My oh my it’s been a long time since I’ve been fishing but today was the day I finally got out on the coast for the first time this year and in what seems an absolute age. Lockdown has just meant the usual period of ‘cabin fever’ was extended with endless surfing the internet looking out for new things to try…. and safe to say I’m rubbish at trying to resist.
So it was I headed out this morning with a few new lures in the bag and other things to try out along with a bunch of old faithful bits of course. Wasn’t really expecting much as water temperature is still down, light north easterly winds and smallish tides would not add up to my ideal recipe for success. However, I was just happy to be making my way back to the coast. Below zero when I arrived, brisk walk required!
Set-up today was a lighter one – Tailwalk Eginn 8’6” L-R 24g rod, Shimano Stradic 3000 FK reel with two spools – one with 12lb Tasline Elite White braid and the other with 20lb Savage Gear Silencer braid both with Seaguar fluorocarbon leaders and a Breakaway mini clip to the lure. A few hard lures with me but mostly had soft lures as those were where my will power succumbed more predominantly over lockdown.
First off though it was go with the tried and tested to see if I could get myself off the mark first time back in the saddle so on went the trusty DoLive. Plenty of cast and retrieve searching out rocks and gulleys but nothing doing. Wandered on enjoying being on the rocks again despite the chill in the air, clipped on the Patchinko 125 and for the first dozen or so casts again nothing stirred but then out of nowhere the surface erupted and I was in! Nothing huge at all but a very welcome first bass of the year…
With a blank saving bass safely caught and released it was time to experiment a bit so had my first play with a Savage Gear Gravity Stick – the pulse tail version. Really liked the action of this lure from my first cast with it and within a few minutes a bass followed it almost to the rod tip without committing. Tantalisingly close but that was as good as it got with the Gravity Stick today. Switched spools from the Tasline, of which first impressions are very good, to the spool of Savage Gear Silencer to see how that performed. I also put on a Megabass Dark Sleeper goby imitation lure to give that a go as I had seen a few snippets about them so decided to take a punt on one – could see no reason why it wouldn’t work and after a number of casts working out that a slow erratic retrieve gave it a good action I got the proof that I needed that they would indeed work! Retrieving through a gulley and the rod looped over with a better fish which gave a decent little account of itself before I was able to slide it ashore, a nice 57cm bass, circa 4lb…
That was it though for the session on the bass front, but I’ll take that for an opening attempt of the year given what we’ve all been through. Boy was it good to be back out there on the wild coast, a real tonic and now I just want more of it…. have missed it immensely.
Did get me surmising I may need to look into these Dark Sleepers in more depth as they come in different weights, lengths, and patterns… can see them being very useful at some of the spots I fish where you can just imagine the bass searching out prey like gobies and blennies. They look very realistic and it’s paddletail has a great action, definitely warrants more ‘Dark (Sleeper) Thoughts’ for sure…sorry that was an awful pun!
Until next time…
Hooks, Lines & Sinkers 