Short session - 14th August 2011

I just had time for a short session on Sunday. I headed to a West Waterford mark that fishes well early on a rising tide. I got there at 2.00 pm just as the tide was beginning to push in. It was a bight sunny afternoon with a light light westerly breeze and the water was crystal clear.

As it is very shallow with lots of snags I used weedless soft plastics and surface lures. I started with an Xlayer, fished with that for about 15 minutes then changed to a Patchinko and blasted it out to the edge of the reefs. I covered the ground in front of me at a range of angles and on about the tenth cast a fish lept clear out of the water as my lure passed over it, the fish seems to hang in the air for a moment of two before crashing back into the water and then lunged at the lure again, this time it was hooked. From the fight I knew it wasn't a bass, it kept deep, all the time pulling downwards, but nevertheless it put up a good struggle. I hooked the fish at 60 m out it and it put up a fight all the way in. It was a well fed 55 cm pollock. I was very surprised to get that in bright daylight in shallow water.

I continued fishing across the same small bay until I was forced back by the tide. I moved to the left and fished a shallow gulley between two rock ridges but had no interest. Then I had to move back again as the tide rose around me. I packed up close to 4 pm, happy enough to have got one fish.