A lot of effort for a few fish..

Lately the weather has been unstable and in combination with swells hitting the west coast of the island, means that my best wrasse marks were unfishable.. I noticed though that even on unaffected areas by the swells and northerly winds, fish just didn't want to play ball.
So after a couple marathon sessions and changing many marks, I managed to catch mainly small wrasse with only a few exceptions. I also wanted to try some new soft baits and was hoping to catch a big fish to test my new rod but unfortunately things don't always go as planned..
At least I was able to enjoy catching the smaller fish that did provide me the feedback on the lures and presentations I was using (slower days are better for trying lures in my opinion).
Most of the fish were caught on carolina or texas rigged 4'' Lunker City Ribsters, 6'' Big Bite Curl Tail Worms and the biggest wrasse was caught on an 4.5'' Owner Shivertail Worm. I also managed to catch a nice pollock as the conditions are better suited to them right now.

The biggest wrasse.

I'm still getting used to the extra fast action of my Major Craft KG Evolution and really loving the
feedback I'm getting on the retrieve, as even tiny bumps or changes in weight (weed etc) are felt easily. Only need some serious fish to test its power now! More over I have heard reports of some schoolie bass attacking poppers lately and hopefully they will be here in numbers soon.

Thanks for reading!


Gear used.
Rod: Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: Spiderwire invisibraid 0.10mm, Trilene fluorocarbon 10lbs
Rig: mainly Carolina and Texas with a 7g bullet weight and Matzuo offset hooks sizes 1-3/0
Lure: 4.5'' Lunker City Ribster, 6'' Big Bite Curl Tail worm, 4.5'' Owner Shivertail.

Just like spinning for trout!

For the past two days I have been going down the harbour after work targeting the pollock but only managed a mackerel the first day and a blank yesterday.. I don't know the reason why the fish didn't come on the bite as the tides were good. It could be the weather as it was a bit chilly, but tonight I was determined to go and catch some pollock!
I had a short session in the morning were I used some old school spinners and managed to get a couple follows from a bass or mullet (cant say for sure) but the fish turned as soon as it saw me. Nevertheless this gave me the idea to try them at night as they offer a different pattern/action and they could hopefully get me some fish..
Thus as soon as I finished work I went down the harbour and started fishing at around 21:45. I started with soft plastics but was getting nothing. Then I put on a cheapo size 2 golden spinner and start casting, letting it touch bottom and retrieve in a medium/fast pace with some erratic twitches. Soon I felt a sharp tug and fish on! It was a small pollock of about a pound. I recast at the same spot and get the same. I had found the fish and was catching them a fish at a chuck. They weren't big fish but I felt good trying something different and succeeding in catching after two nights in a row..
I also tried various other lures but it was clear that they only wanted the spinner!
The action held until it got really dark and then I decided to call it a day.

I think I landed about 8 of them and managed to loose one as it shed the hook. It was really nice catching them on the spinner and it reminded me of the effectiveness of these simple age-old lures.. A good reason to use them more often..

Thanks for reading and tight lines!


Gear used.
Rod: Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: Spiderwire invisibraid 0.10mm, Trilene fluorocarbon 10lbs
Lure: size 2 golde plated spinner.

New rod quick test!

A couple days ago I finally received the substitution of my broken Exage mini tele travel spin.
The new rod is a Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST (2.53m 3-15g) and I couldn't wait to try it out! Finally I got my chance today and on my break I headed straight away for my favourite wrasse-mark.
The rod is solid tipped so I can also use it for my main rod in winter on the dropshot.
It is extra fast actioned and gives the impression of strength with a very small weight though.
On the session, the rod gave me a unexpectedly good feedback on the retrieve (as on solid tip rods the tip 'sucks' most of the feedback and you 'see' rather than 'feel' the bites ) and due to this sensitivity along with the action I missed some takes as I was striking too fast... Getting the hang of this though I did manage to land a few towards the end of the session.. Moreover the fights seemed even more pronounced as I was using braid and they gave me the impression that the harder you fight these fish, the harder they pull back!

A very pleasant short session with the rod performing well, even though it took me a while to get used to its sensitivity and seems very promising..

More to come!


Gear used.
Rod: Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: Spiderwire invisibraid 0.10mm, Trilene fluorocarbon 10lbs
Rig: mainly texas with a 7g bullet weight and size 2 wide gape Camo hook.
Lure: Big Bite Shaking squirrel 4.5''

 

All day session..

Yesterday was my day off and I decided to fish a couple of marks on the island that cant be visited on my working days as they are too far or difficult to access. Saying that, I am now the proud owner of a bicycle that will help me to fish these places more often...
I visited the southern part of the island around 12 o clock and although there was a strong head-on wind, I decided to stay there as the tide was coming in and I was sure there would be some fish there. I was gonna be fishing with braid and beefier tackle as I wanted to check the rods action and also to limit my gear loss!
I begun fishing with a small pilker, in order to target some pollock as I haven't found the best areas for these fish yet.
After a few casts I finally got a good bite and following a good fight I got what I wanted! A nice pollock that looked as rough as the water he came out off, was in the net.. I persisted with the metals but there were no more signs of pollock and I changed to the soft plastics. The area seems to hold large numbers of them feeding in the narrow bay, but so far I haven't caught any really big ones there.. I rigged a 4'' Reins rockvibe shad on a 7g Jobee weedless jighead and started getting bites as soon as it touched bottom. They were mostly average fish with weights ranging from 0.5kg to 1kg but good fun nonetheless.

Geared up to go!

I wanted to try some more areas so I decided to move on. I went to the adjacent bay were Ive only fished once before, though unsuccessfully. It is very surprising, as the water is very deep there and the bottom is covered with kelp. I fished with the Sp's but got not even a single bite, I changed to a mini-pilker and on the third cast I got a very aggressive take and a vigorous fight.. The fish was fighting in midwater and I couldn't tell what it was. It felt a bit like a mackerel,but then it went on the surface and I saw it was a nice garfish! It is a very good fighter and another new species for me on the island. Although I kept trying I got no more fish there. I think that wrasse prefer a rocky rather than kelpy habitat and that's maybe why I get none there.

Again I decided to move, this time on my rock-ledge mark to target some bigger wrasse and try some other presentations and hard lures. More specifically, I wanted to try a tiny squid imitation jig by Aquarius (Ernest Mago Ika Sama) that I ordered from japan last year and never got the chance to use it..
I started working the lure next to the rock wall and got some tentative bites, after giving the lure some gentle twitches I had a solid take and a nice wrasse soon after. I got some more wrasse and also a pollack, that all seemed to like the little jig.

The hour was getting late, and as the bites started to dry up I called it a day. A very long session but I really enjoyed it as I caught a nice variety of fish and on different presentations. No monsters this time but they don't need to be with the LRF gear!

Thanks for reading.


Gear used.
Rod: Golden Mean Symphonia, 0.6-8g, 8'6''
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: Spiderwire invisibraid 0.10mm, Trilene fluorocarbon 10lbs
Lure: Solvkroken Stingsild and Jaxon pilkers 7g, 4'' Reins Rockvibe shad,
 Ernest Mago Ika Sama jig 3.5g

 

Wrasse on hard lures.

Yesterday I managed to get the night off from work and decided to visit the mark near my house since I haven't fished there for a while. Moreover I wanted to try some new things , namely to fish for wrasse with hard lures and also figure out the areas pollock prefer here.
I started fishing around 19:00 and the tide was coming in.
Firstly, I started fishing the Jika rig to see if the fish are there.. After catching the first one I changed presentation by tying a small vibration lure from Jackall. I was trying to mimic a fleeing crustacean by letting the lure static for long periods and just giving it short sharp flicks to  make it vibrate and letting it sink again. The bites came faster than I expected and after setting the hook, I had my
first wrasse on a hard lure!

The first one on a hard lure!

 I managed to get more fish on the same lure, with the biggest being about 1.5kg. They seemed to hit the lure soon after the first couple twitches at the bottom. The lure seemed to work better from a near vertical or high position as I had more control and could make it vibrate with shorter twitches. Although not nearly as snag proof as a texas rig, I managed to cover the area fast and didn't have any missed bites..

 

 

As the light was fading fast and the bites dried up, I decided to move to the inner area of the peninsula I was on. That area hasn't provided me with any fish so far but seems fishy and there was some prey fish activity.. I switched lure to a small ice-pilker with a single assist hook and started casting and jigging it about. At one point I let the lure fall next to the rock-face I was standing and when it touched bottom, I gave it a couple jerks.. I got a proper bite and the fish crash-dived straight to the bottom taking drag and chaffing the line on the rocks. The line held and I managed to get the fish up. I was expecting a pollock but actually it was a feisty little wrasse!

I kept working the area and did manage to catch some pollock in the end, but not the ones I was after, with a shoal of mini pollock attacking the pilker every time!

 

A very interesting session that got me thinking about my approach and presentations. I will need to get some more fish on other types of hard baits as well, but it seems that this species is a true bottom predator and full of surprises..


Tight lines all!


Gear used.
Rod: Golden Mean Symphonia, 0.6-8g, 8'6''
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon, 3lbs
lure: mainly Jackall TN50 Salt and Jaxon 7g Ice pilker.

Ultralight shore jigging.

Since the last couple of sessions were the fish showed a preference for smaller baits, I was really fired up on further testing and refining my approach. Today I got the opportunity for another evening session and as soon as I finished work I picked up my gear and was off for the harbour.
 I was planning to fish mainly with small metals and maybe some soft plastics to determine their effectiveness. The tide was coming in and there was a slight chop on the sea. Perfect conditions!
I arrived at the harbour to find two friends already there. They had been fishing with large shads and feathers and hadn't done much yet. I clipped a 5g hexagonal mini pirk from Jaxon on my line and started casting near the mouth of the harbour. I was working the lure near the bottom and after giving some rapid jerks I would let the lure fall towards the bottom again on a slack line.The results came soon with small pollock attacking my lure one after the other and giving good fights on my gear.. After a long cast were I allowed the lure to stand for a bit on the bottom, I got an unusual tug on the line but no fish.. I let the lure fall again and felt another tug, I set the hook and felt dead weight on the line.. On the retrieve I was getting some movement and pulls and I was puzzled with what was going on. The mystery was solved when a nice squid came to the surface with the pirk on its tentacles! I dully landed it while my friends were left with their mouths open..
After the squid I managed a nice mackerel and more pollock until I lost the pirk on a snag.. In order to lessen the chance of snagging, I clipped another pirk on but without the treble hooks. Instead I passed a small assist hook on a short thread from the snap as is the norm on shore jigging. I started fishing and was soon back on the fish. I got another mackerel and more pollock and noticed no difference on the hook up rate.. After a while and when the sun was almost gone, I got a good hit but the fish didn't stick. I kept retrieving and got a proper hit again but this time I could feel a good fish. It gave a very good fight with the drag screeching and the fish staying low..
As I was getting it closer to the harbour wall everything went solid.. I gave some free line to the fish and as soon as it started moving I closed the bail arm and managed to raise it to the surface.. It was a nice pollock (thought it bigger) of about 2 pounds and the biggest one so far in the Island for me.
Later on as it was getting darker I managed to get another pollock on the softies this time. The lure being a 2'' Fish arrow J flash shad.

 

 A very good outing and I thoroughly enjoyed it! This island is really a special place for fishing as there is potential here for great catches as well as a nice variety of fish for the keen lure angler.

Tight lines!

Gear used.
Rod: Golden Mean Symphonia, 0.6-8g, 8'6''
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon, 3lbs
lure: mini pirks and ice jigs 5-7g, 2'' Fish arrow J shad on Fish arrow wheel jighead.