Rockfishing is light lure fishing by the sea. In Japan, it's called "light game". It's a fun way of fishing, accessible to all, where you can lure a wide range of species on very light tackle. Corsica is an ideal playground for this practice.
Good fishing spots
When it comes to rockfishing, there aren't really any good or bad spots - it all depends on the species you're targeting. All this to say that you can rockfish almost anywhere in Corsica!
For me, harbours remain the preferred fishing spots, when it's possible to fish there. They offer the opportunity to fish on sight and come across a large number of species concentrated around the structures. Rock fish such as scorpion fish, gobies and blennies inhabit the riprap and the smallest crevices.
Sparids such as sparaillon, sar, oblade and gilthead bream are also often present, feeding opportunistically (bread, sea urchin carcasses, etc.).
Finally, it's not uncommon to come across pelagic predators in port, juvenile or otherwise, such as yellowtail, limon (juvenile amberjack) or barracuda (barracuda). Horse mackerel are also very common, but can be caught in the evening or at night. In all cases, you'll need to adapt your fishing to the type of species you're targeting. Soft lures can be used for almost any species, especially for sight fishing. You'll need to adjust the size and weight of the lure to the size of the fish you're targeting.
Beaches and estuaries are also good spots, too often neglected. However, the sandy bottoms are home to many other species. Here again, we find sparids, oblades and marblefish, as well as flatfish, whitefish, lizardfish and wolffish. These are spots to be explored with small swimming fish, light casting jigs or small soft lures, slowly scraping the bottom.
Corsica's rocky coasts are also excellent for rockfishing. Here, too, you'll find a wide range of species, often very colorful, such as the serran écriture or serran chèvre, girelles, small labres or moray eels...
Casting jigs are very effective when animated close to the bottom or in open water, as are small soft lures presented as drop shots.
Good times for rockfishing
Summer is necessarily a good time to fish, as the warm waters encourage fish activity around the edges. On the other hand, fishing is more fruitful in the early morning or evening, or even at night. This is all the more true in tourist-frequented spots such as beaches.
In my opinion, spring is the best time of year: the water is clear, the fish are active and the days are getting longer.
Winter and autumn are ideal for fishing in little-frequented ports, rich in predators such as horse mackerel, wolffish and small amberjacks.
