With J working in a fishing tackle sale shop imagine my surprise when he failed to pull out masses of squid, black lug and peeler crab from his bait box. The method in his madness made perfectly good sense. J uses large crab and squid baits when he is fishing marks specifically for big cod, but when he is targeting smaller codling he reckons you just don't need them. I was sceptical but he said he would prove it because he knows his fishing tackel well. He then proceeded to thread three common lug up his hook and tipped it off with just half a peeler crab, bound on tight with bait elastic- now that is a low cost cod bait compared to the ones I have used over the years.
With an hour before sunset and the tide ebbing nicely, J got under way. His first cod was baited with the three lug and half a crab fishing tackle cocktail, as he had showed me, and on his second rod, he baited with three lug and a small piece of squid – just to prove a point. Both rods were cast onto the broken ground around the point and we sat back and waited and waited … and waited. Just as we were losing the light, J would in two washed-out but untouched baits and replaced them with fresh ones. It was at this point I started to worry that we might be on the road to drawing a blank, but he assured me that would not happen.
Just as the sum was dipping beneath the horizon, J first rod, the one baited with lug and half a peeler crab, registered a small bite and he started to look for his daiwa rubba keepnets. Lifting the rod from the rest, he struck, smiled and announced it was definitely a codling as he walked towards the water's edge while retrieving, not letting the line fall slack at any time. He was right, the first codling of our fishing session has fallen to the lug and half peeler bait. J quickly baited up again and cast the rod back to the same position, just on the edge of the broken ground.
When fishing the Cromer beach you can pick up a lot of small codling, so J usually only keeps those that are deep hooked – which this one was or those over 3lb. As this one was destined for the table, J decided to gut it there and then, just to check what it had been feeding on. Now, I certainly do not advise cutting fish open for the sake of it, but if you are going to cook it, be it cod, bass or pollack, it makes sense and good water craft to gut one during your session to see what fishing tackle they are feeding on. That way, as fly fisherman would say, you can match the hatch, that is to try to bait up with what the fish are feeding on, or at least pick the nearest bait you have available.
Our first codling of the night was staffed to the gills with small crabs and a few small prawns. It certainly made a lot of sense to fish J's half peeled baits and proved he certainly known what he is talking about.
During the next hour J hauled out another five codling, all on small lug and half peeler crab baits and not one fell to the lug and squid. So our daiwa rubba keepnets were pretty full. Rochelle had noticed that J was catching and soon came over to discover what the successful bait was.
After switching to the same combination she latched onto the action by landing four prime channel cod. Nine codling in just over two hours is superb sport by any standards and shows Cromer is well above par when it comes to searching for a top winter cod mark.
Showing posts with label pike fishing tackle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pike fishing tackle. Show all posts
Sunday, 15 April 2012
Sea fishing tackle review, Part 2
Another feature of these points of Cromer coast is that they disturb the tide. If you stop for a couple of seconds and watch the water from the beach path, you will clearly notice the tides change in movement around these points and when looking for fish, even the slightest change in tidal movement is always a good place to start, this is also where you will need a good bite alarm, such as fox bite alarm. The simplest way to describe this is to imagine a beach is like a motorway flat and featureless, and then you come across a service station. Basically the slightest feature like these points, with their differing sea bed and tidal movements, are like service stations for cod travelling up the channel. The only difference is, service stations do not serve crab.
After the slog along the beach, it was starting to get cold. Mind you, if you wear good sea fishing clothing such as diem clothing it is not too bad. J finally picked his mark for the evening session and his fishing partner Rochelle started to set up her sea fishing equipment about 100 yards to the right of J. I find the best time to pick an angler's brains is while they are rigging up, so a J set up his sea fishing equipment I quizzed him, and there is what I found out regarding guru fishing tackle and fishing techniques. There isn’t any specific tide when the water in Cromer fishes best, basically it fishes on any tide as long as the tides are not huge springs which make it difficult to hold bottom due to powerful currents. J prefers the out-going tide although he admits he has had great days fishing this area on the flood and incoming tide too. As J set up his guru fishing tackle I couldn't help notice he was also using match rods from Daiwa. Usually I associate the Cromer beach with heavier, rough-ground rods, but when I asked J why he was using them it all made perfect good sense.
The Daiwa sea fishing rods happily cast from 150 to 200 gram of lead, which is what I use, but the main reason is that their softer tips bend and lean into the tide better. If you use stiffer-tipped rough-ground rods, on this type of broken ground, said J, the tide pull is going to keep bumping the lead out. For a bite alarm he prefers to use a fox bite alarms. His chosen reel to pair with the Daiwa sea rod is a Daiwa Saltist 20H, loaded with 15ib clear Berkley Big Game and a 60lb shockleader because the reel has cranking power and the line is second to none for rough-ground fishing.
On the business end of his fishing tackle, J was wearing diem clothing for sea fishing and using a rig that I have not used before – a pulley dropper rig. His theory is that in the strong tides of the channel, the rig that offers the best bait presentation by far would be a simple running leger. But, as we all know, you cannot cast a running leger long distance because it is not aerodynamic and, due to this, most of the bait flies off mid-air. So the pulley dropper basically gives him a running leger that can be blasted to the orizon with no worries of damage to his baits. For the snood he uses 30lb clear Amnesia and two 2/0 or 3/0 Sakuma Manta Extra hooks, Pennel rigged.
After the slog along the beach, it was starting to get cold. Mind you, if you wear good sea fishing clothing such as diem clothing it is not too bad. J finally picked his mark for the evening session and his fishing partner Rochelle started to set up her sea fishing equipment about 100 yards to the right of J. I find the best time to pick an angler's brains is while they are rigging up, so a J set up his sea fishing equipment I quizzed him, and there is what I found out regarding guru fishing tackle and fishing techniques. There isn’t any specific tide when the water in Cromer fishes best, basically it fishes on any tide as long as the tides are not huge springs which make it difficult to hold bottom due to powerful currents. J prefers the out-going tide although he admits he has had great days fishing this area on the flood and incoming tide too. As J set up his guru fishing tackle I couldn't help notice he was also using match rods from Daiwa. Usually I associate the Cromer beach with heavier, rough-ground rods, but when I asked J why he was using them it all made perfect good sense.
The Daiwa sea fishing rods happily cast from 150 to 200 gram of lead, which is what I use, but the main reason is that their softer tips bend and lean into the tide better. If you use stiffer-tipped rough-ground rods, on this type of broken ground, said J, the tide pull is going to keep bumping the lead out. For a bite alarm he prefers to use a fox bite alarms. His chosen reel to pair with the Daiwa sea rod is a Daiwa Saltist 20H, loaded with 15ib clear Berkley Big Game and a 60lb shockleader because the reel has cranking power and the line is second to none for rough-ground fishing.
On the business end of his fishing tackle, J was wearing diem clothing for sea fishing and using a rig that I have not used before – a pulley dropper rig. His theory is that in the strong tides of the channel, the rig that offers the best bait presentation by far would be a simple running leger. But, as we all know, you cannot cast a running leger long distance because it is not aerodynamic and, due to this, most of the bait flies off mid-air. So the pulley dropper basically gives him a running leger that can be blasted to the orizon with no worries of damage to his baits. For the snood he uses 30lb clear Amnesia and two 2/0 or 3/0 Sakuma Manta Extra hooks, Pennel rigged.
Friday, 30 March 2012
Feeding habits of Carp
There is not a lot of fish in still water which could match the speed and strength of wild carp. Even though there is some genetic difference between the wild carp and the common carp, there are no apparent visual difference apart from shape. And yet a slender common carp can still be visually mistaken for a wild carp and a chubby wild can be easily confused with a common.
From the original wild carp, different strains have been produced by selective breeding throughout Europe during the past three centuries. As a result of this selective breading were produced many different carp species. Here are some of the most common species.
The king common carp is probably one of the most favourable species and is widely adored by most carp anglers and they always invest into good carp fishing tackle to catch one. King common carp is the fully-scaled modern equivalent of the original wild carp, selectively bred to be thicker across the body, deeper and much faster growing with a far greater weight potential.
Ultimate weight for a king carp is still uncertain. Monsters of 80 lb and more have been recorded so there is every reason to expect that in the right growing conditions a king carp can reach as much as 100 lb somewhere in European waters. It is therefore necessary to use good quality carp fishing tackle to catch one. For example good quality carp fishing reels and rods are a must have.
In Britain however summers do not get sufficiently hot and do not last sufficiently long meaning the target weight of 100 lb is not achievable. The top weights here remains in the lower 50 lb brackets. Although, with temperature in the UK being gradually on the rise, this can easily change.
The fully-scaled mirror is completely covered in scales of different sizes, is by far the prettiest and possibly the most desirable to catch of all species. The average weight of fully-scaled mirror is about 34 lb and they usually respond well to both carp fishing tackle and pike fishing tackle.
The scatter-scale mirror generally has a continuous line of scales on both sides of the dorsal fin from head to tail, with single or odd groups appearing almost anywhere, particularly close to the tail root or head, or both by far the most common form of mirror carp. The average weight of this carp in the UK is 36lb and just like fully-scaled mirror it responds well to both carp and pike fishing tackle.
The linear mirror is known for its straight row of uniform scales along the lateral line, plus odd groups near the tail and on both sides of the dorsal fin. The average weight is less that 30lb and linear mirror responds well to any fishing tackle.
The starburst mirror is really a scatter-scale mirror with a presence of tiny, bright scales shot all over the lower half of its body. Italian goldfish and shubunkins have very similar scaleage, reminiscent of a burst of stars – hence this particular carp's nickname. They also respond well to any fishing tackle. Some anglers using pike reels for targeting starburst mirror, but in my opinion they do not work.
The plated mirror again is really a scatter-scale fish with anything from one to several enormous plate-like scales set in an irregular-shaped group on one or both sides of its body. Not a fish that wears well in a busy fisheries, because during the fight the line can catch behind these big scales and force them out. It is therefore you are not very likely to see plated mirror in your local fishery. Some anglers using pike reels for targeting plated mirror, but in my opinion they do not work.
The leather carp is completely free of scales over the body with perhaps the odd line of small scales either side of the dorsal fin. The average weight for a leather carp is about 28lb. Some anglers say that they have managed to catch leather carp on pike fishing tackle and also on plain fishing tackle.
The colour of carp, to certain extent is governed by the colour of water in which they live. In sandy or light green water the body of fish fades to beige, grey or dull brass with a distinct warm tinge to the tail and lower fins. This applies to wild and king carp, and carp that live in clear and weedy water can differ from bronze to slate blue with scales of gold or silver.
Feeding of carp is very aggressive. In the wild they dominates the water and have more than a fare share of food. This feeding habit is why carp is one of the first fish that reaches bate and runs away with line off your carp fishing reel. Although in the dark balance swings towards others, such as cat fish and pike as they naturally become more active.
Since carp is such an aggressive feeder, so why is it so hard to catch one? Well, the answer to this would probably be the fact that carp are smart, and they learn well through association what to be careful about. An example of this would be previously used baits they have recently been cough on, thick line, insensitive terminal rigs, shadows on the water, unnatural sounds picked up through bank vibrations. Thus, once the carp learns to associate one of these factors with danger it will be enough for the carp to stay away, be more alert and stop feeding in such an aggressive way. This is one of the reasons why during carp fishing it is important to be stealthy, well camouflaged use good tackle and good quality carp fishing reels when tacking previously unfished water as those fish would rarely see humans or hear their disturbance along the banks and this would make them more alarmed.
Natural diet of carp mostly consists of miniature life forms, although carp will generally eat anything humans give them. With its two pairs of barbules the carp is a past master at seeking out midge larvae and annelid worms the deepest silt. Occasionally a carp may come up to the surface to catch floaters.
In prolifically stocked waters, especially where competition for the natural aquatic food is high, carp consume far more fish that most anglers could imagine. It is therefore you can use pretty much any tackle with can fit into your seat boxes and fishing boxes. During the spawning season it is natural for them to munch away on both the spawn and newly hatched flies. And this does not stop them from enjoying larger small fish either dead or alive at any time of the year.
During the hot month carp are regularly caught on spinners, spoons and jigs, which would suggest that carp are becoming a more aggressive predator the warmer the water. Other favourite natural foods are all aquatic insects and beetles, shrimps, assellus and a certain amount of algae from silt and mud on the bottom.
From the original wild carp, different strains have been produced by selective breeding throughout Europe during the past three centuries. As a result of this selective breading were produced many different carp species. Here are some of the most common species.
The king common carp is probably one of the most favourable species and is widely adored by most carp anglers and they always invest into good carp fishing tackle to catch one. King common carp is the fully-scaled modern equivalent of the original wild carp, selectively bred to be thicker across the body, deeper and much faster growing with a far greater weight potential.
Ultimate weight for a king carp is still uncertain. Monsters of 80 lb and more have been recorded so there is every reason to expect that in the right growing conditions a king carp can reach as much as 100 lb somewhere in European waters. It is therefore necessary to use good quality carp fishing tackle to catch one. For example good quality carp fishing reels and rods are a must have.
In Britain however summers do not get sufficiently hot and do not last sufficiently long meaning the target weight of 100 lb is not achievable. The top weights here remains in the lower 50 lb brackets. Although, with temperature in the UK being gradually on the rise, this can easily change.
The fully-scaled mirror is completely covered in scales of different sizes, is by far the prettiest and possibly the most desirable to catch of all species. The average weight of fully-scaled mirror is about 34 lb and they usually respond well to both carp fishing tackle and pike fishing tackle.
The scatter-scale mirror generally has a continuous line of scales on both sides of the dorsal fin from head to tail, with single or odd groups appearing almost anywhere, particularly close to the tail root or head, or both by far the most common form of mirror carp. The average weight of this carp in the UK is 36lb and just like fully-scaled mirror it responds well to both carp and pike fishing tackle.
The linear mirror is known for its straight row of uniform scales along the lateral line, plus odd groups near the tail and on both sides of the dorsal fin. The average weight is less that 30lb and linear mirror responds well to any fishing tackle.
The starburst mirror is really a scatter-scale mirror with a presence of tiny, bright scales shot all over the lower half of its body. Italian goldfish and shubunkins have very similar scaleage, reminiscent of a burst of stars – hence this particular carp's nickname. They also respond well to any fishing tackle. Some anglers using pike reels for targeting starburst mirror, but in my opinion they do not work.
The plated mirror again is really a scatter-scale fish with anything from one to several enormous plate-like scales set in an irregular-shaped group on one or both sides of its body. Not a fish that wears well in a busy fisheries, because during the fight the line can catch behind these big scales and force them out. It is therefore you are not very likely to see plated mirror in your local fishery. Some anglers using pike reels for targeting plated mirror, but in my opinion they do not work.
The leather carp is completely free of scales over the body with perhaps the odd line of small scales either side of the dorsal fin. The average weight for a leather carp is about 28lb. Some anglers say that they have managed to catch leather carp on pike fishing tackle and also on plain fishing tackle.
The colour of carp, to certain extent is governed by the colour of water in which they live. In sandy or light green water the body of fish fades to beige, grey or dull brass with a distinct warm tinge to the tail and lower fins. This applies to wild and king carp, and carp that live in clear and weedy water can differ from bronze to slate blue with scales of gold or silver.
Feeding of carp is very aggressive. In the wild they dominates the water and have more than a fare share of food. This feeding habit is why carp is one of the first fish that reaches bate and runs away with line off your carp fishing reel. Although in the dark balance swings towards others, such as cat fish and pike as they naturally become more active.
Since carp is such an aggressive feeder, so why is it so hard to catch one? Well, the answer to this would probably be the fact that carp are smart, and they learn well through association what to be careful about. An example of this would be previously used baits they have recently been cough on, thick line, insensitive terminal rigs, shadows on the water, unnatural sounds picked up through bank vibrations. Thus, once the carp learns to associate one of these factors with danger it will be enough for the carp to stay away, be more alert and stop feeding in such an aggressive way. This is one of the reasons why during carp fishing it is important to be stealthy, well camouflaged use good tackle and good quality carp fishing reels when tacking previously unfished water as those fish would rarely see humans or hear their disturbance along the banks and this would make them more alarmed.
Natural diet of carp mostly consists of miniature life forms, although carp will generally eat anything humans give them. With its two pairs of barbules the carp is a past master at seeking out midge larvae and annelid worms the deepest silt. Occasionally a carp may come up to the surface to catch floaters.
In prolifically stocked waters, especially where competition for the natural aquatic food is high, carp consume far more fish that most anglers could imagine. It is therefore you can use pretty much any tackle with can fit into your seat boxes and fishing boxes. During the spawning season it is natural for them to munch away on both the spawn and newly hatched flies. And this does not stop them from enjoying larger small fish either dead or alive at any time of the year.
During the hot month carp are regularly caught on spinners, spoons and jigs, which would suggest that carp are becoming a more aggressive predator the warmer the water. Other favourite natural foods are all aquatic insects and beetles, shrimps, assellus and a certain amount of algae from silt and mud on the bottom.
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