Showing posts with label Lure fishing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lure fishing. Show all posts

Saturday, April 2, 2016

The colder months are out the way!

It's April can you believe it? Since I got into fishing April has always been a very exiting month for me, waters start to warm up fish start to become more active. Towards the middle of the month bait fish shoals have found their way into the shallows. With a bit of luck the predator fish are following them! 

So what have I been catching over the last 3 months? Well for the amount of times I have been fishing I have caught myself a few fish.

Well this one is certainly not a specimen sized fish, I think when you catch your target species especially on a cold January night it doesn't matter how big it is I still get happy! My first Sole of the year and probably my smallest ever Sole.



The good thing about fishing is you never know what is going to happen, I must of found myself casting my worm baits over a big shoal of Pollock. I was getting one a chuck couldn't leave my rod down for 2 minutes before it was bent double with a Pollock on it all taking the worm baits on the bottom. I managed alot over 2lb and managed a chunky 3lb 2oz,




 I put a bit of time into my Flounder fishing I have done two sessions with 1 Flounder caught this year, okay I might have got a bit lucky as it was a good one caught on Redcat worm at range using a size 4 Sakuma Hook.

2lb 9oz Flounder

I have done a few Conger sessions over the last couple of months. I seem to be finding the Eels but there is just no size to them. 

Here is a few picture's I got anyway - Managed a couple of eels this night was cold but the eels was feeding over high water. (Jersey's North Coast)


Jonathan Bailie with a Conger caught on Jersey's SW Coast on a whole cuttlefish.

13lb 10oz

Mark Le Huquet with a 14lb Conger caught down St Catherine's one night.


I am sure if we keep at it throughout the year we should find some bigger eels just need to be in the right place at the right time.  


First personal best for the year. I went down to a rock mark in search of some rays. My plan was to blast baits out at range (Well as far as I could chuck them) Hope that a big Blonde Ray finds my launce sandeel baits. Wasnt looking too promising after the first couple of hours with just a couple of dogs and pollock for my friend Jonathan.

As I was reeling in what I thought was just another average sized dogfish, I actually thought too myself when it broke the surface as my head torch lit up the water ahh its a small huss! But it wasn't just a new personal best dogfish weighing bang on 3lb! Still a dogfish but any PB is welcome :)


The tide was nearly forcing me from the rock I was standing on I thought to myself "where there is dogfish there is a ray" I always tell myself this literally every session, just gotta fish through them keep checking them baits and stay on the ball. My best fish of the session was this Undulate Ray which weighed 15lb 2oz which took my launce sandeel the cast after my big doggy! 


Bass Fishing Lure & Bait. 

We all know the winter months can be good for Bass fishing from our beaches using worm baits. Local angler Leigh Mullins seems to prove this over the last couple of years getting double figure fish both years in these colder months. Pretty much any beach in Jersey you could catch a big bass its just working out the tides & trial and error as too which beach is holding the most / biggest bass.
 I obviously didn't get it right the 2-3 sessions I did in terms of size of fish. But the first session had a couple of small ones. 2nd session I did manage 6-7 Bass but all schoolies. 



I had a brilliant lure session after work with Alex Plaster we reunited for the first time since he returned from tagging sharks in Bimini! We set the location and only planned a quick lure bash after work, so we got fishing by 5.30pm and I went for a hard lure three casts later fish on!! Felt like a good one strong head shakes and dives Alex just went around the rock (With the net) so I had to Gill this one was a struggle but I did it - Shouted to Alex he was gutted he missed the fighting action! 


70cm Lure Caught Bass
After some photos and weighing/ measuring 7lb 12oz & 70cm I put her back in. Chucked my lure back in the same place bang another fish on this one just a 49cm fish!


 Absolutely buzzing with this we carried on with confidence and at 6.30pm Alex had his last cast with his Savage Gear - Zzzzz fish on looked like a great fight and I got it in the net no bother pictured weighed and released 5lb 8oz! 

😃
🐟
 1st Lure caught bass of the year for me too haha! All fish returned.


Few days later we was twitching to get back out we decided on a early morning raid on the Bass Alex Plaster catching the only one during the short morning session.....A lovely solid fish weighing 6lb 14oz (65cm) Caught on a 42g White Pearl Savage Gear.
🌊😃🐟
🎣 Lure caught C&R!



 Boat Trip!! 

Went for a trip aboard Anna 2 the weather was not great at all with big swells and F5-6 winds. We tried offshore but was too much like hard work to fish properly. We ventured inshore and anchored a reef, we had a few fish I managed a couple small Huss the best fish of the day was caught by Alex Romeril and it was a Common Smoothound which was caught and released. Wasnt much caught apart from that and 1 small conger. I have heard the mackerel are in now and my friend has caught Turbot so get out there and give it ago!



A few other fish caught 

Session at St Caths nothing but dogs, pout and this Three Bearded Rockling weighing 1lb 3oz.


Pollock took the Ray gear one night again wasn't much happening on this session. 



My first wrasse session was only 1 hour long and stuck to the lures this time last year was getting a few chunky ones on blue soft plastics so I tried it again but the tide was wrong but managed a couple of baby ones. Next time I go will do the incoming tide and I think we should see some bigger fish!




Thanks for reading just thought I would try and keep up with my fishing a little bit more. Otherwise lots of sessions get forgotten about, Rumour has it the bait fish like gars & the odd mackerel are in now so we are likely to see a lot more fish getting caught! 

Friday, July 17, 2015

January - July Catch Up!

Thought I would try and get all up to date on here with what I have been catching, to be honest I haven't been doing too much fishing compared to other years moving into a  new flat saving up and other things have got in the way a little. But I have tried to pick my tides and time that with the weather conditions to give my self the best chances of catching when I am getting out fishing. 

I always sneak in a session with Tony Heart on Anna 2. We went out targeting Flatfish on some deep sand banks, we had a few surprises along the way here is myself with my personal best Garfish weighing 1lb 14oz Garfish, I did catch it on Feathers but I aint complaining.  

I caught our Garfish action on the Gopro! We had around 15 gars over 1lb in like 5 minutes! "Garfish Galore" Check it out! 








After this superb action we managed to nail a good few flatfish :) 

I managed a Brill, but I wasn't lucky enough to catch a whiting myself but a few was caught. 






I am going to stick on the subject of Boat fishing for now as makes sense to me on the 6th of April Mark Andre invited me out on his boat for a spot of wreck fishing. We managed loads of Pollock and a Ling, as well as my first Black Bream of the year and a few other bits and bobs all in all was lovely weather and a great day out :)


 2lb 8oz Black Bream 


Savage Gear Sandeel did the business for most fish caught! 


We started catching Bass on lures pretty early in the season 



The 24th of March is when I managed to hook into my first one of the year! 3lb 4oz (53cm) White Pearl 42g Savage Gear Sandeel 



Lee Jarvis came with me to one of my high water Bass marks where he showed me how its done with this cracking Bass!

My first surface lure caught Bass for the year only a small one but good fun to watch them come out and strike on the surface! The lure was a very small popper I got from Bass Pro Shops in Florida so unsure of its name but it worked a treat :) 



A few schoolies I caught one morning before work 

St Helier Harbor producing the early morning bass on Hard Lures! Ended up with 6 Bass all caught in about an hour
 New Spot produces the Bass for Adrian, we also managed quite a few wrasse nothing that big though. 


The Harbor on this occasion produced the goods on a Homemade Soft Plastic Lure.


Sneaked out of a late night lure bash! Boom lure bouncing jig heads around when its pitch black :) 



Another one from the harbor always Bass around the Harbor :) 



I had my little brother for a day as took him on his school walk, then we decided to have a fish! We fished the flooding tide in the Harbor, I managed a small Bass then on the next cast I let my brother reel in what is his First Bass :) 



He also produced the goods during a Sinkers Junior Competition where he managed to win with the 2lb Ballan Wrasse! 

On the subject of Wrasse I have managed a few mainly early on in the season when I was putting a little bit more time on it (Mainly focusing on soft plastics)
This one below is the biggest so far only weighing 4.8lbs though. Fished weedless style 12g cone head and weedless hooks with a 4" Blue paddle tail. Cant beat Bass Assassin Lures now on Sale in my Tackle Heaven eBay store check out by clicking the link above. I also have listed Lunker City Shakers which is another popular choice for me to use!!

Here is a few more :) 





First wrasse of the year on Sam Chapon's LRF gear!

Now this is by far the Fattest Wrasse I have ever caught for its size!


Ray fishing has been hard work I have put many ray baits out over the course of the year with little reward compared to previous years. Luckily I managed 1 good session down St Caths Breakwater producing a 

14lb 0oz Undulate Ray first Ray of the year on my first cast that evening. Fish took Garfish Fillet on a Pully Rig


12lb 8oz Undulate Ray I also lost a small one on the surface in the same session, so it was a good one :)

Caught on Sakuma Hooks! 

Muuuullllllllllllllllllllllllleettttttttttttt

Right so because I have a slight addiction for my mullet I have been on them quite alot managing good results on nearly every trip. I am not going to go into detail because there is no need! Mainly caught float fishing bread flake around 12ft deep, with constant bread and water ground bait going in handful every 10 mins. Had a few whilst ledgering from the bottom also so just including all the pictures together :) 

Lee Jarvis with a Thick Lipped well over 4lb 


That's a better one 5lb 4oz!


One for the Tackle Heaven Species Competition


Long and skinny! Thought it would have gone 5lb but it was not to be.

Here she is my new Personal Best Mullet weighing 5lb 11oz (New Personal Best) I will get a 6lber before the year's end! Confidence is key!





I have found these have come in handy for the Mullet Ledgers! Check these out - Fladen Swivel Float Adapters 


This is probally the most skill I have used to find a Spurdog from the shore in jersey! I dont think one has been caught since 1980s. Somehow I worked out exactly where they was going to show up on this day where I had my first ever Spurdog weighing 3lb 8oz (4th May)

God knows how I manged this one still made up to bits for catching it over here! But apparently I have more Jam than Hartleys :D




I have a fair amount of Go Pro footage for you guys soon, I will spend sometime when I am on holiday soon to get a couple of video's made. :) Here is a early season Bream I caught 1lb 8oz.




I have not done any Eel fishing at all yet this year well apart form a couple of casts hoping to get lucky. But me and Alex both put a rod out on this night and he had the only bite of the night!




A few more randoms to add to the collection

Boat caught Pollock - Weedless - During a Sinkers boat species hunt competition (St Aubins Bay)
Nice sunset - Nice Garfish 15oz - This was my first one of the year :) 

Adrian with a Bass on the Homemade Plastics AGAIN
What a BRILLiant day that was aboard Tony Hearts - Anna 2
Oh just set back relax and use a YANN to catch a Bass none of that Plastic rubbish!
What a load of Pollocks!!
Eh why the Feck am I carp fishing????? Oh I am in France too - 4 hours fishing BLANKAGE

This is a Bull Huss - The biggest Bullhuss I have caught from the Shore in Jersey ever!!! lol 5lb 2oz



Bit more Go Pro footage of a session where I had a few wrasse!

My first LRF caught mullet still ledgering bread but using a very light 0.5-7g rod!! 

First Beach caught Mullet of the year weighing 3lb 10oz caught on Ledgered Bread Flake - GoPro footage on this too!

1 of 6 Mackerel I caught down St Catherine's last week

Here is one of a couple of Golden Grey Mullet I caught down the Harbor a couple of weeks ago! 1lb 14oz was the biggest caught on a Lugworm.


I also saw this beast get caught!!! 9lb 14oz Bass caught on a Strip of Squid near the start of the Breakwater!!! 


Be there or be square!!! Prizes up for grabs & a trophy or two! All funds to the Sinkers Sea Fishing Club - This will help towards paying for our Junior 


If you are after some decent Jig Heads at a good price be sure to check out this link - Flashmer Jig Heads 10 x 3g,5g,7g,9g,14g,21g,28g,36g

Last day of work is the 17/07/15 then I am off to Marbella in Spain for just over 2 weeks! Bring the Spinning Rod & a Mullet Rod so lets hope I can find something over there :)