portstewart 16/11/11

People:couple of us

Duration:14:30-16:30

Tide:not sure

Weather:dry and calm

Bait:mackeral

Rigs:

Results:5 dogs and a little pollock




Report:went out for a couple of hours fishing and as i havent been fishing very long i seem to end up at a new place everytime which is building my knowledge slowly

weather was nice and calm and dry so i set up the rod and took out a piece of mackeral that was left on the hook from the last time i was out ( frozen ) and after less than a minute there was a big dogfish on i know a dogfish isnt much to you guys but im just happy getting anything at this stage.

the mackeral was still fairly frozen even after catching the dogfish so i threw it out again and got another doggy within a couple of minutes

almost got bitten by the 4th dogfish and to my relief i got a pollock next which was so nice and easy to unhook compared to the dogs i decided he deserved to live another day ( he was about the 1lb mark maybe a little more so wasnt really worth eating anyway

got the last dog as darkness was moving in and with it a bit of light rain so we high tailed it back across the rocks before they got slippery

last but not least i spotted a dolphin but he was quite a bit out so never got a real good look at him ( are they common around these parts?)

no pictures as im fairly sure you guys will know what a dogfish looks like

good work - your getting out and catching fish, thats the main thing.
dave

well done on getting a few fish man . as for the doggies i never knock them. i know some other lads can be a bit snobbish about them, but i'd take them over 20cm coalies, whiting and pollack all day. at least they put a bit of a bend in the rod. jeese i'd have killed for one on monday and tuesday. 23hrs fishing over 250 miles for one hand sized flounder . on days like that a doggie would have been a blessing

dolphin? i'd say more likely to be a porpoise. . .similar to a dolphin, and common as muck up there. . . i have seen quite a few

as for the doggies, a fish is a fish. better than catchin sweet fa lol

well done

thanks for replies

was wondering if theres anywhere i could get a bass/cod/whiting around the northcoast area as its always nice to add to my very small species list

carp angler im not sure i could tell the difference between a dolphin and a porpoise even from close range i thought it was a shark at first but it kept going up and down so knew it was some kind of dolphin like fish

al and jordan i have blanked alot and its not much fun at all. so i would take a dogfish everytime to save the blank

well done keano. a few dogs better than nothin indeed. as Al says, at least they put a bend in your rod

bass are scarce on the north coast mate. very scarce. probably the most common place to try for them is downhill/benone/magilligan point
better chance of a cod tho. they always appear on the east antrim coast in numbers, though never too big.
you could pretty much be guaranteed a whiting anywhere on the east coast too and probably the north antrim coast 'n all

tightlines

would i have any chance catching anything at benone beach with a 10 foot 4-8 oz rod ? or do i really need a beach caster and waiders.

cheers

youve pretty much as good a chance as anyone else.. the bass come right in close to shore, in the waves even just 10 feet from the shore. mind you, i think that a good place is also out behind the first breaking wave too. so basically they can be caught at any cast distance.
however, my idea of fishing up along that beach for bass is that you would have to stand there for 8 hours a day everyday for a week before u might have the chance of getting one (other people on here might disagree tho). couldnt be bothered with that myself but others really enjoy that challenge.
dont see why you would need waders unless you plan to enter the sea... but they are always a good thing - to give you that option and also to keep you dry and warm

EDIT: some of those beach have strong under currents and can easily drag weights away up the beach. better to have a more solid rod and grip-leads if bait fishing. oh, and strong enough line and leader..
give it a go with your set-up and see how you get on anyways.....

it doesnt have to be a bass but i like knowing there is a chance of getting something different

i would be happy catching anything as ive never caught a flatfish either

cheers

hi,

There is loads of bass being caught on the north coast beaches - get out and fish them, any of them!!
there was 3 caught last night while i stood and talked to mates fishing on the beach - in 2hrs.
some big ones about recently too 8,9,14lb!!!!!!!
last time with these fellas - 7bass!!!

not another soul on the beach last night - and its miles long so plenty of room!!!!

big baits, close in is the key!! simple rigs, no beads! big hooks - forget size 2 flattie stuff. min size 3/0. i prefer 2*4/0 pennel configuration.

the rod you've got is fine mate - dont worry about the rod - most important is line and hook!

dont need waders but sometimes the surf floods up the beach after it breaks and you may need wellies.

i'm taking some ballymoney men out bassing on sat night, your not part of that group are you?

dave

i will try the beach next week if weather is good
i havent fished at night yet and tend to head home just as its getting dark

is there a best bait for bass or is it a case of if they are there they will eat anything.

got my first flatfish on friday using cooked prawns from tesco

im not one of the ballymoney bass men.

We fished a few spots up North, havent been out in a while myself but I could see no reason why the odd bass wouldnt take the bait.
Benone between two of us we lifted nearly 60-70 flounder and about 6 turbos a while back, all small but never a dull moment casting lifting casting lifting.
I used a big beach rod and grip to make the distance with bigger baits in the attempt for a nice bass no luck altho a 2lb flounder (bright sunny day which prob didnt help). The other rod was a savage bushwacker with a 1.5oz triangle lead close in that got all the action, used mackeral and a bit of rag so nothing too serious there (even used the macrkeral fillets saved for my lunch). I think the bass tend to go for crab altho I like trying razor (a little cheaper).
Just dont kill yourself making distance and always lift a tool for unhooking as flounder love to try and take half your gear with them
I got a small turbet but when coming over the low water he put his tail down to create a bit more drag was awesome to see the bleeper try his hardest even while that close in, you hook a big one be prepared.

they'll eat anything - but a good place to start is good size rag or lug worms - these tend to pick up the schoolie's but bigger bass are taking on big squid and big mackeral baits.

cheap headtorch and some tip lights and your good to go.

bass are caught during day or night but i much prefer night and so do alot of others.

dave

i will try the beach next week if weather is good
i havent fished at night yet and tend to head home just as its getting dark

is there a best bait for Bass or is it a case of if they are there they will eat anything.

got my first flatfish on friday using cooked prawns from tesco

im not one of the ballymoney Bass men.

would i have any chance catching anything at benone beach with a 10 foot 4-8 oz rod ? or do i really need a beach caster and waiders.

cheers

mate no need for a beachcaster or waders or to cast far. bass can be running right alone the water mark. check the gullies of a mark at low tide and see where to cast if fishing water right up.
any other help dont be shy to send me a pm.

just waiting for nice weather then hopefully hit the beach and get a couple of 10lb bass

was at balintoy on monday but the sea was rough a wave came in and stole my tripod and stool but i was lucky enough to run over and grab our 3 rods before they went in and to be honest if they would of been much closer to the edge the sea could of kept them. we were then about 30 foot from the edge and a mad wave came right over the rock and hit us it got us around chest height but luckily we saw it coming and braced for it.

thanks again for the help guys

God you were very lucky as he current round here would have taken you right out.
best time for down there is when its rough but need to set up well back or on top of the rock and even then there is a blow hole you will be soaked from every big wave, so ge the gortex on.

your a lucky chap!!!!! you prob already no this now but your life aint worth risking for a fish, please be careful, theres been too many near misses at ballintoy over the years.

dave

dave is right mate! we had a massive near miss at dunseverick on saturday and although it only happened an hour into the session it ruined the rest of the day, i was super paranoid! your in the same position as myself, were fairly new to fishing and i know my enthusiasim gets the better of me. stay safe, dunseverick was a wash out, waste of bait!

Dunseveric is one of the worst places to fish in a swell because of the very fast moving tides.
I fish there a lot. You get a swell there with the tide going out on a calm day in the summer but this time of year it's a no go, not worth the risk and defo NOT to be fished in the dark.

the fishing can wait for better weather and as for dunseverick and runkerry i wont be back there for a few months as its far to dodgy

if i get out again this year i will probably be beach fishing as there is only really a risk of getting wet legs