Well, I would apologise about the lack of posts but
2013 has been a complete shocker so far. I've held off writing anything
as I'd hoped to have logged a few catch reports by now but alas the weather
gods are not on our side and conditions for catching anything decent
have been far from perfect.
Similar to the
local sea birds I find myself sitting about waiting for the signs of
change that indicate the beginning of our new season. Looking at my
photos from last year I was picking asparagus from my garden at
around this time and shortly after was catching my first mackerel of
the year. It's obvious things are slightly lagging this time around; my
asparagus is still below the ground and the sea temperatures still a few
degrees below that of which we'd expect for this time of year...
With this extended period of hibernation
my mind is constantly reviewing my past season and predominantly trying to work
out which areas of my practice have been successful and which parts
might require some tweaking. The whole process of 'Going Lighter' has been
great fun but at the same time I've been conscious that at times things may
have gotten a bit out of hand and maybe the set up I was using was too
light for the job intended.
I'm the first
person to admit that with all the hype I did jump into this lure fishing lark
feet first. With a spinal injury causing me some serious grief the prospect of
being able to fish without the need of 2 rods, shelter, tripod and weights was
the initial attraction for me. I planned to experiment with tackle as light as
I deemed possible and work my way up to a point that was still fun but at the
same time sensible.
As a teenager
fishing exclusively in freshwater I learnt to fine-tune my tackle specifically
to the species I was fishing for. Matching rods, reels and line weights to the
optimum size of species was the best way to get the most out of my sessions and
a technical element that I enjoyed immensely. After graduating to beach
fishing some 20 years later where multiplier reels are loaded with 20lb mono filament and 50lb shock leader I was keen to involve more of my skills from my coarse
angling days and start again to think more about the optimum tackle that was
needed to target the species I was fishing for.
So, after
completely punishing my 2-7g Sakura Shinjin I quickly realised my general
purpose rod was going to need a bit more backbone and began experimenting with
a medium/fast action 5-28g rod. Not as much fun to begin with but the more I
was using it the more I began to understand my limits and felt comfortable with
the attributes this set up was offering me. I also had finally learnt what the
letters LRF stood for, LIGHT-rock-fishing... dumb dumb...
I was still very
keen on my 2000 sized reel and loaded my spare spool up with 10lb Yamatoyo SW
Super PE braid and an 8lb leader. Now!! Everything about
this set up seems great to me and as I didn't manage a lure-caught fish much over 3lb last year I'm
wondering how it will fare when I do hook up with something larger this year??
So - I'm mainly
reconsidering my line weight now; I think a change up in braid might need to
happen again. My current rod will take braid up to 16lb and I'm wondering how
much difference I will notice in this as opposed to my current
10lb breaking strain. It’s not that I plan to hunt down double figure bass but if one does snatch my lure I would rather
land it safely and efficiently rather than it snapping me up and
swimming off with lure, hook and line stuck in its mouth. Also with
the types of ground I end up fishing on occasions, sometimes it’s the
combination of jagged rocks plus the fish’s power that will denote the strength
of line I will need to use.
I had also
considered, having jumped in at the deep end with Poly Ethylene (PE) braids if
I shouldn't try the older rounder varieties such as Spectra or Dyneema fibres
as I have no comparison. From what I have seen from my
friends using them, they look like they might take a bit more abuse than the PE
stuff; question again is how much will this inhibit my fun
and sensitivity when I'm twitching my favourite SP's??
Anyhow, one thing
is for sure that I need to get out the bloody house, stop thinking too hard and
get on with some fishing... I think then my speculation will stop and I can get
on with what I enjoy the most, catching fish!!
Next post will be
a catch report!! It’s imminent!!
