METHOD

With the boat settled at anchor, lower your baited rig very slowly down to the bottom to minimise the risk of the bait spinning and causing a tangle. It is essential you use sufficient lead weight to ensure the bait fishes hard on the bottom. In many areas this will mean using leads of 2lb and upwards.

Skate fishing is invariably a waiting game. Bites range from rod-bending lunges from a fish picking up the bait unnoticed and swimming off with it, to surprisingly delicate twitches and nods on the rod tip. Set the hook by winding the line as tight as possible and then lifting the rod. At first you might feel you are snagged on the bottom but, more often than not, this will be the fish holding fast, and it will be necessary to maintain considerable, sustained pressure to get it moving.

Once the fish is in open water, maintain as much pressure on it as you can, in order to start slowly working it up through the water column. This is hard, physical work, and while a good butt pad is essential, a well-fitting shoulder harness will be a distinct advantage.

Don’t try and rush things, skate fishing is about taking your time and gradually working the fish to the boat. It’s not pretty fishing, but the results are impressive.