Back to Basics - Bream off the Rocks

By Ricky “Sticky” Farrell

 

Introduction

With the cold winter months hitting there is no need to put away the fishing gear and hibernate like a bear. Indeed, it is during these colder months of the year when I embark on my favourite kind of fishing: Rock fishing.

As the title of this article states, I will be discussing how I like to get back to basics when targeting bream from the rocks. I will discuss: Areas I like to fish from the rocks; Tides; Rod and reel, and line; Tackle; Berley; Bait; and The hook-up.

The author Ricky "Sticky" Farrell with a nice bream. Winter months are a great time to get back to basics and fish for bream off the rocks

Areas I like to fish from the rocks

When scouting a location to fish from the rocks I look for cuts, channels and coves, with a mix of rock, weed and sandy bottom all in one area. Also a spot that has white water created from the waves surging on the rocks is a must, as this is where the fish will look for cover and any dislodged food. But with all this in mind I make sure the spot I fish is safe. No fish is worth your life!

Rock fishing for bream is great fun but can be very dangerous, make sure the spot you fish is safe

 

Tides

Depending on the area you fish some spots will fish better on high tide or low tide. This just comes down to trial and error, so it's worth trying both tides. In my area of Port Stephens (NSW, Australia) I find the last two hours of the run up to high tide and first two hours of run out to low tide are very effective times to fish for bream.

Rod, Reel, and Line

A medium-heavy rod anywhere from 10ft to 12ft, preferably with a soft-tip but plenty of power in the butt-half, is ideal for rock fishing. Personally, I use a 10.6ft rod like a Wilson Shore Line or Wilson Live Fibre rod. I combine this with an Alvey 455B XL Blackfish reel, but a size 4000 to 6000 spin reel will also work fine. At the end of the day its best to use what feels most comfortable for you for fishing.

When fishing from the rocks strong sturdy gear is essential

10lb to 15lb line is ideal when rock fishing for bream. My choice is 15lb Schneider Klear line monofilament line. I find this line to be reliable and durable with low memory, with consistent breaking strain, that makes for high knot strength and abrasion resistance. I find that not only is it good for bream, but it also gives me more chance to land other species such as drummer, snapper or grouper which regularly happen to lurk when you have been chucking berley. Indeed, you never know what's gunner turn up in a berley trail!

Tackle

Hooks anywhere from size 4 to a size 1/0 are ideal for bream. I regularly use a size 2 suicide hook, but long shank, bait holder or kirby kendal style hooks will also do the trick.
For weight I use size 1 Jarvis Walker ball sinkers. I find one sinker is usually enough. However, if there is a particularly heavy swell I'll use two sinkers.
There are many rigs you can use for bait fishing for bream, but my favourite is a basic running sinker rig. To rig this up, all I do is thread the ball sinker(s) through the line, and tie the line to my hook using a simple Uni knot. The end result will have the sinkers resting on top of the hook. The benefit of this rig set up is that a fish can attack a bait, and run away with it without feeling much resistance before I set the hook.

Keep it simple. You don't need expensive terminal tackle or elaborate rigs when fishing for bream off the rocks.

Berley

When I find the spot I'm going to fish, the first thing I do is make a berley mix. I put two loaves of bread in bucket and add water to create a fine soup. The soup consistency is important as it acts as an attractant and not food. During a single session I usually take at least five loaves of cheap bread as i like to get a good heavy berley trail going.
I chuck three big hand fulls of berley into the water before I've done anything else. Then I find that while rigging my rod up this gives the berley time to work and bring the fish in. While I'm fishing I chuck in a hand full of berley every few cast to keep the fish around.

Berley made of bread is a powerful attractant. It is an essential component when fishing from the rocks

Sticky's hot tip: It doesn't hurt to ask your local bakery for some old bread to use for berley. It can be a lot cheaper.

Bait

I like to use cooked prawns - yes, the ones in the deli section of Coles and Woolworth supermarkets - for bait when bream fishing from the rocks. Not only do bream love them, but they also catch many other species such as drummer, snapper, grouper, leather jacket & luderick. In fact, there's not many fish out there that won't eat a prawn!

When rigging my bait I only want enough bait to cover my hook. Therefore, I'll chop the bigger cooked prawns in to 3 sections (head, body & tail) or the smaller prawns in half. I find using these smaller sizes makes it easier for the fish to take the bait down in one go, instead of just picking at it.

Prawns make good bait. Bream love them!

Sticky's hot tip: Green prawns, cunjevoi, crabs, pipis, mullet strips, bontio or tuna strips or cubes and also pillchard choped in cubes are other baits that also work well for bream from the ocean rocks

Technique

I cast out letting the bait hit the bottom, then I let it sit for a minute. If I don't get a bite I'll give the bait a lift up off the bottom to try to attract a fishes attention. I repeat the lift and pause process, always staying tight with the line. When the bait gets too close to the rocks I'll reel it in so it doesn't get snagged.

Once I hook a fish I like to play it by letting it take line. However, the trick here is to keep enough tension on the line to prevent it from snagging, or without pulling the hook from the fishes mouth, or snapping the line. But in saying all that, sometimes you just need to lock up when fishing heavy structure.

Wrap-up

If you haven’t given rock fishing for bream a crack, give it a go, it’s inexpensive, great fun, and you will find some big fish. If you are already doing this style of fishing I hope there’s a tip or two here that helps you hook into a few more.

Cheers.... Sticky

About Sticky

Ricky "Sticky" Farrell is a mad fisho who has been fishing the area of Port Stephens, NSW, Australia for the last 20 years. He is the creator of Sticky Fishy Fishing. You can check Sticky out on his social media platforms by clicking the links below:

Sticky's Facebook page

Sticky's YouTube Channel

Sticky's Instagram page

Fishing Shallow Water Canals For Bream In Winter

By Aaron Flakemore

Introduction

As the colder winter months set in and the water temperature drops, the bream can make themselves relatively scarce. It is during this time of the year that us fisho’s prefer to stay inside and keep warm. However, for the adventurous, there is hope. Indeed, if you know where to look, bream fishing during the winter months can produce equivalent, if not better, results as in summer.

This article discusses how it is during this time of the year when bream can be found in great numbers hunting the shallows of canals, and how they can be caught.

Location

Canals are man-made waterways constructed to allow the passage of boats or ships inland or to convey water for irrigation. Shallow water canals have properties comparable to large open flats, in that they display a parallel water depth over the whole area, interspersed with a series of channels, gutters and sandbanks. As the water starts to fall back in, the bream will congregate in these little channels waiting to ambush the small baitfish, prawns, and crabs to make their way in.

The photo above shows a canal on low tide.

The photo above showing the same location as the previous photo, but on an incoming tide.

The Gear

For this type of fishing, a good quality 7ft, 1-3kg or 2-4kg line class rod matched with a 2500 sized spin reel is ideal. The reel should be spooled with 4lb-8lb braid connected to a light leader of fluorocarbon in the 2lb to 4LB line class range.

In the shallow canal’s soft plastic baits in sizes 2” to 2.5” are the preferred option. Popular are Z-Man Grubz in in Motor Oil, Watermelon Red and Violet Sparkle colours.

When rigging soft plastics for this type of fishing, the motto is “The lighter the better”. Overall, a 1/20 jig head is ideal. Hidden weight systems (HWS) in a 1/28 is are also very good, particulalry for skimming soft plastics into hard to reach and crammed spots and for suspending a bit, rather than dropping faster.

Technique

The best time to fish is when bream actively feed, such as early morning and late afternoon. In terms of tides water movement is key, with 1 hour up to peak-high tide or 1 hour after peak-high on the run-out being particularly productive. Overall conditions are ideal when the previously mentioned times and tides coincide (e.g. early morning from 1 hour up to peak-tide). It should be noted, however, that dead-low tide can also be productive, as bream will often school up and remain within the canal system, preferring to rest in the deeper channels.

When fishing these canals, you need to remember that not only is the water shallow but also clear. This means fish can see you! And they spook easily! Therefore, it is best to stay out of the water and keep your movements along the shore as measured as possible. Sometimes the bream are so skittish that you may even need to crouch and cast.

Often bream will be holed-up, waiting for small baitfish and other food sources to pass by. Therefore, the best way to find them is to cover ground. A good method is to make 3-5 casts in a location, casting a few times straight ahead as close to the other side of the shore as possible, then cast on a 45° angle back toward where you’ve just been, then cast on a 45° angle toward where you’ll move to next. Once you’ve made a few casts in these directions move along the shore a few metres and repeat the process. Try to utilise the wind to your advantage, by casting with it to your back to greatly improve your casting distance.

As previously said, soft plastics are the preferred baits for this type of fishing. When retrieving soft plastics, a good idea is to vary the presentation technique to see what the bream are hitting. There are four retrieves you can mix up with:

1. Standard hop/whip directly up off bottom and slow flutter to bottom.
2. Sideways twitch (dragging along the bottom)
3. The "burn n drop’- cast, rapid retrieve for a few metres then drop to the bottom.
4. Slow roll with twitches.

 Use each technique and mix it up throughout the session to find the preferred method on the day.

Large bream, such as that pictured above can be found in shallow water canals during the cold winter months

 

Final Word

Fishing for bream in shallow water canals during winter is great fun and can produce good results.
It is hoped that the information presented here has sparked your interest in giving fishing for bream in shallow water canals during the colder winter months a try. Hopefully the tips and information will help you to get onto a few big ones.