As I strolled onto the coast last night the scene resembled a dogfight from an old film. Terns crashing into the water in every direction, Gannets dive-bombing in the distance, the water spontaneously erupting with silver shards, the sky oozing red orange and pink. A sight to take the breath.
Of course though, with a fishing rod in the right hand and a tendency towards optimism, there was no time to waste ! The tactics were simple …. don’t match the hatch, seek out the big bass that must be lurking beneath. Drop in a big soft plastic that would be irresistible to her. First cast, rattle, thump, fish on, but this was no lunker bass. Up pops a Scad with eyes bigger than it’s belly. At least that gave a clue as to what was going on beneath those scattering bait fish.
The light faded, the casts kept firing out, each in anticipation of the rod buckling. Darkness fell, the casts fired out still, maybe she’d hit the lure in total darkness. The plan was sound, so it was just a matter of time.
Deep darkness now, casts fired out again & again, and confidence was starting to wane a tad. Keep casting, move, fan the casts, so much bait here that the bass must be in the mix.
The final cast is retrieved, and the short trudge back to the car, mithering & muttering about the summer period. Roll on autumn is hissed-out more than once. Should i have gone small, but that would have meant oodles of Scad and Mackerel crawling up the line. Should i have fished on a couple of hours more, looking for the bass mooching in to mop up the remains of the carnage i’d seen, but that might have been a mugs game. Should i get my head down, then back out again before dawn, but that would mean a long hard day at the office afterwards. Should i just hang-up the rods for a few more weeks, waiting for the temperatures to drop …..
I’ll be back on that coast tonight … how can i fail !!
Words: SL. Pictures: Matt Spence & SL.