WHY AM I NOT CATCHING FISH?? (help much appreciated)

Member Joined: May 26, 2007 Posts: 6

When i started last winter i caught quite a few whiting and one good sized bass, mainly on lug, but recently i haven't been doing well. When i go pier fishing i catch flatties, but i preffer beach fishing. I've been aldeburgh twice and stayed the night and caught nothing, this is using a mixture of little squids, lugs, and macrel. Is there any reason for this? My equipment is fine, my rigs are fine, and so is my bait. but even before this i've been dungeness and folkstone and still caught nothing.

I'm starting to get a little disheartened.

Guest

It's difficult not to get disheartened mate but keep at it. On a lot of East Coast venues you need to cast a reasonable distance to be in with a shout from the beach- myself and Duncbooth were once vying with each other for the title as the biggest blankers in Essex- so we decided to give Orford a try because the water is deep, doesn't require distance casting and is known as a prolific cod cenue. The outing was successful and havent looked back since.

I also decided I wanted to improve my casting so I could fish other 'distance' venues so had a few lessons- again this has opened up the options.

This is purely my opinion but I don't bother with mackerel or squid as bait. It can and is a good bait to use and handy to have but I personally stick to lug in winter, ragworm in summer and maybe tip off with squid. You dont say what size hooks you are using but scale down to size 1 or even smaller using worm bait- I've caught my best fish this year (6lb cod) using a size 1 hook on straight lug but it's rag rag and more rag for me until Autumn/winter. Make sure your hooks are very sharp but most of all don't give up- you'll get there.

Member Joined: May 26, 2007 Posts: 6

thanks mate, might try rag. Just don't like the way they look. I mean, i gut fish, mackerel, explode lug, tentically squid but i dont like rag...lol

is that orford ferry working now.

(ps, got charged £11 for two panninis in aldeburgh)

Guest

The Orford ferry called Regardless runs all year round- the ferry I think you're talking about is the one which takes people over only at certain times of the year for guided trips from April to November I think.

Keep an eye out on this site - there's usually trips of us go over once every few months and we're due a trip over soon for bass and sole- it's a good laugh and you're more than welcome to join us.

If you're bothered about rag biting try using a baiting needle or you can lop the head off if it really bothers you.

PS- there was a time when panini's wouldnt even have been thought of in Aldeburgh let alone selling for that price.Best bet for food in Adleburgh is the chippy before you get to the Dirty Wall- quality fish & chips- too many Chelsea tractor drivers there now with denim shirts, chino's and pink jumpers over their shoulder (no offence screaming reels)

Guest

Stuart is absolutely right. Find a venue that has deep water close in and it will build a bit of confidence. Since that trip last October I've blanked twice-once at South Fambridge (but that doesn't count as I've never caught there anyway! :lol: ) and once at St Osyth when it was blowing an absolute hooley! Up till then, I'd had three fish in ten months!

Try a helicopter rig stuck in close (say 20 yards). It's designed to roll around the bottom and is an ideal scratching rig if there's not much about. It'll pick up flatties and I've had a school bass on it. The biggestfish on it was a 3lb codling.

Do vary your distances. Lob one out as far as you can and fish a second rod in close. If you can manage a third rod, stick that one in at a middle distance. Find the fish and the adjust your other rods to suit.

Member Joined: May 26, 2007 Posts: 6

thanks, any more tips would still be appreciated ('-')

Posted: Sun May 27, 2007 8:55 pm

Why don't you pm either Rocket or Blackdog.......
They have a whole lot of experience and would not mind sharing it with you.

Good luck mate

Limey :wink:

Posted: Sun May 27, 2007 9:14 pm

Hi crabkiller.. big grin

I see you mention Dungeness..... 8O well this is a deep water venue as the shore drops away quick... (and a recent review showed Bass coming in along by the boats.... I think it was by DungyJim)

below are some thought prevoking questions... aimed at making you think about the tactics you employ when fishing

Are you fishing for targeted fish or anything that comes along???

Do you fish a particular part of the tide or just turn up & fish??

Are the tactics you use the same as other anglers that are catching near you??

Have you had previous success at the spot you are fishing??

Also some anglers connect better with the sport.... not trying to put you down especially if you enjoy the sport very much. I fish with my uncle who was European Gold Boat champion many years ago.... even now when on his boat he in general always has more fish and better fish than anyone else onboard..... Now you would think with 6 lines in the water all with in yards of each other that probability would give us all an equal chance..... but he always has the edge..... maybe not always the largest fish of the day.

Maybe it is just a case of a little tweak here and there with you present methods....... and once you have found success let us all know so we can improve :wink:

Sorry that I have no magic wand :oops:

Good Luck 8)

HoOkEd

Guest

Why do PM's for advice? the whole idea of a forum is to share advice and make the website interesting and helpful - I personally have learnt a lot from advice and tips given on these forums in response to particular topics which are open for everyone to read. If we all do PM's for advice the whole idea of the forum goes to pot.

Guest

stuartdv wrote:

Why do PM's for advice? the whole idea of a forum is to share advice and make the website interesting and helpful - I personally have learnt a lot from advice and tips given on these forums in response to particular topics which are open for everyone to read. If we all do PM's for advice the whole idea of the forum goes to pot.

Just what I was thinking

Guest

Becasue it's really secret stuff.

Honestly.

It'stop secret.

They known where the fish are and just how to catch them.

Remember the weapons of mass distruction in Iraq?

Exactly.

The PM knows best.

(whoever he is these days).

Regular Joined: Jan 13, 2005 Posts: 449 Location: Norfolk

Some of the things I do to try and improve results are:

1: Always cast uptide.
2: Vary baits and mix baits also.
3: Try different rigs. If I have been using say a two hook clipped down bomber rig for most of the day with no luck; I will try switching to say a one hook running ledger.
4: Spring/Summer time: Because of the crabs: every trip I make I put a small piece of foam above one hook of one rig to hopefully lift it slightly off the bottom. I have had eels, flatties , bass etc like this.
5: If no luck all day at any distance I will try one at about five/ten yards.
6: Spring/Summer time when bass are a possibility, I will try one rod with a running ledger baited with a whole squid which has lug/fish strip or whatever stuffed inside it.
7: After fishing for three or four hours with no luck I will occasionally up sticks and move 100 yards one way or the other ( not forwards happy

)
8: Try squid strips as long as you can cut them-half a centimeter wide and fifteen centimetres long. I catch most of my better dabs like this .
9: If fishing for mackeral try a Dexter wedge type lure on the end instead of a weight. I have picked up bass like this as well as mackeral.
10: I always find that fishing tends to be poor at about half- moon stage. ( Like now. ) Least amount of pull in the tide. Concentrate on times around new and full moons. ( big tides ).
Hope this helps and good luck. happy

Guest

crabkiller wrote:

When i started last winter i caught quite a few whiting and one good sized bass, mainly on lug, but recently i haven't been doing well. When i go pier fishing i catch flatties, but i preffer beach fishing. I've been aldeburgh twice and stayed the night and caught nothing, this is using a mixture of little squids, lugs, and macrel. Is there any reason for this? My equipment is fine, my rigs are fine, and so is my bait. but even before this i've been dungeness and folkstone and still caught nothing.

I'm starting to get a little disheartened.

Everybody seems to think that there is some magic answer to these type of questions and there isn't - once you have the basic idea about baits, rigs, casting etc there is only one way to improve and that is to gain experience on the beach. You do learn much faster in the company of other more experienced anglers so perhaps you should look to tag along with some of the regulars on here - you'll learn more in a session with a competant angler than you will reading websites for the rest of your life.

If you have a couple of chosen venues you prefer to visit, stick with them, watch out if there are any local matches and visit as a spectator this will give you some idea of what is caught and where. Learn some beachcraft - i.e. the ability to examine the features of a venue and logically try to deduce the fish-holding/attracting features - when I was a kid this was the skill that set the better anglers apart, nowadays everybody expects to be able to read where the latest hotspots are in the Sea Angler mag.

Tides are important, incuding fishing the right bit of the tide, as are baits but there is no one right answer. Simplest rule with bait and hooks is to fish bait type (and size) in relation to your chosen quarry and then think about hook size. You will catch more fish on smaller hooks but if you hook that 12lb Bass in a strong current with a size 1 hook you have seriously reduced your odds of landing it - believe me little fish can take big hooks, I've had 3 oz Whiting on 6/0s.

If you are going to stick with Sea Fishing I'm afraid you will have to learn to take poor returns on the chin, the same as the rest of us (yes everybody blanks now and then) - but it will eventually come together, as with the realisation that, if you are like a lot of anglers, it aint all about catching fish - sometimes its just about being there.

Guest

blakdog wrote:

crabkiller wrote:

When i started last winter i caught quite a few whiting and one good sized bass, mainly on lug, but recently i haven't been doing well. When i go pier fishing i catch flatties, but i preffer beach fishing. I've been aldeburgh twice and stayed the night and caught nothing, this is using a mixture of little squids, lugs, and macrel. Is there any reason for this? My equipment is fine, my rigs are fine, and so is my bait. but even before this i've been dungeness and folkstone and still caught nothing.

I'm starting to get a little disheartened.

Everybody seems to think that there is some magic answer to these type of questions and there isn't - once you have the basic idea about baits, rigs, casting etc there is only one way to improve and that is to gain experience on the beach. You do learn much faster in the company of other more experienced anglers so perhaps you should look to tag along with some of the regulars on here - you'll learn more in a session with a competant angler than you will reading websites for the rest of your life.

If you have a couple of chosen venues you prefer to visit, stick with them, watch out if there are any local matches and visit as a spectator this will give you some idea of what is caught and where. Learn some beachcraft - i.e. the ability to examine the features of a venue and logically try to deduce the fish-holding/attracting features - when I was a kid this was the skill that set the better anglers apart, nowadays everybody expects to be able to read where the latest hotspots are in the Sea Angler mag.

Tides are important, incuding fishing the right bit of the tide, as are baits but there is no one right answer. Simplest rule with bait and hooks is to fish bait type (and size) in relation to your chosen quarry and then think about hook size. You will catch more fish on smaller hooks but if you hook that 12lb Bass in a strong current with a size 1 hook you have seriously reduced your odds of landing it - believe me little fish can take big hooks, I've had 3 oz Whiting on 6/0s.

If you are going to stick with Sea Fishing I'm afraid you will have to learn to take poor returns on the chin, the same as the rest of us (yes everybody blanks now and then) - but it will eventually come together, as with the realisation that, if you are like a lot of anglers, it aint all about catching fish - sometimes its just about being there.

Well written

Member Joined: May 26, 2007 Posts: 6

Thanks guys, it's really encouraging that everyones helping out. Blakdog, i agree it's not all about catching fish. I have a laugh when I camp out, but all the same it's nice to catch some fish.

Also, Stuartdv I'd love to join you at Orford if i'm available; as I will probably learn new techniques etc.

But, I guess there is no definitive answer to my question; although all the info and tips will definately improve my chances.

Crabkiller big grin