For saltwater light lure anglers who don't
want to venture miles offshore, Wrasse are a rewarding inshore
alternative. Traditionally, anglers pursue wrasse by using a special
cocktail of natural baits. However, Sam prefers to catch them by
using soft lure and 'black bass' tactics. Purchase a few soft
crustacean-imitating lures which mimic crabs, small shrimp or similar
arthropods and rig them from tail to head with lead-headed jig hooks.
Sam uses jig heads with a 'sabot' style head shape to reduce
the probability of hanging up on the rocks, although you will still
snag the odd kelp frond. Make sure to tie on a larger breaking strain
monofilament shock leader (e.g. 60 lb isn't too thick) to your main
line so you can reduce break-offs from repeated rock abrasion.
Make mine a blueish one!
After arriving at your mark, cast carefully
to your chosen rock and let the lure simply flutter down to the
bottom without imparting much action. Many wrasse, like black bass,
will hit the lure on the 'drop'. Takes range from simple tap,
tap, tap to slamming stops and lunges. Set the hook upon feeling
these vibrations and the fight begins. Most wrasse are hooked through
their fat lips as they use them initially to investigate prey.
This technique is totally touch-based,
as in fishing the plastic worm or jigging with a grub
in black bass fishing. By the way, small plastic worms work well too!
You can trying to look at your rod tip or line for twitches while
your lure descends into the depths, but it is best simply to rely on
your arms, hands, and fingertips to sense bite vibrations.
Give this technique a try. Soon you will be
hooked on catching these colourful ballans the black bass way!
