SILVER SURFERS
How to fish adrenaline-pumping beach locations for autumn’s big bass
Ways to fish beach locations for big bass.
My bass adventures often take me to remote coves, isolated reefs or winding estuary systems, but increasingly the wild surf beaches of the south coast of Ireland have been drawing my curiosity. After plenty of reconnaissance, research and a little bit of retail therapy, I started to focus on these large strips of golden sand in search of silver.
Traditionally these large, roaring surf beaches were fished using bait tactics but with the correct gear you can successfully target bass in the surf with lures.
The southern counties of Waterford, Cork and Kerry are littered with miles of golden sandy beaches which, in the summer, are abuzz with tourists but as the season tails off and the autumn commences these beaches become almost devoid of people.
LOOK FOR STRUCTURE
These vast expanses can appear daunting, with many anglers wondering where the bass are likely to be located on a stretch of sand that could be more than mile long. Like any location, you must find structure to increase your chances of finding bass.
The structure you seek may not at first be as apparent as that on the open coast, but here are a few key things to look out for at these venues:
1 Slope or camber of the beach – A steeper beach will often have deeper water in close, whereas a shallow gradient will indicate that the water depth is likely to be shallower for longer.
2 Drop-offs – Always look for areas where the sand levels change significantly. This may cause a natural lip or edge along the beach where bass search for food.
3 Troughs – These are areas which often run parallel with the beach itself. They are usually deeper channels which often provide cover for bait fish and therefore are the perfect ambush ground for feeding bass. 4 Sand bars – These are often found around the troughs mentioned above and can be visible in some cases throughout all states of the tide. They provide good breaks in the waves and also prime areas for sandeels to seek refuge.
5 Current – The key in determining the direction that the bass will travel
and when they feed. Locating current often means locating bass.
6 Wave behaviour – Observing the way waves break will help you understand the structure underneath the surface. Waves break when the water gets shallower, the speed reduces and causes the water to dump its energy. Therefore, you can identify depth changes in the bottom by observing the differences in timing of the waves as they break along the beach.
7 Food – Look for the presence of food for the fish. This could be signs of shellfish, such as razor clams or lugworm casts, or softer sand which will likely hold sandeels. Patrolling birds will help you seek out areas rich in food and, given the correct conditions, these can hold bass.
THE CORRECT CONDITIONS
I have found that this style of fishing, much like the open coast, can be very dependent on conditions. Some areas simply won’t fish unless you get a specific wind direction, speed or even a certain wave motion. Quite often these beaches fish best, in my experience, after there has been a good onshore blow, but before the ‘turning point’ where the swell and surf gets too manic.
There is a fine line between perfect conditions and what I would call blown out. I like there to be a good time between each wave rolling in, allowing for space between each to break and throw a table of white water. This is when the wave collapses and leaves behind a large area of fizzed-up, oxygenated water. This is what is known by striped bass anglers as ‘tables of white water’. If you watch and study the bass anglers on the east coast of America you will see them waiting and timing their casts into these areas; I try and do exactly the same.
Bass use this table of white water to their advantage in two ways. Firstly, it provides cover from above. Secondly, after the wave breaks, the baitfish get caught up in the chaos and become disorientated and at their most vulnerable to predators, like bass.
Therefore, being patient and timing your casts into the areas of structure mentioned when there is a table of white water is when you are most likely to get a hook-up.
BE PREPARED
Having looked at some of the key principles for finding the fish and where best to target them, all this is wasted if you haven’t got the
proper tackle to present a lure effectively.
Let’s first look at the clothing. I like to get in amongst the surf and therefore it is critical to have a reliable pair of waders and robust footwear. I wear a wading jacket, with adjustable neoprene cuffs, over the top of my waders to stop the water piling up the inside of my sleeves.
I also wear a tight wading belt over the top of my waders and jacket. This helps prevent any waves or surf riding up under my jacket and into my waders.
It is important to stress though that these conditions can be challenging and if not judged correctly can be dangerous, so be sure to study the water and only fish to your own abilities. It is critical to always put safety first.
I like to have two rods. The first is a conventional 5-30g, 8ft 6in lure rod for ‘smaller’ surf where I don’t need to throw heavier lures. The other is my Illex S 270 MH Estuary 10-50g, which I use for the larger sets of white water when I tend to throw heavier soft baits, sinking pencils, metals and needle fish lures.
For the past two seasons, my reel has been the ever-reliable Penn Slammer III 3500 series. Having been tried and tested by many of the top striped bass anglers in America, it’s more than up for the tasks in the UK and Ireland. Any reel you choose should be able to withstand a good dunking in saltwater and continue to work flawlessly.
LURE CHOICE
I try and keep the lure principles fairly simple with the only real variations coming in the form of different weights to handle the various strengths of conditions. Colour-wise, I will often fish white or white and chartreuse lures unless the water is clear in which case a natural sandeel pattern will be my first choice.
I like sinking plugs when fishing in the surf zones because I can let them sink below the turmoil before starting the retrieve. These tend to be more effective than their floating counterparts as they get down into the zone quicker and with a small pause you can keep them in that area for longer. Many
manufactures now make ‘surf’ variants of their models that are designed to handle choppier water and ‘dig in’ more. For example, Duo makes the Tide Minnow Surf and Illex makes the Nabla Minnow.
Pencils/needles: Sinking pencil baits and needlefish are among my go-to lures when I am facing strong headwinds because they tend to be some of the best casters. While they don’t have much obvious action they can be devastating when worked on a steady retrieve, especially when you time it to work in between the waves. There are a host of UK builders now making these American-style needle lures. Soft Baits: These are perhaps the easiest to work in such conditions as you can simply cast these out and retrieve, altering the jig head weight to account for the size of the surf or the distance needed. Simple pre-rigged lures, such as the Savage Gear Sandeel can work very well.
Bucktails: At first these look primitive but they can be lethal in the surf. Another staple of the striped bass angler, the bucktail is perfect for holding and gripping down in heavy surf and remaining in the kill zone for as long as you want. These can be fished on their own or dressed with a teaser or trailer for added action and gives the flexibility to change the overall profile.
Metals: If distance is required then it is very hard to go past metals. Few other lures will cast as well. Lure fishing all started with lures such as the Dexter Wedge and German Sprats and these will still be deployed by anglers today, but there is also a host of other long-range casting jigs.
The Tackle House P Boy is an example of a lure that has been successful in the surf, not only due to its cast-ability but also it has a very lifelike sandeel profile.
PREPARE TO SUCCEED
For those wanting to try this style of fishing, I suggest you start by exploring some of your local beaches over spring tides at low water. This helps you identify all the important areas of structure.
Once you have found these likely feeding areas, then think about the type of gear you will need to target them. Range or even lure weight may be a factor. You may have the majority of the gear you will need and with a few well-selected additions you’ll be ready to explore these adrenaline-pumping locations.
Next time you pass a beach full of tourists in the summer, just think that when things get quieter and the waves start crashing in, there could be big bass on the prowl. ■