Fishing rough ground

[Fishing Forum Admin]

Fishing rough ground - we have all fished rough ground from the shore and lost loads of rigs and leads

So how do you min.. the amount of lost gear

Lead lifts ?
rotten links ?
Pulley rigs ?

Just wondering how we all tackle this problem ( apart from fishing somewhere else )

[SteveMingo]

Check your rigs often I say to make sure off no weak points. It also helps if you use grip leads because then the rig isn't trashed about (unless you don't want them in your rig of course) thats my advice like I said. Its what I do anyway.

[Simon TorbayFishing]

I find that pulley rigs don't do a great job because in a lot of cases the height of the rocks exceeds the length of the rig.

I must admit I've got quite lazy rock fishing and just use the minimum set-up possible. I'll either use a simply running ledger which I can then afford to lose a few or a 1up rig with a bait clip so the hook and weight are the same length limiting the chances of something getting snagged.

[pingu]

keeping as few links/swivels etc from leader to weight in as possible, and a rotten bottom(also adviseable for fishing over sand at brixham)

[Pross]

Most ground I fish is clean, pulleys and grip leads seem to help where there are a few snags but didn't help at all at Brixham. I guess rotten bottoms are the only option on genuine rough ground but you still lose your lead. Maybe floating just above the bottom is the best bet but will obviously seriously reduce casting distance.

[Old Smoothound]

In answer to your question,

It depends on the type of rough ground.

New Passage is semi rough small to medium sized rocks etc. I always use a pulley rig, no rotten bottom, but once i have "broken the lead free" wind like hell to keep it up in the water.
Don't use anything less than 25 -30 lb snoods, cos they get worn away by the rocks abrasive action in the water when pulling back.

Slightly rougher ground then I would use a lead lift as well.

Really rough ground big rocks and boulders (A la sand at Brixham) then rotten bottoms, i like to use metal rotten links and 12lb line makes it easier to release the hang up... when fishing like this you have to take the losses on the chin.

But..... do not try and power cast a rotten bottom using line only or a rotten link.... they will crack off!

If losses continue to be high....... then move.

Hope this helps.

[iowangler]

i fish a lot of the ruff stuff and i use a greys pz330t penn 525 .40 teklon 60 iron silk leader and pullys, if you can get your gear off the deck wind like a mad man, some of the gemini rotten bottoms are brill, i dont like the breakaway one there c==p!!