Escaping the Storms

The weather was grim, with howling South Westerlys and heavy rain fall on my last outing down in West Cornwall. Looking at the conditions out of the window, and reading the forecast sites, seemed the only safe option was to head for the shelter of the estuary on the East Side of the Lizard.

Tides were not great, fishing an hour into the low, and a couple on the push, most of the usual terrain I fish over at this spot was high and dry! Tackle choice was the Nories RockFish Bottom TR casting rod (7-21g) paired with the mighty Daiwa Ryoga 1016HL reel, with a fresh spool of Sunline Siglon 10lb fluoro.

I wanted to try something different, so set about catching a Wrasse purposefully on a plug. I wanted something sinking, that could be worked slowly down near the bottom, brushing over the rock and week, able to jerk and twitch to draw the takes. The lure I picked for the job is the lesser known DUO Beach Walker 110S (110mm / 20g).

Being a small(ish) lure with a decent weight, it's not surprising that this lure casts really well, flying hard and fast. Fanning out from the rock I was casting from, a quick bump was followed by a take, and the familiar fighting run of  a Wrasse. Only a small one, but mission accomplished.

As the rain came down harder, switched over the the soft plastics. Rigged up a new Ecogear Minnow M on an Ecogear 7g Iwashi head. The Wrasse were straight on it, whether bounced along the bottom, dead-sticked or swam back with a jerk action. A really versatile lure, looking forward to giving it some more time in the future.

Recently I have found my fishing time to be a bit limited, and it is with very good reason! My girlfriend and I are expecting a baby boy, due any minute now in the next couple of weeks. My time has been well spent making preparations, and maybe making things a little more challenging by deciding to undertake last minute structural changes to the house by knocking out the downstairs, with a new kitchen, bathroom and central heating system! All good fun, but there will always be the time to sneak out for a quick session on the fish!

DUO October Contest

New month, new contest time from the guys at DUO lures. This is a chance for you, the DUO lures fan and user, to have your say, and let DUO know what lure you think should be added to their current range. Time to get your thinking cap on, can be something similar to a lure they already make, maybe a different size of colour pattern, or something totally different and unique, your imagination is the only limit!

So the question is; What lure would you like to see DUO produce? Which lure do you think is missing in our range?

Think about where in the world you are, where you fish, and the species you target. Maybe you have a particular species in mind, that the current range does not cover. Get your thoughts off to DUO, they want to hear all feedback, and maybe your lure ideas will get put into production!

Of course I have a few ideas myself about what I would like to see introduced into the range. I would like a small floating surface lure, around the 70mm / 7g mark. Silent with no internal rattles, in a natural baitfish colour pattern. A subtle, mini walk the dog action lure, for those days when it's calm and clear, or maybe for estuary work, when the fish are a little more shy, and you want to match the profile of the smaller bait fish in the water. Something similar to a  scaled down, silent version of the awesome DUO Realis Pencil 110 would fit the bill in my books.

The rules are; you need to be a fan of the DUO Facebook page in order to enter, and then simply email your answer off to duocontest@gmail.com You have until 5th November to submit your entry.

Three of you will be the lucky winners, and will receive a DUO lures pack, as well as one of the new DUO t-shirts. Good luck!

Ecogear Para Max Finds the Bass

Summer has returned for a day or two, and with smaller flooding tides, my new doorstep mark was a good option to squeeze in a bit of the old lure fishing. Seems mad that a mark, 10 mins walk from my actual front door has been overlooked all this time, a mark I had always dismissed out of hand before really trying it out. Still early days sussing it out, but 3 sessions without a blank is a promising start! So with the gear in hand, started off down my fields.

I arrived at the head of the Creek, the tide at the far end yet to push over the shallow muddy flats. The walk down to the end is easy enough at this state of tide, but when fishing the flood into darkness, a deep wade back under head torch light awaits, and depending on the size of tide, chest waders are a must if you want to stay dry above the waist.

My last couple of sessions had been done on the ultra light gear, but this time I was using the baitcaster set up. I REALLY enjoy using this bit of kit, regardless of whether I am making things more difficult for myself, I just find the style of fishing with it fun and new (to me!).  A Nories RockFish Bottom TR 7-21g rod, paired with the Shimano Calcutta 51DC spooled up with Sunline Castaway 1.5PE line. I had a practice throwing some plugs on this set up, and was pleasantly suprised, so more to come with that in the future.

Lure of choice was the Ecogear Para Max 5" on an Ecogear Skip In The Shade jig head. These Para Max lures are simply awesome, see them in the water, the 2, 3, 4 & 5" just come alive with the smallest movement. I was working the lure in the direction of the water flow, bringing it round some rocks into a deeper section of water, where the water slowed, a perfect ambush spot for predators. As the light in the valley faded, I had a take, fish on and landed, a nice little estuary Bass, the only fish from this short session.

DUO Tetra Works Bivi Saves The Blank

Managed to grab a quick hour after a busy days work this week. Tide was just coming up to a spring high, so quick romp down the fields to fish the Creek on my doorstep. At the head of the Creek, there were many small Mullet, cruising the surface, making the water ripple in the last of the  evening light. As the estuary at the head of the Creek was starting to empty, made the deep wade along the edges, to reach the deeper channel where I would fish.

Fishing light with the Nories Slow Retrieve, opted for a light braid, with Sunline Small Game PE spooled up on the Certate 2506. The big high tide was emptying out, so the flow was strong. I wanted to use a small sinking lure, that would give a good attraction in the coloured waters, so opted to use the DUO Tetra Works Bivi (3.8g / 40mm vib). This little lure cast very well, as it's compact, and sinks nicely in the water column. Either a steady slow retrieve, or a subtle sink and draw method, you can feel the lure buzzing as it moves through the water.

As the last of the light faded, I had a tiny Bass take the lure, just as it dropped, following an upwards buzz. Quick pic and back into the flow, and I decided to make my way back up the Creek, wading by the light of my dim head torch, and scrabble back through the hedges to the fields and home.

DUO Tetra Works Bivi 3.8g / 40mm

New DUO Facebook Contest

DUO, the Japanese designer and manufacturer of top quality lures, has hit a milestone on Facebook, with 5000 fans! To celebrate this, it is giving the fans the chance to enter a contest, where the winner will no doubt be in receipt of some awesome DUO goodies.

The rules are simple, in order to enter the contest, you need to be on Facebook, then you need to be a fan of the DUO Facebook page, which can be found HERE Then, on the DUO Facebook page, share the cover photo at the top, and leave a comment. And that is all you need to do! The contest will be short and sweet, running until Tuesday 4th September, so be quick!

In case you are unsure on what picture to click on, of the DUO Facebook page, you can see what it looks like below;

If you like what you see on the DUO Facebook page, then be sure to take a look at their full website, which can be found HERE For those of you who want to get a little more DUO from social media sites, then you are in luck, as DUO has it's own TWITTER account, and also has a YOUTUBE channel, so be sure to check them out.

Ecogear UK Team

As I write this blog, I have a massive smile on my face, as I am now a member of the Ecogear UK Team. I have long been a big fan of Ecogear products, and in the past, the majority of my soft plastic fishing has been carried out using their superb range of lures. Some of my best fish have fallen to them over the past couple of years, and it is for this reason, I am really stoked to be part of the Ecogear Team.

Being part of the team, means I can experiment further with products across the whole range, build on old favorites, and test out new lures in a variety of colour patterns. This is reflected in my latest collection of lures, courtesy of Ecogear.

Ecogear Grassminnow L

Ecogear Grassminnow M & Ecogear Minnow S

Ecogear 3" Powershad

Ecogear 3" Para Max

Ecogear 4" Para Max & Ecogear 4" Para Max

Ecogear 4.5" BTS & Ecogear 3.5" BTS

Ecogear 5" Power Shad

Ecogear 3" Bug Ants

Ecogear 2" Bug Ants

Ecogear 4" Power Shad

Ecogear 3.25" Straight & Ecogear 3" Aji Shokunin

Ecogear 10g Retrieve Head

Ecogear 15g Retrieve Head

Such a great selection of soft lures, to add to the existing lot, perfect for the fishing I do, targeting the Bass and Wrasse alongside the mini species. Can't wait to get a few of the new lures wet, testing them out on my marks, and seeing what works best where and for what. With the current 'Sumer' weather we are having, it is also handy that I have been supplied a really nice set of quality waterproofs. If  you bump into me out and about on the coast, there will be no mistaking me wearing these!

If you want to get your hands on some of the above lures, then click on the Ecogear logo at the top of my blog, and check out the list of UK retailers on the website. The website also shows the huge range of Ecogear lures available, soft plastics, metal vibs, hard plastics and many more.

Evening Stroll For A Bass

Work has been manic of late, and free time is at a premium for me, consequently fishing has taken a bit of a back seat. With the tides looking good, a 2200hrs high tide, took the opportunity to fish 5 mins from my front door, walking a couple of fields down the valley to the creek. As I arrived around 1900hrs, the creek was dry, but I could see the estuary at the head was flooding quickly.

I walked to the end, and rigged up, using the Nories Slow Retrieve 7'3 (0.9-5g) rod, and a Daiwa 2506 Certate loaded up with a spool of Sunline Small Game Mono. Fishing this line straight through, allows quick and easy rigging, with no leader to tie, and the freedom to swap jig heads often without loosing any leader length. Fishing into a deeper channel, with the fast flooding tide swirling around a rocky outcrop, had a take on the drop, and a feisty little Bass motoring well in the current.

The lure it was taken on is the Ecogear 3" Power Shad, teamed up with an Ecogear 3.5g Iwashi hjig head. With no more takes, the light was fading, and I needed to make my way back up the Creek, wading waist deep as it had now filled. Took a couple of pics of the estuary just before I headed off in the evening light. Hopefully soon I will get the chance to put a proper session down, work permitting!