Andy 1965
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2020
- Messages
- 376
- Reaction score
- 3,440
- Points
- 93
- Location
- North Wales
- Favourite Fishing
- Lure
Following last week’s minor success, I couldn’t possibly give up on the hunt for silver just yet, so with light winds forecast, my plans were hatched for another couple of sessions.
First off was Tuesday evening and though the forecast had been for dry weather all week, when I checked again before leaving the house, it had miraculously changed in the 2 hours since I left work
. It was now giving a 30% chance of a light shower later in the evening, but I still wasn’t too concerned, that was until the heavens opened when I had only got a mile or so down the road from home ?. Hoping that this would soon pass, I carried on, and thankfully by the time I arrived at my destination, the rain had indeed stopped. The dry interlude was only brief though and before I could get myself kitted up, the rain resumed heavier than ever ?.
Despite the rain, conditions were still good and after a 10 minute walk along the shore I arrived at my chosen spot. Unfortunately, high water was only just over an hour away, so the tide run was already easing, but there was still enough of a flow to allow me to cover plenty of water, starting with the mighty Mishna. As the rain continued to fall, the next 75 minutes passed by without incident, and despite me trying a variety of lures, as high water approached and the tide eased further, I was beginning to think that my chance was gone. I was mistaken though, and bang on high water my lure was smashed without warning. With a lack of current to aid the lure snatcher, the fight was nothing to write home about but I was still more than happy to land a nicely conditioned 2lber, only my third November bass on a lure ?.
Now my initial plan had been to fish this mark up to high water, before driving a short distance to another area for the start of the ebb, but having caught later in the tide than I expected, I decided to give it a little while longer. I stayed where I was for another hour, but when no more takes were forthcoming, I finally decided to move.
With the rain still falling, I seriously considered calling it a night much earlier than I originally planned, but after a quick glance at the weather radar app, I saw that the rain was due to pass in another 30 minutes or so. I reasoned that I couldn’t really get much wetter ?, so I decided to carry on for a little while longer after all. Though my plan had been to drive along the coast, I was completely drenched by now and it wasn’t worth getting the car wet, so I decided to walk instead.
20 minutes later and I arrived at spot number 2, but with it not being anywhere I’ve previously put much time in, I decided to treat this more as a recce than a serious session. With the rain finally easing, I set off along this new stretch of shore, trying a few casts at any likely looking spots along the way. The next hour and a quarter passed slowly, with no fishy signs to speak of, but I did start to build up a picture of the various features I encountered, ready for my next visit. I was beginning to flag by now though and by 2.5 hours after high water, I finally called it a night, ready for the long and soggy walk back to the car.
48 hours later, just enough time to dry out my gear ?, and I was out again, this time to a different mark. Just like on Tuesday, the forecast had been promising it dry all week but once more, by the time I parked up the Met Office were now giving the chance of rain later. Having survived one soaking though, I was now ready for whatever the elements could throw at me.
In one major difference from Tuesday, the tide was now a lot bigger, at 32.2ft, and as I walked along the shore to my chosen area, I passed a thick deposit of weed all along the previous high tide line. This could cause me problems later in the tide, but for now it didn’t come into play and so just like on Tuesday, I started the hunt with the ever-reliable Mishna. Once more conditions were just about perfect, but perhaps due to the sheer size of the tide there was no sign of any fishy movement. I spent the remaining 2 hours of the flood wandering along the shore, trying various spots both familiar and new, with a variety of usually reliable lures but sadly there were no takers ?.
As high water approached, the rising water started to dislodge some of the loose weed from the shore, and it began to drift along with the tide. Some of the “weed-bergs” were quite a size and I’m sure I saw Wally the walrus relaxing on one of the larger lumps as it drifted by ?. Though they did cause me some problems, particularly when using surface lures, I was able to get around this by calling on my experience of playing Frogger, the only difference being that instead of crocodiles and logs, I had to steer my lure around varying sized lumps of weed instead ?.
As the ebb got underway, the weed gradually became less of a problem and by 90 minutes or so after high it was all but gone. As well as enjoying easier fishing, I also saw the first sign of a bass now, as something rolled on the surface a few meters away from me ?, but unfortunately my lures remained untouched. I fished on for another 90 minutes but it just wasn’t my night and with the season winding down, I had to make do with just the 1 November bass.
With milder weather on the way for next week, I’m still hopeful of getting out for a couple more lure sessions yet, but having never caught a bass later than November 12th, I’m not overly confident of getting anything. He who dares though ?.
First off was Tuesday evening and though the forecast had been for dry weather all week, when I checked again before leaving the house, it had miraculously changed in the 2 hours since I left work
. It was now giving a 30% chance of a light shower later in the evening, but I still wasn’t too concerned, that was until the heavens opened when I had only got a mile or so down the road from home ?. Hoping that this would soon pass, I carried on, and thankfully by the time I arrived at my destination, the rain had indeed stopped. The dry interlude was only brief though and before I could get myself kitted up, the rain resumed heavier than ever ?.Despite the rain, conditions were still good and after a 10 minute walk along the shore I arrived at my chosen spot. Unfortunately, high water was only just over an hour away, so the tide run was already easing, but there was still enough of a flow to allow me to cover plenty of water, starting with the mighty Mishna. As the rain continued to fall, the next 75 minutes passed by without incident, and despite me trying a variety of lures, as high water approached and the tide eased further, I was beginning to think that my chance was gone. I was mistaken though, and bang on high water my lure was smashed without warning. With a lack of current to aid the lure snatcher, the fight was nothing to write home about but I was still more than happy to land a nicely conditioned 2lber, only my third November bass on a lure ?.
Now my initial plan had been to fish this mark up to high water, before driving a short distance to another area for the start of the ebb, but having caught later in the tide than I expected, I decided to give it a little while longer. I stayed where I was for another hour, but when no more takes were forthcoming, I finally decided to move.
With the rain still falling, I seriously considered calling it a night much earlier than I originally planned, but after a quick glance at the weather radar app, I saw that the rain was due to pass in another 30 minutes or so. I reasoned that I couldn’t really get much wetter ?, so I decided to carry on for a little while longer after all. Though my plan had been to drive along the coast, I was completely drenched by now and it wasn’t worth getting the car wet, so I decided to walk instead.
20 minutes later and I arrived at spot number 2, but with it not being anywhere I’ve previously put much time in, I decided to treat this more as a recce than a serious session. With the rain finally easing, I set off along this new stretch of shore, trying a few casts at any likely looking spots along the way. The next hour and a quarter passed slowly, with no fishy signs to speak of, but I did start to build up a picture of the various features I encountered, ready for my next visit. I was beginning to flag by now though and by 2.5 hours after high water, I finally called it a night, ready for the long and soggy walk back to the car.
48 hours later, just enough time to dry out my gear ?, and I was out again, this time to a different mark. Just like on Tuesday, the forecast had been promising it dry all week but once more, by the time I parked up the Met Office were now giving the chance of rain later. Having survived one soaking though, I was now ready for whatever the elements could throw at me.
In one major difference from Tuesday, the tide was now a lot bigger, at 32.2ft, and as I walked along the shore to my chosen area, I passed a thick deposit of weed all along the previous high tide line. This could cause me problems later in the tide, but for now it didn’t come into play and so just like on Tuesday, I started the hunt with the ever-reliable Mishna. Once more conditions were just about perfect, but perhaps due to the sheer size of the tide there was no sign of any fishy movement. I spent the remaining 2 hours of the flood wandering along the shore, trying various spots both familiar and new, with a variety of usually reliable lures but sadly there were no takers ?.
As high water approached, the rising water started to dislodge some of the loose weed from the shore, and it began to drift along with the tide. Some of the “weed-bergs” were quite a size and I’m sure I saw Wally the walrus relaxing on one of the larger lumps as it drifted by ?. Though they did cause me some problems, particularly when using surface lures, I was able to get around this by calling on my experience of playing Frogger, the only difference being that instead of crocodiles and logs, I had to steer my lure around varying sized lumps of weed instead ?.
As the ebb got underway, the weed gradually became less of a problem and by 90 minutes or so after high it was all but gone. As well as enjoying easier fishing, I also saw the first sign of a bass now, as something rolled on the surface a few meters away from me ?, but unfortunately my lures remained untouched. I fished on for another 90 minutes but it just wasn’t my night and with the season winding down, I had to make do with just the 1 November bass.
With milder weather on the way for next week, I’m still hopeful of getting out for a couple more lure sessions yet, but having never caught a bass later than November 12th, I’m not overly confident of getting anything. He who dares though ?.
