Monthly Archives: May 2011

Shad Fishing Lures – The Perfect Shad Imitation For Bass Fishing

bass fishing uk

Buy our award winning fishing lures at www.escalure.co.uk. These fishing lures are guaranteed to improve your catch rate success

These 2 shad fishing lures (or types of fishing lures) are the main two varieties when it comes to baits that mimic shad, and is what this article is about. The “perfect” shad imitation comes from one of these to varieties of fishing lures. The number one “perfect” fishing lure is probably impossible to determine, and depends on the angler and temperament of the bass themselves, but if there is one single “perfect” shad imitation it comes form these two fishing lure varieties.

Soft Plastics – Soft plastics, especially swim baits, are very effective shad fishing lures. Typically these baits are segmented soft plastic baits with a thumping tail. Normally Swimbaits are retrieved quite fast, and then stopped from time to time to allow the bait to sink into the strike zone. There are Swimbaits that imitate shad as well as other bait fish. On most waterways the shad imitating Swimbaits are the most effective. YUM brand soft plastic shad are an effective shad imitation for bass fishing as well. These soft plastics have been impregnated with scents that smell much like a live shad, which makes them more effective than traditional soft plastics.

Crank Baits – Crank baits have been imitating shad for many years. Some of the more popular and effective shad crank baits would include the Bagley G-force and the Rapala Shad Rap. These are both great shad imitations and are quite effective for bass fishing. Typically crank baits have a lip in the front to allow the bait to ‘swim’ to different depths when retrieved. When it comes to shad fishing lures another effective crank bait is the KickTail minnow. This shad imitation is sort of a hybrid between a swim bait and a crank bait. In any case many crankbaits are effective shad imitations.

The bottom line is that any serious bass angler needs to have effective shad lures in their tackle bag/box. The most effective bass baits that imitate our friend the shad will come from one of the two varieties of fishing lures listed above. These two bass lure varieties will produce your own personal ‘perfect’ shad imitation that hopefully will serve you well for many years to come.

Fishing – What to Wear

I have no sense of fashion, and rarely can match my clothing.  I usually choose clothing based on comfort. When selecting what clothing to wear on the river, comfort is key.  Here in the mountains, the weather changes quickly.  In winter months, cold weather is a constant.  Cold temperatures are found along the rivers or low spots across the land.  Temperatures at Teton Valley Lodge along the river can be -30, while Grand Targhee Ski Resort, fifteen miles up the mountain, will be 0 at the same time of day.  
 
Winter fishing can be fantastic, unless you choose the wrong clothing. For winter fishing you should wear the same things you might wear skiing or snowmobiling, plus a bit extra.  One key item is fleece fingerless gloves. You must wear fingerless gloves so you have control over your line.  Fingered gloves just don’t work.  The fleece gloves retain heat even when wet and dry easily.  Another great piece of clothing is the boot foot wader by Simms.  This newly redesigned wader is warm and comfortable.  Regular stocking foot waders pale in comparison.  For winter fishing nothing beats the boot foot.
 
Summer clothing has advanced a lot over the past few years.  It wasn’t too long ago that we always wore waders or hip boots in the summer.  There just wasn’t the clothing available to fish comfortably any other way. Manufacturers like Patagonia, Simms and Cloudveil, have excellent choices for the summer angler.  For most of the summer season you are able to wet wade with quick dry pants and sandals.  There are two different types of shirts made specifically for fishing.  You can select standard button-up shirts in both long and short sleeves. These are quick dry like the pants and most offer an SPF factor.  The other type of shirt is a T-shirt style of lighter weight material than the conventional button-up.  Both are quick drying and cool in hot weather.

Buy our award winning fishing lures at www.escalure.co.uk. These fishing lures are guaranteed to improve your catch rate success

Flipping For Bass

The technique of pitching has largely replaced it in some quarters, but the flipping technique remains the same ultra precise, this is a deadly method of catching large bass in cover that Californians Dee Thomas and Dave Gliebe first brought East 30 years ago. This was a technique that revolutionized the sport. When the technique of flipping was introduced to the fishing world it was the most effective method ever. The fisherman learned that flipping was amazingly accurate procedure to get the big bass out of cover. It was such an outstanding weapon the fisherman from the west where the warriors in the early and mid 70s. Bass pro fisherman Roland Martin says flipping changed everything, suddenly we had a way to get a bait to big bass in some bad places.

The virtues of flipping have not changed. Bass fisherman fishing for the bigger bass always pays off when they are flipping for individual bass instead of schoolies. Individual fish are normally big fish. They’ll hold on the most unusual piece of cover in the area. They stake out their own territory.

If you are going to be a serious bass fisherman, you will have to master the flipping technique, that’s what the pros say. It remains a major part of bass fishing throughout the year.

The bass pros known the merits of flipping are well known. The bass pro fisherman known that technique is just isn’t limited for spring and summer when bass are most likely to bury up in cover. Unless the water where you live freezes over in winter, there is an application for this close quarters fighting technique throughout the year.

Here’s a look at where experienced flippers concentrate their efforts on flipping year around.

When flipping in the summer fishing main lake flip tight cover that tends to be a little bit better, especially after the spring rains where the water is still high. Also the bass pro says fishing vegetation, downed tree’s and branches when the water is high after the spring rains. Many pros us the flipping technique on the thickest mats during the hottest times in the summer with a lake fork trophy tackle craw tube teamed with a 1 ounce tungsten weight and 80 pound test spiderwire braid.

During the dog days of summer the fish are in grass lines on points and main lake cover. Ounce your fishing into the fall, flipping into creek channels becomes more productive. Fishing the channels are the migration of baitfish holding on the channel, but there are always fish in channels but in late summer and early fall the channels play a huge role in finding the most productive fishing area.

Bass fishing in the fall the bass are going to be on thick grass and hydrilla and matted hyacinths. The pros are going to key on stuff, there going to be flipping on isolated patches of grass and hyacinths or hydrilla and even wood. Some of them expend most of there flipping in the backs of creeks throughout the fall.

When the pros are flipping in the winter they will fish shallow situations in muddy, highly fertile lakes, where the bass population doesn’t live very deep, to surprisingly deep cover. Some of the pros will us a 1/8 to 3/16 ounce Berkley jig with a big power frog trailer to get a slow descent to entice sluggish coldwater fish.

Buy our award winning fishing lures at www.escalure.co.uk.

These fishing lures are guaranteed to improve your catch rate success

Crappie Fishing Tricks – Fishing Techniques For Crappie

fishing tricks

Fishing is one great hobby to have. Not only are you enjoying but you also benefit from it. Crappie is a great tasting fish that is why many fishermen seek for it especially during winter when it is easy to catch them. Before you can proceed on learning fishing techniques for crappie, you must know first more about the fish, it’s characteristics  and how you can bait them easily.

Click Here For Crappie Fishing Tricks Instant Access Now!

One must also know when is the best time to catch a crappie, usually it is during spring that they are easy to catch but some say it is during winter. Usually black crappies are visible on shallow water while the white crappies on shallow waters. They may be a little difficult to catch but soon once you know a few fishing techniques for crappie you will get used to it.

So far, the proven way to lure crappies is by jigging. They help in lurking the fish to the bait. Pounding the jig is one form of jigging. It is jiggling your rod up then down for a few seconds. Just continue doing this until you get to catch a crappie. Using a live bait is better since it gets to lure crappies more.

They prefer cool places that is why summer time is a difficult time to look for them. They tend to hide in places that have shades, for example a river or lake with a lot of weeds, you can find them there. Deep waters are good keepers of crappie so lakes are good sources of crappie. They tend to get away from shallow waters when winter time comes. They also stay out of the sun as much as possible and eats almost everything.

Try and try until you get the crappies you want. Make sure that you know where to find your crappies and once you know where, do not stop until you get almost every crappie you can have. Apply all fishing techniques for crappie that you have learned. The time to go fishing, the location and how to bait them. Enjoy fishing!

Click Here For Crappie Fishing Tricks Instant Access Now!

Sea Fishing in the Oban Area

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Sea Fishing in the Oban Area

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Home Page > Sports and Fitness > Fishing > Sea Fishing in the Oban Area

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Sea Fishing in the Oban Area

By: Escalure Fishing Tackle
Posted: Dec 20, 2010

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Buy Esca Lures online at – http://www.escalure.co.uk/

Shore vs Boat

Most species in the area can be caught from both shore and boat. There are some excellent shore marks such as Dunollie Point on the Ganavan Road just past Oban. The most common fish caught from the shore are mackerel, pollack, spurdog, thornback ray, dogfish, cod, coalfish and a variety of flatties. All will be hooked on rag and lugworm as well as mackerel strips, mussel and peeler crab. However, boat fishing offers a much bigger catch and species seldom caught from the shore. Wreck and reef fishing is most popular and large catches are common. Charter boats operate out of Oban, Craobh Marina and Balvicar and are well-equipped with skippers providing tackle and a wealth of knowledge of local marks.

Specimen Skate

The British record skate (227lbs) was caught near Tobermory on the Isle of Mull and the area often yields fish well over the 200lb mark which attracts anglers from all over the UK. Skate can be caught all year round although the best chances of catching larger ones is between August to October. As with all big game fishing, the right tackle is essential. Ideally, this is a 50lb class rod with a heavy reel loaded with 50lb line attached to a harness and butt rest. The rig should be a simple one with a sliding boom with swivel link with a size 10 bronzed hook. There is no need for a wire trace as skate don’t have large, sharp teeth. However, commercial grade monofilament around 200lbs is recommended. The best bait is a whole coalfish, mackerel or pollack of 1-2lbs with one fillet cut off which produces more blood and scent to attract the fish. Most skate caught in the UK are tagged and returned and anglers are encouraged to do this to preserve numbers of this rare, hard-fighting fish.

Loch Etive

Loch Etive stretches 20 miles inland from its mouth near Connel and the famous tidal Falls of Lora. It is one of the most unique lochs in the UK as it has two sets of narrows that affect the tide in such a way that there can be a two hour difference between high tide at the mouth of the loch and Bonawe only 5 miles away. The salt content is affected by this strange effect which results in a very diverse range of fish. For example, brown trout share the same marks as pollack and spurdog (the loch yielded the Scottish shore record of 15lb 3oz). Good marks are Ardchattan Priory and Bonawe Quarry further up the loch on the north shore, and the windsock near Connel Bridge. Boats hire is available from Taynuilt pier. Spinning here will usually catch pollack, saithe and trout in warmer months whilst bait fishing will produce some large spurdog, dogfish and thornback rays.

Read more articles
Here we will explain the basics of wreck fishing
International Boat Show 2011
Bluegill Fishing With New Micro Jigs – They Won’t Be Able to Resist
Top 5 Most Frequently Asked Questions at This Year’s Boat Show

For diverse and unique fishing, the waters in the Oban area are ideal for casual and experienced anglers alike.

Saltwater Fishing Techniques For Mid-Atlantic Artificial Reefs

Fishermen of the Mid-Atlantic from New England to North Carolina often fish around structure, including shipwrecks, rocks, rubble, bridge pilings and artificial reefs.

Depending the location and season, these fishing hotspots can hold a variety of fish including cod, haddock, scup (porgy), black sea bass, tautog (blackfish), summer flounder (fluke), striped bass, weakfish, croaker, spot, sheepshead, spadefish, cobia, king mackerel, monkfish and other species.

The following list of tips apply to wreck, reef and structure fishing:

* Use a basic top and bottom fishing rig when snags and hang ups are not a problem.

* Switch to a single hook rig in areas of extremely rough bottom.

* Carry a wide selection of sinkers ranging from 3-8 oz.

* When targeting large fish only, use large jigs or single baits such as whole split squid mantles or fish fillets.

* Use a rod and reel that can handle depths from 15-120 feet, and 3-8 oz. sinkers.

* Fish with braided lines for added sensitivity.

* Use baits such as squid, croaker, bluefish, herring, sand eels, blue crabs, green crabs, mole crabs, fiddler crabs, shrimp and clams.

* When using cut crab, leave the legs on and check baits often. Replace baits that have had the meat sucked out of the shell.

Buy Esca Lures online at – http://www.escalure.co.uk/

* Avoid excessive tension on the line and pay attention for minute signs of nibbling. Give a short tug upward when movement is felt. If the fish appears to be in the line, set the hook, lift the fish away from structure and then reel in gently.

* When fish are suspended over structure, try fishing metal jigs or other lures at varying depths.

* Tag and release undersized fish. Switch techniques or locations to avoid excess bycatch of smaller species.

* Take no more fish than needed.

* Identify fish sexes – Release female fish when possible.

* Support Artificial Reef programs.

A Sherkston Shores Vacation – Part 2

In part one of this series on Sherston Shores and the surrounding area I focused on the swimming and some of the other family activities you can enjoy there. In this part I’m going to tell you about my favorite part of a vacation at Sherkston Shores: the smallmouth bass fishing. As I mentioned before, Lake Erie is very clean in southern Ontario. If you’re fishing on a boat, it’s very easy to see the bottom of the lake when you’re in 20 feet of water. Not only is the water clean but the number of bass that live there is amazing. Most of the fishermen anchor or drift over between 10 and 20 feet of water and fish for the smallmouth with diving crank baits. Since I don’t bring my boat up, unless I can hitch a ride, I have to find another way to hook these great fish. That’s what I want to tell you about today.

About a mile from shore there is a wreck of an old barge. During World War II when the value of steel skyrocketed, the authorities decided to salvage as much of the wreck as possible. They constructed a coffer dam to dry the lake bed from the beach to the wreck. Then they built a road out to the barge and were able to truck a huge amount of steel back to shore. When they removed the dam and flooded the road, they left behind a fisherman’s paradise.

Most of the time, the old road is covered by one to four feet of water for the first half mile or so toward the remains of the barge. From the edge of the road, the water immediately drops off to a depth of five to eight feet. This is where the fish patrol looking for food. I’ve found that top water baits with no weight work fantastically for an hour after dawn and the last hour before dark. During the middle of the day I like to use a shallow diving or suspending crank bait. I’ve yet to find a time of day that you can’t catch these bass. As a matter of fact, I’m not kidding when I say that I’ve caught over 100 fish in a day several times. Most of the smallmouth I’ve caught off the road are between 10 and 15 inches in length and the biggest one I caught was 21 inches long.

The smallmouth bass season in Lake Erie runs from the fourth Saturday in June through the end of November. You have several choices when it comes to fishing licenses. If you’re going to be fishing in Lake Erie for a week or less, you can buy an eight day sport fishing or conservation license. The sport fishing license allows you to keep up to six smallmouth bass a day and the conservation license allows you to keep up to two fish per day. If you’re going to be at Sherkston for longer than a week, you can buy a seasonal sport fishing or conservation license. The limits are the same but the license is valid for the year. Since I’m a catch and release fisherman, I save some money by purchasing a conservation license.

Well, if great swimming, family activities and fishing aren’t enough reasons to visit Sherkston Shores, there are more. In part 3 of this series, I’ll start to tell you about some of the fun things to do within a 45 minute drive of the resort. Stay tuned.

Buy Esca Lures online at – http://www.escalure.co.uk/

The Right Food For The Right Fish

catfish fishing uk

Flake Food

Flake food is a good all round daily food for most fish.  It usually contains all the ingredients, minerals and vitamins that fish need on a daily basis.  Flakes will float initially for the surface feeding fish and eventually slowly float through the water for the mid water and bottom feeding fish.  Be sure that all the flakes are not consumed by the surface feeding fish if flakes are all that you are feeding.  I would highly recommend buying a well known, reputable brand of fish flakes as there are a lot of cheap alternatives that may contain harmful ingredients and I have heard a few horror stories of whole tanks of fish dying after being fed cheap flake food.

 

Specialised Pellets

Specialised pellet foods are produced specifically to the needs of certain species of fish.  For example cichlid spirulina pellets contain the exact dietary requirements of fish from Lake Malawi that naturally would eat algae and vegetation.  Oranda and Lionhead pellets are designed to help fancy goldfish combat swimbladder problems and also contain ingredients from their natural diet.  Pellets can also be bought as sinking food for catfish.  These are usually aimed at carnivorous and scavenging catfish such as Corydoras and Hoplos.

 

Wafers

Sinking wafer foods are to be fed to bottom feeding fish such as Plecs, Corydoras and other catfish.  They are usually either algae based or fish based depending on wether you are feeding a sucker mouth plec (algae wafers) or scavenging catfish such as corydoras (sinking wafers).  Most other fish will also feed on wafers as they sink to the bottom of your tank and this is fine.

 

Frozen Food

Frozen foods come in also different types but the most popular ones are Bloodworm, Brineshrimp and Daphnia.  Frozen foods are great as a treat food along side your daily food and have great health and colour benefits to your fish.  I would recommend feeding frozen foods 2 days a week as a supplement to flake foods.  Frozen foods are also vital for certain species of fish that will not eat flake foods such as puffer fish and other more unusual species.  You should check with your aquatic shop when buying unusual fish what they are feeding on in the shop.

 

Live Food

There is a lot of debate about wether feeding live food to your fish is safe.  There are chances of the live food (bloodworm, brineshrimp, daphnia) passing on parasites to your fish and making them ill.  Some aquatic centres may still offer live foods for sale and certain species of fish may still require live feeding.

 

Top Tips

Always buy a good quality fish food, and when you find one that you are happy with and your fish like then stick to it.

Vary the diet of your fish and ensure that all fish are getting enough food at feeding time.

Feed your fish at the right time of day, particularly catfish as most of these are nocturnal and will be looking for food at night.

Keep you fish food dry and out of reach of pets and children.

Always remove any uneaten food after feeding to prevent it rotting in the water and causing water quality problems.

Visit our website http://www.waterworksaquatics.co.uk to see our full range of fish foods.

 

Carp Fishing Holidays in France – some tips for choosing the right venue

carp uk

There are some excellent and some very poor carp fisheries in France, I have fished a fair few of them, and we regularly hear reports from customers at our lake, comments that are
not always complimentary, relating to venues previously visited in France.

Unfortunately it is a fact that there are plenty of unscrupulous lake owners in France with little or no knowledge of fisheries management – please be careful !

It is important to find the right venue for you, carp anglers do not all want the same thing, so don’t just follw the crowds, look for what you really want in your holiday.

Some of the factors that might be important to you are ;

price
size of the carp
size of the lake
degree of difficulty of fishing
distance from the ferry port/ travel time to venue
availability of airport collection
can the venue be booked exclusively ?
Is there accommodation at the lake and how far from the water is it ?
do the owners live on site ?
location/climate
availability of food at the venue

The first advice that I would give to prospective customers is to look very carefully at the website of the venue in question. Are there photos of carp which match up to the claimed stock – if you don’t see plenty of photos of fish of a similar size then be very wary. This also applies to the size of the lake (most lakes are smaller than they are claimed to be) I have spoken to a lot of people who have turned up at a venue to find that the lake is half its advertised size…

How difficult is the lake to fish and does this correspond to your level of skill and experience ? Often this is tied to the size of the lake and what you are used to fishing in the UK, if you are used to fishing small waters then it might be best to look at a similar sized lake in France.

This is not to say that all small waters are easy, in fact some of the smaller waters in France can be very difficult indeed, so check out the catch reports on the website.

The location of the venue and the distance from the ferry port at which you will be arriving will obviously determine the length of your journey in France, and will also have an impact on the weather that can be expected. If your chosen venue is in Northern France and you are looking to book a holiday in April or October for example, don’t expect to be spending the week in shorts and t-shirt !

On the other hand, if you are taking your partner with you, the likelihood is that she will be looking for a holiday in the summertime and will be hoping for plenty of sunshine, so the venues located in the southern half of the country will offer the best chance of good weather.

The journey time to some of these southern venues can be extensive, from Calais down to the Limousin area can take 8 to 10 hours driving with a copuple of stops on the way, some of the venues in the Dordogne are 10-12 hours drive. Fortunately, some of these venues offer a package that includes collection from the nearest airport and hire of a full carp fishing set-up for the week. Although driving in France is very relaxing compared to the UK, If you are not fond of driving then a venue that has this option may well be worth considering.

Do you want to share the lake and facilities with other anglers ? If not then you will need to choose from one of the many venues offering exclusive bookings. Choosing this type of venue means that you will have exclusive use of the lake and the on-site facilities. The main advantage of this is that there will not be other anglers fishing the water, this rules out the possibility of having your holiday spoiled by others.

Does the venue offer accommodation ? Lakeside accommodation takes a carp fishing holiday to another level, and if you are taking your partner or the whole family with you, they won’t want to spend the week in bivvies ! There are only a few venues that offer high quality accommodation, and these venues are justifiably popular, so you will need to book well in advance, possibly up to 2 years in advance in some cases ! Remember to check how far from the lake the accommodation is – the closer the better !

Are the venue owners English and do they live on site ? This can provide extra security and reassurance for guests should you have any problems or emergencies whilst you are there.

Finally – does the venue offer a food package ? Whether you are taking your partner or not, this option can be very attractive, meaning that you will be catered for, with breakfast, lunch and evening meal provided – the ultimate option for spoiling yourself !

Two carp fishing holiday venues Les Croix and Les Levades offers many of the above options – please take a look at the websites !