Andy 1965
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2020
- Messages
- 370
- Reaction score
- 3,401
- Points
- 93
- Location
- North Wales
- Favourite Fishing
- Lure
After a successful club match last Saturday, it was back to the lure fishing on Tuesday night. Unfortunately, autumn had arrived with a bang, bringing with it strong winds and frequent heavy showers. I did have a couple of marks in mind, where I would find shelter from the worst of the wind, but I might still have to put up with a bit of a soaking. He who dares though and with the possibility of a big autumn girl putting in an appearance, I was prepared to take the chance.
After a later start than usual, I left home in a shower which can only be described as torrential, but incredibly, when I arrived at my chosen mark just before dusk, I was pleasantly surprised to find flat calm conditions, with barely a cloud in the sky! ? Despite the pleasant conditions though, there was a definite autumnal feeling in the air, which was only re-enforced by the sight of several skeins of geese flying south across the rapidly darkening sky. Not wanting to waste a moment I got suited and booted as quickly as possible, before making my way along the shore, having a few casts here and there in any likely looking spots. Eventually, after about 90 minutes I arrived at the same spot where I caught my PB in 2017.
My plan now was to fish there until high water, before making my way back along the shore to the car with the early ebb. For the next hour, I fished several top-water lures and SPs around in the flow but apart from the occasional small pollack feeding in the margins, there wasn’t much happening. To be honest, I didn’t expect much until nearer high water, so I carried on cycling through my lures and eventually, around an hour and a half before high I heard the first proper splash of the evening, as something small and fishy met a grizzly end just on the outside edge of a weed bed to my right
.
Over the next 30 minutes the splashes increased in frequency, and though it wasn’t exactly what I would call a feeding frenzy, it was still encouraging to hear ?.
Up until this point, I had been unable to get the fish interested in any of my lures, but finally I had the first bite of the night. It wasn’t particularly aggressive, but a couple of sharp tugs was definitely an interested bass. It didn’t connect, but it gave my confidence a boost and 10 minutes later I had another hit, this time on the Mishna. Once more it failed to connect, but I felt sure now that it was only a matter of time. As it happened, I was right and 20 minutes later, when I had my first proper bite it was fish on! I could tell straight away that it wasn’t big, but I didn’t care, they all count and after the briefest of fights the blank was beaten again ?.
With my confidence suitably boosted, I fished on, expecting another bite at any minute but it didn’t come. In fact, I fished on for another 2 hours, but the bass showed no more interest whatsoever in any of my offerings
.
As the tide turned, I started to make my way back to the car, fishing as I went, but despite hearing a few fish feeding on the surface I couldn’t tempt them, and I had to settle for just the 1 bass for the evening.
Next up was Thursday night and though the tide wasn’t ideal for it, I decided to head back to the same mark I fished last week. So far this year I’ve been doing better there on the first half of the ebb, but last year I caught there mainly on the flood, with a few fish caught over low too, so I thought it was worth another visit.
I arrived an hour and a half before low to find almost identical conditions to Tuesday, no wind whatsoever and cloudless skies ?. The water itself was mirror calm, with a gentle left to right flow but despite this, I was disappointed to find out that the clarity left a lot to be desired, with visibility of no more than half a meter ?. Hoping that this would improve on the flood, once the flow got properly underway, I decided to give it a go anyway and so I clipped on something nice and bright to suit the conditions, a Swimish in Lemon Meringue.
I must admit to having some doubts that I was doing the right thing, in not moving on to find clearer water, but when after only a minute or so, I was surprised by a big swirl on the surface only a couple of meters away from me ?, I knew I was in the right place ?.
Over the next 3 hours, as low water came and went, I found myself pretty much surrounded by feeding fish and though the majority of them were on the small side, pollack I assumed, every now and then I heard a proper splash in the darkness, as something far more substantial chomped down on a tasty little morsel.
Despite the presence of fish though, I couldn’t get any response to my offerings. As well as the usual Mishna, Swimish, Albie Snax and Wave worm, I also tried several Ruf Manics, in various sizes and colours. In a change from my usual lures, I also tried some shallow divers, including the SF125 and the Feed Shallow 105 and finally, more in desperation than real hope, I even tried a small Redgill fished behind a Bombarda controller, but apart from 1 very small tap on a Ruf Manic, the fish ignored them all completely ?.
After the first 90 minutes of the flood, I found myself fishing a part of the tide which is has never been very productive for me at this particular mark, so I wasn’t expecting anything to happen for the next couple of hours. Typically though, just when you think you have a particular mark sussed, the bass decided to prove you wrong ?. I was going through the motions now, while waiting for the last of the flood but the tide seemed to have slowed down to a crawl and my expectation levels were at rock bottom, when suddenly, completely out of the blue my Lure was hit!
Just like on Tuesday, I could tell that the attacker wasn’t very big, but the pressure was really on not to lose it. I needn’t have worried though, the hook hold was secure and after a minute or two, the fish was safely landed to beat the blank once more ?.
With the pressure off, I hoped now for bigger and better things, but I was out of luck. As the tide flooded quickly, pushing me back every few minutes, I fished on for another 2 hours but apart from 1 more hit on the Mishna, when the fish was gone after a couple of headshakes, I didn’t have any more luck. The fish were still there and every now and again I saw a swirl on the surface, out in the flow, but they were still being very finicky, and they left my lures alone. In an ideal world I would have fished up and over high, but with work in the morning I couldn’t do that, and I was finally forced to call it a night at 00:30.
So, autumn may have arrived but there’s still no sign of the big girls, I’m not giving up yet though and weather permitting, I’ll be out there again next week to continue the hunt ?.
After a later start than usual, I left home in a shower which can only be described as torrential, but incredibly, when I arrived at my chosen mark just before dusk, I was pleasantly surprised to find flat calm conditions, with barely a cloud in the sky! ? Despite the pleasant conditions though, there was a definite autumnal feeling in the air, which was only re-enforced by the sight of several skeins of geese flying south across the rapidly darkening sky. Not wanting to waste a moment I got suited and booted as quickly as possible, before making my way along the shore, having a few casts here and there in any likely looking spots. Eventually, after about 90 minutes I arrived at the same spot where I caught my PB in 2017.
My plan now was to fish there until high water, before making my way back along the shore to the car with the early ebb. For the next hour, I fished several top-water lures and SPs around in the flow but apart from the occasional small pollack feeding in the margins, there wasn’t much happening. To be honest, I didn’t expect much until nearer high water, so I carried on cycling through my lures and eventually, around an hour and a half before high I heard the first proper splash of the evening, as something small and fishy met a grizzly end just on the outside edge of a weed bed to my right
.Over the next 30 minutes the splashes increased in frequency, and though it wasn’t exactly what I would call a feeding frenzy, it was still encouraging to hear ?.
Up until this point, I had been unable to get the fish interested in any of my lures, but finally I had the first bite of the night. It wasn’t particularly aggressive, but a couple of sharp tugs was definitely an interested bass. It didn’t connect, but it gave my confidence a boost and 10 minutes later I had another hit, this time on the Mishna. Once more it failed to connect, but I felt sure now that it was only a matter of time. As it happened, I was right and 20 minutes later, when I had my first proper bite it was fish on! I could tell straight away that it wasn’t big, but I didn’t care, they all count and after the briefest of fights the blank was beaten again ?.
With my confidence suitably boosted, I fished on, expecting another bite at any minute but it didn’t come. In fact, I fished on for another 2 hours, but the bass showed no more interest whatsoever in any of my offerings
.As the tide turned, I started to make my way back to the car, fishing as I went, but despite hearing a few fish feeding on the surface I couldn’t tempt them, and I had to settle for just the 1 bass for the evening.
Next up was Thursday night and though the tide wasn’t ideal for it, I decided to head back to the same mark I fished last week. So far this year I’ve been doing better there on the first half of the ebb, but last year I caught there mainly on the flood, with a few fish caught over low too, so I thought it was worth another visit.
I arrived an hour and a half before low to find almost identical conditions to Tuesday, no wind whatsoever and cloudless skies ?. The water itself was mirror calm, with a gentle left to right flow but despite this, I was disappointed to find out that the clarity left a lot to be desired, with visibility of no more than half a meter ?. Hoping that this would improve on the flood, once the flow got properly underway, I decided to give it a go anyway and so I clipped on something nice and bright to suit the conditions, a Swimish in Lemon Meringue.
I must admit to having some doubts that I was doing the right thing, in not moving on to find clearer water, but when after only a minute or so, I was surprised by a big swirl on the surface only a couple of meters away from me ?, I knew I was in the right place ?.
Over the next 3 hours, as low water came and went, I found myself pretty much surrounded by feeding fish and though the majority of them were on the small side, pollack I assumed, every now and then I heard a proper splash in the darkness, as something far more substantial chomped down on a tasty little morsel.
Despite the presence of fish though, I couldn’t get any response to my offerings. As well as the usual Mishna, Swimish, Albie Snax and Wave worm, I also tried several Ruf Manics, in various sizes and colours. In a change from my usual lures, I also tried some shallow divers, including the SF125 and the Feed Shallow 105 and finally, more in desperation than real hope, I even tried a small Redgill fished behind a Bombarda controller, but apart from 1 very small tap on a Ruf Manic, the fish ignored them all completely ?.
After the first 90 minutes of the flood, I found myself fishing a part of the tide which is has never been very productive for me at this particular mark, so I wasn’t expecting anything to happen for the next couple of hours. Typically though, just when you think you have a particular mark sussed, the bass decided to prove you wrong ?. I was going through the motions now, while waiting for the last of the flood but the tide seemed to have slowed down to a crawl and my expectation levels were at rock bottom, when suddenly, completely out of the blue my Lure was hit!
Just like on Tuesday, I could tell that the attacker wasn’t very big, but the pressure was really on not to lose it. I needn’t have worried though, the hook hold was secure and after a minute or two, the fish was safely landed to beat the blank once more ?.
With the pressure off, I hoped now for bigger and better things, but I was out of luck. As the tide flooded quickly, pushing me back every few minutes, I fished on for another 2 hours but apart from 1 more hit on the Mishna, when the fish was gone after a couple of headshakes, I didn’t have any more luck. The fish were still there and every now and again I saw a swirl on the surface, out in the flow, but they were still being very finicky, and they left my lures alone. In an ideal world I would have fished up and over high, but with work in the morning I couldn’t do that, and I was finally forced to call it a night at 00:30.
So, autumn may have arrived but there’s still no sign of the big girls, I’m not giving up yet though and weather permitting, I’ll be out there again next week to continue the hunt ?.
