Sea Angling for Spearos

[robdigital]

Thanks for the kind comments and rep guys. Just been getting together my winter shore kit the codling have arrived in good numbers in the upper reaches of the bristol channel and as im 15 minutes away hoping to get in on the action - pics to follow soon hopefully!

Mr X seems you do a bit of kayak fishing, im getting hints from my missus to get a tandem sit on top for fishing/spearing any advice? Also i have slight reservations about putting a 4 metre kayak on a focus hatchback! Second hand stuff really seems to hold its value well.

 

[Mr. X]

Hi Rob, a 2-seater kayak should fit on your Ford Focus just fine. I previously had a slightly smaller hatchback and my OK Malibu 2 fit beautifully on it. I usually took the yak on my larger/taller car but when I tried the smaller car, found that worked better - it's much easier to get a big yak on and off a smaller, lower car, especially if there is just one of you.

I was planning to sell our Ocean Kayak Malibu2 early next year but if you are interested, let me know - we won't use it again this year.

 

[robdigital]

Well i have not had much luck with the bristol channel cod - only caught 1 small codling so far but managed to sneak a day out of work and went lure fishing for pike (not sea angling i know but i was itching for a fishy fix!). Started off using a spro bbz swimbait - my first choice lure every time although with no success, made a change to a storm wildeye roach and hooked into this jack pike 2nd cast - not huge but in great condition and welcome after being fishless for far too long.





Good luck to anyone going out looking for a whopper!

 

[Mr. X]

Did you eat it? You don't hear of folk eating pike much these days. I caught one as a child & gutted it for the freezer but nobody else ever fancied eating it!

 

[robdigital]

Im sure people do eat them, but i dont think legally you are supposed to take them - although its possible im wrong. There are Zander in the same water i was fishing and there is a cull policy on any caught, i have never caught one and if i did i would return it

 

[Mr. X]

Yes, you are not allowed to take any fish from "the cut" where I live these days, didn't think it was a nationwide though. I believe it was ok, encouraged even, to take pike back then - they were seen as a nuisance, eating the stocked fish. Although perch could not be taken, they were a stocked fish. Super fish by the way

 

[Broseidon]

I've only had pike once but it was really nice, by FAR the best tasting fresh water fish I've tried.

 

[robdigital]

I was looking at sea angler magazine last night and there is a article about lure fishing at night, anyway couldnt help but notice one chap was wearing a omer weight belt - might be a deeper blue member maybe?

 

[Jason IR-2010]

Anybody flyfish? Nothing like catching wild trout on your own flies

 

[Mr. X]

There are a several keen fly fishermen on the forum. I've been thinking about trying to get my son interested, as there is local trout farm with several lakes nearby, as well as several rivers & streams for the more experienced. There always seem to be places when we go down to Devon on holiday too. A couple of my neighbours are fly fishermen, one is very keen and the other runs a small syndicate (not as grand as it sounds I gather). I'd quite like to try fly fishing for mullet & bass a la Dr. Mike Ladle - I have a few spots in minds. But we have only so much time/resource/fine weather, and my wife considers our current rather modest rod collection excessive (lure rod, bass rod, 2nd hand baitcaster, my childhood coarse rod, spinning rod & a vintage Hardy Fly rod -- upon reflection, I guess she has a point - especially as most of my fishing is with a speargun.)

 

[Jason IR-2010]

Nothing wrong with lots of rods, however a HUGE collection of flytying materials are very dusty. Fly fishing is the most compact of all the fishings (and most interesting) as all you need is a box of flies a rod and reel and off you go. I just WUV it and fly tying add a whole new dimension. I know people who just fly tie and don't even fish!

 

[robdigital]

Nothing wrong with lots of rods,

I agree there - i have 4 beachcasters, 3 boat, 2 coarse and 2 spinning rods(looking at a 3rd). My favorites are my veals channel special beachcaster which has a great tip that doesnt collapse in strong tides, and a mike ladle 3 piece surespin. Oh and 5 multipliers, 4 fixed spool reels(looking at a 4th).

Might try and get some fishing in this weekend fingers crossed still after a big pike or cod for the year

 

[foxfish]

I might own 50 rods, never counted but, I will be buying some new ones for next season...

 

[Magpie]

Is that all?

 

[robdigital]

I might own 50 rods

lol :t, how do you find time to use all of them!!!

 

[foxfish]

Actually I think I must own 20 freshwater rods & poles that I have not used for 15 years so they are mostly out of date designs.
I probably have about 20 serviceable reels but, use only 5 or 6 & it is the same with my rods. I keep 4 rods on my boat & there are 2 on my brothers boat all with usable reels.
Then I have holiday kit rods & reels & beach rods & reels = 50 seems reasonable to me!

 

[Mr. X]

Sounds like a mild addiction! Magpie was right, early on in this thread though - different set-ups do different things well. I like the idea of the Mike Ladle approach where he uses mainly one rod for everything (although he has #7/8 flyrod, bass rod, travel rod & a signature popper rod & lightweight rod too these days) - but I think it works for him because he is a very effective lure specialist/expert.

By the way, I seem to have developed hard-to-shake tendonitis in my right shoulder. The dull ache of which I first experienced when using my 12ft 4oz rated bass rod with feathers/heavy lures during the summer - I guess that's why folk are moving to shorter, lighter lure rod, reel set-ups. Although ML seems to favour an 11ft rod, I see Henry Gilbey enthusing about 8ft Japanese rods in the Summer. I find my 10ft lure rod fine but, if anything, I would go a little shorter - maybe 9ft.

Interesting insight Jason, those sound like the very things that got me into lure fishing (& so back into fishing generally, after a very long lay-off). The idea of tying flies appeals to me but I've recently started wearing reading glasses & struggling with small fonts, so perhaps a bit late for me. There is a really nice looking, glossy fly-fishing/tying magazine that I see in stores from time to time. I remember going into a shop in Bath as a child - possibly the old Cruddington Gunsmiths store? - and they had lots of wings, etc. from a wide variety of birds for fly tying, it was quite an odd but colourful sight, an image which has stuck in my mind.

 

[ADM]

I was looking at sea angler magazine last night and there is a article about lure fishing at night, anyway couldnt help but notice one chap was wearing a omer weight belt - might be a deeper blue member maybe?

That was Keith and Kev White. I don't think they are on here but Keith tends to get everywhere so wouldn't be surprised if he's watching... Not everyone likes his style of "teaching" eh Magpie but you can glean useful bits n bobs out of what he waffles on about.

I'll second lure fishing at night though... Plenty of bass in the night on lures for me, PB's (9-12) included, quite a few 4's, 5's and a 6 as well. Even had on homemade handcrafted softies. I guess it was because it couldn't see the lure it took it thinking it was something proper!!

 

[Magpie]

No comment

Keith has been on here, as he has most places.

 

[Mr. X]

Is that KMW?

... Plenty of bass in the night on lures for me, PB's (9-12) included, quite a few 4's, 5's and a 6 as well. Even had on homemade handcrafted softies. I guess it was because it couldn't see the lure it took it thinking it was something proper!!

I'm curious, do you use a different approach for night lure fishing? For example black/dark coloured lures (for a crisp silhouette); luminous painted lures - like the Veal's excellent Maria mackerel lure (as used by Mike Ladle for quite some time) - which surprisingly glows in the dark) or the luminous Eddystone/Delta rubber eels; or maybe poppers?