SEA SCHOOL
IMPROVING YOUR CASTING WITH JOHN HOLDEN
1 USE ENOUGH LEAD
There comes a point where wind, current and bulky baits make life difficult for the 150g outfit I prefer. Rather than thrash the cast to achieve even modest ranges, I switch to 170g, or even 200g for extra driving force. Most rods optimised for 150g will handle heavy sinkers with ease. Just slow down a bit and let the rod do its work.
2 SWITCH CASTING STYLES
Inexperienced anglers are not alone in sometimes finding it a struggle to cast properly. One minute all is going well, but then comes a collapse. This is especially true of pendulum casting at night. Loss of swing control is the usual culprit, made worse by plummeting confidence. The solution is dead simple: switch to an off-ground cast for the rest of the session.
3 CASTING POSITION
Standing at the water’s edge to cast is the logical thing to do, but sometimes proves impossible because the shoreline is too steep or cluttered to swing a lead weight.
Once again, a compact off-ground cast saves the day. Another option is to move back, perhaps as much as 25 metres, to a higher, flatter spot with a secure footing that lets you wind up your normal style.
4 ANCHORING
In really bad conditions with gales and a streaming tide, more lead and long fixed wires may be the only hope. In kinder circumstances, a 150g spiked lead weight should stick like a limpet if you walk uptide quite a way before aiming the cast yet farther uptide, then letting go what seems like an excessive length of loose line before stopping the spool. Prop the rod back in the rest, let the tide do its work and the rig will settle and stay put.
5 TIP HEIGHT & REST ANGLE
Resting the rod with the tip high is fine for calm conditions and modest tides. When the wind blows and a spring tide’s ebb makes the line sing with tension, I set the tip really low, with the rod parallel to the water’s edge.
In theory, this reduces a rod’s bite sensitivity, but in real life it makes little difference. I’ve never been too bothered about bite sensitivity anyway, regardless of conditions. I’ll know soon enough when a decent fish grabs hold. The tiny ones may as well stay out there as livebait for a bigger predator.
6 CURRENT & FISH CONTROL
Nothing perks up a session better than hooking into something big, even if it turns out to be a plastic bag. Bag or beast, walk downtide to minimise the distance between you and it.
Otherwise, with too much line out and the fish downstream, control becomes hard or impossible. Nothing finds weak spots in the line as efficiently as a fat ray kiting around far downstream in quick water.
7 RELEASE A STUCK RIG
When a rig really is snagged solid, pull for a break. But before going that far, consider the nature of the seabed. Over mud and clay, or where sand may have buried the line, hold the rod high and dial in heavy line tension. Maintain steady pressure for at least a minute. Surprisingly, often the rig pops free.
8 WEED ON THE LINE
Life is too short to unpick weed from line, especially when it is the grassy stuff that sticks like superglue. It is quicker to cut the leader knot and pull the line out of the weed, rather than strip the weed off the line.
A decent leader knot takes just seconds to tie. When the leader and rig are likely to be smothered in muck, I have a spare set baited and ready to go.
9 TEST NEW GEAR
With experience, it is perfectly possible to take a new rod or reel to the beach and enjoy trouble-free sport. Gear that’s nicely biased towards fishing is generally easy to set up and handle. But the higher the casting potential of a rod or reel, the more important it becomes to get used to it. Reel tuning, cast timing, leader drop and other issues are better sorted out before you hit the beaches.
10 ROD CHOICE
I am happiest with a fishing rod that casts well enough. A casting rod with the finesse of a scaffold pole is a worthless lump.
Today’s massive selection of rods includes something exactly right for the fishing you do, your personal preferences in feel and general handling, and for your budget. Those are the key criteria.
Casting performance? It is hugely important or a minor issue depending on your point of view. Fact is, just about any beach rod from cheap to exotic can be cast plenty far enough to catch fish anywhere.
11 SPARE SPOOLS
I load my Daiwa 7HT multiplier reels with good but cheap 0.35mm monofilament. Spare spools carry the same line to the same level, and with the same size brake block fitted. This allows for a seamless changeover of spools.
With bigger reels for rough-ground work (0.40mm line, usually), which can be harder to control in bad conditions, I carry an extra spare spool, under-filled with 0.50mm to make it ultra-docile.
I load my everyday fixed-spools just below the rim with 0.30mm monofilament. One spare spool is filled the same way. Another has 0.35mm, or even 0.40mm line loaded well down from the rim to reduce wind knots and loose webs when fishing in nasty weather.
12 RESCUE SERVICE
A plastic bag in my tackle box holds spare tip rings, hot-melt glue and a lighter, a couple of side rings, rubber tape, reel oil, brake blocks, screwdriver and a small adjustable spanner. This emergency kit has saved the day on countless occasions.
In the car are a pair of rooftop clamps in case I can’t take my rod apart at the end of a session. Owing to some strange voodoo, a joint that won’t budge a millimetre on the beach usually slides apart easily next day.