Day game...

I have been very busy lately at work and didn't have much time for fishing during the day. Instead I focused my efforts in night fishing. Saying that, I had a very good all day session on my day off with some decent fish among hordes of one-pounders!
I had decided to fish two marks in one day, one overlooked and very close to me and the other one at the south part of the Island on Little Sark. The day was glorious with a slight breeze, warm and sunny.
On the first spot there is a point that ends near a few islands and reefs, while also having some nice gullies and holes formed around it. I started fishing with some Texas rigged, cheap soft plastics that were a good sandeel/worm imitation and although it took a while, the results started to show.
Most of the fish were small but in tip top condition and giving some nice fights in the gin clear water. In some cases, fishing in a gully with kelp around the walls I even managed to sight-fish for wrasse! This gave me a good insight on the way the fish hunt and attack the lure.
They would follow at once when the lure passed through their 'lair' and either bite straight on or attack as soon as the retrieve paused. The sight of the fish attacking and fighting was truly memorable! Plenty of fish were caught and towards the end I managed a better one that fought accordingly..

I arrived on the second mark in late afternoon as the tide was nearing the high mark. The wind had picked up but the fish didn't seem to mind. I kept getting small wrasse after wrasse on the cheap but very effective 4.5" Netbait Finesse worm simply texas rigged on a size 2/0 Maruto offset hook and a 7g bullet head. I switched to a larger lure, trying to avoid all the little ones and put on a 5" Poor Boys Dixie Darter, a chunky worm/bug type lure that the fish seemed to love. But again only smallies..
I decided to move to the adjacent gullies that were more affected by the wind and the bites lessened significantly.. Going back to the Finesse worm I got some strong taps and after recasting parallel to the rock-wall, I gave a few turns of the reel and with the lure almost vertically, I got a very good bite that developed in a frantic run! The fish dived straight back and I couldn't hold it.. After a very good fight I managed to land the best fish of the day..

I was getting ready to go home when I stumbled on a nice looking rockpool that had some good size fish in it.. I prepped the rod again and changed line to the 3lb fluoro spool. I tied a size 12 Owner splitshotter hook, an SSG shot and threaded a small Power isome section on the hook. The results were instantaneous..!

It was so much fun catching the gobies I did it the following day as well.

That was my day fishing sessions the past week, nothing very serious but really good fun. I'm also happy that I finally got some time for proper LRF using my Golden Mean Symphonia that I don't get the chance to use on my wrasse fishing. The  rod has seen some extended use lately though during the night as it is my main 'weapon' against the hordes of nocturnal predators that have been showing up lately!

Tight lines and more to follow soon.

Gear used
Rod: Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g. Golden Mean Symphonia, 0.6-8g, 8'6''
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000,
Mainline: Berkley Nanofil 0.10mm, YGK nitlon DFC fluoro leader 10lbs. YGK Nitlon DFC, 3lbs.
lures: 4.5" Netbait Finesse worm, 5" Poor Boys Dixie Darter. Power Isome small.

Where are the big ones?!

I haven't had much time for fishing lately, but on my day off I had an enjoyable session in the north part of the island. I decided to carry the medium and heavier setups, so that I could hopefully target the larger fish while not saying no to the smaller ones if their parents didn't play ball!
I reached the mark on high tide and started fishing the shallow bays while moving towards the tip of the point. Setting the lighter setup first, I used a carolina rig with a 45cm fluorocarbon trace and two 4g sinkers followed by a bead. This increases the noise and the long trace helps keep the lure floating over the thick weed on the bottom. The bites weren't coming fast but I managed some small wrasse.
Getting closer to the tip and with the tide starting to move out, the fish turned on and the fishing got better. They were no monsters, averaging a couple pounds, but there were plenty of them to keep me happy.

I changed rig to a weighted hook and swimbait/jerkbait lures and the fish kept coming. A very successful swimbait was the 4" Daiwa D'fin. although a very sensitive lure that gets ripped rather easily after a few fish.

Having my fill of these smaller wrasse, I decided to change to the heavier setup and the bigger lures. I put on a 25g Fiiish Black Minnow, and started casting and working it from top to bottom. The bites didn't take long to materialise but not from the fish I was after.. There seemed to be loads of smaller wrasse feeding hard and they appeared to really like this lure.

After a while I decided to change back to the light gear as the big fish weren't around, and after a couple casts near an area with some good flow, I managed to hook something serious. The fish made a nice long run but managed to spit the hook!
I kept working the area but got more small wrasse, until I decided to move back to the shallow bay I  started from. Usually around this time (near sunset) wrasse hit well on cranckbaits and the place being shallow and with lots of rocks seemed ideal for crancking. I put on a deep diver and started to bounce it along the bottom, feeling for snags and letting the lure rise and giving it a sharp pull again. I managed two more wrasse and then decided to call it a day.

Well I may not have gotten the big fish but with the limited time I've had lately it was really enjoyable to get amongst so many of these feisty little wrasse.. I was very impressed with the Fiiish Black Minnow as it really looks nice and attracts the fish. I have also had a much better wrasse on it but the photo is terrible.. I think the designers would be surprised at the effectiveness of this lure on wrasse!

Thanks for reading and tight lines!

Gear used

Rod: Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g. Shimano Beastmaster BX STC, 4pc, 14-40g, 8'-9
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000, Abu Garcia Soron STX 40
Mainline: Berkley Nanofil 0.10mm, YGK nitlon DFC fluoro leader 10lbs. Daiwa tournament x8 braid, 0.12mm
Rig: weighted offset hooks and wide gape jigheads, sizes 2/0-4/0, weight 5g-7g. Carolina with double 4g sinkers and 45cm trace.
Lures: 4.5" Big Bite Shaking Squirrels, 4.5" Hogy Sandeels, 4" Daiwa D'fin, 4" Reins Rockvibe shad, 12cm Fiiish Black Minnow. 

Match the hatch...

The past few nights and especially on Tuesday (full moon), there has been increased feeding activity during night time at the harbour. I have fished every night and tried to suss out a pattern and/or a successful presentation.
At first I tried the usual metals and spinners and only managed to catch some mackerel just before dark. Then I tried small paddletail shads and grubs that got me a few fish and some bumps but not much else. I then tried what I had in mind, meaning a slim, straight softbait, to imitate the sandeels that have lately made an appearance in the shallows. The results were instant.. Pollock were hitting like there was no tomorrow! I managed to catch on the first night, approximately 20 of them in the span of a couple hours fishing. Not really large but fish of 1-2lbs gave a good account of themselves as I was using 3lbs flouro straight through.
The other nights were not so impressive but fish still showed a clear preference of straight slim softbaits mounted on a 5g Sakura fishhead jighead. The retrieve was slow-medium with jerks and twitches as well as pauses. Fish would mostly hit near the surface, but when it got windy, at midwater and bottom as well.
The most effective lures were the: 10cm Savagear sandeel slug and the 4.5" Big Bite Shaking squirrel although I'm sure that anything slim and about 10cm in length would 've done the job..

Its really satisfying to manage and get it right as it doesn't happen very often! I'm still surprised by the increased aggression of the fish during the full moon as although conditions were pretty similar on the following nights and fish were still there, they didn't commit as much.
Anyway I'll be soon trying to target some better fish if they are there with bigger lures and heavier gear.

Thanks for reading.

Gear used.
Rod: Major Craft KG Evolution KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g
Reel: Mitchell Mag Pro 1000
Mainline: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon 3lbs,
 Spiderwire invisibraid 0.10mm with YGK nitlon DFC fluoro leader 10lbs
Rig: Sakura fishhead jigheads, 5g
Lures: 4.5" Big Bite Shaking Squirrels, Savagear sandeel slugs
 

Finally some silver!

The past couple of weeks I have been playing around with different techniques and presentations in order to manage and target the main predators of the island with one gear/presentation. I ended up with using soft jerkbaits and slug-type lures on weighted offset hooks as the most effective way of doing this. It is also quite reasonable as my main target species (wrasse, bass, pollock) all prey on slim species like sandeels that have finally found their way in numbers near the coast.
 I have had very good results on wrasse with some very enjoyable sessions and even got the odd follow from bass, that convinced me that soft jerkbaits are the way to go.

I used slim softbaits from various manufacturers, but the most effective have been the: Big Bite Shaking squirrels, Hogy Sandeels, Savagear sandeel slugs, Lunker City Ribsters and Dichoso Umiushi worms. The hooks I use are weighted Camo Offset hooks, Big Bite weighted EWG hooks and AGM wide gape jigheads.

Today having the whole day to my self I visited a mark that holds big fish and can be fished throughout most states of the tide. I arrived a bit late with the tide ebbing fast but thought it worthwhile to stay on. I fished trying to cover as much area possible but had no bites for about an hour. After changing many lures, I put on a Lunker city Ribster on a 5g Camo weighted offset hook and started working a kelp-ridden area next  to a big boulder. Midway on the retrieve I felt a light tap and immediately stopped the retrieve waiting for the usual following taps as the wrasse bites the lure. Only this time there were no following taps just some gentle nips. Unable to wait any longer, I decided to set the hook and I felt some good weight on the line straight on. The fish took some line but then came close very easily something rare for wrasse as they dive and thrash all over the place... Getting it closer it became obvious that it wasn't a wrasse but instead I had a nice bass on my line! As soon as the fish saw me it started thrashing violently but I managed to get it swiftly on the rocks. My first bass on Sark was lying in front of me, a nice and healthy fish of about 3-4 lbs that went straight back after a couple of photos. After this fish I persisted with the soft slims and got a few nice wrasse. There were no small fish around surprisingly, with all the fish being of decent size. Moreover I had never before caught wrasse so close to the ebb and at such shallow water. The last fish was caught no further than 5m away from me and at about 1m depth...

 

 

I think that better results will come if I stick with this approach as it will allow me to target more efficiently and effectively the main predators here without the need for different gear and further purchases! Although simple looking and not fancy or high tech, these lures used in the right way can be extremely effective.

Tight lines and 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, YGK nitlon DFC fluoro leader 10lbs
Rig: weighted offset hooks and wide gape jigheads, sizes 2/0-4/0, weight 3.5-5g
Lures: 4.5" Big Bite Shaking Squirrels, 4.5" Hogy Sandeels, 10cm Savagear Sandeel slugs, 5" Dichoso Umiushi worms, 4.5" Lunker City Ribsters.