SHALLOW WATER WRASSING PART 2

We, like the rest of the UK at this time of year, have been getting a real pummelling from the weather-WINTER is definitely here!!! I have found though that this can be the best time of year for finding really good sized wrasse with the soft plastics. I look for really shallow ground away from all the deep marks outside the islands as the wrasse love them. As we all know wrasse are not fond of turbulent water and if there is any ground sea or swell running the chances are that you will struggle to catch them. Instead go into the really shallow boulder bays and the fishing can be AWESOME!!

This last week I have fished several such bays into water as shallow as 3ft and have had some mental sport!!

As I was walking along the top of one bay the water clarity was absolutely crystal clear when I saw a decent sized wrasse moving over the boulders in 4ft of water. I flicked out a 3'' Wave Grasscraw in front of the wrasse, tap tap and bang all hell had broken loose!! Spray was going everywhere due to the shallow water as the wrasse went crazy before I slipped the net under a very stocky and angry 6lb wrasse.

I could see several other wrasse moving around the boulders and sand patches and soon another cracking fish slipped under the landing net.

A couple of days later I found myself with another opportunity to head back out to the same shallow bay. I brought along with me a packet of Z-Man ZinkerZ to try out. Awesome watermelon and red flake colours but just soooooooo stretchy!! They are incredibly soft and supple and claim to be 10 times stronger than other soft plastics, time will tell how tough they are with wrasse chomping at them!!

After just one session with them, they are indeed tough as I landed 10 wrasse up to 5lbs on the same lure before sadly losing it!!

Yesterday Neil and I managed to sneak in one last session before the weather turned really nasty and again the wrasse were smashing the lures!!

Again the Z-Mans were doing the business for me stretching ahead of Neil in our mini comp before I gave in to his constant whining and gave him not my last Rolo but my last Z-Man ZinkerZ! What a gentleman I am as Neil soon started catching me up.

As Neil was twitching his lure he stopped to tell me some pearl of wisdom when his baitcaster was almost taken from his hands as a powerful wrasse hit his deadsticked lure from almost under his rod tip! This wrasse was going mental in only a few feet of water before Neil slid it over the landing net. It was a very long fish for its weight as it was the same length as my 6.6lb at 54cm but only pulled the scales down to just over 5lbs.

Still it was a cracking fish but I won't be sharing my lures around again Neil!!!

Just goes to show, despite the howling gale outside if you can find some shelter no matter how shallow the ground you can still have some great sport (just look for the boulders!!)