Length of Cast

Brilliant to discover this forum. Am seeking elementary advice. Have taken up shore angling last year and am still very much a novice. Can you give me any advice as to the length of cast? How near to the shore do the fish come? I try to fish when there is a good surf on an incoming tide, at night-time, but have this impulse to cast out beyond the surf as far as I can. Where is the optimum place to deposit my bait?

[oneillphil]

Eamon,
i wouldn't be too obsessed with casting big distances about 125 - 150 would be around my best,
but most of my biggest fish have come within 50 some within 20, it is handy to be able to
cast a fair distance but not essential.
Pick marks to suit your distance and put your bait in the right place, around features, tide rips, gulleys etc where the fish are feeding.

[paul mason]

about 125 - 150 would be around my best
Would that be with or without bait phil

[bigsod]

Like the first post says, a lot of fish are caught close in especialy at night, but at times distance casting can be an advantage.Have to say that gauging length of cast is very difficult and casting with bait over 100 yards is a very good cast, its amazing how when you cast with bait on a plaice you can measure how it brings you down to earth and 150 yards seems huge when you see it marked out.

[MAC]

150 yards is huge when you see it marked out. Come to any one of the Sports CAst Ireland Meets and have a go. 150 is a decent cast for someone that doesn't practice casting a lot.

Kev

[dbrock]

all my best fish came at 50 to 100 so just stick to it and if bass fishing you would usually fish the breakers

[oneillphil]

Hello again Paul,
Did you some help or advice for Eamon perhaps ?
If you wanted to question me about my casting you could always pm me instead of using
this forum to air any of your childish & personal gruges.
I cast just over 125 when I was 14 at a Sea Angler casting event when i was a member of
WBSAC that was with a 12ft, 3 piece silstar rod and shakespere reel, 15lb sylcast line
and 4oz lead. (I have grown & upgraded alot since then)
I believe Paul Clarke won it that day with a cast around the 180 - 190 mark
(his record was more if i'm not mistaken, I think he hit over the 200 mark).

[paul mason]

Relax now phil, i was only asking a simple question, because to cast 150 yds with bait is a mighty feat and there are only a handful of lads in the country can cast that far with bait.
That was a great achievement when you were 14 casting 125 yds "well done", i could have been there that day myself and the first to congratulate you.
No! i dont hold gruges and have been known to be childish with a few jars on me.
And yes paul clarke did cast over 200yds in fact his record was 231yds if i'm not mistaken, it was an irish record at the time and was cast in near hurricane conditions on sandymount strand in a force 10 southerly wind and i measured the cast that day.
I didnt get the nick name of mother terese of the angling world for nothing. i like helping people i think you are misreading me somehow or getting me mixed up with someone else.?????????

Last edited by paul mason on Thu May 14, 2009 10:59 am, edited 3 times in total.

[donal domeney]

Going off topic.
This is the first and last warning.
Do not reply to this post unless it is dealing with the topic.

[MC]

casting distance varys from venue to venue and species to species. On most beachs flatties can be caught wintin yards of your feet, a little further out bass and coalies, beond the breakers most speices of fish, on some venues long cast are needed to reach rays. When you get to learn to read a beach then you can cast to gutters, depressions and other fish holding features, some may be so close the shock leader knot doesnt leave the reel.

Sometimes distance casting is a big advanage as a sandbar may be offshore or the conditions arent good, ie bright sunshine on a shallow beach, but in these conditions i head to a rock mark, pier or slimiar deep water mark when the fish are at your feet, well about 15 feet below .

At night distance isnt as such a big issue as under the cover of darkness fish tend to come closer to the shore.

so in short distance casting is an extra tool we use to help catch fish, but its double edged as you can cast over the feeding zone and blank, i have put a baited trace 150yards on a field but when fishing i usually cast close then work my way out but find most fish between 30 and 100yards from my feet.


hope that helps and answers some of your questions, if not ask away

[MAC]

Well Covered Martin.

[Lee337]

i have put a baited trace 150yards on a field

Would like to point out that Martin did not launch an unexpecting ragworm up the field, the casting club made up a "rig" which mimics a 2-hook loop rig using a 150g lead and two large jellyworms. The rig has no hooks as that would be madness in a field that may be used for livestock but it actually generates more drag than a standard rig with two average sized baits so MC is in fact capable of putting baits beyond 150yrds in real fishing conditions.

Lee

[MC]

i have put a baited trace 150yards on a field

Would like to point out that Martin did not launch an unexpecting ragworm up the field, the casting club made up a "rig" which mimics a 2-hook loop rig using a 150g lead and two large jellyworms. The rig has no hooks as that would be madness in a field that may be used for livestock but it actually generates more drag than a standard rig with two average sized baits so MC is in fact capable of putting baits beyond 150yrds in real fishing conditions.

Lee

sorry Lee should have said it was a jelly worm trace, thanks