Winter blue sky front cover

• I was really pleased to get the cover of the latest issue of Trout Fisherman magazine, as you can see above. Check out my photos on pages 14, 18, 19, 20, 21 , 22 and 23 - Nick Hart wrote all the words. The blue skies on the cover were like what we had down here over the weekend, but they are forecasting a decent storm coming in later today. We shall see....

• I am sorting out an exploratory bass fishing trip down to Brittany in north west France - there is a particular area that really interests me, and some of the people I met at the Salon de Peches show the other weekend down at Nantes are helping me out with tides, contacts and dates. I can not tell you how much I am looking forward to the chance of photographing and fishing for bass in France, it is such an awesome country, and I hope that this trip might be the start of another love affair - like I have for Ireland and the fishing over there.

• I told you yesterday about the bass that were caught by my friends over in Ireland over the weekend - check out the photos on Graham Hill's new bass blog. Keep an eye on this one. Over time I fully expect his blog to become a place that I am going to have to avoid looking at too much in case I do what I keep thinking about - dropping out, moving over there to live, and just fishing my socks off until the day I die !! Not very realistic I know, but hard not to think about doing.........

• I have just been sent a PDF of a photo essay of mine that is in the awesome Norwegian fishing magazine Alt om Fiske - I really like getting my work in this publication. Granted, I don't understand a word of it, but it looks fantastic !! The salmon photos of mine were shot out on the Gaspe peninsular over on the east coast of Canada - pure sight fishing for Atlantic salmon in the clearest rivers I have ever seen. What a lot of fly anglers don't know is that most of this east coast Canadian salmon fishing is really cost effective, and it takes hardly any time to get over there. Flights are usually dirt cheap as well. Talk to Pete or Charlotte at Aardvark McLeod about going there.

• I also received a copy of the German fishing magazine Blinker yesterday, and in there is a big feature of mine on the frankly scary-awesome lure and fly fishing for giant golden dorado in Argentina. I am especially pleased with the big double-page spread photo of mine that they used, of a jumping dorado with a popper in its mouth. Heading to this particular location that is in the feature is not cheap, but they are virtually fully booked up because it is THE best place on earth to chase the biggest golden dorado. These magnificent fish are still one of the most impressive freshwater species I have ever come across, and I really want to do a lot more with them. Again, if this kind of fishing floats your boat, talk to Aardvark McLeod. I would never do this kind of thing if it was not an important part of my work, and I never thought for one second that when I started out working in fishing that I would get to see things like this. But as I always say, it ain't ever close to what it seems.........

Back from Jersey

• I got back into Plymouth airport late yesterday afternoon - it is so cool to be arriving back at my local airport instead of the more usual Heathrow, especially when my wife and two girls are there to pick me up. It is so easy to do this trip, and when time and weather allows I have every intention to head back out to Jersey to do a load more bass related stuff, plus of course get in amongst the excellent shore and other boat fishing. There is some great stuff over there, including big blondes, tope and bream from the boats. The Channel Islands are so accessible to many of us, and trips over there can be really cheap.

• I am in serious debt to the people who went so far out their way to help me over in Jersey - a huge thanks to you all. This kind of trip just reaffirms to me just why fishing is the greatest sport on earth, for the people involved in it are without doubt the best there are. So many of the local anglers will do all they can to help visitors out. The buzz around modern bass fishing continues to grow.......

• Above is Trevor Sangan with a nice bass that he caught late on Saturday evening - the fishing really picked up big time as that tide began to push hard, and we landed a few nice bass in amongst the rocks. But we then lost the light and had to run for home. Trevor is continuing to use and abuse the Tackle House Feed Shallow lure, indeed he had it virtually welded to the end of his line over in Ireland and he continues to smash bass with it back home. What a lure - it ain't cheap, but it works. You can get hold of them here. I would not head out lure fishing now without a couple in my box, I feel that confident with them - exactly like I do with the Maria Chase BW in the holo silver colour. To have a few lures you trust implicitly really gives my confidence levels an extra kick.

• Here's a sight for the tackle junkies among you, and I include me here - a fistful of gorgeous red Tenyru rods. This brief trip visit back to Jersey really struck home to me how forward thinking a lot of these anglers are when it comes to their bass fishing. They are so close to the coast of France, and I know a lot of the bass fishing expertise over there travels across to Jersey, and the guys then mix and match it with their own fishing. It is easy to slate expensive gear as being too much when you haven't tried it, but when you start fishing with purpose designed and built bassing gear, it is a different world, and my eyes have really been opening up another notch this year.

• I bought a bunch of bass lures from Mick, including two different sizes of the Duo Tide Minnow SLD-F, and some more Tackle House Feed Shallow lures. These shallow diving minnows have different actions under the water and they can both be lethal at times. I really like ultra-shallow diving minnows for a lot of bass fishing and I also have a problem with lures - many of you are suffering with this addiction, and some of us are going to have to seek help.

• Sunday morning was like a different world - blowing a monster and lashing down with rain, but we managed to get out on the boats for a few hours in amongst the rocks where there was a bit of shelter. There was a real chop on the water and the light levels were very low, so I really fancied a popper might do the trick. It might only have been a small bass, but I nailed one on a Lucky Craft G-Splash popper right over a patch of rough ground. Trevor caught one as well, but we then ran back to port as the wind picked up even more. But within a couple of hours the sun was out and the wind had dropped down - by then though I was having to pack up and head for the airport.

• I simply would not head out bass fishing any more without a lip-grab tool for holding onto the fish. I have not been spiked once this year because I can secure this tool onto the bottom lip of the fish and then keep it nice and relaxed in the water ready for some photos. The fish stays calm and comes to no harm, I get my shots, and then the bass goes back very strongly. I use the highly efficient Berkley Pistol Trigger Grip and it works perfectly every single time. More anglers should carry something like this - bass are spiky as hell, and it makes for far easier unhooking, recovery and then releasing if you can grip the fish safely and securely.

• Here's a shot of the sun going down on the Minquiers from Friday evening - I put my rod and reel against the sky and shot a few frames just before the sun dipped below the horizon. Friday night was something seriously special and I feel so lucky to have visited a place like that. I will never forget that barbecue under the stars. Fishing and visiting wild, out of the way places really gets me going. Too much to do and too little time.

Check out this bass lure

• I have recently got hold of this bass lure above, backed up by reports of some stunning bass catches over in Jersey last year from the guys who were using it. It is amazing to see just where surface fishing for bass is headed, when lures like this make it so easy and effective. If you are fishing rocky, weedy, shallow to medium depth ground and want to cover a lot of water, you really should have a look at this lure. Better still, team it up with a proper plugging rod like my new Tenryu and you have the ultimate set up.

• Called the Patchinko II, and made by Xorus, it casts like a bullet. Seriously, I have rarely come across a surface lure that cuts through the wind so well. The Lucky Craft Sammy and GunFish are excellent casting lures as well, but this Patchinko II has the edge. You can cover a serious amount of water with it, and that can only be a good thing.

• Like all good things in life, specialist lures like this can be tricky to get hold of, but I know you can order them here. It is worth tracking this one down. The great thing about surface lures is that you so rarely lose them, unless that is you are fishing for monster golden dorado that take huge delight in relieving me of my favourite Halco poppers. See the photos here.

• So how does this Patchinko II lure work ? In my mind it is close to an ultra-modern version of an established favourite, the Yo-Zuri Mag Popper - a kind of hybrid walk the dog/popper lure. It is closest in action to the Lucky Craft GunFish I reckon, whereby it "walks" seductively across the surface and also spits water out in front with that in-turned mouth. And this one really walks big time. Whereas the Sammy is best suited to calm conditions and tends to get knocked about when it is a little choppy, lures like this Patchinko II and the GunFish are that extra bit more stable.

• Using a lure like this really is a perfect example of when a specialist plugging rod like the new Tenryu that I have here comes into its own (check out my rod review here). Such a fast, powerful action to a rod gives you instant pick-up on a lure like this, and it means that however far you cast it, the moment you snap that bail arm over and begin the retrieve, the lure is working properly. You hardly have to move the rod tip to get this Patchinko II lure doing its stuff across the surface, and in my mind that has made the purchase of this kind of modern bass plugging rod more than worthwhile. Covering more water effectively is the key.

• The Jersey guys tell me that when bass hit this Patchinko II lure, they nail it big time, so there is obviously something a bit special about it. I can see myself using this one a lot over the summer and autumn. I did hear from my mate Graham Hill over in Ireland that he had three nice bass on a Lucky Craft GunFish just before their close season kicked in on May 15th. I also hear that he is currently going up the wall with frustration, and they are only a few days into the close season !! Still, it's a good thing and I respect the Irish authorities a huge amount for implementing a thing like that.

• And as for frustration, tell me about it !! Photographing pike on the fly was cancelled for Monday, for various tedious reasons, and then today I was meant to be out with Malcolm Jones on his charter boat. But while the sun might be shining, we very annoyingly have fresh east winds that are making things very difficult. Yes, you guessed, another day cancelled. I am known for my lack of patience, and this is testing it somewhat !! Still, at least I am out with Nick Hart tomorrow to photograph some west country river fly fishing. If we get a meteor shower that destroys the river between now and tomorrow, I might just scream......

• Still, to calm you down, put the new CD from Belphegor into your stereo and crank it up to the max. Any album with the glorious title of "Bondage Goat Zombie" deserves a listen (where do they get these album names from ??!!), but this is seriously good extreme metal. Check it out here. The soothing sound of the first crushing track is calming me down no end. I could almost forget the fresh east wind blowing outside.

Off up North

• I am flying up to Newcastle tonight for a couple of days of meetings with Hardy & Greys at their place in Alnwick. There are some great people up there and I really enjoy doing plenty of different things with these guys. Most anglers would be fascinated to get a proper glimpse of just what it takes to design, manufacture and market all that fishing tackle that we buy. Trust me, it takes a hell of a lot of hard work.

• Since I have been talking a fair bit recently about plugging for bass (not that I am obsessed with it or anything !!), above is another very well known and successful bass lure, the Yo-Zuri Mag Popper. A kind of popper/walk the dog hybrid lure that really can excite the fish to come up and nail it on the surface, it works well in most conditions. More modern lures tend to cast that bit better and turn over less in flight, but the Mag Popper will continue to catch bass for plenty more years to come. I always have one in my lure box. It was mainly John Hall over in southern Ireland who really switched me onto this lure. Check out some fishing with John here. There are various sizes available, but the one you see above in my view tends to work the best for our bass.

• You will be pleased to know that I have just about survived my weekend looking after my two young daughters on my own, even with the filthy weather we had yesterday. Nothing stops us getting out for walk with our sheepdog Jess, but it does take me about half an hour longer than my wife to kit the girls out in their waterproofs etc. We have had a blast, and with plenty of trips overseas coming up in the next few months, it is great to spend some proper time with my daughters. Both of them are having an afternoon sleep at the moment, hence me sneaking upstairs to my office to do a bit of work. I know how good a mother my wife is, but after doing it all myself for a couple of days, I have a whole, renewed sense of admiration for her !! It's easier going to work................kids are awesome, but take it from me, changing nappies is a highly over rated experience. My father-in-law says that he did his first ever nappy so badly (on his daughter, my wife) that he was never allowed to change one again - what a result !!

A proper popper

• With the bass season nearly upon us, I wanted to talk about what I believe is one of the best poppers in the business. For those of you who don't know, a popper is a lure that is purposefully designed to be fished on the surface - as you retrieve it, the lure will literally "spit" water (or "pop") in a way that really turns predatory fish on.

• There are various good poppers that can work well for our bass fishing here in the UK, including the Storm Chug Bug, the Yo-Zuri Mag Popper, the Daiwa Saltiga Popper and the Yo-Zuri Hydro Popper. You can get these lures here. No doubt there are a stack more that catch bass as well.....

• But there is one popper that you will rarely hear about over here in the UK, but in my mind it is the best of the lot - check out the Halco poppers here. These awesome lures come from Australia, and it was a friend of mine who first put me onto them. James kindly brought me one back from Oz when he was over there fishing, and from that point on, Halco Roosta Poppers have always had a place in my tackle box, both for bass fishing and for fishing overseas.

• Some poppers you fish with will very occasonally turn over in flight and the treble hooks will tangle up, meaning the lure does not fish properly until you untangle it. Sometimes they tangle up when they hit the water it's just the nature of this kind of lure. But I can safely say that I have never had a Halco lure tangle up on me, meaning that every single cast you make sees your popper working properly.

• The amount of water that these poppers chuck out is incredible. There are a load of tips for fishing them properly, click here to see them. With the great surface fishing they seem to have all over Australia, I take their advice on how to fish these lures very seriously.

• Above is a photo my brother Julian holding a nice barracuda I caught out in the Bahamas on a Halco Roosta popper, the original one in fact that James first brought back for me. Note the somewhat chewed popper in the fish's jaws. I swam out to a reef to nail that fish, and then when I had played it out I swam back to shore, with the rod in my teeth and trailing the fish behind me, to ask my brother to hold the fish for a photograph. But when a big shark swam underneath me as I made my way back to shore, I did have second thoughts. Check out a load more photos here.

• These Halco poppers cast like bullets, in fact I have never come across a popper that casts so well. Lures like the Storm Chug Bug might catch bass, but nobody could ever say it goes out there that well. Use the 105 size Halco Roosta Popper and you will be able to cover a load more ground very efficiently.

• But the problem is that I don't know of anywhere in the UK that imports these lures, so you will need to check out various Australian tackle shops online, or contact Halco direct and ask them. It is really worth tracking these poppers down.

• The larger 135 size is a killer for fishing overseas, for species such as jacks, GTs and big golden dorado. The White Redhead 135 worked really well for me out in Argentina the other day, until that is a couple of really big fish decided to smash me up and steal my beloved lures from me. Look carefully through these photos here and you might spot the lure in action.