Catching A Cod

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THE COD-A BRIEF HISTORY

For most sea anglers there is something almost magical about the cod, for no other species seems to evoke such passion. For those old enough to remember the heyday of The Firth of Clyde, when this was the dominant species and large bags of fish to double figures were common place, it’s a time now looked back on almost as a ‘Golden Age’. It is however the cod’s misfortune to be an extremely valuable species commercially. With a change to the law in 19?? That allowed commercial fishing boats to operate within three miles of the shore, a practice which was previously banned, the Clyde and its cod stocks went in to a sharp decline, from which it has never really recovered. Over fishing by the commercial fleets has reduced the stocks of this species to the point where scientists actually fear that stocks in the North Sea, off Scotland’s East coast, may actually be reaching a level so low that the species may never be able to recover. In fact the stocks on Canada’s Grand Banks, once the most prolific cod fishery in the world have collapsed, and with it has gone the Canadian fishing fleet and thousands of jobs.

THE COD AND ITS HABITS

The cod is the principal member of the Gadidae family of fishes. It is a species which prefers cold water, and is found throughout the North Sea, the Irish Sea, and the North Atlantic, as far North as the Arctic Sea. Its range therefore takes in the coastlines of Northern Europe, the Northern U.S.A. and Canada, and the waters around Iceland and Greenland. Cod can be found around the Scottish coast most of the year, while in the Autumn around October or November, these residents are joined by shoals of often larger fish which move in from deep water on their annual migration, to feed inshore before moving off to deep water to spawn around February. With the arrival of Spring and the annual crab moult, like most other species the cod once again return to the inshore marks. The cod is a fast growing fish, and an opportunistic and adaptable feeder with a huge appetite, which will eat almost anything it comes across. It has a huge under slung mouth capable of engulfing quite large prey, and which marks it out primarily as a bottom feeder. The single barbule on its chin is a sensory organ which houses a highly developed sense of taste and smell. It also has highly developed eyesight. Cod take on a wide variety of colours, from the drab grey-green of the deep water fish, through the common mottled brown of the fish found on broken ground inshore (pictured), to the deep red-brown of the East Coast ‘Red Cod’, found among the Summer kelp beds. Like most of its family it has the characteristic triple dorsal fins. In deep water over a sandy or muddy sea bed it will be found moving in shoals, using its barbel to find small fish, crustaceans, or marine worms in the bottom silt. The cod will also prey on smaller fish such as sprats in mid water, and is often found hunting around deep water wrecks and reefs. Inshore in Summer cod love to feed on peeler crab, in pursuit of which they will move in to river estuaries, or the kelp filled gullies common on the East coast rock marks. As befitting a fish with such an appetite, the cod is capable of attaining huge weights, and it’s said they have been taken commercially to 91kg. The British Boat Record stands at 26.47kg (58lb 6oz) and was caught off Whitby, Yorkshire in 1992. The British Shore Record is held by a fish of 20.183kg (44lb 8oz), caught at Toms Point, Barry, Wales, in 1966. The Silver Lure S.A.C. Boat Record for the species is held by a fish of 9.923kg (21lb 1oz), (pictured here) caught by Hugh MacKenna in August 1981, out of Stonehaven. The cod Shore Record, (pictured here) is held by Robert Wilson, who took a fish of 12.701kg (28lb), from the Balcary flat Rock, in the Solway Firth, in January 1991. 

CATCHING COD FROM THE BOAT

Due to the varied ground that the cod is found over there are various methods employed when targeting this species. These are the two main methods. 
 DRIFT FISHING OVER ROUGH GROUND
The cod grounds in the inshore waters off the East Coast of Scotland, are mainly rough ground marks. This means that the sea bed is mainly comprised of rock, and is very snaggy. For this reason, charter boat Skipper’s are mostly unwilling to anchor on these marks, as there is a great possibility that their anchor, which is an expensive piece of equipment, will become snagged on the bottom, and they will lose it. This means that when fishing in these areas, it has to be done from a moving or ‘drifting’ boat. There are two main factors that influence the drift. The speed and direction of the tide, and the strength and direction of the wind. Their influence on drift fishing will be revealed shortly. Because the boat is moving, it is not possible to fish with a static bait, the movement of the boat would constantly drag the lead and reel line in to snags. The tactic mainly employed therefore is to fish with lures, the most common type being Feathers or Hokkai type lures, which can be bought in tackle shops. These simulate small baitfish. Remember when fishing a club match that you are only permitted to use three hooks, so if your set has more than three some will have to be removed. (It’s a good idea if possible to buy them in sets of six feathers, which you can half and get two sets out of.) Feathers can be enhanced with the addition of a bait, such as lugworm, ragworm, mussel, or mackerel. Tackle is usually a 13kg class boat rod, a medium size multiplier reel, and reel line between 11kg and 13kg breaking strain. Depending on the tide, leads may be between 0.11kg and 0.28kg. The technique is to let the reel out of gear, and lower your feathers gently to the bottom, until you feel the lead ‘tap’ on the rocks. When you feel the lead touch bottom lift the rod quickly, for you don’t want the lead to drag in to a snag. Re-engage the reel, and slowly lower the rod ‘till you feel the lead tap bottom, again lift the rod to avoid snagging bottom, and get in to a steady rhythm of working the rod,-down, tap lift, down, tap, lift. If you find that you can’t feel the lead tap on the bottom, then you’re obviously going over a deeper area, and you will have to pay out line to keep in contact with the sea bed. Similarly if you feel the lead is dragging bottom even when you lift the rod, it means that you’re drifting over a shallower area, and you will have to wind some line back on to the reel, and be quick or you’ll probably snag up! Because of the likelihood of snagging on bottom, it’s best to use a ‘rotten bottom’ of lighter line, of around 7kg to attach your lead to your feathers, so if you do snag you can break your lead off, without losing all of your end tackle. You can then simply tie on a new lead and resume fishing. This can be a costly method in terms of lost leads, so always take plenty with you. Of course the object of all this is to keep your lures close to the bottom, in the area where the cod should be feeding, and because the boat is drifting you are able to cover a large area of the sea bed, hopefully presenting your lures to a number of fish as you go. Bites when they come are usually positive, for the fish has to grab at the Feather or Hokkai before it ‘escapes’, so fish usually hook themselves, and you only have to wind in to them and get them up off the bottom. And the effect of wind and tide on drift fishing? Well if the tide is running fast, and the wind is blowing in the same direction, this combination can cause the boat to drift too fast, so that the fish can’t catch your lures! Sometimes the opposite is the case, and you have a small slow moving tide, with the wind blowing in the opposite direction, so that the boat will hardly move, and you will obviously cover a much smaller area and far fewer fish. You’ll realise then that it’s important to pick a date for this type of fishing when you have a medium sized tide, which wind aside, gives you the best chance of catching.

COD FISHING AT ANCHOR OVER CLEAN GROUND

The principal difference in fishing at anchor to drift fishing, is that you have to attract the fish to your hook. This is achieved by using bait. Cod have healthy appetites and tend to be aggressive feeders, so large baits are the order of the day. Lugworm, ragworm, mussel, razor fish, and squid, are the most effective baits, for this type of fishing, either used singly or in combinations. Strangely, peeler crab which is so deadly from the shore, tends to be ineffective when boat fishing. When fishing at anchor the boat is held stationary in the tide. The anchor rope is attached to the Bow (front) of the boat, so that the boat is held facing in to the flow of water. Anglers fish from the sides and stern (rear) of the boat, and as they lower their baited end tackle to the sea bed, it is carried away and behind the boat in the tide.This means that the lines of anglers fishing toward the Bow tend to be carried back in the tide, and tangle with those of the anglers fishing at the stern. This can be overcome for the most part, if those fishing towards the bow use heavier leads, to prevent their tackle being swept back as far in the tide. Those fishing at the back of the boat therefore have the advantage of being able to use lighter leads to let their baits ‘trot’ back in the tide, so that fish which move up the scent trail given off by the anglers baits, will encounter their hook first! For this reason the fishing positions on a boat are generally drawn for before sailing.The weight of lead needed is determined by the strength of the tide. In very strong tides it could take more than a kilogramme of lead to hold bottom, so for this reason it is best to pick the smallest tide available for this type of fishing. Rods and reels used are similar as in drift fishing, although lighter and thinner lines are preferable, as they don’t catch the tide as much, and slightly less weight is needed to hold bottom. End tackle is best kept simple, a running leger setup using a boom (pictured above) being most suitable. Hook lengths of around one to one and a half metres should be ok, with large baits best mounted on a pennel rig. As with drift fishing you should hold the rod at all times, most anglers holding the reel line between finger and thumb to feel for bites, which should be struck when a confident tug is felt.

SHORE FISHING FOR COD

Stephen Wallace, the self proclaimed ‘King Coddy’, is a mad keen rough ground cod angler who catches his fair share of this species. Here are his tips for rough ground shore fishing.

                Winter or summer when fishing on rough ground marks there are some simple things that always apply
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The most important being:

 BE CAREFUL

Rock marks are potentially dangerous places, and they need to be treated with respect. Take the following advice and you should be ok. Don’t go on to exposed marks in rough weather. Don’t fish alone on rock marks, I know this article’s for junior anglers who shouldn’t be unattended, but this applies to adults as well. When fishing on rock marks over low tide, regularly check behind you as the tide floods to make sure you don’t get cut off from the shore. And don’t move about more than you have to, as it just increases your chance of falling and hurting yourself.
Use the stiffest most powerful rod you have, as when you hook a fish you usually have to drag it in through heavy kelp
 I prefer a fixed spool reel for this type of fishing, as they have a faster retrieve which kelps to get your tackle back in without snagging up. Rigs for rough ground fishing are basically the same winter or summer. I always use rotten bottom rigs. Rotten bottom rigs are similar to normal rigs except instead of having a normal lead link at the bottom, they have a rotten bottom link (see diagram), which is basically just a little hook to hang your lead on for casting.. Your lead is attached to your rig with a short piece of lighter line. This allows me to break off my lead if it becomes snagged, and probably get my trace back. These rigs save on tackle losses, and often let you land snagged fish, but they’re not designed for really hard casting
 I always use 31lb breaking strain Sylcast line, as it has never let me down and it’s very strong and abrasion resistant.

The trace body should be around 22.5kg breaking strain, with a swivel of at least the same breaking strain tied on to the top of the trace, and a similar swivel to take the hook snood trapped on the rig body between two beads. These are trapped in position with stop knots, about two thirds of the way down the trace body. At the bottom of the trace I tie on a Dave Docwra rotten bottom link (pictured).  To the eye of the link I then tie about 150mm of 9kg line for the rotten bottom, the other end being tied to the weight. The length of the hook snood I use depends on the conditions. If it’s calm I tend to use longer snoods of around 450mm, but if the sea’s a bit rougher or if the fish aren’t feeding confidently, I’ll use shorter snoods of around 300mm, as they’re less likely to tangle in the kelp and they show up shy bites better. I use 18kg Amnesia for the hook length.

In calm weather I’ll use plain leads, but if there’s a swell I’ll use grip leads,as the wires can often stop your lead dropping in to cracks in the sea bed if the current moves it around.
In summer I use a single 4/0 Viking hook, and in winter I use a pennel rig, with a 2/0 Viking trapped on the snood using telephone wire, and a 4/0 Viking tied to the end of the hook length.
For summer cod fishing the only bait to use is peeler crab, as it will out fish everything else, although I sometimes use it in a cocktail with mussel
Winter cod baits are cocktails of various combinations of: lugworm, ragworm, mussel, razor fish, squid, and mackerel. Mussel is my top bait tip for winter fishing, and I wouldn’t go without it. Collect it during the summer months, and freeze it in food bags. Don’t throw unused mussel away, as it’s one bait that can be refrozen, even more than once. Mackerel is another bait that I’ve found to be very good over the last two winters, and if you’re pleasure fishing it’s worth putting a second rod out with a whole side of mackerel, as it seems to take bigger fish. As to the actual fishing, the most important thing is to find the gullies, for these are the routes that the fish take as they search for food. If the tide is low enough look for patches of kelp, for these show where the water is shallower, then pick a clear spot to cast to, ideally between patches of weed, or to the side of a weed bed, and don’t be afraid to cast short, as the cod can be literally under your feet.Once your lead hits the water, let the reel line run through your fingers. If you can feel it pulling through your fingers for a few seconds, you’re in a deeper spot. Take up some of the slack line and put your rod in your rod rest, then gently begin to tighten up to the lead, but don’t tighten right up until the rod tip’s pulling over.

When winding in to re-bait simply pick the rod up and wind as fast as you can, if you’re already snagged there’s nothing you can do about it, but this is the best way to avoid pulling yourself in to a snag. Remember to always check your rotten bottom before re-casting, if it’s frayed replace it. Bites on peeler crab during the summer are usually positive, pulling the rod tip well over, and I strike these right away if I’m close enough to my rod. Once you’ve struck, and you feel the weight of the fish on the end of your line wind in to it fast to get it moving, and keep it moving. If a fish takes you in to a snag and you can’t budge it, try giving it some slack line, put your rod back in the rest, and wait for five minutes. Sometimes the fish will bring your tackle free of the snag itself and you’ll be able to land it.  If all else fails you’ll have to pull for a break. Wind in the slack line till your rod tip is pointing directly to the lead, then wrap a few turns of line around a piece of smooth wood (carry a piece of old brush handle for this purpose) and use this to pull directly on the line while walking in the opposite direction, remember to watch where you’re going so you don’t fall. Don’t wrap the line round your fingers when pulling for a break as it can cut you badly.

When winter fishing bites can be similar, if there are a number of fish about and they’re competing for food, but sometimes they can be very delicate, in which case you will have to pick up your rod, tighten the line slightly and feel for another tug on your line before striking
When deciding whether to go pleasure fishing on the east coast rock marks, I look for calm sunny summer days, or in winter I want to be fishing after an easterly gale when the sea is calming down, but the water is still the colour of coffee, as this is when the area fishes best.
If I’m catching, I fish a gully until I stop getting bites, then move and try another gully. If you’re not getting bites and you can see other anglers catching, it can pay you to move closer to where they’re fishing, as long as there’s enough space