East Cork - 19th to 28th September 2009

People: Me, sometimes Me and Melissa

Duration: Mostly short 1 or 2 hour sessions at dusk

Tide: Various

Weather: Mostly calm, dry

Bait: Lures

Rigs: Xlayers, Pachinko, Asturies, Shallow Feed, Tide Minnow

Results:
Saturday 19th: 1 bass (7 lb - 68 cm), 3 pollock
Sunday 20th: 2 pollock, 18 mackerel
Thursday 24th: 8 pollock
Sunday 27th: 4 bass, 9 pollock
Monday 28th: 1 bass, 14 pollock




Report: I have been very busy with work over the last week so didn't get the chance to do any shore reports. Also most of the sessions were short, an hour or so in the evening over dusk.

Saturday 19th: Afternoon session, fished the rising tide up to high tide. Got a nice 68 cm bass on a Pachinko early on. The fish was in close and gave a great fight. Weight was approx 7 lb. After that I got 3 pollock in the 30 -40 cm range.

Sunday 20th: I tried a rock mark that I hadn't fished at all this year. I got there about an hour before dusk but there were some big swells (it had been fairly windy that afternoon). I found a more sheltered spot cast out an Xlayer - on about the second cast got a small pollock approx 30 cm. Shortly after I got a second. Then I spotted some swirls on the surface about 30 m out. I thought it might be a bass. I put on a surface lure - an Asturie and cast over the area - as I retrieved I had a hit - but it was a mackerel - although it gave a good fight on the lure.

I continued fishing with the Asturie and had a mackerel almost every cast. I thought about putting on some feathers but the mackerel were good sport on the surface lure so I stuck to that. Some of them lept clear out of the water with the lure in their mouths - like mini tarpon After about an hour I had as much as I could carry back - 18 of them. That went a little way to restocking the bait freezer[.

Thursday 24th: I went out for a short 1 hour session just before dusk. I fished using Xlayers. The pollock were on the feed. I got 8 and lost as many. On almost every cast I could feel them hitting the lure - but they were mostly missing it, especially as it got dark. About 4 of the pollock were in the 40 - 45 cm range so I kept those for Friday's dinner. The remaining 4 were on the 30 -40 cm range and I let those go.

Sunday 27th: Got to the mark at about 4 pm and fished until about 8 pm. I was fishing a weak ebbing tide so I was not that hopeful of getting much. But on the first cast I caught a 45 cm bass on an Xlayer
However it was quite after that. I moved along the coast and back to where I started using a variety of lures but nothing was biting. When I got back to my starting point just at about low tide I cast out the Asturie and after about 4 casts hooked another bass in close. This one was a bit bigger at 49 cm

Shortly after that I got a small pollock - about 30 cm. The pollock then began to appear - I had splashes behind the lure and brief glance of golden brown flash of a pollock as they darted at the Asturie. However, I then hooked something that was putting up a better fight - a 45 cm bass

The light was beginning to go at this stage and the pollock began attacking the lure in force. Some leaping out of the water as they lunged at it. I caught another two pollock. I then switched back to an Xlayer and within a couple of casts I got a much stronger fish. This was putting up a much better fight - it was a 53 cm bass

However, after that the bass didn't get a chance as the pollock were all over the lures. I got another six mostly on the Asturie. They were all small - the majority in the 30-40 cm range. I did lose a bigger fish - probably another bass as it felt a lot stronger than the pollock.

Monday 29th: I went out for a quick session at dusk - from about 7.15 to 8.30 pm. Again the tides were far from ideal - I was fishing the last of the ebb. First cast I had a 30 cm pollock on the Asturie. Every cast I could feel pollock hitting the lure and see splashes around it as they lunged at the lure. After the second pollock I felt a much stronger hit - and had a good fighting fish on the end. It was a 50 cm bass

Following that it was not stop pollock - I had one on almost every cast - sometimes as I was retriving up to 4 pollock would have a bite at the lure before one would eventually get hooked. Of the 14 I caught, 3 were around 45 cm mark, the remainder were in the 30-40 cm range, with a couple under 30 cm.

So a reasonable result considering the weak tides and that I was fishing the last hour of the ebb. The Asturie which I got from Padge73 is certainly performing well.

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Some more photos

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Great sessions Frank and some stonking fish.

some great fishing frank are you after giving up ground bait fishing
well done again

Well done Frank, terrific fishing ,those lures are really paying off for you.

Thanks guys,

some great fishing frank are you after giving up ground bait fishing

Just for the moment, I am making the most of this calm weather - I got a new spinning rod earlier in the year but hardly got a chance to use it all summer with the stormy weather. It is only this month that I have been able to give it a proper testing with the calm conditions. Its a lot easier than spending a backbreaking hour or so digging lug or rag

ell done Frank, terrific fishing ,those lures are really paying off for you.

Thanks Dave, yes those new lures from Padge73 are really doing the business - especially the Xlayers and the Asturie.

Great fishing, well done. I've got an Asturie in my box that are nearly never use, I think this report might push me to give it another go

Fair play to ye Frank, some great sessions there. The Mackerel on a surface lure seems like a great bit of craic

quality fishing you got there Frank well done

some cracker fish there frank, well done mate great fishing
some great pic's to

nice angling you seem to have mastered this lure fishing. well done youve caught more bass in that session than most of us have caught all year lol no rats this time?

Great few sessions, lovely fish

way to go frank some excellent fishing there man you seem to have nailed just when to hit those marks. a lot of effort put in there to gain that kind of predictability well done man. going green with envy here gotta get out over the weekend and harass some fishies

Thanks guys,

I've got an Asturie in my box that are nearly never use, I think this report might push me to give it another go

To get the best out of it you need to give it plenty of twitches as you are retriving. Zig zag it across the surface, slow and fast.

no rats this time?

Not a sign of one.

you seem to have nailed just when to hit those marks. a lot of effort put in there to gain that kind of predictability

Most of the fish came at dusk regardless of tide - being very busy with work my fishing was restricted to an hour or two in the evening when I had the chance to get out.
Although I reckon most of the success is due to the new lures I am using, Xlayers, Asturie, Pachinko, from Padge73 - I did a bit of lure fishing on and off during the summer when the conditions were suitable but did not have a whole lot of success - the catches drastically improved when I got the new lures.

great fishing frank well done , just lost my padgechenko on doolin beach

well done frank some lovely fish there,great report and photos

Thanks guys,

just lost my padgechenko on doolin beach

ouch - I lost one last week too - crap swivel came apart - you would think the tackle shops around here would stock some decent swivels - got some in Cork the day before but they only had one brand - cheap - but I should have known better