At this time of year I usually have a few goes at wrasse, this was to be my first of ’23. Weather and tides had been checked, an appropriate plan made (or so I thought) and the gear loaded into the car. The rough plan was to fish the last few hours of the ebb and first hour of the flood at a new venue, a beach where flounder would be the target. I would then go searching for small hardback crab and dig some lug and head off to try for wrasse. I had acquired some ingredients to mix up a kind of groundbait to see if it made any difference, my research from a few years ago suggested it would.
I arrived at the beach to find the receding water a long way out, this is a very shallow beach and with big tides at the moment, it would recede a lot further before rushing back in on the flood. There was also a quite strong breeze blowing at an awkward angle, I don’t like trying new marks under poor conditions as I don’t think you get a true picture of the potential so back to the car and away.
I went to my bait gathering spot and soon had enough hardback crabs for a session, now for the lug. There were plenty of casts visible and the fork was soon in to the hilt, lean back gently……and snap! No lug today, ah well, better the fork than my back!
I arrived at the wrasse mark just about on low tide to see rocks exposed that I had not seen before, yip, big tide. There was also quite a big swell rolling in. This mark doesn’t usually produce until a couple of hours into the flood so I decided to have a “hang sangwich” and coffee. But first I set up two beachcasters with 3 hook flappers and 1 up-1 down rigs sporting mackerel strip and prawn baits and launched them out in different directions to see if anything was lurking on the sand. Nothing was lurking, but on the retrieve, something grabbed a bait, a small coalfish (19cm). Spurred on by this success I re-baited and re-cast and then “re-tired” to the car for a post-prandial rest. A short while later, you know; just when you’re getting comfortable, I noticed a slight quiver on the other rod tip, and hadn’t I tightened up the slack after casting? I tightened up the slack again and yes, a good bite registered, as befits a 40cm pollack. At least this one was big enough to give a few kicks on the way in.
By now the tide had filled a bit and I set up the wrasse “wrod” and impaled a nice-sized hardback on the hook. I swung the float rig out and after one or two adjustments, I had the crab just off the bottom, wafting about. The swell was sending waves rushing in and the float was carried everywhere and back and I decided that trying to groundbait would be a waste of time. The stuff would disintegrate and be carried away in no time, this tactic would have to wait for a better day. This mark tends not to fish well in a big swell and so it was today; the only thing I had to show after 2 hours was a small 17cm pollack which took a small soft crab. However I persevered and eventually connected with a wrasse, no monster but at 2lbs it fought hard and put a decent bend in the rod. I use a Shakespeare Agility 11’6” Flattie Rod for float fishing, light enough to be held for long periods, it has enough power to subdue any wrasse I’ve ever come across including several to specimen weight. Any thoughts that the wrasse might have come on the feed were dispelled by half an hour of no further bites and with the swell starting to surge up uncomfortably close, I called it quits. Still, I have enough hardback crab in the freezer ready for another shot. On retrieving the two beachcasters, the second provided another small pollack. Even though it was the smallest fish of the day at 16cm, it’s always nice to finish with a Last Cast Fish.
As for “Plans”; Plan A; try a new mark……………..Scratched! Plan B; dig some lug……………….Scratched! Plan C; try groundbait for wrasse….Scratched!
…….of Mice and Men!
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