Sandeels for Pollack?

Message

#21 Post by **Davy Murdoch** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 3:05 pm

cheers for the advice liamo,i know what you mean about rag catching lots of the smaller fish but i would get round that by using a big rag or a few decent sized ones.we get rag down this neck of the woods that are as thick as your thumb and 16 inches long,using one of these sorts out the bigger fish.if things go as planned this year i`ll mostly be using crab as i`ve lost some big wrasse using them in the past.i watched a programe where henry gilbey was using crabs as big as 3 inches across! :shock:

#22 Post by **BigPhil** » Wed Apr 19, 2006 6:19 pm

an article in boat fishing monthly a good while back showed the guys using pretty damn big crab for wrasse from the boat too, they had them up to around 7lb i think!

#23 Post by **Davy Murdoch** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 8:04 am

did anyone read last months artical in sea angler where the bloke that holds the current british record for wrasse lost a double figure wrasse that had took a small gold sinney wrasse that had been hooked on his sons rod :shock: anyone thought of or tried live fish for wrasse? could be worth a go if there are big ones about :)

Liamo · #24 Post by **Liamo** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 8:56 am

Haven't had much succes with live fish, but small spinners and plugs work wonders for the bigger monsters. Small dexter wedges or rapala fat and shad raps in the smallest sizes have produced a number of specimen sized fish for me.

Liam

#25 Post by **Davy Murdoch** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 10:15 am

Liamo wrote:Small dexter wedges or rapala fat and shad raps in the smallest sizes have produced a number of specimen sized fish for me.Liam

now you are just showing off :wink: :lol: hopefully this will be my year for big(specimen)wrasse,had a good year 2005 for loads of fish in the 3-4lb bracket .i`ve used live sea scorpions and shannys while targeting big rockling and i`ve lost some big fish.it only takes about 10 mins for something to home in on the live baits so it could be worth a try for wrasse once you find them and get them feeding :)

Liamo · #26 Post by **Liamo** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 11:29 am

I'm not! I swear! It's just they're so much fun to catch on small lures and you really do get the big ones plus lots of bonus pollack too. Big wrasse are active predators and do prey on small fish far more so than I ever thought until I started scaling down lure sizes. Just funny that they don't seem to respond as well to live fish under a float when a plug or spinner works wonders. Pound for pound they're great scrappers; there's always lots of them and they can be taken on a much wider variety of methods than most anglers try - it's such a pity. Have tied up a few crab and shrimp patterns this year, fly caught wrasse - now wouldn't that be lots of fun :-)

#27 Post by **Davy Murdoch** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 12:52 pm

i tend to fish hard on the bottom for wrasse so maybe a small live fish would work well fished that way,i`ll def try it when the wrasse have moved in properly.as you said pound for pound they scrap well and i would go as far as to say they are the hardest fighters in the sea pound for pound,but maybe thats its because im somewhat fanatical about them. :roll: it`ll be interesting to see how you get on using a fly,i was just talking to someone the other day who is going to try it.could catch on if it works.even a 1lb wrasse will give you a run for your money. :)
i take it you float fish the crabs?

#28 Post by **FMCN** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 3:09 pm

Nice fish. Go down to your part of the world every year for a couple of weeks fishing, but can't find how to get down on to the rocks at Slea head. I have fished Dunmore head, access is easy if a bit of a walk. I know the area pretty well, are you willing to give away where you get access.

Francis

#29 Post by **blackiemc** » Thu Apr 20, 2006 5:47 pm

The local spots I fish for wrasse in Connemara have them right under your feet, grazing away on the mussel seed attached to the rocks below, (usually below a shelf where they can quickly wedge themselves once hooked).
Is it possible to fish this type of mark with plugs?

Blackie

#30 Post by **blackiemc** » Sun Apr 23, 2006 9:30 pm

How are spinners and plugs used for wrasse from shore????

The marks I know would eat up lure after lure after lure, cast distance required, about 6 feet out and 6 to 20 feet down.

:?: :?: :?: :?: :?: :?: :?: :?: :?:

Blackie

Livid · #31 Post by **Livid** » Mon Apr 24, 2006 12:59 am

Liamo wrote:Not too early at all, thought it might be but we chanced a session yesterday on Slea Head and had good wrasse to just under 4lbs and pollack to 5lbs.

[img]http://usera.imagecave.com/Liamo/pollack3-temp.JPG[/img]

Never tried for them this early in the season before, couldn't believe the quality stamp of fish we had.

Liam

Awesome looking (deep water?) mark!!! 8) Quality fish!

Liamo · #32 Post by **Liamo** » Mon Apr 24, 2006 9:44 am

Yeah it's savage, I always like to look at the ground/rocks above water. The topography just extends down to the sea bed usually. Always a good indication as to what's below the waters surface. See that sheet/wall of rock behind me - it just plunges straight down. 1 /2oz leadheads were taking 20 - 25 seconds to drop to the bottom, pretty bluddy deep alright.

How are spinners and plugs used for wrasse from shore????

Here's neat little trick for small deep diving shad and fat raps take off the belly treble. The plugs are small so are usually engulfed whole anyways, but because there's a big deep diving lip and the plug dives at such a steep angle by removing that belly treble you can crank them right down and even fish them back by bouncing that lip hard off the rocks without the lure snagging up.

Liam [/quote]

#33 Post by **blackiemc** » Mon Apr 24, 2006 4:33 pm

Thanks for that,
I think I'll start experimenting with those Berkely Gulp Crabs first, but at least now I can visualise the use of plugs for those rock munching gunner.

Blackie

#34 Post by **blackiemc** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 9:50 pm

Liamo, or anyone,
I'm going to try some shad next week in untested water for Pollack, as you describe Liamo.
My question is are the pollack fussy, I have some shads that look like rainbow trout, and are probably for pike, am I wasting my time with them. Are there specific types of shads that work best for pollack?

Blackie

#35 Post by **fish4fun** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 11:20 pm

Going to give some shads a go from Portpatrick this weekend for pollack. I'll let you Know how I get on, wet by the look of the forecast :roll:

#36 Post by **corbyeire** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 10:59 am

blackiemc - ive caught pollack on every type of lure and the shads of all colours - i think the action of them gives the results more than the colour

every river lure ive tried always brings results - you know yourself on messy ground you lose tackle so you improvise if you havent brought enough for the sea :D

by far the best ones are those that are dark or dark on the top at least - well thats what i find round clare, galway and mayo

good luck

#37 Post by **blackiemc** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 3:53 pm

Thanks for that, hopefully I'll have some useful reports by next week!!!

Blackie

#38 Post by **Donagh** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 4:29 pm

Can only get blue packet of ammo sand eels at the moment in Limerick. It seems they either stock only red or only blue here depending what day you go in. Are blue ammo sand eels to big to big to use for spinning for pollack?

Donagh

#39 Post by **corbyeire** » Thu Jul 27, 2006 4:47 pm

i dont know too much about the frozen sandeels - but as far as the rubber fish go - the ones about 7-8 cm always out fish the bigger ones at 15 cm

based on that logic too big - so half them and see if thats any help, if the fishing with the full ones doesnt go so well

#40 Post by **blackiemc** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 5:22 pm

RESULT!

Thanks to all the advice on this thread.

I went to my favourite spot near Clifden and decided to spin a toby late one evening up to HT (around 11PM).

I was looking for a decent pollack in this spot that we had only really ever targetted gunner (wrasse) using crab bait.

On the advice I let the lure drop into the kelp (about 12 to 15 secs got me very close to the bottom). Straight away I was getting a bite every cast, after a nice little pollack, some macks and a scad I got a great take, and landed a 3lb pollack :D Happy days for me I can tell you!

I went back the next morning up to HT again and another unbelievable first for me, a gunner on a spinner by the same method.

[img]http://i5.tinypic.com/24cigra.jpg[/img]

All of these fish were easily landed using a very cheap Lidl rod and reel, as it was the quickest to assemble once I got to the rock.

I would have none of this but for the info shared here, and would have been quite happy with my eight mackeral, instead I got four species, one a first (scad), a PB pollack from shore, first lure caught wrasse AND the hope of even better to come. :D :D :D :D

Blackie