Mullet on lures - 31st March 2012

I got up at 5.30 am to try lure fishing for bass given the calm conditions, my third attempt to get my first bass on a lure this year. It was just getting light as I made my way down to the rocks. I have never seen the sea so calm at this mark nor seen the water so clear. The sea was flat, just gently lapping on to the shore. I would have prefered to have had at least a little turbulence in the water.

I began to work my way along the shore, scanning for some sign of fish activity. Then I spotted a disturbance on the water to my right, cast a Feed Shallow across the area but after a few minutes realized it was a shoal of small mullet. However, I reckoned there might be a bass lurking about waiting to pick off the smaller fish. But after about 10 minutes the lure spooked the fish and they moved off.

I continued working my way to the east towards a small bay that has been very productive in the Summer and Autumn. I was not long there when another fish shoal appeared. I cast the Feed Shallow across them and on about the third retrieve through the crystal clear water I could see a small fish dart at the lure as it passed, it was hooked! At first I thought it must be a bass but as it lept out of the water I could see that it was a mullet. It gave a good fight for such a small fish. That spooked the shoal and they disappeared. I doubt it was trying to eat the lure as it wasn't much bigger than the Feed Shallow, maybe it was trying to play with it or just wanted to chase it off but it must have snapped at the lure as it was hooked in the mouth.

I continued fishing in the same area, tried a few other lures and some soft plastics. Then another mullet shoal appeared. I lobbed a weedless Slug Go over the shoal and as I retrieved it through them I could see five or six fish turn and chase the lure and one was hooked under the chin. It again fought well and when I eventually got it onto the rock I realized that it was a golden grey mullet.

I made my way to the opposite side of the bay. Bass often show up here about an hour before high tide. There was no sign of any fish activity, the crystal clear water looked lifeless. Then I noticed a disturbance 20 m away. I clambered across the rocks and cast towards the fish activity. It looked like another mullet shoal was moving closer to the shore. Then I foul hooked one with a Feed Shallow. This was a bigger mullet, lept clear of the water, fought like a manic until I eased it into a shallow rock pool.

I fished on for about another hour but there was no more activity. I guess the water was just too clear and still for bass to come close and maybe its not warm enough yet for them to readily take lures.