Continued surprises

Eileen, my wife is a Cork woman. Her father and mother are both Cork people, we were married in Cork and we have holidayed quite a lot on the Cork coast, in fact we spend a lot of time in Cork. We have our different reasons, Eileen having spent long summers at the holiday house as a child finds a connection, I on the other hand at some time try to connect with fish, Dan and Ruth are 100 metres from the beach and the rock pools! Circles.

Its inevitable that the times we spend in Cork are usually based around neap tides, thats the rule in our house, we live our lives around the tides - no its not quite as bad as that. But yes if I dont have workshops on a neap tide week and Eileen can take one or two days then we are gone. The fishing gear goes too amongst all the other stuff, a small amount at least. Its a small amount but its a good amount. I never plan my fishing times or anything and often, just after a weeks guiding, I don't want to fish for a while. The urge always creeps back though, usually after about 48 hrs.

So my fishing in Cork over the last ten years or so has always been a hit and miss affair or more of a miss I think. Last year I came across a location that held mullet, Gilthead bream, (small) bass and garfish and had a good day with light lure fishing - this year I planned to try them all on the fly. And as they seemed to be present on a neap tide that was exciting too. I went there this week and the fish weren't present - simple.

There is part of me that is resigned to not fishing for bass on neap tides with any real conviction, the other part (the sad one) says different. So on Monday having been to Fota wildlife park with the kids and knowing I was fishing a falling neap tide, in the afternoon mind you, I went fly fishing for bass. Heavy rain, high humidity, strong westerly winds I trudged over to an unfished venue, well at least by me anyway.

Sometimes you just know the fish will be there. Suddenly - gone was the water seeping up my sleeves, gone was the sweat and sluggishness, gone was the resignation. I walked down along a finger of rock and watched the waves roll over them going whiter than white against the dark sky and the green and blue water was fizzing with oxygen and the water was clear and the tide wasnt as far out as I thought and after 20 tough casts I had a fish or a rock no it was a fish - and I was surprised again and again!

In Bass Fishing Files Now - Bass fishing on the Cork Coast

Guided Bass fishing today between Kinsale and Crosshaven!

The Irish Times Today

Link to article

Saltwater Flyfishing in an open timber boat

SEAi has aquired an open timber boat - 17 feet long and constructed from larch and oak, it is my intention to use her for Spring seatrout fishing, and summer and autumn bass fishing in and around Wexford harbour.

A team of 'painters' and 'shipwrights' have been gathered to perform the neccessary repairs and I personally will pursue the qualifications and insurances needed to operate her safely over the next few weeks. It is hoped to have her operational before the autumn season begins.

Not built for speed I bought the boat to create an 'experience' of relaxed estuary fly fishing. I feel it will also add a new dimension to 'the one day' fly fishing visitors as we will have the opportunity to reach fish offshore in tidal rips from sandbars and sandy shores.

a sequence of inevitable events.....

In Bass Fishing Files Now - 'Guiding On The Waterford Coast'

I have been doing a lot of work on the Waterford coast recently - I travelled to guide some customers late yesterday evening and today - you can find the flies, the techniques, the strategy here later this weekend!

Ger Potters Summer of Silver Continues

Whilst guiding Ger Potter on the waterford coast on friday his summer of bass on the fly continued with this beautiful fish.

New Zealand girls - a can do attitude!

Alans first of many on the fly!

Scierra BW 2 9'-0" #8/9
Snowbee XS
Rio Aqualux striper line #9
Varivas saltwater tapered leader
Home built chartreuse and white deciever

Saltwater fly fishing - P6 of 21 - Choosing the right fly lines

To be successful when targeting early season bass or sea trout or indeed throughout the variable summer season in Ireland then your presentation or depth of fishing is going to be key. Slow steady retrieves are often the norm while fishing as close to the bottom as possible. At the early times of year bass are still somewhat lethargic and still in their energy conserving mode. Their noses are down as they root through muddy estuary bottoms in search of small marine worms and other tiny invertebrates. Here is where a variety of sinking and intermediate lines will greatly add to your success not only in the early part of the season but throughout the summer as well!

Many fly fishers however don't carry the right equipment, in this case lines, to get the job done. As we grow in the sport the majority of us have spent our time or money accumulating a wide assortment of flies that we have to choose from. Deceivers, clousers, poppers, half and half’s, on and on and on they goin so many different colours…we've already discussed this in part 5 and 4.

If you're like some fly fishers I know you probably have so many flies that you can't find room in your box to carry them all. You probably also carry many flies that have never been cast into the water at all. These are the flies we label for that "just in case scenario", or "I like it so much i dont want to fish with it".

With the new season now well underway I think it is time for many of us to change our way of thinking or the approach that we take. We need to start to measure how effective our time spent fly fishing at sea actually is. Do you keep a mental note of any of your success? Or do you just move along casting and casting, putting in another bad day where you say the fish weren't there or they weren't hungry or the sky was too blue ?

Or does this sound familiar? The fly fisher next to you is catching fish and you are not. You cast just about every fly in your box but each one yields the same result, nothing. Or how about this, you move from a spot and another fisher comes along steps in and catches a fish on the very first cast.

I think all of us can honestly say that at least one of these scenarios has happened to each one of us sometime in our fly fishing career. I know they have to me and it can be rather frustration especially if they repeat themselves. Dont worry though, there arent that many saltwater flyfishers for this to become a normal occurrence!

So what is the answer? What should go through your head when you are not producing fish and you know that you should be? One of the big keys to your success in saltwater fly-fishing is going to rest with your presentation at different depths. You will need to look at two components of your presentation that are important. One is the retrieve that you are using and the other is putting the fly in the right place. In other words putting the fly where the fish are. Which of these is more important? Well, I think it is safe to say that putting the fly where the fish are should be your first and most important consideration. If you have the correct retrieve but there are no fish anywhere near your fly then good luck, because you are going to need it.

I would recommend the following lines as essentials for the Irish saltwater flyfisherman to cover all presentations at many depths.

Rio Outbound - #9F
Rio Outbound - #9I
Rio Outbound - #9S (rate as needed)
Rio Aqualux Striper Bass line -(Recommended)

or
Scientific Anglers saltwater mastery series fast and slow sinking lines plus a floater

Plus

Jim Teeny - Ts-350sw
Jim Teeny - Ts-450sw
Jim Teeny - Xd- 300

Plus

Custom built shooting heads

Next month (September) - where should I fish?

In 'BASS FISHING FILES' Now -

Water Clarity and Bass Fishing - causes, effects, and how to adapt you fly & lure fishing techniques.
Tight lines - Jim

Saltwater Lure Fishing - P4 of 21 - Water Clarity (I)

I'll try and post some thoughts on water clarity over the weekend. This foto was taken on opening day 2008.

Water clarity is a factor that will strongly influence your bass fishing. The extent of that water clarity; be it too clear or too unclear are at opposite ends of the tactical fishing spectrum. Fish behaviour is different at both ends and hence you will need to apply different methods to catch them. In clear water fish are often visible when swimming and when hooked will often be ‘mobbed’ by other members of the shoal. Often as you bring your fish closer to hand, this activity can be clearly observed. Clear water fishing is often full of refusals whilst on the other hand ‘brownish green’ water is impenetrable to our gaze and we wonder what’s going on down there, are there indeed any fish in there?

All of my guiding services operate below the point at Rosslare burrow shore. In other words I never go ‘up north’ to do any bass fishing with customers. The reasons for this are related to water clarity and the challenges it presents. As you move into the estuary at Wexford and North past the Raven point the sea is in constant contact with sand. The currents and wind are in constant interaction with this sand and depending on their strength and direction as well as longevity there is a lot of ‘suspended’ particles in the water for long periods of time. There is sand all along the East coast and this is further complicated by channels and bars and strange and complex tides.

Further south past the southeast corner, there is of course vast quantities of sand, but I suspect this sand and the geography has different qualities than that on the east coast.

There’s not as much of it – no long golden beaches of fine grains
The sand particles have different qualities on the southern coasts
There are rock platforms and deeper water closer to shore
Currents tend to be stronger and faster
There are less straight lines

We are talking strictly shore fishing at the moment – bear in mind that estuary fishing has its own complexities like run off from the land and rivers.

After a long period of say North or Northwesterly breezes the water clarity is often amazing on the south coast. A westerly breeze doesn’t affect this clarity adversely but as it swings further south towards the southwest or south then this breeze or wind begins to have its affects. The longer the wind blows and the greater its strength the more unclear the water becomes. Waves crashing and rolling puts particles into the water, the weather changes the environment!

If you witness a lot of seaweed deposits on the beach its usually an indication of previous high wave and wind activity. This seaweed will rot and will often decompose into the sand where you are walking. When waves hit this sand it adds these smaller often-minute decomposing particles to the water and then you can witness quite a vivid two-colour scenario of blue and green (or even brown) at the sea close to shore.

The water clarity and its longevity/components and causes are not an easy thing to understand. Because I’m exposed to it on an almost daily basis I try not to rationalise it but have developed a ‘sense of conditions’ based on experiences. Unclear water on the south coast is a different phenomena than that on the east coast and hence the fishing is different and you’re expectations should be too.

You arrive at you fishing destination – its warm, a little cloudy and misty, high tide is in about 3 hrs and it’s a spring tide, wind is from the southwest force three. Perfect. Then you walk into he water and you can’t see your feet. Not so perfect! The cause of this unclear water has been wind force, wind direction, and the previous number of hours it has blown for. Combine this with heavy rain and you get miserable water conditions.

One of the reasons I emphasise the need for anglers to tune into the weather systems is to try and enable the elimination of surprises and often disappointments. Taking the example above and applying it to today July 05th for example. It’s a nice sunny day here; it’s a bit breezy the tides are good I might go fishing! But. Already the water was murky, the wind blew very strong from the east in the last 12 hrs, and its still blowing at 4- touching 5. It will get worse this afternoon. There has been no settling period for particles to descend. Sunday looks like a calm day with winds dropping this evening and all day tomorrow so by Monday morning or maybe even Sunday evening – fishing will return somewhat as particles descend, barometric pressure builds again and the water clears. The nature of the particles are heavier than those along the east coast, I believe they descend faster.

Can you calculate the extent and the longevity of the unclear water?







The table above is a representation of wind force and a recovery rate for fishing. Please do not interpret this as 'definitive' or 'carved in stone' in any way. Its based around observations and experiences of the last 6 years or so. The way it works as a guide is that any number below three has a negligible if any effect upon the fishing. So for example if it blows force three for 4 days its value is 2 and has no effect real effect on your fishing (we are not considering direction). If it blows force 4 for four days its value is 3 and this does have an effect on your fishing or rather - water clarity and fish behaviour.

It should be noted that if it blows force six for 2 days its value is 2 this is in fact a 2+ and probably closer to three. The table values for force 6 and 7 should be treated with this in mind.

The values also give a rough indication of the number of tides it takes to recover so if it blows force 5 for three days we have a value of 3. Multiply this by 12 and this is the recovery time for water clarity from the time of the decrease in windspeed on your forecasts. A sudden drop in windspeed may increase the clearing process.

Please bear in mind this is an indication from clear to unclear on the south coast - it does not take into account the current clarity of the water. In other words if the water is already unclear this table is meaningless. It is also based on a slowing of wind speed to the negligible end of the table for a period of time, the 'future wind' on your current forecasts will decrease in speed from the value you are now taking.

A value of two is merely an indicator and can often be a heads up to change. Any value in the range of 3 or 4 and water clarity is affected and consequently so is your fishing - beyond the factor of 4 fly fishing is generally impossible and even at 3 it can be downright difficult. Lure fishers can expect to fish up to a value of 4 and even an early session at 5 but not for any extended periods.

Because the south east coast is subject to so many influences - water depth, current speed, geography, weather, its possible to locate areas of 'clearer' water even when winds are blowing hard. This is where again, ground work and perserverance pays of. By constantly fishing in the one location you may well become accustomed to its patterns but you are also subject to its negative influences. You need to find fallback locations when your favourite is full of weed and brown sandy dirty water. You learn more by exploring and expanding your fishing - I dont know exactly what a bass does when the water is dirty but i know they hunt differently and in different places - change your techniques and strategies and you will find them!

Andrew and Philip - aka 'The Nolan Sisters'

Andrew decided to give Philip his brother two days bass fishing and guiding with SEAi for his 40th birthday. This meant they would fish twice on Thursday 04th and once on friday morning. The days were sandwiched between two weather systems and I felt it wasnt going to be easy! Fishing, and working hard they both got the results they deserved in less than ideal conditions. I had great fun as the digs and slagging flew........and the fish were on!

Landing Gear

Rods - Smith Bayliners - 7'-4"
Reel - Shimano stradics and twin powers
Line - Powerpro 8 kgs
Tippett - Rio flouroflex and fluoroflex plus 9 kgs
Lures - Various
Location - The south east