State of the tide

Hi all,

Does the state of the tide have an impact on how fish are feeding?

I've always been under the impression that fish come and go with the tide, and I have so far found this to be true.

I used to only spin for mackerel and pollock and the like, but since coming on here I've tried to branch out and use baits and stuff, without having an awful lot of luck.

While spinning for pollock I always noticed that the last 2 hours of the flood and maybe an hour into the ebb produced fish.

But then I've been reading about congor, thornies, etc, and see that most people tend to target them at low water.

Is it just different for different fish?

Cheers.

Fishing from the shore it is easy to form these rules in your head and make rash judgements. when I first started fishing from the shore it was obvious in Dublin that the fish were only there to be caught when the tide was coming in. This is true of all Dublin and Wicklow marks in my opinion. Not that no fish can be caught on the out but very few. When I first started to fish propperly from a boat I realised that the fish do not care if the tide is coming in or out , only that it is moving. This depends entirely on water depth of course. on shallow marks like water of less than 30 ft the tide must be on its way in for consistant success. darkness also plays a large part on these marks as does Spring and Neap tides. Springs will bring the fish in closer. When at slack water bites become fewer because the behaviour of the fish changes. When the tide is running, fish hold up in areas where their food will concentrate and will work these areas. Small food items will be deposited nearer to shore and so fish will follow. as the current dies off the fish will spread out more searching areas they ignored earlier. As the tide begins to go out so too will the fish to target areas further out where food is deposited. Small creatures feed on the plankton that is washed offshore and fish move off to feed on these... When fishing deeper marks of say, 40 ft and over fish are less concerned with sunlight and have more courage and will linger longer near the shore. When fishing sandbanks for example by boat you will often pick up fish in either state of the tide depending on your position on the bank. When high water comes or low water, fish spread out and fish harder to come by. Lack of tide run also reduces you scent trail to attract passing fish thus reduceing your strike zone... :wink: