Tuesday 5 May 2009

I would love to say we nailed the bass......

  • ......but we didn't !! Andy and I managed to get out over the high water and back yesterday afternoon, and I reckon the conditions looked spot on. OK, so a bigger tide would have been nicer for where we were fishing (Andy's mark, somewhere new to me), but the water clarity and general sea conditions were ideal. Just enough "life" to the water, loads of very inviting looking ground for the bass to hunt over, but sadly the fish forgot to turn up !! We both blanked in quite spectacular style. I sincerely hope you lot had a bank holiday weekend filled with a few more fish.

  • Back to the drawing board on this one. What a stunning looking mark to fish though, I fancy this place to throw up some nice bass this year. That is if I haven't gone and emigrated over to Ireland. Enjoy the close season lads !! Will be thinking of you.......

  • Not even a hit or a follow, and we tried different lures, different retrieves, you name it, but not a sniff. I would like to be out fishing a lot more than I am currently, but it is just not possible at the moment. I am going to be in the Isles of Scilly this coming weekend, principally to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary, but if the weather behaves then of course I will get out and do a bit of fishing and photography with Del. Can't wait to get back over there. Still one of the most special places on earth, and it's only just off our coastline.

  • How do you choose a lure from this lot ? They all look so nice !! Andy has got it as bad as the next man, and we laughed about the fact that it is very tough to make a phone call to somebody like Mick at his tackle shop here and not come away with a bruised bank account. I am trying to hard to exercise some decent self-control at the moment and resist buying the Tenryu Super Mix 240, a fishing rod that I really, really want. The Red Dragon Express that I have is still the ultimate (hard lure) plugging rod I reckon (ok, the Rod Bar 270 comes a very close second), but I could do with a little more "feel" for using soft plastics. Give me a while and I reckon I could talk myself into one......

  • I spent a few hours on Saturday up at Nick Hart's Open Day, and it was fantastic. Lots of people there, loads of anglers fly fishing on the lakes, and some monster trout being caught, including one of over 17lbs that morning. Plus another over 14lbs. Those are some fish. It is great to see so many people out and about doing something connected with fishing, especially in the current climate. Roll on the summer.

  • Still, who really gives a damn about blanking for bass when you can click here and watch the new video to the immense "Guardians of Asgard" song off Amon Amarth's latest album - the monstrously mighty Twilight of the Thunder God (see my original review here). As I have said before, who says music doesn't influence you ? And then you could weep tears of metal emotion to the video of arguably my favourite ever Amon Amarth song, "Cry of the Blackbirds", see here for the video. I should have been a Viking - time to grow the hair again, get on a horse (gonna need a strong one to carry me), grab my sword and dream of what could have been. Back to work........!!

10 comments:

Tim Griffin said...

Henry

Like you I had to go bass fishing on Sunday but drew a spectacular blank also. To be fair the marks we really wanted to fish were stirred up and the water was very murly and yellow from the swell kicking up the sediment. We found a promising spot that was clearer with some very inviting action on the water but nothing. We experimented with all the new lures we have been buying over the winter but all we had was on pluck on a Slug-Go and I couldn't promise that was a bass. I think it is still a couple weeks early for us in West Wales but not long now! Apparently there are a few fish being caught on baits and some mackerel arriving offshore, so all the signs are good. Still my son and I had a great day despite no fish which is what it is all about I guess.

Anonymous said...

Hi Henry do you know if it is legal to fish from a kayak in the Erme as we had an altercation with someone fishing from the bank. He said it was private belonging to the flete estate but we were in a kayak. He was really aggressive even though we did not have our lures out at the time. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Alan

Steve said...

Hi Henry, firstly, enjoy your anniversary break. I recieved a shimano twin power as a gift on our last anniversary so maybe drop a hint about that rod. You never know! Fantastic that you managed to get out fishing, shame you blanked though; the mark looked great and very fishy in the photographs. I got out and blanked too; seems to be my way with bass and lures (yet to get a lure caught bass) but feel that putting the time in will pay off..............eventually!

shb900 said...

Hi Henry,
Seems to be all over not many Bass about yet we had a couple of days out just running are plugs in couldnt even see them as the water here in felixstowe is so dirty at the moment but there a few getting abouton bait so fingers crossed for coming season regards

Steve Bothwell

Henry Gilbey said...

Tim - as you say, signs seem to be good, would be nice to get some warmer weather back.

Alan - made a phonecall, seems to be a bit of a "grey" are this one. I have been told that it is all fine to fish from a kayak in the "main estuary" part of Mothecombe, but that going up the creek and fishing is not allowed. That is all I know.

Steve - going to be a blast over in the Isles of Scilly, but I am not sure about getting any red rods as a present !! My wife loves me very much, but perhaps not enough for a nice new red rod.....is that right ??!! You will get a bass on a lure, such a good feeling when it happens. Please send one my way this year as well.

Steve Bothwell - we all seem to feel that signs are good. Hearing of pockets of fish from all over the place, can't be too long until we get some consistency.

Unknown said...

henry do u know anywhere in cork that its noted for big bass nd ray

Anonymous said...

Thanks Henry.
Alan

Henry Gilbey said...

Mongo - not sure, sorry, but it's an awesome bit of coastline with stacks of fish. Might be worth asking Kevin Brain, search on this blog and you will find his contact details.

Kester said...

Mmmm, we went to St Agnes last year, with my kayak, hoping for bass bonanza. Got there with all my shiny new lures, the chap who farms the island said "Not ever heard of a bass being caught in the Scily Isles!" Aaargh!!! He was right. Pollack, pollack, pollacks.

Henry Gilbey said...

Kester - it all looks like such perfect bass ground out there, but yes, they just don't get them for some reason. Odd "freak" bass from time to time, but pollack, wrasse, mullet, huss etc., they are the way forward in the Isles of Scilly. What a place.