why aren't i catching

[chris76]

hi all newbie here,both to the forums and to sea fishing

Bought my first boat last august and have been launching from south shields.
we were pulling out no end of fish to start with didnt even have time to eat our own bait...this was just using feathers,then september came and when the mackeral went we stopped catching,got the odd codling though at the start of the month though.
My theory is,(apart from the fish disapearing) with the sea getting rough it was obviously a lot more coloured so would the fish even be able to see the feathers??? is this when you would swap over to lug or rag?
also i presume its something to do with the tides,whats the best way to fish the tides?
i 've noticed theres only usually a couple of boats out in the morning,they all seem to come out later in the afternoon.
weve been out the last 2 weekends now using just feathers and no fish between the 3 of us yet,mind you we couldnt even find any on the fishfinder

[The Great Wallsendo]

Try baited flowing traces as well as baited lures..and don't regard it as a fish "finder" more as a sounder that show's you the features on the sea bed where fish might be hiding

[wildcard]

Theres a bit of algae in the water right now that we call May Water (pronounced watter). It has come earlier than usual and it greatly affects the fishing. Last year it was so bad that it even affected the crab and lobster catches. It will die and sink virtually overnight, but until it does the fishing will be poor.

It is best to fish the smaller 'neap' tides. If you subtract the low from the high and are left with less than 2.7 then you have a half decent chance of getting a nice slow drift.

Best fishes,
Alan

[canman]

Hi, And welcome to NESA. I can tell you what's working for me at the moment.
If there is tide pull, or a bit windy, fish at anchor with lug or rag in around 50-70ft of water over mixed bottom of Whitley bay. When the tide eases, then pull the anchor up and drift with a drogue (sea anchor) to slow the drift. Once the weather has settled and fish are feeding on sprats, then go back to the feathers etc; good luck. Arthur

[chris76]

wow thanks for all the quick replies.
so is it best to use bait the feathers with lug or rag for now then and just jig in the usual way???think all this uptide and downtideings a bit complicated for us at the minute (cant even cast with the multiplier yet)
so when the weather picks up and assuming the fish are around again if the tides coming back in are the fish closer to the piers or in the harbour even and then push out further to sea at low tide?

[oldessox]

I'm probably not the best qualified to give advice on sea fishing , but I've found that going out very early in the morning on a flooding neap tide and fishing over hard ground usually gives the best chance of a fish or two.
Lots of things can cock it up though , and often when you think it's going to be crap , it's really good , so the best bet is , every chance you get , go out and give it a go

Ray