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Sea bass and mackerel
Two days of high tides, not exceptional, but with two days with coefficients above 90, we should be able to enjoy ourselves. What's more, at our place, above the 48th, sea bass fishing is once again authorized, and we've gone up to 3 per day. So I'm taking advantage of these tides to go out as I like to do.
Two hours looking for sea bass and the rest of the session on the foreshore for shellfish. It's a sonar-less outing, so as I know the areas, I'm going to fish by trusting my sense of the water. Since I've been frequenting these areas for so long, I've got the cartography in my head. I'm going to prospect by latching onto the break in the plateau on which I stop at low tide for my pickings. There's about 5 to 6 meters of water, so it'll be a troll with a swimming fish.
I first try a pearly-colored Deep Diver in 90 to explore the deepest zone, but not a touch... I then move on to a swimming fish in 2 to 3 meters of water. My usual 3DB Jerkbait 110 SP, I chose an ayu back color, white belly. I move a little closer to the plateau, which must be about 4 meters deep. Good pick, I'll make 3 fish to follow, not monsters, fish of 42, 41 and 41, all gone swimming again. I'm happy to have validated my choice with a catch, however modest. The bar 2026 season is underway.
In the course of this research, I also validated mackerel. This winter, we had a series of episodes on this fish. We went from no limits to 5, and then there was a public consultation with over 8,000 contributions. We're still waiting for the summary of this consultation. This has not prevented the publication of a decree (dated April 3) raising the limit to 10. We wonder, of course, what verifiable scientific study the legislator is basing his decision on to change the limit according to the current. It's 100% more, and that's not going to please everyone...
Shellfish and crustaceans
Meanwhile, the tide continued to fall and I was able to put the kayak down on the foreshore. Priority to prairies and shells. Still on my usual spots, I start with the prairies. As a reminder, the mesh size for this shellfish is 4.3 cm and the quota is 100 individuals or 3 kg. I quickly pick up around fifty of the best sizes, then move on to walking around the ponds for the shells. This year, we didn't have the problem of ASP toxins on this shellfish. We have an 11 cm mesh size and a quota of 30 individuals for shore fishing and 15 for snorkeling. As the weather is fine and there's not too much wind, you can see them quite easily when you wander around the ponds, with a little practice.
At this little game, I'll prove a dozen or so nice-sized ones, the biggest being almost 14 cm. I'll also see a few sleepers, but they're females and I don't harvest them, whether they're grained or not - that goes for all crustaceans. Of course, I'll end my session with my traditional picnic on the foreshore, enjoying the sunshine and blue skies a little longer.
For the rest of the season, we'll have to wait until May 1 for the possibility of fishing for pollack, with the restrictions we're all familiar with. This species has been on fishmongers' shelves all winter, and at ridiculous sizes, yet another example of calamitous resource management.
For those wondering whether to switch to a kayak, there's the Royan show from April 24 to 26, where several brands will be present, and where you can try out the different models on the dedicated water surface.
