Smashing the Pollack in Connemara, Ireland

bending the rod to the butt

By Gary Robinson

 

Friday the 13th is a day where some stay in bed, don’t leave the house or do anything out of the ordinary for fear of disaster happening. Good job I’m not superstitious.

With a couple of days left before I head south in search of bigger things I decided that I would give the pollack grounds I have been fishing recently another go. I had a couple of things that I wanted to try out in terms of developing ideas for hitting finicky fish and where better place to try? Besides, I had immense fun over the last couple of sessions and it was just too much for me to pass up on – off into Connemara again!

Today’s sea was a little bit choppier than it had been previously but nothing to worry about and certainly not enough to keep me on dry land. I had decided to fish a rising tide this time to see whether it made any appreciable difference to the fishing. I was also testing a new idea that, if it works, I will be incorporating into all my lure fishing but more on that at a later date.

I took the drogue out this time and it proved to be a useful addition. The added swell and breeze compared to the previous day made for a very fast drift and the drogue was just what I needed to slow me down, allowing to fish the lures at a realistic and presentable pace. I was curious as to how the change in conditions would affect the the fishing. I need not have worried; the pollack smashed the lures today.

After getting out onto the water and getting organised I started casting the lures and retrieving them slowly and steadily, as usual. It was not long before pollack started to hit the lures with the average size being modest enough. The image below shows what I am finding out appear to be the usual stamp of fish in this area;

a pollack puts a good bend in the Triton Squid StickGood little scrappers and providers of both great fun and sport, each and every one of them has been returned with the hopes of them growing bigger and possibly providing the same enjoyment for another angler in the future. Fish like this one were hitting the lure every couple of casts and between catching them and keeping an eye on the drift, I was kept busy for the afternoon.

The most enjoyable part of the afternoon session came at the end of fishing a long cast that was to work the bait along one of the gullies I mentioned in the last report. As the profile of the line started to change in angle, signalling to me that the lure was near the end of the retrieve and rising up from the bottom, the rod buckled and was nearly pulled from my hands.

Taking a couple of yards of line the fish made a surge towards the reef it had risen from. It was a job to turn him but I managed to do so and the task of getting it to the kayak began in earnest. Defiant, the fish dove a couple of more times before I managed to see it. Lying on its side, I lifted it out of the water and marveled at it as the sun bounced off its bronze flanks. A quick photograph and it was sent back to its watery home.

 

another fine Connemara pollack on a day considered unlucky for some

Another few fish graced the kayak in what turned out to be a fantastic afternoon. Whether it was the rising tide or the new technique I am working on remains to be seen. There’s still some work to do but all will be revealed in time. I just can’t wait to get out again!

www.kayakfishermanireland.com

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