Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: Rodney on November 24, 2008, 03:20:15 PM
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Hullo from YVR, ten minutes before boarding my flight to Europe. ;D Free wireless internet at the airport, how convenient! :D
Check out the kelp forest aquarium that they have in the new terminal. I spent a good ten minutes filming these fish.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081124-01.jpg)
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Hullo from YVR, ten minutes before boarding my flight to Europe. ;D Free wireless internet at the airport, how convenient! :D
Check out the kelp forest aquarium that they have in the new terminal. I spent a good ten minutes filming these fish.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081124-01.jpg)
Slacker! Off to party in Denmark again? Haven't they put you on a banned list of some sort yet? ;)
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Have a safe flight. Now that the boss is away we can all be very good and not cause any problems. :D
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ten minutes just to film the aquarium? what a g...e....e...k... ;D
j/k
so nice that u could travel to your other home every now and then.. i am jealous~
enjoy your trip, Rod. have a good one!
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Arrived a few hours ago. ;D When the plane approached land, I saw some white stuff on the ground. :-\ The forecast is calling for mild weather for the rest of this week, so I expect all that to be gone soon. ;D The rods are unpacked, they appear to have escaped damages. That's all it matters, the dirty underwear have been brought over here and can be washed later, gotta catch some sea trout first. ;D Been awake for 26 hours now, almost ready to sleep. ;D
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jet lag shouldn't really be a problem with the hours you keep.... :P
glad to hear you had a safe trip, enjoy your stay!!! 8)
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Jet lag was definitely a problem. :P After heading to bed at 9:00pm, only to wake up at 1:00am and stayed wide awake until 5:30am before another four hours of nap.
Some photos from the ride yesterday.
Hey look, everyone's favorite bridge in Vancouver.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081125-1.jpg)
This is an island in southern part of Denmark, taken as the plane entered the country. Check out the light and dark substrates in the shallow water, there must be sea trout swimming around.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081125-2.jpg)
The ground was lightly sprinkled with the white stuff. Notice how flat it is and just about all the land is agriculturally developed.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081125-3.jpg)
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Great pics !! have a goood, safe trip !! nice to hear you will be able to make the derby next year.... about time :)
TH
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Looking forward to alot of pictures, keep them coming, have fun.
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Lot of trout swimming around. Bet you will have an awesome time hooking them on your trip!!!!
Enjoy your vacation!!!!
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http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=67
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081201-07.jpg)
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Rod Ol' Chap!
A minor request if you'd be inclined to entertain...
Last time I was over in Norway, I awoke one morning with a seriously swollen head/tongue due to a wee bit of over-imbibement (like THAT never happens :D ) Anyway, my host of the time graciously ran down to the local pharmacist, and procured some powdered concoction he claimed would remedy the situation, fast and painless. Although dubious, I tried it, and Walla! Within ten minutes I felt like I was on top of the world, with no lingering effects from the night before whatsoever! Gotta love it when something works as advertised!
The concoction was labelled in their own language (Greek of course to me) so I couldn't decipher it. My Buddy suggested the translation to English was something like Feel Good or Feel Better or Feel Well. Over our stay there it came in handy numerous times. I bought quite a bit of it, but unfortunately it ran out while I was still in Africa.
So, I was wondering if you might have a brief moment to see if you could procure some of this wonderful potion. If so, I will of course immediately reimburse you for any expense incurred. Thinking something around 50 clams worth would likely get me through for a short spell...
No Worries if you're too busy fishing etc. Just a thought, and one I would forever be beholden to. ;)
Cheers and TIA for considering.
Have a BLAST over there Buddy (like you need any encouragement in that regard! :D)
Cheers,
Nog
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Sounds like quite a New Year's Eve planned Nog. :D
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Hey Matt, I'll see if Nina can figure it out what it is and bring some back if we find it. The pharmacies here work quite differently to what is available to us in Canada. One cannot simply run into the store and grab as many packs of pills off the shelves. It is a lot more tightly controlled.
I might even be able to make a delivery since I may need to be on VI for a meeting around the end of January. :)
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...I might even be able to make a delivery since I may need to be on VI for a meeting around the end of January. :)
Sincerely appreciated Rod! Could actually use a little shot of that stuff today! :-\
The powder was meant to be mixed with water prior to ingestion if that helps at all...
BTW, bring your river gear when you wander over. Methinks we might have to check on the local flow re: steel while you're about ;)
Cheers,
Nog
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...I might even be able to make a delivery since I may need to be on VI for a meeting around the end of January. :)
Sincerely appreciated Rod! Could actually use a little shot of that stuff today! :-\
The powder was meant to be mixed with water prior to ingestion if that helps at all...
BTW, bring your river gear when you wander over. Methinks we might have to check on the local flow re: steel while you're about ;)
Cheers,
Nog
Hi I live in Norway, and I will be happy to help you. Do you remember what the embelage look's, was it a creame? Peter
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I forgot that we have members from Norway on the forum as well. Peter would be the best person to ask I think. Nina took a look at what Matt described and said, "I don't know what the heck he is talking about." :o ;D
Since my arrival in Denmark just under three weeks ago, I have put in around 30 hours of fishing and all I can say is that the result has been disappointing beside the few sea trout that I connected at a slough over a week ago.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-01.jpg)
Miles of coastline have been covered and they have not yielded a single bite. The sub-zero wind chill hasn't made the experience that enjoyable either. Fingers were constantly numb and the breathable waders have been too breathable. The scenery has been pretty nice. Crowding is definitely not a concern. I can fish for miles without seeing a single person. Perhaps everyone else is just smarter and staying indoor and getting drunk during these dark days. ;D
While walking in anckle-deep water along the beach yesterday, I startled a sea trout that was easily in the 5 or 6lb class with my foot. It was resting in the shallow thick algae bed just several feet from shore. That pretty much ruled out the "no fish" theory. ::)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-02.jpg)
Wind is the biggest nemesis for beach fishermen. Luckily, being on an island, we have the option of choosing the side of the island where it is not facing the wind. Occasionally the wind turns and strengthens in the last minute, which spoils the entire day's of fishing, like today. The above photo was taken from the south end of Køge Bay, with Copenhagen in the far background. Køge Bay can be clearly seen when you fly into Copenhagen. The fishing is supposed to be pretty productive, at least from the photos of sea trout that I have seen. These sea trout have much larger girth than fish produced in other parts of the country, probably because their diet is mostly herring than shrimps.
I became so bored from the beach fishing, I started taking underwater photographs of snails. ::)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-03.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-04.jpg)
The weather has constantly been overcast, which is not that unusual in Northern Europe. The poor lighting makes the short winter days even shorter. From first light to last light, I have about six hours of opportunities to find a fish. A few days ago, the sun finally showed itself for the first time since I arrived. I took a shot of the sunset from a beach near our apartment.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-05.jpg)
Although the days have been fishless, the food has been very good as usual. :)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-06.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-07.jpg)
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Hey Rod,
I visited Denmark 8 times to spend my Summerholidays up there. It took us a while to figure out how to fish, but we had much success after a while.
Went back last year after staying away for 8 Years and it was just dissapointing... The Cod is almost gone from the shoreline and all the other species like
Flounder, Scole are rare too. Caught at least 2 Seatrout and lots of Garfish and some makerel. It's not that Denmark that it once was...
Go further north to Norway, there is a island called Hitra, caught lots of seatrout here with the flyrod in the shallow bays of the west side. Also tons of
Cod,pollock,flounder... There are some good Lakes on this small Island too. It's worth a try - You might love it!
Nico
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(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-05.jpg)
Although the days have been fishless, the food has been very good as usual. :)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-06.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081213-07.jpg)
Watch out or you will be putting on weight and no more visits to Cookies on your return. ;D ;D
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Hey Rod,
I visited Denmark 8 times to spend my Summerholidays up there. It took us a while to figure out how to fish, but we had much success after a while.
Went back last year after staying away for 8 Years and it was just dissapointing... The Cod is almost gone from the shoreline and all the other species like
Flounder, Scole are rare too. Caught at least 2 Seatrout and lots of Garfish and some makerel. It's not that Denmark that it once was...
Go further north to Norway, there is a island called Hitra, caught lots of seatrout here with the flyrod in the shallow bays of the west side. Also tons of
Cod,pollock,flounder... There are some good Lakes on this small Island too. It's worth a try - You might love it!
Nico
Hi Nick, I think it depends on which part of the country you have been fishing. Some parts are a lot less productive now while fishing at other parts is now much better. They've put in considerable amount of money in Fyn over the last decade on river restoration and hatchery supplement, the result is a vibrant beach sportfishery and local economy. Last year we visited a place around Southeastern part of the country, where fishing was supposed to be very good long ago but not so productive anymore. I had expected very slow fishing already due to the time of the year that I am here, but not having a hit in 30 hours is not so encouraging. ;)
One website that I constantly check out is http://www.fangster.dk, where people enter their catch reports and it seems like people are still catching fair amount of fish, so it must just be me. :-\
The area around Copenhagen Harbour is in fact quite productive, the scenery is just not as nice. Last winter I was able to connect with quite a few good sized sea trout there, including this one in early January.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/080119-06.jpg)
Norway is definitely one of the places on the fishing list, just not yet. ;)
The sea bass fishing from the beach seems quite fun. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqKTO60uQjA
Watch out or you will be putting on weight and no more visits to Cookies on your return. ;D ;D
More weight is needed so I can stop floating when wading. ;D
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Hi I live in Norway, and I will be happy to help you. Do you remember what the embelage look's, was it a creame? Peter
HiYa Peter,
Don't recall too much about the product beyond this: It came in a playing card sized paper pouch with Norwegian writing on it. The contents were a powder that you mixed into a glass of cool water where it then dissolved. Mix appeared to completely dissolve as the water again appeared clear. My Buddy said the translation to English was something like Feel Well (could have been Feel Better?). Best hangover remedy I've ever run into, bar none!
Hope you can help, this time of year the problem appears to be re-occurring.
Rod, thanks for looking Buddy! And of course the offer stands re: steelhead ;D
Looks like you're having some Fun over there!
Cheers,
Nog
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Hi I live in Norway, and I will be happy to help you. Do you remember what the embelage look's, was it a creame? Peter
HiYa Peter,
Don't recall too much about the product beyond this: It came in a playing card sized paper pouch with Norwegian writing on it. The contents were a powder that you mixed into a glass of cool water where it then dissolved. Mix appeared to completely dissolve as the water again appeared clear. My Buddy said the translation to English was something like Feel Well (could have been Feel Better?). Best hangover remedy I've ever run into, bar none!
Hope you can help, this time of year the problem appears to be re-occurring.
Rod, thanks for looking Buddy! And of course the offer stands re: steelhead ;D
Looks like you're having some Fun over there!
Cheers,
Nog
Okey, you have probably been in "Trøndelag", and drinking "karsk" ;D - the medicine you have try was probably "fin i morgen" - this is a medicament who have huge volume of salt and fruit sugar, this works very nice if you drink a lot of water together with it.
You can also have it in a tablet. I can send you some if you send me your address on a private message :D
Cheers
Peter
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The wind was blowing hard from the east today, which was perfect as I wanted to fish a spot on the west coast where I couldn’t last week due to the strong head wind. Strong head wind does not only make casting difficult, it stirs up bottom substrates and reduces clarity. With a tailwind, the sea becomes flat and it in fact becomes an advantage when distance is needed in casting.
As usual, it was a misty morning start in Denmark. Temperature hovered at 3 degrees celcius and was expected not to change throughout the day. One couldn’t really ask for better beach fishing condition on a winter day.
I began working the beach with the spinning rod. Spincasting is popularly fished on the beach in Denmark. It allows the angler to cover much larger area and deeper water, so chances of getting into larger sea trout are also increased. Unlike migratory pacific salmon that travel in large masses, these fish school and travel in an irregular pattern. The behaviour is somewhat similar to coastal cutthroat trout, except the travelling space is much larger. To increase success, one can only systematically cover a beach by taking a few step after each cast.
Typical beach lures used while spinning are long, thin yet heavy ones that resemble either herring or sand eel. Combining the retrieving/pausing pattern and the wave motion, their swim becomes rather realistic in the water. These lures weigh between 10 and 30 grams, so they allow the angler to cast them as far as over 200 feet when needed.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081215-04.jpg)
Sea trout hunting ground is usually covered with algae (Specifically, fucus, a species of brown algae that tends to dominate the inter and subtidal zones) and rocks. Reefs, as the locals call them, are prime habitat for shrimp, worms and small fish. They hunt by travelling over, in, between the dark substrates. The idea is to work your presentation through them and hopefully it would grab a hunter’s attention.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081215-02.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081215-03.jpg)
Exploring these reefs closely with your eyes while fishing can often lead to small yet fascinating discoveries. They are alive with organisms. Snails, starfish, shrimps, jellyfish and barnacles are often sighted. Today I found myself standing next to a juvenile flounder that laid on the bottom comfortably.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081215-01.jpg)
After working across a beach for an hour, excitement began to fade as no bites were detected. The outing usually starts with a high anticipation, not a high expectation. After being blanked so many times, I’ve learned that if one shows up with a high expectation in a beach sea trout fishery, then the disappointment at the end of the day may just be too much to handle.
I decided to walk over to a new section slightly further north from my starting point. The ground appeared to be heavily covered, so perhaps there was a trout hiding in it. When the lure approached me on the first retrieve, I noticed a dark clump of matter behind it. My first guess was a clump of weed but I could not feel any additional resistance on the line. A few seconds later, when the lure was much closer to me, I could see that it was in fact a fish following it! I suddenly paused the retrieve and a second fish showed itself beside the first one. Just as they were ready to fight over the piece of metal, I ran out of retrieve space!
At this point, both panic and excitement were having a party in my head. I made another quick short cast beyond where the fish were spotted. As if a pack of wolves had been woken up, a dozen sea trout suddenly darted out from the weed beds and a few small boils could be seen on the surface! Once again, not a single fish committed to a solid bite before I ran out of water to retrieve. Another short cast and retrieve triggered mor fish to chase, but none were tricked. It ended as fast as it started, after three casts all of them disappeared instantly.
I stood there like a fool. Should I continue casting straight out, or move left, or move right? In river fishing, if a fish is spotted, you can pretty much find it again as there is only so much room to cover. It becomes a bit tricky when there are a gazillion litres of water in front of you.
I decided to continue my path and work my way toward north, hoping that I would intercept more fish. Were they sea trout? Perhaps these were escaped rainbow trout from farms. They were after all, chasing and exposing themselves quite blatantly or foolishly as if they were untouchable. Well, they were not touched, so I guess they were more blatant than foolish. Escaped rainbow trout are problematic in European coastal waters. Like any invasive species, they alter the balance on sea trout’s ecosystem. Local anglers believe that rainbow trout farmers purposely lose their fish for insurance claims.
On second thought, I believed they were in fact sea trout. All fish I spotted were estimated to be between 12 and 18 inches long. Their bodies were silver and possess the slender shape that one would see in a natural growth.
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Ten minutes later, more fish followed the lures during my retrieves and once again none could be tricked. Further north from where it first happened, another fish followed right in again. This time, I decided to drop the lure onto the bottom when I ran out of retrieve space. The fish paused, suspended beside the lure and watched. When I lifted the lure up once and allowed it to flutter, the fish took a light peck at it and sped back into the deep before I had a chance to react!
Somewhat deflated, I kept working across the beach. More fish were spotted for another hour then it all stopped at noon. Perhaps they had decided to move on. Not so, because a few more followers appeared an hour later. This time, I decided to quickly rush back to shore and rig up the fly rod. Originally I had thought that these fish were following in from beyond my flycasting range. After seeing so many, I suspected that they were all sheltering in the reefs just a short distance away from me. Retrieving flies that immitate shrimps is another common method used on the beach. Maybe the large lure was attractive but too big and heavy for the pan-sized trout to ingest. Maybe a size 8 fly would do the trick.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081215-05.jpg)
Once I rigged up, I made my way back to the location where I last spotted some fish. I casted toward the nearest reefs and before I even had a chance to anchor my footing, I felt a solid take! The simultaneous feeling of the tug on the rod and the unnoticed slip of flyline through the fingers is always wonderful. Such a solid take could not be mistaken and the natural reflex made sure the fish could not get away. It was a small one, yet I was very delighted. I slowly backed up, making sure I would not trip over the round boulders. A dip in this water on this winter day would end the trip instantly. The fish came in fast, but began aiming for all the algae planted around me. The excitement let the guard down briefly and the little bugger managed to get its way by wrapping around one algae mass. I ran over to free the line as fast as possible but it was too late. I could see it making its way back into the deep while my line was still stuck on the obstacle.
“You gotta be kidding me.”, I thought. What must one do to bring a fish to the beach? I thought persistance is always rewarded. This was like smelling a good meal without eating it, or watching a movie without the ending being shown. You get the idea, the satisfaction of closure is missing! At least I now knew what could tick them off, so back into the water I went. On the fifth cast, another fish grabbed the fly. Both fish were taken as soon as the fly landed in the water before the retrieve, so obviously these fish were hungry. It appeared to be a much bigger fish, judging by the splashing on the surface. Just when I was ready to get even happier, the fly flew straight back at me. Fish number two was now back and returning to the laughing squad in the water.
By this point, I had about one hour of daylight left. I worked through the area where I had seen fish from start to finish one more time with no success. Just as I was walking back to call it a day, I spotted one more fish moving casually by me in the water. The day was not over yet! I grabbed the fly rod, creeped back into the shallows and made one direct cast toward the last place I saw it. After a few strips, I felt a good tug and fish number three was now dancing at the end of the line. It was another small fish, but at this point I could not careless how big the fish was. I managed to capture a photo with my frozen numb hands before sending it back to become those 20lb fish that I often hear about.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081215-06.jpg)
Finally, after six hours of teasing and being teased, I gained one point while these fish gained fifty. It also was my first beach sea trout on the fly, which made all that effort very worthwhile. Seeing these fish darting in and out of the dark reefs like ghosts was also another memorable highlight, which will probably taunt me in my dreams for awhile. On my way back to the car, I conversed with two gentlemen who fish the area regularly and told them about my rather exciting experience. After hearing about the small findings, one of them pulled out his digital camera and showed me a 60cm long specimen caught at the same location last week, and another 4kg fish caught just north of us. Perhaps I will find some bigger ones next time too.
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Rod-
Excellent fishing story! you are great story teller! Nice to see you get rewarded for your efforts! Keep at it and I look forward to seeing you with a picture of 20lbs trout very soon!
cheers.
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Nice report!
It's always exciting to hear something from up there! Like the Steelhead here, the Seatrout is also called the fish of a thousand casts. It's not peak season right now so you did a great job i think! The best spots are areas that look like the pictures you've posted, called "Leopard Ground". Sandground with areas of rocks and plants. The spoons that you fish imitates a fish called toby or sandeel, long,slim and green-silver coloured. But the smaller ones prefer shrimp, that's why you had success by using it. Don't be scared to fish the murky water and onshore winds, casting is more difficult but very often the fish are cruising around right next to your feet! The waves are washing out their nutritions of the sand and swirl it around. I think i don't have to explain more. The Cod is a nice sportfish too. Use Jigs like twisters in a brown color and retrieve it slow with little jumps very close to the ground in the evening hours. That's when the fish come close to the shoreline to feed. Search for spots where the shoreline is close to deeper water. If you're lucky and you find the fish you will get a reward by several hookups! The area you fish is still very good for Cod! Give it a try... That was my fishery since i moved to Canada this Year and now i got a hard time by trying to be successfull. Caught at least one Spring in the Vedder and later a few Chum after 10 Weeks of catching nothing! But you guys helped me a lot by writing down all the information down in this forum here, thanks for that!
Nico
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Thanks Nico, glad you had some success on the fall salmon before the season ended. Speaking of cod, our place is in fact several hundred metres from the edge of Øresund, the strait that runs between Sweden and Denmark. The nearby beaches produce cod in the evenings according to my friends. We have been focusing on sea trout during the daytime so much that they have been neglected, but I'm hoping to give it a go on a calmer night soon. No sea trout were encountered yesterday but I had a school of sand eels swimming around me for the first time. :)
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http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=71
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"wish all a safe and happy holiday! Enjoy the snow!" from the last post of the blog!!!
We Hate you Rod!!!!! ;D
You have happy new year there too!!! :D
Bravo~
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Thanks, I had to rub that in. ;)
Here's a little short blog entry for Christmas Eve. :)
For some reason I have been able to connect with a sea trout on either Christmas Eve, Christmas Day or Boxing Day in the past several years. Wanting to maintain that streak of luck, I sneaked down to the Copenhagen Harbour for a couple of hours before the big dinner. After several stormy days, the wind has finally died down and the glassy surface made fish spotting much easier. A few minutes after I set up the rod, I spotted a big splash just outside of my casting distance. I and two other fishing companions all casted toward the direction at the same time. I was at least 50 feet short from the splash while others landed their lures on top of the rise. I guess that the fish was quick on the move and my lure landed right in its face. After a few cranks on the spinning reel, I had a solid pull on the tip and the hook-set was as precise as it could get. The fight lasted a couple of minutes and a fair size sea trout was tailed. It was not the pure silver fish that I had hoped for, but a early Christmas gift from the Danish water nevertheless.
(http://www.fishingwithrod.com/albums/photoblog/081224_1.jpg)
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(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081226-07.jpg)
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(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081226-07.jpg)
Oh~ Man!!!
Now we hate you more~!!! ;D ;D ;D
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My, that looks absolutely delicious.
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My, that looks absolutely delicious.
Apart from the first picture top left ;D ;D ;D
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How many tables of food was there? ??? I count 4 different table spreads..... Definately nothing like what we ate on Christmas.
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My, that looks absolutely delicious.
Yep. ;)
Beside dinner on Christmas Eve, Danes celebrate the festive season by hosting Julefrokosts, or more conveniently known as Christmas lunches to visitors. Julefrokosts typically happen on Christmas Day and they can take up the entire afternoon and evening. The starting dishes include herring, smoked salmon, smoked eel, shrimp salad and other seafood related items. These are followed by meat dishes such as meatballs, pork sirloin and roast pork. Cheese, fruit salad and dessert make up a sweet finish, before tea, coffee and snacks are served.
After three days of some serious eating, it was time to get back on the beach to chase those impossible winter silvers. The wind has been very light for almost a week, which is an unusual treat in the winter. This makes beach fishing much more enjoyable.
On the weekend I received a phone call from my friend Bill, an American who has resided in Denmark for many years. Bill and I first corresponded by email several years ago when he found out that I was interested in exploring fishing opportunities in Denmark. We agreed on exploring a new beach along the north coast of Sjælland on Sunday.
We arrived at the location, which another friend Thomas recommended, at 10:00am. Being able to have a late start is one benefit on short winter days. Several anglers were already working on the beach, but that was not a concern because there are miles of beach to be covered. Not knowing which way to go, we decided to head west where no one was fishing.
After working across the beach for an hour, I hooked a good sized fish at a reef in front of me. I called for Bill, who saw the rod kicking just before that unwelcoming slack on the line ten seconds after the hook-up. Was the hook-set not proper? Was the hook not sharp enough? Was the drag not tightened enough? Those same questions kept circulating in the head when a sea trout was lost. There was not much to do except making more casts and hoping that other fish were nearby. Not long after the first hook-up, I spotted a smaller fish following the lure to shore without contact.
The waves became larger in the afternoon even though the wind was light. Perhaps the offshore wind was generating them. This made fishing slightly more difficult. After covering the entire section where we wanted to fish, we worked our way back to the starting point.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-01.jpg)
While working through the reefs where I first hooked a fish, I spotted another sea trout following my fly after the crest of a wave. Perhaps it saw me at the same time, it took a quick peck at the fly before dashing away without being hooked. Bill reported missing a couple of light taps before we called it a day when heavy fog creeped in. As frustrating as it was, this was considered an above average sea trout day.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-02.jpg)
The thought of losing a fish and the sighting of more followers taunted me when I returned home. I decided that I need to go back for more punishment. Bill phoned soon after and he also had the same idea, so we returned to the beach today.
The sea was even calmer than our last trip, which made reef and fish spotting much easier. The temperature was several degrees lower than last weekend, so we were expecting numb hands and feet once we get in the water.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-03.jpg)
Being a weekday, the beach was void of anglers. I started my search by heading down to where I lost my fish two days ago. The clear and flat water revealed the exact location of all the reefs. They turn out to be much further out than I thought. We worked through the area quickly and came up empty, so it was time to explore some new waters.
Bill and I believed that we would have more success by moving few steps after each cast. Because it is almost impossible to see the fish in the water, it is difficult to know whether we are working through areas where the fish do not bite easily or no fish are holding at all. There is no point casting at one place over a long period of time and wondering these questions. Instead, we chose to tempt aggressive fish that would readily take a lure or fly on the first cast.
The newly explored waters were fantastic. The water is deep and the bottom is partially or fully covered with reefs, which could potentially hold fish. Just after I felt a light tug and wondered if it was a fish, Bill spotted a rise in front of us. Within a few seconds, a smal sea trout grabbed his fly without hesitation.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-04.jpg)
We worked the same spot for a few more minutes, hoping that his fish was just one of an active pod. We were unable to generate another bite after many casts, so it was time to get back on track.
Another angler was working his way toward us, so we decided to skip the reefs between us and jumped onto the section where he had just fished. A few minutes after Bill wetted his fly at the new section, he quietly informed me that he had just felt some taps. He proceeded to hook up. It was a fat sea trout, easily in the 2 to 4lb range. This silver fish tail danced on the surface toward Bill, who frantically stripped his line in. Unfortunately he could not keep up and the fish earned its freedom. A few casts later, there was another hook-up! This time the fish was more tamed and brought to his hands in no time. It was a small overwintering fish, which was released for more growth.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-05.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-06.jpg)
Bill felt a few more taps after landing his second fish, then it was all over. A school of fish was obviously encountered. Somehow our neighbouring angler was unlucky enough to miss it when working his way through the same beach. The element of luck can really make you either love or hate this game.
As daylight was coming to an end, we decided to work through some of the earlier fished sections before calling it a day. I headed back to my lucky spot and a fish was hooked in no time. This sea trout followed the lure in like others, except it felt confident enough to bite it just before I lifted the lure out of the water. The hook was not even set, it simply hooked itself. It tail danced all around me as I brought it closer to shore, then it once again fell of the hook! Not only it got off, it decided to taunt me some more before swimming away by doing a few more jumps around me, bouncing itself off a rock after jumping onto it.
I rushed back to shore and grabbed the fly rod, hoping that a school of them was sticking around. Unfortunately many casts later yielded no taps. I looked toward Bill, who was fishing a couple hundred meters away from me. He was making his way to land and my phone rang at the same time. I thought that he was calling it a day.
"Rodney, get up here quickly! A load of fish is in front of me right now, I just landed two."
The two hundred metre dash could possibly be within the Olympic qualifying time. I arrived to see Bill tailing a rather heavy fish in the shallow water. It appeared to be a post spawner, but a rather silver one if it was. Unfortunately the fish was hooked quite deeply and bleeding, so we decided that it was best to keep this one.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081230-07.jpg)
The school of fish that Bill became so excited about was long gone after we headed back out in the water. These sea trout leave as fast as they show themselves, so one really needs to make the best out of it when the fishing is hot. We ended our trip just before dark. With half a dozen fish hooked, this is the best winter outing to date. Is it luck, hard labour or an improvement on our tactics?
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The weather condition has remained great for fishing, but I haven't been able to head out since Tuesday. Here are some nature shots taken yesterday and today.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081231-04.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081231-05.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/081231-06.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2008/090101-09.jpg)
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Wish you a happy new year Rodney!
Congratulations for the nice trouts you've caught. Why don't you take a trip with one of the boats and fish for the famous Oeresund Cod? That's fun and a few heavy fish are caught every trip within all the average sized ones. And they taste great... ;)
Nico
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Happy New Year to you too. ;)
The cod fishery on the boat is probably quite fun, but personally I am not so interested in boat fishing in general. I really enjoy the beach and river (spin, fly) fishing so I tend to focus on those whenever I have the free time to fish.
I'm hoping for at least a couple of beach days next week, will report back. ;)
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I see.... ;D
Let me show you at least my favorite spoons...
This one is the best by far: Hansen Stripper
(http://www.meerforellenkoeder.de/images/product_images/popup_images/108_0.jpg)
(http://www.meerforellenkoeder.de/images/product_images/popup_images/85_0.jpg)
(http://www.meerforellenkoeder.de/images/product_images/popup_images/87_0.jpg)
Another good spoon, the Moeresilda is the original - the Pilgrim the copy but both work really good
(http://www.fisch-server.de/images/product_images/popup_images/4606_0.jpg)
(http://www.meerforellenkoeder.de/images/product_images/popup_images/414_0.jpg)
(http://www.meerforellenkoeder.de/images/product_images/popup_images/415_0.jpg)
This is the best lure you can find SPOEKET
(http://www.spoeket.net/images/spoeket/32700000.jpg)
(http://www.spoeket.net/images/spoeket/34000000.jpg)
(http://www.spoeket.net/images/spoeket/31400000.jpg)
Best time is the afternoon and the eveninghours til into dawn. If it's getting very cold all sunshine hours seem to produce fish. Hang on and tight lines!
Nico
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Thanks for the pics. ;)
Moresildas in different colours are already in my box. I just bought some Hansen Strippers today. I'll have to look into those Spoeket. The last few years it seems like beach wobblers have become very popular. My favorite lure to date has been the green 22g Trumf.
(http://www.grejonline.dk/grafik/prod/medium/Trumf.jpg)
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Hi Rodney,
Those Trumf are spoons that the old folks fished already. Some guys, like you, say it's their favourite spoon... Almost forgotten, it seems like it's becoming a popular spoon again...
The Spoeket is a Lure thats a class for it's own. You can cast it very far, especially when you get windy conditions the casting distance is more then acceptable! :) There are two ways to fish it,
First is to just retrieve it like a spoon and variate the speed or you can fish it like a jerk-bait by giving it some short, hard hits with the tip of your rod. I prefer the second one, it creates an unpredictable run with breakouts to the sides, looks very promising... The seatrouts like that and because of it runs a bit deeper than normal spoons you might even catch some cods (that you don't wanna have ;D) with it. Might be also an interesting Lure for Steelhead... ??? I'm waiting to go out and fish for it the first time since a while but weather conditions make it impossible at the moment, there's so much snow here in Coquitlam with another load is coming down right now...Chilliwack doesn't look better. Instead of steelheading I went out to Como Lake today with my Kids to feed the Ducks ;D :'(
Hope we hear something possitive from You... Wish you success!!!
Nico
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Starting to freeze over here... Brrr... No fish today. :'(
(http://www.fishingwithrod.com/albums/photoblog/090106_1.jpg)
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Tuesday’s trip had frozen rocks, leaky waders and a lack of fish slowing my pace down. Dealing with frozen guides, slippery shoreline and numb fingers cut the number of casts by half.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090109-06.jpg)
Just when this winter’s sea trout hunt seemed to be over, the daytime temperature boosted up to 5°C today. With the sun shining and wind blowing moderately from the west, it could just be a banner day for sea trout on the Danish Coast. I decided to visit the Stevns region and tempt my sea trout luck once again.
I decided to explore a new spot near the chalk pit of Holtug (Holtug Kridbrud). The coastline of Stevns is made of both limestone and chalk around 65 million years ago. Chalk makes up the bottom part of the cliff while limestone makes up the top section. Because the soft chalk is slowly being washed away by waves while the hard limestone remains standing, cliff collapses often occur, especially after a heavy rainfall. Old mining pits for chalk and limestone can be found along the coastline, which are used as recreational sites today.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090109-01.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090109-02.jpg)
I arrived on the beach at 10:30am. Early start does not seem to be necessary, so far all the fish that I encountered have been in the afternoon. Several anglers were already working hard on the beach. Soon after I started fishing, one of them had a fish on. It was a small one, but a keeper. A few minutes later, the same angler hooked up again. The catch appeared to be much larger, as it took well over 5 minutes to bring to the net. A fat silver fish it was, looked to be over 4lb. Perhaps it was the location, because he and his friend were quite stationary during their entire trip. Nevertheless, the sea is big, the fish can be anywhere, so I thought.
I decided to take a walk and seek for other reefs. Perhaps they would hold some undisturbed fish if no one had fished them. Sometimes exploration pays off, sometimes it does not. In this case, I could not find waters that appear to be desirable for fish to hide in. I made my way back to the starting point after trekking for an hour, hoping to find a bite before I ran out of time. Daylight only lasts until 4:00pm on these winter days.
Somehow water gradually became murkier, which was not that unusual considering how much stirring takes place by the waves when it is windy. I worked across the beach systematically by taking a few steps after each cast. At one point, while staring at the lure as it approached me, I spotted a rather large sea trout darting out from the murky water but darted away as soon as it saw me. Instead of swimming away, it turned around and headed for the lure for a couple more seconds before disappearing. I estimated it to be 4 or 5lb. Maybe the retrieve was once again too fast? Even though there wasn’t a hook-up, the sighting certainly boosted up my confidence.
More anglers arrived in the afternoon. I counted ten, which was the most I’ve seen during my beach outings in Denmark. One angler decided to start working at a spot just 100ft away from me. I watched with disbelief as he hooked up on his first cast. It was a small keeper. Several casts later, he was once again into another fish. This time it was slightly bigger. Three more fish were landed nearby in the next hour or so. The bite appeared to be on, just not on my line!
The bites were quite localized, all coming from the same reef. Thankfully, several anglers packed up around 3:00pm, leaving an opening for me to sneak in. Within a few casts, I felt a tug but it did not stick. I continued reeling and expected it to return. A fish was on the line a few seconds later.
Understanding sea trout is indeed a frustrating process. It is almost impossible to entice a bite most of the time, but they can be tricked to take a lure or fly again and again on the same cast when feeding is vigorous. The second challenge is to make the hook stick when there is a bite. Although they are aggressive feeders, they seem to bite lightly. Bill and I had this discussion a couple of weeks ago. We both agreed that the bites should be defined as pecks. Most of the time it feels like a bump on the reef. Combining this element of surprise and cold winter days results in poor hook-sets if one’s not paying attention. It is certainly true in my case, as I had lost four sea trout in a row since Christmas.
This fish made a few rolls on the surface and came in rather quickly. It was not very big, around the same size as the other keepers that I saw earlier. It must be from the same school. I brought it into the shallows and had a good look at it without wetting my hands. While deciding whether I should keep it or not, it dislodged the hook on its own and swam away quickly.
The second hook-up came just several feet from shore soon after that. Like many other close hook-ups, the fish freed itself after a second and sent the lure flying back to my face. I immediately made another cast and hooked another fish just seconds after I started retrieving. A school of feeders was obviously milling around in front of me.
Once again, it made a few surface rolls before giving itself up in the shallows. It was a 17 incher at its prime shape. I decided to keep this fish for supper. Sea trout at this size is perfect as a meal for two people. At last, the losing streak ended and a long sigh of relief could be let out.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090109-03.jpg)
I quickly resumed fishing because darkness was creeping in. I decided to take a walk back to the spot where I sighted the large follower. It only took a few more casts before another fish was hooked. This time I managed to keep it on long enough before it leaped and spit out the hook. It was time to end the outing.
Although the landing ratio was nothing to brag about, today’s outing could be defined as a successful one in my journal considering that I do not even see a fish on most winter trips. Now that fish finding has been improved, it is time to work on the hook sticking.
It is dinner time!
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090109-04.jpg)
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090109-05.jpg)
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Congrats on the fish Rod,and once again excellent report, pictures and writting.
Keep them comming.
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Thanks rhino. :)
Four hook-ups in one winter outing could be called a successful beach sea trout day. Finally it seemed like some progress after last Friday’s outing. Hoping to sustain some of that luck, I decided to have a beach marathon this week. From Monday until today, I tackled several spots on the west coast of Sjælland from dawn to dusk. Some beautiful waters were covered, but unfortunately the catching part was back to square one. The only action that I witnessed was a school of chasers that swirled in front of me today, at the exact same spot where I caught some followers back in December. Unlike that outing, these fish never came back for a second glance of my fly.
Today’s trip ended this winter sea trout hunt. Statistically, the catching and landing numbers have not been overly impressive.
- In total, just over 70 hours of beach fishing were done (these exclude the hours spent in the harbour and sloughs where five bigger post spawning fish were caught).
- 10 different beaches were fished, each averaged around 2km long.
- Out of 14 trips, fish were hooked in five of them.
- 10 fish were hooked, only 2 were landed.
- 7 fish were hooked on lures, 3 fish were hooked on flies.
Although extremely frustrating at times, these trips have been valuable lessons. Local knowledge plays a key factor in this unique fishery. The assistance of several friends and constant studying of maps, waters, wind directions yielded a few hook-ups, which are now good references for trips in the future.
Here are some photographic shots that were captured this week.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090115-01.jpg)
Sunrise from Klintebjerg, Northwestern Sjælland.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090115-02.jpg)
Up and down the misty beach. On a calm morning, the coast of Denmark is often blanked by thick marine fog. It is so thick at times that you would have trouble seeing where you are casting.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090115-03.jpg)
Getting ready for the cast.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090115-04.jpg)
Typical sea trout worthy coastline has a hilly background, with a mix of small pebbles, large boulders and algae bed.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090115-05.jpg)
Finishing the last trip with a breathtaking dusk setting.
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Nice pics Rodney, thanks for sharing. If it was about the statistics we'd all have quit fishing a long time ago, hey? :) Have a good flight back to vancouver.
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Have fun over there Rod, keep the great photos coming and if you bump into Ryan, Hennrick or those other fine fellows that they run with tell them I say Hi!
:)
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Nice pics Rodney, thanks for sharing. If it was about the statistics we'd all have quit fishing a long time ago, hey? :) Have a good flight back to vancouver.
Thanks. Actually stats has never been something that I pay attention to beside being aware of how many fish caught at each trip. It was only recently when I started paying some interest to it. Some of the fishers I correspond with over here make detailed recordings of their trips, which I think is a great idea for personal use. Good tool to make improvement in this beach fishery for sure since it needs to be fished systematically most of the time.
Have fun over there Rod, keep the great photos coming and if you bump into Ryan, Hennrick or those other fine fellows that they run with tell them I say Hi!
Will do. I see Ryan quite often actually. He lives ten minutes from me and we all meet up at this location in the harbour regularly. It's a regular hangout for people to fish, practice flycasting, having a cup of coffee and socializing. I've actually been doing solo trips during this stay except three of the trips. Exploring these new spots by myself have been pretty exciting especially when fish are sighted, but very frustrating when nothing happens.
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20 minute delay before landing at YVR because of the fog yesterday. We circled over the Fraser Valley Twice and I could see the Harrison Lake, Chehalis River Valley, Leaf Bar and almost spotted the Leaf Mobil. ;D Here are some photos.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090119-04.jpg)
Rocky Mountains
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090119-05.jpg)
Rocky Mountains
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090119-06.jpg)
Fraser Valley with Mount Baker (?) in the background
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090119-07.jpg)
Coast Mountains just north of Harrison Lake