money.

Ecogear - These two little LRF lures are yet to be tested. I am thinking they will get their first outing closer to summer. The detail and quality is superb, as with all the Ecogear I have seen so far. Speak to Ben @ The Art Of Fishing for all your Ecogear needs http://www.artoffishing.co.uk/

Selection of soft plastics from my collection. Some cracking SP's from the likes of Reins, Molix, Lunker City as well as the vast range available from AGM Discount Fishing. The Reins lures have been particularly successful for me, both in HRF and LRF. Mr.Fish has a huge range http://www.mrfishjersey.com/ and if you want a great selection of jig heads and SP's at bargain prices http://www.agmdiscountfishing.co.uk

LRF Week Report 31st Jan - 03rd Feb 2011

I was keen to try the new Nories rod out, so popped don to Plym for a session in the freezing cold with Matt. We fished around the Barbican/Sutton Harbour area as with previous sessions. Clear skies, bitter cold and 3 hours after high on the ebb.

I was using the new Nories Slow Retrieve rod, and I was keen to try the new Certate 2506. Braid was a bit of overkill, as I am planning to use this reel for the plugging and HRF. Loaded with YGK Gesox WX8 0.8PE, around twice the thickness of my usual LRF line.

Started out fishing with a Ecogear Aqua Straw Tail Grub 2" (red) rigged on a 1.4g size 8 Decoy head. We were into the fish pretty much straight away, trading one for one with Matt. Moved around from high to low structure, managed to sneak out onto a jetty 30m or so out on the water, and fished the inner Harbour areas, amongst the boats, and whilst enjoying a cup of coffee outside a cafe, we still caught.

I tried the Straw Tail Grub out on a 1.5g Texas weedless rig, and also rigged wacky style, with a 1g ball lead and a size 8 carp hook. All sucessful, the most positive takes came from having it rigged wacky. The various structures lent themselves well to trying different techniques, on the drop, slow bumped retrieve, and vertical jigging. All my fish were Pollack, Matt had a poor Cod mixed in with his. Got a few photos, but not all of them, maybe around 20-30 fish between us, the cold made me loose count.

So a good session, learnt a lot again. Very happy with the rod, reel is very nice to use. Also surprised just how good the 'heavier' braid was. May try it again before a back to back test with my regular LRF line. 

01/02/2011 Fished Plymouth with Matt again last night - Similar conditions, more tide but sooooo much warmer! Again, we were straight into the fish. Tackle was the same, Ecogear 2" Straw Tail Aqua Grubs, but this time in a pearl white.

Matt found a good spot, fished from height, casting into the dark shadows of a pier. He was getting good bites and takes each cast, landing the biggest Pollack of the night from there. I managed 2 new species, one being a Giant Goby. The other new species for me was a poor Cod, had a couple over the session.

Common Blenny;

Poor Cod;

Many Pollack;

 

Really looking forward to Thursdays Plym LRF meet, hopefully get some more!  

02/02/2011 I was keen to try the new rod and reel combo out down at the Estuary, so put in a cheeky hour. Fished from high tide for an hour on the drop. Big winds and rain, not the most inviting conditions, but was sheltered down at the Estuary Quay and partially submerged rock spots. Decided to go for a bigger lure as most the Pollack I have had here were bigger than the Harbours, was also hoping to find the Bass again. Fished an Ecogear Aqua Milfle 3" on a weedless size 2 hook, 3g ball lead.

Second cast, good knock and fish on. Followed by a second fish, another pollack the next cast. Just allowing the lure to be taken by the current, twitched, and small lifts. All takes came as the lure rounded the rocky outcrop I was fishing from, into the still water. Finished off the hour with a final Pollack, and called it a day as I was soaked. All 3 fish were around the same size.

03/02/2011 Last night was the now regular Plym LRF meet. Challenging conditions, strong winds in the Harbour area meant that some of the usual spots were hard going. The fish came slow, Matt lead the way taking 4 off the mark. I caught my first after nearly an hour, a Whiting off a pontoon, jigged right on the bottom. Followed up with a couple of Pollack in the more sheltered inner Harbour amongst the boat moorings. Then a new species for me, a Long Spined Bullhead (Sea Scorpion). Looked a decent sized little guy, took on a 2" Straw Tail Grub with a size 8 carp hook, 2g ball lead.

Although the night was slow in comparison to earlier in the week, Plymouth enjoyed a fantastic turnout, with members from Cornwall and Devon in attendance, guessing around 15+ fishing. Mr. Gibley was there, and took a few pictures of the nights action, so a good result in the end, in spite of the strong winds. Looking forward to the next meet and better conditions! 

New Kit (Rod & Reel)

New tubular tip LRF rod and a new reel for the HRF rod;

Nories Slow Retrieve SR74

Daiwa Certate 2506

Loaded the reel with some YGK Gesox WX8 0.8PE to give it a try. Might be a bit overfilled? Will se if it packs down after some use. Also have these smelly little lures to try, 2 colours of the 3" Ecogear Aqua Milfle and 2 colours of the 2" Straw Tail Grubs.

 Big thanks to Ben at The Art Of Fishing. It's well worth popping into Bens shop in St. Merryn, Cornwall, or giving him a call to discuss the wide range of lure fishing gear he has for sale. Check out his website: http://www.artoffishing.co.uk/

Penzance LRF 26-01-2010

Quick report - Fished off the Albert Pier, Penzance, on the harbour side, a couple of hours before high tide. Clear water, slight chop from the fresh NE winds.

Fished a Cultiva Pin Worm 1.3" size 10 hook rigged carolina style with a 1.5g ball lead. Also used a luminous bead, to see if it helped as an attractant. Could see some 8" or so Launce near the surface, and small shoals of fish below me.

Had 7 fish in total, started off with a Pollack, then 3 Herring (I think?), and some more small Pollack. Only took a pic of one Herring, as they dont stop moving, and are not flash friendly!

Last 15 mins, switched to a 2" Reins Rockvibe and had a final small Pollack.

The majority of the fish were caught with a vertical line, and 'jigging'. Used a few techniques I picked up from watching others at the Plymouth LRF meets. Stayed pretty much in the same spot, as the fish were consistent there.

HRF Wrasse (NewPB!)

Calm seas down here in West Cornwall meant a chance to head out to fish a stretch of coastline that is usually a swell magnet. Arrived at my spot ready to fish the 3 hours or so before low tide. Nice clear, calm conditions at this deep water rock mark.

Started out with various Xlayers, rigged weedless. Had some good taps, casting and slow twitch retrieve, over the rocky bottom, but no hook ups. Decided to move spots, and try a smaller lure, a 4" Senko rigged weedless with a 5g cone head. The new spot had a very deep gulley running parallel to the rocky outcrop I was fishing from. I was simply able to throw a small flip cast, allowing the Senko to sink, and then very small twitches, with long pauses. The small surging tide, helping with the lures movement.

Could feel something nibbling, but again, no hook up. Reeled the lure in, and the tail section was pitted with teeth marks. Same cast again, and connected with a fish. Good bend in the rod, and the first Wrasse of the day was landed.

Measuring 39cm rounded down, and weighing in at 2lb 3oz.

The lure had been nailed, so slipped another on, and continued. Fishing at very close range, almost jigging the lure vertical beneath me. Even at around low tide, must have been at least 12' water over the rocky weedy sea bed. Went on to land two more Wrasse, the second of them a new PB for me, and actually the heaviest fish I have had so far on a lure.

Measuring 38cm and weighing in at 2lb 0oz

Measuring 43cm and weighing in at 3lb 3oz

The Nories rod proving a good investment for me, the sensitivity is great, I can really feel what is happening beneath me, and the bite detection is great. Good to see it bent over, with some reserve for a real beast someday (hopefully!) 

LRF Bass 20-01-201

Decided on an LRF session down at the Boathouse Quay, alongside the estuary at Bantham. No man made lighting on site, just the distant glow of the local pub. Clear skies and a full moon yesterday meant a lot of natural light. Fished one hour up and one hour down from high tide. Big tides meant a very fast flow in the main current, with the slack water recycling into the flow around the quay area.

Started off with my day old Jackson Jaco Vib, and after a few casts, had a break off and it flew into the night. Slightly annoyed, tied up a carolina rig with a 2g ball weight and a 3" Slug-Go weedless, which I caught on in Plymouth the night before. Let it bounce along the bottom, in the flow, then worked back through the slack water. After an hour, no fish, and the tide started to turn, and flow back out to sea.

I moved to the opposite end of the quay, and started casting into the slack water near the rocky shore. This time using a 2" pearl coloured curl tail grub with a 2g size 6 jig head. Slow twitch and retrieve, a knock, and fish on. Good scrap, thought it must have been a decent size Pollack, but as I gained line, it kept on fighting, right to the quay side. Flash of silver in the head torch revealed a Bass. Hand lined it up the wall, and pics, measured, weighed etc...

Weighed in at 1lb 6.5oz, measuring 39cm rounded down.

Fished on into the same area, and soon had another fish. This time a much smaller Bass, taken on the same lure;

As the tide dropped, I waded out onto a weed covered rock adjacent to the quay slip. Working the deep slack water by the increasing flow, landed two decent Pollack. I had a third, but lost it at my feet.

As the tidal flow got stronger, decided to finish for the evening. Happy I have had my first Bass on the LRF gear, also my first Bass of 2011. 

January Estuary Bass

Was down the road at the beach all morning, surfing some pretty good 3-4' waves in the sun. As I left around low tide, bumped into a mate I used to work with, and he was going down to fish the flooding tide at the rivermouth. I popped home, took my wetsuit off and grabbed my gear, and met him at the waters edge.

We were fishing at the point of the estuary where it met the sea, and followed the flooding tide up the beach. A quiet start, I was using an Xlayer with a weighted hook, letting it sink and bounce along the bottom in the current, with a small twitch. My mate was first into a fish, landing a smallish Bass that put up very little fight. Measured around the 38cm mark on my ruler. Did not get a chance for a photo.

Continued fishing, and again, my mate was into a fish. Much more fight in this one, and gave a good little scrap, even on his heavy gear. Landed and a quick pic;

He was fishing with a paddle tail, so I switched up for my last 15 mins to a 3" shad, but no takes that session for me. I waded back across the now flooded sandbank, and left him to fish on. He was wearing a wetsuit, and think he was planning on taking a swim back as he stayed on fishing! Good to see Bass still being caught. Might meet him again tomorrow if conditions are ok.