Catch Reports
Mid-Winter Whacker
Posted in Catch Reports on 10th December 2009We’re so please to report this next one. Long term Essential Bait user Paul Wortley from Bournemouth has been enjoying a very successful season on a local gravel pit with several big fish in recent months on the ever consistent Shellfish B5, however, his latest success came in the shape of this proper cold water whacker that pulled the scales around to an impressive 46lb 10oz!
The big mirror was caught at 5.30am next to a submerged weed bed at approx 80-yards after baiting up the spot the previous evening with a mixture of chopped and whole winterised B5 boilies and beat Paul’s previous personal best by 4lb 8oz. Congratulations Paul, good angling and further proof that if you put the B5 in the right spot the big fish will follow.
Hard Hook Baits (Mike's view)
There are often times throughout the season when I find myself having to use hard hook baits. There’s nothing worse than reeling in after you’ve seen a frenzied amount of fishing activity over your baited area, only to find that your hook baits have been nibbled away by nuisance fish! Some venues are obviously more prone to nuisance fish activity than others, but it’s not just nuisance fish that can be a problem. Diving birds or even pick ups from swans will often result in ‘missing hook baits’!
Hard hook baits will alleviate this problem, in fact, I actually think it’s advantageous when a diving bird picks up my hard hook bait. It gives me confidence that my presentation is good, and as the bird drops the rig, I actually believe it straightens everything out and gives me a better presentation that I can achieve via casting. I can remember fishing at Frampton some years ago, when the only time I could seemingly get a bite, was after a coot had picked up and dropped my hard hook bait!
Top Tip
After you’ve made a batch of hard hookers, leave them out on a towel to air dry for at least ten days, preferably in a warm dry place. Once they have sufficiently dried out, put them in a polythene bag and add a small amount of ‘Boilie Glug’ or ‘Liquid Food’ and shake well. For extra convenience transfer them to an empty pop-up jar or similar before placing them in the fridge or the freezer until needed. If keeping in the fridge, make sure you give them a good shake every few days and top up the liquid if and as required.
