Tackling A New Mark
Heading off to fish a new spot can be quite a challenge so here is a back to basics guide to try and help you on your way
Bristol Channel Rock Mark
Many anglers find the prospect of a new venue a little daunting and often struggle to fulfil its potential, but with a little preparation and some key observations it is possible to have a productive session. Pre planning is half of the battle, the first thing to take into account is a general overview of the region you intend to fish and the type of species that it may be renowned for. For example, Cornwall is famed for its Bass fishing, the north Devon coast is known for its run of smoothounds whilst the Bristol Channel has become synonymous with Thornback ray fishing. Logging these most basic regional generalisations at the back of your mind will create the foundations for fishing a venue that is new to you and give you an invaluable reference point for future use.
The importance of pre planning becomes even more obvious when you may be considering fishing the chosen area during a family holiday when time may be limited, perhaps to an extent where you would prefer to actually be fishing as supposed to wasting valuable time pouring over maps and searching out local tackle shops! Once you have established the area you intend to fish and the species that will be present there, the next step is to decide on a specific mark that will give you a fighting chance of coming across your target specie. At this stage, a tide table is crucial.
As an example; it is the month of May and you know that Smoothounds should be present in the region. The given tide(s) for the period you intend to fish are neaps and as such there will be little tidal pull at most venues, not ideal for hound fishing, so a headland or perhaps a pier or jetty would give you a sensible vantage point and at least some run of tide. Again, to maximise on this, consult the tide table and concentrate you efforts on an ebbing tide when what run there is will usually be most powerful.
As a second example, Easter may find you on a short break in the south west where the Thornback rays should be prominent. Consulting the tide table you are confronted with spring tides, again not ideal for the target species in an area renowned for its immensely powerful run of tide. For this reason, the exact opposite could be applied as was used in the first example and an area that is not subject to the brunt of the tide, such as a relatively shallow bay could be your point of attack. The slack period over the top of the tide could then be the ‘golden hour’ and the most likely time the rays would feed.
Obviously the above takes into account what is generally accepted as normal feeding habits, again an area that it would certainly pay to become familiar with.
So, venue and target species have been decided on, the next step will be to choose the most appropriate bait and tackle. In the case of the first scenario, smoothounds will almost certainly be inshore hunting for crabs in the rough ground, so fresh peeler would be an obvious choice, closely followed by frozen (certainly more practical, live crabs in the caravan fridge on a family holiday are a recipe for disaster). Feisty species such as Smoothounds can be tamed on relatively light tackle, although the ground you are fishing over will mean this is not always practical and the sensible approach may be to use tackle that will allow the use of bigger leads to hold bottom in the tide and give you a chance of extracting snagged tackle from the rough sea bed.
The practical approach described above will give you a fighting chance at a new venue using just a little common sense and applying some generalisations, but further investigation on the internet can provide further, more detailed information and the benefit of local knowledge which is without doubt most important if you wish to maximise potential on a limited time scale.
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