FUN ON THE RUN
Jansen Teakle targets spring codling.
Ihave always found the spring run of cod to be more prolific than the autumn and winter. Although you stand less chance of latching into the monster fish you may pick up in December, numbers of fish are certainly far more. Add to this the chance of an early bass and you have the recipe for some good sport.
I would consider targeting the so-called ‘spring run’ from the middle of February onwards, and it is around this time that a number of other species may also be on the cards to target.
Why, you might ask, do I rate this spring run? Well, every autumn, eager sea anglers take to the UK coastline in pursuit of cod. Traditionally a time of plenty, good bags of fish are landed from numerous marks, including along the South Coast and, to some extent, the Bristol Channel.
I say to some extent, because while at this time of year cod can be realistically targeted, the season can be over before it has begun. It’s no secret that fish will travel to where the food is and, at times, will become so preoccupied with a particular source of food that it becomes incredibly difficult to entice them to your bait.
FOOD SOURCE
Take, for instance, the huge shoals of sprats that enter the Bristol Channel. Using sprats for bait is not the answer because the sprat shoals are most active up in the water and away from the seabed, which drives the cod upwards. This means that your bait that is anchored to the bottom with 6oz of lead weight will be of little consequence when a cod can cruise through a shoal of sprats and fill its belly with this protein-rich food source.
I remember once witnessing cod feeding on sprats near the surface while fishing from a boat out of Minehead, Somerset, and it was quite a sight seeing the swirls and commotion they caused.
What is the answer? During such times, it is possible to catch by using large fish baits, such as mackerel or herring, but it’s certainly not an approach that will see you bagging half-a-dozen fish or more on a single tide. You may be lucky to catch one, and it is likely to be of a healthy size. However, if it is large numbers of modest size fish you seek, I would suggest pursuing other species until at least January.
As the water temperature begins to creep up, the inshore habitats of crabs, shrimps and small fish once again flourish with
activity. Crabs, in particular, will be shedding their shells, and make an easy meal for any cod foraging around the rocks and weed.
Anywhere that could potentially contain life of this type and variety is certainly worth a look, and it’s no coincidence that noted Bristol Channel marks such as Sandpoint, Brean Down and Ladye Bay all offer rough ground at close range. Tide is also important. As a general rule of thumb, always try and fish where there is at least some parallel tide run.
TACKLE CHOICES
Contrary to popular belief, cod do not always feed a long way out. The aforementioned terrain will often encourage fish to feed at surprisingly close range and, for this reason, it is quite possible to catch fish with a light bass/ carp rod and small fixed-spool reel.
When the fish have been plentiful, I have enjoyed some tremendous sport using a 20-60g lure rod carrying a simple running leger rig.
A 2oz bomb will be enough to allow the bait to bounce around on the seabed and is likely to appear far more natural to feeding fish than one that remains static in the tide. That said, the visibility in the channel is nonexistent, but it’s certainly a worthwhile approach if you enjoy feeling the fight of a fish on balanced tackle.
It is not always possible to find the fish at this kind of range, so it’s good practice to have a conventional set-up at the ready should you want to fish at maximum range. I have been enjoying the use of a fixed-spool set-up over my last few sessions, simply to offer another element to my fishing. I would say that the stigma attached to such reels is long dead as more and more anglers I speak to are realising the benefits. The use of braid makes for great bite detection too.
As a die-hard multiplier fan for many years, it’s very enjoyable just to do something different, but I can’t see me turning my attentions entirely towards the ‘egg beater’ just yet.
My point is, fixed spools are so well made now, and so capable of doing what a multiplier can do, there’s little reason for a new angler to want to progress to a multiplier like they may once have done.
As always, the pulley rig will take some beating. It’s simple to tie, gets the lead weight off the bottom when retrieving a hooked fish, and, most importantly, it works.
BAIT SELECTION
At the top of the list for bait it has to be a fresh or frozen peeler crab. I would happily use either for targeting cod, although it is notable that bass are less inclined to fall for a frozen crab bait.
Baits should be whipped neatly to your hooks (around size 3/0 or 4/0 is perfect) with fine bait elastic to prevent it flying off on the cast or being nibbled away by pest fish such as small whiting.
Whip your bait as neatly as possible so that when the bait is clipped to the trace it will cast much further. Awkward-looking baits that have lumps sticking out of them are likely to reduce casting distance and possibly even come unclipped, leading to a massive reduction in distance, or possibly even an over-run if you’re using a multiplier reel.
A close second in the bait stakes are lugworms. Blow lug, or the slightly more resilient black lug, are both great fish catchers, and the fish pictured in this article were all caught on lug during a time when crabs were hard to find. A couple of average-size lug can be cast a long way, and if there are fish feeding close by, they will find them.
If you try this approach and do not find bites forthcoming, try varying your casting distance. Chances are that the fish may be feeding closer to the shoreline, in which case a larger, more potent bait may score.
Tipping baits with squid has long been a favourite tactic, but with the population of thornback rays here in the channel at an alltime high, don’t be surprised to wind in your cod only to find that it’s actually a ray. There is every chance that it will be a ray of specimen size though, so every cloud has its silver lining.