Tag Archives: big bass

Saltwater Fly Fishing

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One of the most common queries I get is around my approach to saltwater fly fishing. So here is a quick introduction.

I use 2 set-ups for most of my saltwater fly fishing. A 9ft 5wt with full floating line. This is my go-to kit when fishing over very shallow clean ground in clear water. One reason for this is the lighter outfit is less likely to spook fish. Another is that the flies I typically use here are small, similar to the size of most trout flies. Another plus is that this outfit doubles up as a mullet rod so I can target both species at the same time.

A nice 62cm fish taken over clean ground on a shrimp pattern.

The other outfit I use is a 9ft 9wt. My personal favourite is the Mackenzie FX1 Salt rod. I have a few different lines that I use on this rod. Mostly I use a Rio Outbound Short coldwater line in intermediate and I also carry the full float in the same line (for surface flies). Another line I use is an OPST shooting head with various density tips. I find this line great for really big flies.

A fine bass taken on a baitfish pattern using the 9wt over rough ground.

The majority of the time I am using the 9wt is for casting larger flies and or fishing over rougher ground. I also use it in estuaries in channels with a strong current.

Superb Bass Fishing

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The brilliant summer weather was making bass fishing tough during the day but night fishing was superb last weekend and at the beginning of the week.  The two guys that were fishing with me had some super sport on soft plastics with lots and lots of takes from fish in the 2.5lb to 3.5lb range.

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If you have never tried night time bass fishing with lures you have been missing out as it is truly awesome when conditions suit.  However, make sure to take all the necessary safety precautions if you intend on doing some night fishing.

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Brian from Tyrone visited Waterford on Tuesday and Wednesday and having had a large bass on his last visit he was keen to try to replicate his feat this time around. Day time sessions were difficult but perseverance was rewarded and Brian had a cracking fish on Tuesday along with some smaller ones.  He also was unlucky to lose a another large fish on Tuesday night.  On Wednesday it was more of the same although there was quite a bit of floating weed on the surface of the water.  Again the fishing was excellent and we several nice bass.

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Overall it was a great start to the week.  The weather has broken now and the wind is up. That said, I expect there will be a window in the next few days where we might just get that magical “fizz” in the water and prospects for more large predators are looking good.