An afternoon well spent..

So how does one spend a Sunday afternoon? Well if the weather is somewhat decent I will always try and get some fishing in. It just so happened that yesterday proved to be a spur of the moment kayak day out. Now, I had planned on fishing as I dug some fresh lugworm in the morning with the intention of heading out for a cast anyway but to get the kayak out is the more preferred option.

So with the fresh lugworm packed in damp newspaper and kept cool they were in perfect condition for a session in the afternoon. I decided to fish a spot which is sheltered from the wind, which was a little breezy, but also throws up some cracking fish from time to time. I know from this spot that I need not bring any heavy gear but rather stick to my little Daiwa Ninja 2500 coupled with a Team Daiwa dropshotting rod which is a lovely little setup and fishing a 1oz weight is great. On the other rod I was using another light setup with a small baitcaster and both reels were spooled with the Daiwa J-Braid in 9lb breaking strain.

My rigs consisted of the tried and tested single hook ledger rig which was tied up using 12lb Daiwa fluorocarbon and a very good hook pattern for holding worm baits neatly was tied on. This hook comes in the form of the Cox and Rawle Aberdeen Match in 1/0. I like to use this size hook as I am not really sure what may be around but the hook itself is very capable of holing big fish and I have landed good bass on this hook without any trouble but being a smaller hook allows me to catch some of the smaller fish that may be around and they make a fantastic flatfish hook too.

Weights were dependent on the tide and a 1oz was perfect at the slacker stage of the tide while a 2oz was fine in the running tide. I anchored up and baited up my first rod and cast it out away from the kayak. While baiting up the second rod I had a rattle on almost immediately. I set the hook and had a great little fight on the smaller rod which came up to be a decent flounder. He was quickly released and the rods were cast out again.

What happened for the next hour can only be described as manic to the point were I was fishing one rod at a time. Every time the bait hit the water, within two minutes and sooner I was into a fish. They all were small school Bass but there were so many of them which is great to see. I released all my Bass due to the size of them and also with the new Bass rules in it is still closed season. I was just out to see what was about and not targeting anything in particular but I was plagued by these little feisty guys which were great sport on the light setups.

 

For about close to an hour I had fish after fish which was some amount of action but nothing of any size but I was not complaining as there are worse ways of spending an afternoon. As the the tide slackened off I noticed a good few Mullet around and I had a couple of White Ragworm which I dug in the morning with the lugworm. So out went a bait with some White Rag and I was getting small knocks straight away. I missed a few until I finally hooked one and it was a no wonder why I had missed so many rattles, it was the smallest Golden Grey Mullet I have ever caught. I had a laugh to myself before taking a serious photo!

So that concluded another day and an evening on the water. I have to admit it was really enjoyable just being out there for the afternoon. I think that is what is the most appealing aspect of my kayak. I can get away from it all and catch fish!

Until Next Time,

Tight Lines.

 

Fishing the Estuary – 16/04/2015

Looking back on past fishing logs that I keep to compare on a year to year basis I was drawn to the thought of fishing an estuary that produces some great fishing as the weather starts to warm up. It is still a little early for this spot to really come alive and produce some great fishing but I decided to give it a try anyway. The day previous I had dug some fresh lugworm as it is a hard bait to beat for all round fishing. I also got a few peeler crab as an added bonus. The plan of attack was to fish the incoming tide from low. The rig I chose to use was my all round single hook ledger rig with a two ounce weight and a Cox and Rawle Uptide Extra 1/0 hook.

  I arrived about an hour before low tide which gave me time to set up my kayak and rods and wait till the tide started pushing in. I would be anchoring up in the channel and fishing two rods. It is quite comfortable as the tide holds the kayak in a straight position allowing both rods to be fished out in front of me. The weather was pleasant but a few blustery squalls came through. I was after a bass but knew there would be some flounder around so I was pretty confident that I would land a fish or two.

Anchored up in position, the tide started to move. Both rods were baited up and cast away from the kayak in front of me. There is not much of a problem with weed at this time of year but as the water temperature rises the estuaries get plagued by weed which makes it extremely tough to fish.

I stared getting small takes but did not connect with anything until I had the familiar rattle bite that is often associated with Flatfish. I set the hook and felt a good weight. I caught a glimpse of the Flounder and was surprised at the size of it. It gave one more run which is great to feel from a Flatfish as it is a sign of a decent one. I got it next to the kayak and lifted it in. A lovely coloured and plump Flounder. I took a couple of Photos and put it back to fight another day.

It was not long after I had another take which too was a sure sign it was another flounder. At this stage of the tide I would of had a Bass by now so confidence in getting one was all but gone. Still, I had another Flounder on and it was another good sized fish which put up a good account of itself and fishing with spinning rods really makes catching fish much more fun. Once again, a few photos and the Flounder was sent back.

Altogether I was happy with my result for the mornings tide. I headed back in after the second flounder. The first fish was caught on lugworm while the second fish was caught on a lugworm and Piddock bait. Both rods were rigged with the trace shown in the photo above. Nothing over complicated but effective.

Until next time,

Tight Lines.

A Weekend of Conger Eel and Bullhuss

Day 1 – 14/03/2015

Finally the weather cleared a little to give us the opportunity to head out in the saltwater again. This being my preferred area I was more than eager to wet a line again. Pat Gill from Irish Kayak Angling got in contact with me and we decided that we would fish for some Bullhuss and Conger Eel. We were restricted to the locations that could be fished due to the winds forecast which were generally in the South East direction. Not a great wind to fish in and I was bought up being taught that this particular wind does not produce the best results. Well, we decided to fish anyway. My father joined us on the Saturday and we tried a new location that consisted of a tidal run and a deep channel.

We had a rough idea of what was lurking about. I opted to fish the channel first but was consistently bringing up Dogfish after Dogfish which prompted me to move in to the rock faces where the water dropped off very nicely with the intention of a Conger Eel. The rig I used was a single hook ledger with 50lb trace line. On the business end was a 4/0 Cox and Rawle Uptide Hook. I know that Conger Eel can easily cut through a mono trace line but I am not a huge fan of wire traces. Also the 4/0 Cox and Rawle Uptide hook was intended for the channel fishing but I decided to see what it was capable of. Conger Eel have an extremely good sense of scent detection so I went with a Mackeral head cutlet for bait and dropped it in the position that I felt confident the Congers may be.

It was not long before I had some interest on the bait. I waited for a convincing take and I set the hook. I could feel the weight straight off and just trying to get the fish up away from the rocks is the first objective. I applied pressure but the fish had other ideas as it pulled line from my Shimano Trinidad TN14 reel as it tried to snag me up. Great fight from the fish and shortly a large Conger Eel with an angry face greeted me.

I managed to slide the Conger across my lap to get a few photos. They can be very aggressive so if I was not confident in my own abilities I would not lift them onto the kayak. To my surprise this Conger Eel was a little more placid but I took no chances and held him firmly. After a few photos I put the Conger back in to head back to its hideout. Once released I was contacted by Pat who informed me that he was into a good Bull Huss so I paddled over to him to get some photos. He was not kidding when he said he had a good huss. It was a really good fish and Pat carefully lifted it out for a photo. Pat was delighted and sent the Huss back.

I then headed over to my father to see what he was getting. He had landed a nice Pollock but was being plagued by Dogfish. By this time the temperature was dropping which led us to call it a day. Tomorrow was another day to see what we could get.

Day 2 – 15/03/2015

The Sunday morning came and looking out the window I was greeted  by the same wind as yesterday. Taking this into account Pat and myself decided to fish the same location as the previous day. It was a chilly start to the day and I even wore gloves paddling over to my preferred spot. We anchored up just off an island with the tide pushing out. Same tactics as the day before. Single hook ledger traces and some Mackeral Baits. It was not long before we were hitting fish. We landed more Bullhuss in the morning. Great fun but I decided to go exploring and Pat decided to try his luck at a Conger Eel.

I always enjoy exploring new locations. Watching the fish finder screen as the contours of the bottom change frequently, as do the depths. Every now and then passing over shoals of baitfish. Its a good way to get a mental image of what the bottom is like that is being fished. I paddled a good distance and tied up under a bridge. I like fishing around structure and I think in the Summer this could be a place I might visit again. I tried a bait for a couple of minutes only to be met by the ever present dogfish.

On the paddle back to where Pat was fishing he told me about a Conger Eel he had lost and that it must of been a monster. There is no doubt that there is more than likely some very big Conger Eel in this area. He also told me he landed a smaller one and he was delighted. Once again the temperature started to drop and we decided to call it a day after I had a little mishap but I will post about this separately as I feel all kayak anglers should know about it.

So an eventful weekend with good company and some quality fish as well. Great to get out again on the salt water and fingers crossed for some good weather. Below is the video from the day.

Until next time,

Tight lines.

Fishing Report 07-02-2015

Plans had been made to go out after some Bullhuss. A couple of friends of mine were interested in hitting the mark I fish for them so I was more then happy to join them on the day out. It actually turned into two days but the second day I will post separately as it was a different location. Back to the Bullhuss.

James, Karl and myself met up at the local fishing store. Check out the links page for info on the shop. After a chat with Kevin Brain, the owner, and picking up some bait, we were then on the way to the mark to hopefully get into some Bullhuss. Another friend of mine, Pat, was due to meet us down at the mark.

I am a firm believer in having fresh bait. So this was my top priority. I find it gives me a better feeling of confidence. I anchored up in the channel. The downside to this day was that the tide was running out and was due to be low in the afternoon. This was not great as fishing was going to take place in water that was not moving. This is not the best conditions for this mark as the Bullhuss I have found will feed when the tide is running.

I used two rods with single ledger rigs on them for the Bullhuss and baited them up with some of the frozen Mackeral purchased in the morning. Both rigs used Cox and Rawle Chinu 2/0 hooks. I would often use a 4/0 hook instead but with the slack water conditions I opted for the smaller hook. I bought along a light spinning rod to catch some bait. On this rod I rigged up some small Sabiki Feathers which I baited with small strips.

It was very apparent that the tide was going to have to start pushing in before any real action on the rods was going to be had. The Bullhuss rods were being plagued by Dogfish during the slack water. Finally I got a whiting to use for bait. I rigged it up live and hoped for the best. It was not long before I had a take but it turned out to be the ever present Dogfish. One of those days.

I was getting more action on the baited feathers and I had a few tiny Grey Gurnard. I love these fish. They are so inquisitive when caught on the underwater camera. I find they almost seem to smile at you. Maybe the lack of Bullhuss was messing with my mind but never the less I fished on.

    

I headed into shallow water to see was anything lurking about there but nothing showed. The wind dropped completely at low tide and the sun was shining. What more could I ask for in February.

Finally the Tide started to push in. Pat had a number of Bullhuss as did James. I paddled back out to the channel and anchored up again. It was not long before I joined in the action with a small Bullhuss but I was glad to see the guys get their target species. On a side note, Pat got some Mackeral. I am still surprised to see them at this mark at this time of the year.

A great way to end the days fishing. Really good weather, good company and some fish. It was a pity about the tide phase but it goes in the notebook so plans can be made around the tides for this mark the next time.

Until next time,

Tight Lines.

 

Fishing Report 11-11-2014

Bullhuss have always seemed to evade me whenever I tried to target them in the past. I came to the conclusion that I was fishing the complete wrong areas as everything else I was using including baits and rigs were perfect. Eventually I came across an area that my father and me fished from the shore and hit into some good bullhuss. The only thing to do was to get out on the kayak and catch some.

The area I fished was a tidal stretch that had a 40ft channel. I anchored in the channel on the out going tide. My plan was to use one of my spinning rods to catch some live bait. From past experience the dogfish love and cannot resist latching on to any dead bait so this was out of the question. To catch the live bait I just used a simple double hooked rig with small size 10 hooks baited with some frozen mackeral. The fish finder showed shoals of fish on the bottom as they passed by and it was not long before I had some fresh live Whiting. The Whiting where rigged on a single 4/0 hook ledgered on the bottom.

While the two live bait rods were out I continued to use the spinning rod to see what else could be swimming around below. Mackeral, Whiting and a Grey Gurnard showed themselves and of course the Dogfish made themselves known too.

           

The first Bullhuss to take was a really good fish. The take was a few knocks then the line started to be pulled off the reel. I hit into the fish and had a really good fight from the Bullhuss. I did not realise that these fish give such a good account of themselves which made it even more enjoyable. When the huss came to the surface I was delighted to see such a fine fish. I lifted him onto the kayak and of course he tried to bite me but I managed to control him.

The morning proved to be endless rod bending fun with a number of Bullhuss taking the live baits. The spot makes an excellent alternative to deep water if the weather plays up.

The last Bullhuss I caught before paddling back in was very surprising and a little sad if I am totally honest about it. When landing the last bullhuss it became clear that the poor fish had swam into a net which was cutting through its skin around its neck as it was growing. I am not sure what type of netting this was but it certainly did not look nice for any fish. I cut the net off the bullhuss and sent it back on its way.

On the way back in I tried my luck up against the wall near the launch spot for a scorpion fish. I used my double hook trace which I caught my bait with. Within ten minutes I had a rattling bite and lifted into a small fish. No monster but a species I was looking for. A nice looking Scorpion Fish. They are such interesting and aggressive little fish which makes them fun to catch. Needless to say I went home happy with a good day day out.

Until next time,

Tight lines.

Tactics for Gilthead Bream

I remember the first time I caught a Gilthead Bream (Sparus aurata). It was an overcast day with an offshore breeze at my local estuary mouth. The tide was coming in and the water was slightly coloured after the previous days blow. There was a good swell running which pushes across the mark we fish as the tide comes in. The tide was halfway in, I was using half a big peeler for bait and fishing this just over the main channel on a sand bank. We were targeting bass. I saw the knock of the tip and struck into a fish. Immediately I thought it was a decent bass as it has solid head shakes and headed up the channel. Once I bought it up it was something unexpected, a Gilthead Bream. That was possibly seven years ago. I caught a number of Giltheads from the shore over the next few years and after getting into kayak fishing it was one species I wanted to actively target.
The Gilthead bream is part the bream family Sparidae which also comprises of a number of variations of the bream types. The Gilthead is a Mediterranean fish species but in recent years has been becoming more and more frequent in Irish waters. Before, a Gilthead would be a surprise catch but can now be specifically targeted due to increased numbers and anglers becoming more in tune with marks the bream return to. The Gilthead can be identified by its broad wide body, silver colouring and its distinguishing bar that runs across its forehead between the eyes. The gilthead has a mouth full of molar type teeth which are used for its diet of shellfish and crustaceans and of course breaking the hooks that are not up for the job of landing one of these brutes.  According to the Irish Specimen Fish Committee 2013 the Specimen Weight is 1.4 kg (3.08 lbs).

I have caught Gilthead bream in various locations and have also read about catches of Giltheads at places I have never fished before. I have caught them on surf beaches, estuaries and even lagoons where the salinity levels are virtually non-existent. I have been fortunate enough to find some marks myself that produce these fish while I have also been taught by locals who I have fished with. Having this insight I was always confident in targeting Giltheads from the Kayak.

The time of year from personal experiences varies with the weather conditions of the particular months. I have caught Giltheads in March and have caught them in November. As the water temperatures rise the Giltheads move into their shallower areas. The warmer summer months produce the most catches of Gilthead. A warm sunny day in an estuary I find enhances catch rates as the bream tend to feed a lot better and are more aggressive. Now, once again, I have caught them in the total opposite weather conditions but sunny would be preference for estuary fishing and overcast for beaches.

Tides play a vital role in selecting the location for targeting Giltheads. If fishing in a strong tidal estuary it best to fish these areas on the neap stages of the tide cycle. This will give a longer time frame the area may be fished before the tidal surge becomes too overwhelming to fish. If fishing a beach area, spring tides are very good and with little or no tidal factor the whole tide may be fished. I find the best times to fish are just as the tide turns to come in and just as it turns to run out. The Giltheads seem to be the first fish on the scene at the change of the tides.
The kayak setup for catching Giltheads is very simple. An anchor is a must as I want to hold my position to get the bream as they pass you in the estuary. These fish will travel a long way up an estuary feeding so I pick a spot and am patient. The bream will travel in shallow water from experience. I anchor my kayak with the anchor out the back on my trolley (Here is a link to my Kayak Anchor Trolley Setup) so my two rods will sit out in front of me and my kayak sits still with the tide and my baits casted away from the kayak.

Rigs for Giltheads need not be over complicated and the simpler the better. There is no need for bells and whistles for your rigs. I use two different traces for Giltheads from the Kayak which can be seen below. Using the smallest lead possible will allow less resistance to be felt by the fish when they take the bait. A trace line of 12lb I find is sufficient and using Fluorocarbon reduces the visibility of the trace. Hooks all come down to personal preference and for me I do not go bigger than a 2/0 hook and most of the time a 1/0 is used. It depends on the bait I am using and how big the fish are in the area. A word of advice is to use a strong hook. My father has had a 1/0 hook completely broken by a Gilthead. The hooks shown below by Cox & Rawle are very strong and the hook gape is wide enough for peeler crab baits.

Picture Courtesy of www.coxandrawle.com

Bait for Gilthead Bream is of high importance. I dig my own fresh lugworm and gather peeler crabs. These are the only two baits I use for Giltheads as they have worked time and time for me. I will write up on bait collecting in future posts. The best advice I can pass on is to have bait the freshest that is possible. It provides more confidence and I was always taught that your confidence plays a major role in your fishing success. I keep the presentation of my bait simple.

As I previously discussed the anchoring of my kayak, the next step is fishing for the Giltheads. Once anchored I bait up one rod and cast it out in one particular area and then bait up and cast in another area. If I am fishing a tidal estuary, the kayak will sit nice and straight with the current and allow the main line to be kept in contact with the trace so any bite can be seen. I keep an eye on the rod. The Giltheads will either bite in two vastly different ways. One way will be a subtle knock knock almost like a small fish is investigating. In this case I pick the rod up and wait till I feel a decisive take and set the hook. The other scenario will be the Gilthead having no second thoughts about taking the bait and the rod just doubles over without warning. They are strong and I would not be surprised if a rod would be pulled overboard in milliseconds. I try be patient and not be disheartened by a lack of activity as that may turn around and I could have the best half an hour of fishing I ever had as a big group of bream pass by.

These fish are strong and fighting the fish is the most exciting part about it. They have powerful had shakes and long runs. They will not give up easy. Although being very tough and strong I use two spinning rods off the kayak for them as it makes the fight all that much better. The reels are loaded with 12lb braid which sends their head shakes through the body due to the little stretch design of the braid. I don’t force the bream as a weaker hook will get damaged and chances are they will come off.

When landing the bream I handle with caution as they are covered in sharp fins.

Until next time,

Tight Lines.