Introduction to mullet fishing by G.Smith
Well I will start this off by saying I hope this helps to start or improve your mullet fishing experience. As once you start and get into mullet fishing it can be hard to drag yourself away to fish for anything else.
You may be laughing at this statement but once you have gotten past the enfuriating stage of mullet taking every bait in the area bar yours, or there splashing at it and going away, or they swim straight at it and then dart off in the other direction [all part of mullet fishing] As when you get trough this stage your into fishing gold. Your able to fish for a fish that is every bit as hard fighting as a salmon, twice as smart, free to fish for, about 100 times more plentyfull and there nearly in every river, harbour and estuary in the country
What more could you ask for
This article is a small part of mullet fishing and I have touched on my own personal favourite methods and the most common aspect of mullet fishing.
This article will make more sense to you as you try for them yourself. If you have a tough day at the mullet come back and have a glance trough here there should be something in here to get you back in the fish hope you enjoy.
Tackle and rigging.
Well we'll get the boring stuff out of the way first and this is what I take fishing.
RODS
Generaly rod wise a good alround light 8 foot rod will cover most mullet fishing something that can take the surge of good fish while using 6lb line.
I'm reluctant to name any rod in particular as we can get carried away with brands and redictulous prices so keep it simple. How I like to test a rod is get a 10g weight and tie it to the end of the rod on a piece of line about 4 foot long and give it a gentle bounce as you were about to cast it and if the rod is gently flexing with it, you have what you need.
REELS
Reels any nice little spinning reel with a rear drag will do not to small thoe.it's far more important what you put on it.[the line]
LINE
For me it has to be trilene line 6lb. it is vitally important to keep your reel full of line for smooth casting while using light gear. and always reel it gently trough your fingers while reeling in so it goes on with a slight bit of tension so it doesn't foul up when casting.Braid can be used but for me the mono is best overall.
FLOATS
If your using floats try use the lightest one possible.
If it's for extra distance match the float to what you need, if your surface fishing I use a thin waggler with 4 bb shot close to the float and about another 4 foot to the hook so the weights don't pull your bread flake down.
HOOKS
Hooks vary depending what your at. My alround favourite is the drennan specimen size10 semi barbed.In my experience thoe limited with barbless, the barbless are not an option as a lot of fish can be lost. with barbed hooks 99% of the time there hooked at the edge of the mouth in anyway .
If your fishing in a harbour you can go up to a size 8 and if your in a river after moby dick I go down to a size 12 If you go down to 14 you need to reasses your whole rig you'll need to go down to 4lb line and watch your drag like a hawk.
And keep away from the reeds as there like knifes and will ruin light line.
LANDING NET
Generally a half decent trout net with a 4 foot handle will do nicely.
AND FINALLY HEAD WEAR.
Although it's not a fashion show A hat and polarized glasses will really help your fishing. As they'll cut down the glare on the waters surface.
Mullet behavior
You might be inclined to skip this part but it is all relavent and the more you try for them the more helpfull this will be.
Generally in tidal rivers and harbours they follow a similar pattern as the tide rises they come in and really start to feed. also the fish that were trapped at low tide will feed a lot better. What normally happens is they rush in all over the place and feed anywhere untill there favourite feeding spot is covered then the fun can really begin. At this point you can decide to move around and stalk them or sit and wait at a favourite spot.
Mullet as you will have noticed if you ever watched them are a shoaling fish [don't laugh now ] but unlike most fish they seem to have lots of small groups with in the main shoal. And unlike most fish they seem to have a larger fish in front and followed closely by 3 or 4 smaller fish the lead fish is generally a good couple of pound bigger that it's followers. This fish is generally 5lb+ and is a whilley old buck and is a tricky fish to tempt to a hook bait. In time you will catch them but don't stress about them at first.
But this fish is emensly usefull to us.
If you watch cruising mullet especially these small groups anything the lead fish picks up the followers will nearly always have a go at it. you may be thinking how will I get this cute bugger to even look at my bait, but unless you want to pull out the rest of your remaing hair I'd leave him till you get the swing of the 3-4lb fish.
Back to the lead fish what you do is when you see the small group cruising cast about 10yds ahead and about 5yds past them so not to scare them and real your bait in to the path of the fish [this is only for subsurface baits suken flake or fish bait slow sinking] and as the lead fish passes if he doesn't have ago gently give the bait a short sharp pull as if the lead fish just spat it out and the fish behind will 80% of the time have ago.
RIVERS
By far my favourite and a lovely place to be on a nice quite day.
For me being mobile is the key to river fishing for mullet.
All I bring is my rod,reel a pack of size10 hooks one or 2 small floats and 2 loaves of bread oh bring your camera.
Between tides is hard going but generally I throw out 3-4 slices of bread in a patch and walk up the river and try further up. if there's nothing happening after an hour I head back to where I put the first bit of ground bait and put some more bread out and get a line out and see what happens. If the gulls are harrasing you wet the bread first and some of it will sink and work almost as well.
But by far the flood tide and some of the high water ebb is best. If your down an hour or 2 before high water I would generally pick a favourite spot ground bait it with floating bread and sit and wait.[TOP TIP] only ground bait with fresh crusts and keep the white flake for your hook.The reason being the crust floats much better and the mullet have to work alot harder to get it where as your nice bit of flake will slip nicely under the water easily when the big brute sucks it down.
BEST BAIT.Generally bread flake is the top bait in rivers bring plenty with you and don't be mean give them plenty. mullet generally feed on what is most plentyfull so get the bread out and get them feeding. And the bread has to very fresh for best results.
YAK OR ON FOOT ?
MULLET BAITS.
I know what your saying to yourself and no you won't find it in the bog
Baits generally are what are most plentyfull in an area.
Harbours,
Generally in harbours fish pieces and shelled prawn are best a nice piece of white fish skined and no bones in it cut down the amount of time the mullet play with it. But saying this onone or 2 ocassions I have seen them go activily after a piece of oily fish. if possible a small piece of bait about 3/4" square roughly is ideal but for longer casting when free lining you go bigger to improve your cast distance you might want to go up a hook size to get a better hold on a larger bait say size 8 at the most.
A simple cast and allow your bait to sink slowly trough the water as you watch it the majority of my fish are caught on the sink they seem to love a slow sinking bait.
RIVER BAITS.
River baits are generally bread, bread and more bread.
They seem to love it in rivers weather is from people feeding ducks or what i'm not sure. they seem to have very little interest in fish baits in rivers for some reason.
Back to bread it is a very versitile bait it can be used floating, sunk or just slow sinking trough the water.
But the age old question how to hook it. the main tip in regards to floating bread is not to squeeze the bread as you take a piece for bait gently tear it off.
For a decent sized piece tear a triangle shaped piece of bread with no crust and then place the hook poit in the center of the bait. now the point of the piece of bread has to be above the hook eye as what you do then is to geanly squeeze the three points of the bait onto the line above the eye of the hook . definitly not on to the hook as the bread holding onto the line will take the weight of the bread when casting.
Float fished bread can done on a much smaller scale as you don't need the weight of the bread to take it for you while casting.
with floats and bread it is easier to taget the bigger fish. as they tend to take small baits much quicker in rivers. to hook a small bread bait I use a small long strip of bread just wide enough to cover the lenght of the hook fold it over and a gentle squeeze onto the hook to hold it in place. If you want it to sink slow when it hits the water gently tip the water with the bait only for a spilt second just enough so when your bait hits the water it will knock the air out of the bread and start to sink slowly. Ideal for cruising mullet.
THE STRIKE,
It'll either be
or it'll be 
.
I know it may seem like i'm telling granny how to suck eggs but mullet are in a league of there own. If your not ready he'll either take your rod for a swim or you'll miss him.
With mullet fishing close to the surface is the way to go. With there ability too strip a bait from your hook with out hardly moving a light float it's the best option.If you can see your bait you can watch the take develope. With mullet takes you have to wait untill the bait disapears into his mouth, But there's a vital part in this you need to keep the line as straight as possible between hook and rod tip. if there's a curve in the line it will cut your hook up rate by at least a half. This can be done as the mullet aproaches though you have to do it with out moving the bait.
THE ACTUAL STRIKE; Get the rod forward take up any extra slack wait till the bait dissapears then give a very quick strike BUT, there's always a but, you've just struck into a fish that is compared to a bone fish for it's power and ability to take off. Yes a fight of a lifetime is about to take place but only if you drag is set wright you want it set hard enough to hook him but also slack enough that some line can leave the reel. this fish is like hooking into a firework and he's about to explode in style. Some times it's like an explosion on the surface that will tire and come to the net eventually when he feels like it.And other times it's a head down short run after short run these fish are the hardest to land. they can sit back and start a bout of head slaping on the surface and this is when you have to be brave add more pressure to stop him doing this as he is very likely to throw the hook. Also be ready at the net multiple times I have had a mullet come to the net nackered looking only to unleash there reserve of mighty power, bit of a bugger when your not ready for it, they can run off another 20yds of line when you think there done. So don't say you weren't warned .
Hope youv'e enjoyed this fight it's time to experience your own good luck and tight lines.
Well I will start this off by saying I hope this helps to start or improve your mullet fishing experience. As once you start and get into mullet fishing it can be hard to drag yourself away to fish for anything else.
You may be laughing at this statement but once you have gotten past the enfuriating stage of mullet taking every bait in the area bar yours, or there splashing at it and going away, or they swim straight at it and then dart off in the other direction [all part of mullet fishing] As when you get trough this stage your into fishing gold. Your able to fish for a fish that is every bit as hard fighting as a salmon, twice as smart, free to fish for, about 100 times more plentyfull and there nearly in every river, harbour and estuary in the country
What more could you ask for
This article is a small part of mullet fishing and I have touched on my own personal favourite methods and the most common aspect of mullet fishing.
This article will make more sense to you as you try for them yourself. If you have a tough day at the mullet come back and have a glance trough here there should be something in here to get you back in the fish hope you enjoy.
Tackle and rigging.
Well we'll get the boring stuff out of the way first and this is what I take fishing.
RODS
Generaly rod wise a good alround light 8 foot rod will cover most mullet fishing something that can take the surge of good fish while using 6lb line.
I'm reluctant to name any rod in particular as we can get carried away with brands and redictulous prices so keep it simple. How I like to test a rod is get a 10g weight and tie it to the end of the rod on a piece of line about 4 foot long and give it a gentle bounce as you were about to cast it and if the rod is gently flexing with it, you have what you need.
REELS
Reels any nice little spinning reel with a rear drag will do not to small thoe.it's far more important what you put on it.[the line]
LINE
For me it has to be trilene line 6lb. it is vitally important to keep your reel full of line for smooth casting while using light gear. and always reel it gently trough your fingers while reeling in so it goes on with a slight bit of tension so it doesn't foul up when casting.Braid can be used but for me the mono is best overall.
FLOATS
If your using floats try use the lightest one possible.
If it's for extra distance match the float to what you need, if your surface fishing I use a thin waggler with 4 bb shot close to the float and about another 4 foot to the hook so the weights don't pull your bread flake down.
HOOKS
Hooks vary depending what your at. My alround favourite is the drennan specimen size10 semi barbed.In my experience thoe limited with barbless, the barbless are not an option as a lot of fish can be lost. with barbed hooks 99% of the time there hooked at the edge of the mouth in anyway .
If your fishing in a harbour you can go up to a size 8 and if your in a river after moby dick I go down to a size 12 If you go down to 14 you need to reasses your whole rig you'll need to go down to 4lb line and watch your drag like a hawk.
And keep away from the reeds as there like knifes and will ruin light line.
LANDING NET
Generally a half decent trout net with a 4 foot handle will do nicely.
AND FINALLY HEAD WEAR.
Although it's not a fashion show A hat and polarized glasses will really help your fishing. As they'll cut down the glare on the waters surface.
- here's one from majorca
Mullet behavior
You might be inclined to skip this part but it is all relavent and the more you try for them the more helpfull this will be.
Generally in tidal rivers and harbours they follow a similar pattern as the tide rises they come in and really start to feed. also the fish that were trapped at low tide will feed a lot better. What normally happens is they rush in all over the place and feed anywhere untill there favourite feeding spot is covered then the fun can really begin. At this point you can decide to move around and stalk them or sit and wait at a favourite spot.
Mullet as you will have noticed if you ever watched them are a shoaling fish [don't laugh now ] but unlike most fish they seem to have lots of small groups with in the main shoal. And unlike most fish they seem to have a larger fish in front and followed closely by 3 or 4 smaller fish the lead fish is generally a good couple of pound bigger that it's followers. This fish is generally 5lb+ and is a whilley old buck and is a tricky fish to tempt to a hook bait. In time you will catch them but don't stress about them at first.
But this fish is emensly usefull to us.
If you watch cruising mullet especially these small groups anything the lead fish picks up the followers will nearly always have a go at it. you may be thinking how will I get this cute bugger to even look at my bait, but unless you want to pull out the rest of your remaing hair I'd leave him till you get the swing of the 3-4lb fish.
Back to the lead fish what you do is when you see the small group cruising cast about 10yds ahead and about 5yds past them so not to scare them and real your bait in to the path of the fish [this is only for subsurface baits suken flake or fish bait slow sinking] and as the lead fish passes if he doesn't have ago gently give the bait a short sharp pull as if the lead fish just spat it out and the fish behind will 80% of the time have ago.
372.JPG- A mullet in an aquarium in majorcia
HARBOURS
Generally harbours are sit and wait. but theres no harm in wandering around watching for that beautifull sight of 4 or 5 mullet bring a fish carcas to the surface feeding like a good thing. have your bait ready and a well placed free lined fish piece will get you a fish.as with nearly all mullet fishing cast past them and reel the bait slowly to them and when very close let it start to sink but not out of sight. you may have to do this 2 or 3 times to get a take but don't spook them they will take it.
BEST BAIT IN HARBOURS, white fish flesh skinless and boneless or raw prawn shelled.
- My son Craig [on the left] with a 5.3lb mullet and his friend Patrick with 3lber. craig hooked and landed his with no help and his friend a novice needed little or no help
RIVERS
By far my favourite and a lovely place to be on a nice quite day.
For me being mobile is the key to river fishing for mullet.
All I bring is my rod,reel a pack of size10 hooks one or 2 small floats and 2 loaves of bread oh bring your camera.
Between tides is hard going but generally I throw out 3-4 slices of bread in a patch and walk up the river and try further up. if there's nothing happening after an hour I head back to where I put the first bit of ground bait and put some more bread out and get a line out and see what happens. If the gulls are harrasing you wet the bread first and some of it will sink and work almost as well.
But by far the flood tide and some of the high water ebb is best. If your down an hour or 2 before high water I would generally pick a favourite spot ground bait it with floating bread and sit and wait.[TOP TIP] only ground bait with fresh crusts and keep the white flake for your hook.The reason being the crust floats much better and the mullet have to work alot harder to get it where as your nice bit of flake will slip nicely under the water easily when the big brute sucks it down.
BEST BAIT.Generally bread flake is the top bait in rivers bring plenty with you and don't be mean give them plenty. mullet generally feed on what is most plentyfull so get the bread out and get them feeding. And the bread has to very fresh for best results.
YAK OR ON FOOT ?
- A 4lber from the yak
From the yak
Although the kayak is my favourite way to fish, your giving up your biggest advantage which is height. On foot from a bridge or on a bank it is much easier to see the take.It can be done from the yak and it is massively exciting altough you have to change your rig a bit. Generally i'd mostly fish a very light float for them with a smaller hook size12 and use smaller baits. the reason for all this is that from the yak you can no longer see the mullet take the bait into it's mouth, And it is much more difficult to see what's happening.but with a small bait when you see the float start to move you can be more certin that the fish has the bait in it's mouth.As mullet don't just grab a bait they like to suck it back and forward till it falls to pieces.
Don't be waiting for the usual float take, the dip down or drift away take from a pike or a trout. These fellas should have been burglars they can nick your bait when hardly moving the float. Generally the float will bobble about a bit very slightly though then normally one short tug in one direction then strike as he's about to spit the bait as he leaves.
This may happen several times in a row but that is why your fishing so light. If you completely miss him you will hardly disturb him and you may get a few chances at him.
ON FOOT.
mullet on foot is very productive the height advantage is great. As mullet are not your typical feeders that scoff what ever they see. there like posh fish they like to have a look, have a taste and maybe they'll eat it if they feel like it.
Thats why the height is so important. with mullet I like to be able to see the fish taking the bait. So on foot if your on a bank, or a bridge or a walkway you can see everything.
- One from the bank/ mud flats
MULLET BAITS.
I know what your saying to yourself and no you won't find it in the bog
Baits generally are what are most plentyfull in an area.
Harbours,
Generally in harbours fish pieces and shelled prawn are best a nice piece of white fish skined and no bones in it cut down the amount of time the mullet play with it. But saying this onone or 2 ocassions I have seen them go activily after a piece of oily fish. if possible a small piece of bait about 3/4" square roughly is ideal but for longer casting when free lining you go bigger to improve your cast distance you might want to go up a hook size to get a better hold on a larger bait say size 8 at the most.
A simple cast and allow your bait to sink slowly trough the water as you watch it the majority of my fish are caught on the sink they seem to love a slow sinking bait.
RIVER BAITS.
River baits are generally bread, bread and more bread.
They seem to love it in rivers weather is from people feeding ducks or what i'm not sure. they seem to have very little interest in fish baits in rivers for some reason.
Back to bread it is a very versitile bait it can be used floating, sunk or just slow sinking trough the water.
But the age old question how to hook it. the main tip in regards to floating bread is not to squeeze the bread as you take a piece for bait gently tear it off.
For a decent sized piece tear a triangle shaped piece of bread with no crust and then place the hook poit in the center of the bait. now the point of the piece of bread has to be above the hook eye as what you do then is to geanly squeeze the three points of the bait onto the line above the eye of the hook . definitly not on to the hook as the bread holding onto the line will take the weight of the bread when casting.
Float fished bread can done on a much smaller scale as you don't need the weight of the bread to take it for you while casting.
with floats and bread it is easier to taget the bigger fish. as they tend to take small baits much quicker in rivers. to hook a small bread bait I use a small long strip of bread just wide enough to cover the lenght of the hook fold it over and a gentle squeeze onto the hook to hold it in place. If you want it to sink slow when it hits the water gently tip the water with the bait only for a spilt second just enough so when your bait hits the water it will knock the air out of the bread and start to sink slowly. Ideal for cruising mullet.
THE STRIKE,
It'll either be
or it'll be .I know it may seem like i'm telling granny how to suck eggs but mullet are in a league of there own. If your not ready he'll either take your rod for a swim or you'll miss him.
With mullet fishing close to the surface is the way to go. With there ability too strip a bait from your hook with out hardly moving a light float it's the best option.If you can see your bait you can watch the take develope. With mullet takes you have to wait untill the bait disapears into his mouth, But there's a vital part in this you need to keep the line as straight as possible between hook and rod tip. if there's a curve in the line it will cut your hook up rate by at least a half. This can be done as the mullet aproaches though you have to do it with out moving the bait.
THE ACTUAL STRIKE; Get the rod forward take up any extra slack wait till the bait dissapears then give a very quick strike BUT, there's always a but, you've just struck into a fish that is compared to a bone fish for it's power and ability to take off. Yes a fight of a lifetime is about to take place but only if you drag is set wright you want it set hard enough to hook him but also slack enough that some line can leave the reel. this fish is like hooking into a firework and he's about to explode in style. Some times it's like an explosion on the surface that will tire and come to the net eventually when he feels like it.And other times it's a head down short run after short run these fish are the hardest to land. they can sit back and start a bout of head slaping on the surface and this is when you have to be brave add more pressure to stop him doing this as he is very likely to throw the hook. Also be ready at the net multiple times I have had a mullet come to the net nackered looking only to unleash there reserve of mighty power, bit of a bugger when your not ready for it, they can run off another 20yds of line when you think there done. So don't say you weren't warned
.- mullet 07 001.jpg
- Myself and craig had a total of 8 mullet for 3 hours craig kept his 2 for the dinner.
Hope youv'e enjoyed this fight it's time to experience your own good luck and tight lines.
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