8Lb 3oz Mullet & new Mullet partner

[Sunny]

Now for my latest Mullet catch up. Been out a far few times exploring new marks and occasionally trying old venues from a new angle & tactics.

The headline fish is a specimen 8Lb 3oz beauty from a new mark



A truly awesome fish that went a full 20 minutes plus….

I also have a new Mullet fishing Partner… the words to describe his contribution escape me just now… but he isn’t the most stealthy of dogs and he understands what it means when the rod bends into a fish…little sod goes ballistic !!!



Other sessions have produced some good fish and along the way I have met a few new faces …Mullet anglers and some now new members. I’ve been a tad busy…so there have been a few fish caught ……Right on to the fish porn…. Some happy snaps since my last update

[blackwater]

You really do love your mullet! Wish i could catch the buggers, getting the first one is proving hard enough. i think i will stick to coarse fishing

[cuckoo]

Brilliant write up nick i remember sitting at the front of the boat like the dog on the way back from flounder fishing , but i was sulking as i blanked on the flounder as per norm

[pingu]

either that dog takes brilliant pics or there may be someone else

great pics amd results there
dave

[cuckoo]

Originally Posted by pingu

either that dog takes brilliant pics or there may be someone else

great pics amd results there
dave

Nick does it with a timer dave , he evens smiles sometimes

[BaggieRich]

Well done Nick, you certainly do seem to have the mulleting down to a fine art. Still learning here, but the couple I've had so far really did go well. I'd love to hear a bit more about the tatics. Do you do all of your fishing from the boat??

Great report.

[Baz T]

You dont, perchance, happen to enjoy mullet fishing do you?
...Serious - great fish, all of them. I bet that 8lb'er put up a great scrap. There is a small estuary river near us, which has mullet in it, so I am definately going to give it a go sometime soon. My brother in law also has a boat moored in my local area too, and says lots of large mullet swimming around the mooring/berth and under the boat all the time, so I am gonna see when I can go down and try for them. I will post a report once I have been, but may dont think it will be for a couple of weeks

[birdseye]

Brilliant photos and super mullet.
Well done Nick.

[nad03]

Great pics Nick !!! I normally go after bass but early hours at the estuary where i fish there are loads of mullet on the rise,especially at low tide.Trouble is it is VERY snaggy.Am going to give it a go on my next day off.Like a lot of people i have been put off a bit by the mullets reputation as probably the most frustrating quarry to chase,but you've got to be in it to win it...
I have a couple of 11ft spinning rods and a 13ft float set up bought for £30 from argos when i first started fishing.Would like to go with the river rod as the extra length and softer tip would give me an earlier bite indication,but i dont know if the rod would be strong enough.
I'm going to try freelining some bread flake.Could you give me some tips on hook size,line poundage and rig set up.Also,i have some mepps spinners which i would like to give a go.Would i have much luck with the bare spinner or would i have to bait them with rag ?
Any help would be grately appreciated.My daughter is 4 and keeps naggin me to go fishing and my son is fifteen weeks old and i would love to be a fountain of knoledge to them by the time they are old enough to join me.
Cheers mate.

[Sunny]

Hi Guys,
Sorry it has taken me time to reply....been away on holiday (post to follow in the next few days) and out fishing my socks off :-) ......its got to be done at this time of the year.

Responses to some of the questions & observations:

Originally Posted by cuckoo

Brilliant write up nick i remember sitting at the front of the boat like the dog on the way back from flounder fishing , but i was sulking as i blanked on the flounder as per norm

I forget how she looked when it was paited red Lee ....so we will have to give it a go again this winter; maybe try Poole Harbour or Langstone ?

But your second comment is about right ...I occasionally force a smile...but it looks more like gurning or Mr Bean...so understandably I try to avoid it :-)

Originally Posted by nad03

.....I have a couple of 11ft spinning rods and a 13ft float set up ..........Would like to go with the river rod as the extra length and softer tip would give me an earlier bite indication,but i dont know if the rod would be strong enough.
I'm going to try freelining some bread flake.Could you give me some tips on hook size,line poundage and rig set up.Also,i have some mepps spinners which i would like to give a go.Would i have much luck with the bare spinner or would i have to bait them with rag ?
Any help would be grately appreciated.
Cheers mate.

Nad, the lighter your rod the more fun...I use everything from a converted fly rod to all-through action deep-water waggler rods. My favourite Mullet rod is a 17ft Preston Innovations Carbonacrive Excel.

Line is 4lb fluro for open water or 6Lb fluro in snaggy locations. Size 8 barbed hook; never barbless. Mullet do an aweful lot of head shaking and I don't trust a barbless to 100% maintain its hold. The fish will also run through and around bladderwrack; which will require slack-line tactics - fish gone if you are on barbless !!!!
Don't be pursauded otherwise its just nonesense :-)

Always leave the fish in the landing net for 4-5 minutes after the fight - before unhooking them - as it allows them to dissapate the lactic acid from their muscles; and means they go back fresh as a daisy with none of the pushing through the water stuff....worried that you have killed it.

Spinners (baited spoons) are reserved for Thin Lipped Greys...they are smaller than Thick Lipped Greys and fight less (similar to Bass). You won't ever catch Thicks on spoons of any description....bread only. Yes I know that someone will correct me and cite one that they caught on mackerel strip or ragworm...but believe me they eat bread; and as cheap as yopu can get...they like the soft dough and fat as much as we do :-)

Tactics are so various it hurts.... but freelining works, as do floats or ledger. You have to work out which method works best on the day and the conditions.

Good luck mate... they are worth every ounce of effort.

One thing to remember is that these fish may seem plentiful, but unlike Bass once killed they do not repopulate easily ..often for many many years...even decades for the largest monsters !
Mullet are so slow growing that a big fish will be well over 20 years old...so putting them back and handling them so that they can safely go back is only fair. Once you have caught some of these fish you will naturally gain an endearing respect for them... they fight their socks off :-)