Fishing Article: Cockles & Winter/Spring Bream

Cockles & Winter/Spring Bream

Winter and Spring fishing gone quiet? Then this is the time to target large bream using a naturally found bait called the cockle. These bivalve molluscs can be found in shallow water on mud and weed beds and are easy collected. Most lake systems have shallow areas adjacent to channels that may contain cockles. The locations to look for are those that contain ribbon weed that grows to about 20-25 cm in a firm mud substructure. These areas are only covered by about 0.5 – 1 m of water at high tide. Collecting them is easy if you have a shallow draft boat. Just motor in when the water is about

30 – 40 cm deep, lean over the side and run your hand through the weed. If you are in the correct area then you will feel the golf-ball size cockles, which seem to cluster in large groups in their preferred habitats. The correct location will give you your bag limit (20 per person) in five minutes.

Fishing locations for bream are also easy to locate. Look for areas of sand patches mixed with areas of weed or sparse weed and mud bottom with a depth of 1-1.5 m. These areas must have some tidal flow when fishing. On the run-up tide anchor in the deeper water and cast onto the rise and shallows, while on the run-out anchor in the shallows and cast into the drop-offs and deeper areas.

The rods are 7 foot or longer, with 2 kg line and 4 kg trace. A small ball sinker (as small as possible) or no weight is used depending on the tidal flow. This is allowed to run above a small swivel with the trace of at least 1 m length. I place three rods at a near horizontal position facing the cast direction, which is with the current. The reel drag is off, so when the fish runs, little resistance is felt by the fish. Large bream do not pick at these baits, but simple grab and run at full pace, the longer and faster the run the bigger the bream. I use number 1 Mustard bait-keeper hooks, as they are large with the small barbs on the shank to help hold the bait. Once the bream is running it is just a matter of placing your finger on the spool to stop the run and tightening up the drag for the fight.

When fishing this way the best results are early morning and late afternoon, but large catches have been taken in the middle of the day at the right tides, providing there is minimal boat traffic around.

Quietness is essential when fishing for bream in these shallow locations and when two or three good fish have been taken, move at least 40 m further along and restart, and continue this procedure about every 30 minutes. A few times I have caught half a dozen in the one spot but usually each spot will only contain two or three.

To fish for these bream in the cold-water months, in locations where most anglers seem to avoid, using locally collected bait can be very rewarding. There is also the by-catch of large winter whiting, flounder and the occasional flathead, but without the small pickers normally found in the warmer months.