Questions to russ@reelfoto.demon.co.uk
Before we go fishing most Sea Anglers will check out what the tide is doing, is it a big tide? is it a small tide? what time is high water? what time is low water? so that favourite marks can be fished and still be home for “match of the day!”The simple advice given to all of us when we start angling is that the best parts of the tide are the last two hours before high water and the hour after. It is unfortunate that many anglers take this as a mantra… that no other part of the tide is worth fishing. What they do not realise is that they could be missing the best of the fishing because many species come in on the making tide immediately after low water, sometimes in just a foot or two of water looking for the crab, shrimp and prawn that will be flushed from the weed and rock pools by the movement of the water. Those fish will scour the ground and be gone long before the top of the tide is reached.Fish continuously search for food, in fact it is probably their whole existence. If you can find where they go during the various stages of the tide then your catch rate will increase dramatically.The combined gravitational pull of the Moon combined with the Sun gives us big tides known as “Spring tides”. When the Moon is out of the equation and it is only the gravitational pull of the Sun, then we get small tides known as “Neap Tides”. Springs and Neap tides alternate week and week about through the year which is why when you consult your tide tables, you will see big tides one week and small tides the next.Tides are a complex and interesting phenomenon, but they are life itself to fish and a study of the tides in your area can often lead to a surprising increase in your catch rate.Take a look at Autotide 5 at www.setaylor.demon.co.uk/atindex.htm which is a commercial tidal prediction program.
Questions to russ@reelfoto.demon.co.uk