Client Catches – The Late Show…

Client Catches – The Late Show…

Look at that smile! Honestly, when you’ve walked miles and fished hard over a humid afternoon and long into the night with boundless levels of anticipation and determination, all whilst maintaining a sense of humour, when you eventually feel that ‘whack’ reverberate through the rod, by God do you feel like you’ve earnt it!

Mindset

Without getting too deep, there are so many elements that come into play when you’re bass lure fishing. Of course there’s the tides, the weather, the wind direction and strength, water clarity, etc. – not to mention which lure to attach and the best way to present it…

These are just some of the factors that come into play, and that I have planned for in the course of guiding clients (and that of my 2nd Guide) and that I’m considering on their behalf, both before and during the session as their guide. Indeed, I would have and will be continually completing all the ‘thinking’ for them in essence.

You could say that all they need to do is relax, fish, and enjoy themselves, safe in the knowledge that while there is a lure in the water, and they are working or retrieving it as I/we have asked or instructed them, then they are giving themselves every conceivable opportunity to ‘latch and catch!’

If only it were that simple of course! As when you’ve endured a particularly tough session, without so much as a sniff of bass, even though I/we will be potentially changing things up in regards to tactics, lure choice, or even the venue (all whilst maintaining the positivity and encouragement) as a client, I can appreciate that it is easy for you to become despondent, to the extent that it becomes a battle in your mind on occasion – even more so when the lights go out and the wonderful south Devon seascape is no longer visible…

Two way street

If you’re reading this and have completed any kind of teaching or coaching, then you’ll also be able to appreciate that both parties (the student and the teacher if you like) need to participate and put in the effort to succeed. Moreover, I will readily admit that if it wasn’t for the receptiveness and all-round effort that my clients have consistently applied over the past seven seasons of guiding, then we wouldn’t have landed half of the corkers that we have.

These marvellous creatures are rarely eager to ‘crawl up the line’ and instead, will often be extremely elusive in their behaviour. However, on the flip-side, is the notion, and actually the belief that it only takes a second to turn a mundane session into a momentous one – something that I regularly remind my clients of considering I have witnessed it so many times! Hold on to that the next time you’re turning the handle and thinking ‘well, were the hell are they!’

Stagger

From my perspective then, even when I am planning a short session (one that forms one of the 6x 4 hour sessions that I facilitate on my 3 Day Packages for example) I will generally look to ‘stagger’ and guide over either the low water, or high water period – the turn of the tide essentially. The reason for this is that I know from experience that this can have a significant impact on the behaviour any bass present or that may be in the vicinity…

Sometimes it’s a case of the water (tide/current) moving in a different direction or the increase in the velocity of the flow. Or perhaps, it is the prey items that the bass are hunting for reacting to these events, and the bass ‘knowing’ this will be the case that brings them on the feed. Either way, I had thoroughly briefed my clients during this still, and chilly June night that if the bass weren’t around into late evening, dusk, and even into the early darkness as the tide reached its peak, then it would most probably switch on at some point in the ebb – even it was only for one or two, short, 10 minute windows. “Pace yourselves guys”, being the operative word…

The relief

And switch on it most certainly did! Towards the end of the session admittedly, and well past midnight when Keith shouted “Fish!”. You do need a bit of luck to get a big bass ‘in’, and unfortunately for he and I, I had been swapping Al’s lure from a black Gravity Stick Pulse Tail (for use under the high crescent moon) to the white version now that the light levels had dimmed sufficiently, and was around 70m away when I heard the shout.

Sprinting to his side, the words “Oh S***” (and worse!) echoed around the bay as what I believe was a very, very large bass basically ‘tore him up’ by dragging a lot of line off of a drag that I’d set – and you know tight I set it nowadays! Gutted doesn’t cover it, with my comment that “I wish I’d been stood next to you when that one took mate” probably not helping the situation in that moment…

Thankfully however, as that mesmerising moon lowered in the sky and the tide began to pick up the pace, another shout by Keith saw me reach his side as a quality bass, albeit one that he said he brought in “easily in comparison to the lost monster” met my waiting net. Justice had kind of been done, although seconds later, as I photographed a rather ‘startled’ Keith (it had been a long night!) I heard Al screaming from down the beach “Fish!!! Marc, Fish!!!!!!!!!”

One take, that’s all it takes – alongside a great big dollop of effort, skill, and a positive mental attitude to keep going, to ignore the aching arms and back, and to place your faith in your guide when he or she says “keep going – it will happen…”

To Book a Session

To enquiry about a professionally guided bass lure fishing session please complete the Contact Form below. Further, please feel free to peruse my Testimonials, The Experience, What I Offer, and About pages.