HLF

When do I strike during jetty fishing? Is it when the fish is biting and there is the vibrator sensation or should I just wait for the bait to be eaten fully and the fish gets hooked by itself? During my open sea fishing I just strike when there is a vibration and success rate quite high. don't know about jetties though ....

I would say it is the same, just that there are more bait stealers around the jetty. It also depends on what sort of bait you are using. I would prefer to use big and long lasting baits for general jetty fishing. For small baits, like prawn meat, it is best to hold the rod on your hand and strike after a big bite.

It's mostly about the fish and hook size. If a fish is too small for your hook it won't matter if you strike or not. But striking is always advised to ensure the hook penetrates, with exception of circle hooks. Sometimes the fish have the bait in the mouth and will spit the hook back out if you don't strike. This usually happens when the fish is more or less stationary when it attempts to take your bait.

Generally, if the rod is just having light twitches I'll just watch it. Stronger twitches are signs of decent size fish feeding and you should stand by your rod to strike. Should the twitches become and gradual downward bend of the rod tip, it means there's a high chance the hook is in the fish's mouth. That will be a good time to strike.

As Vidic pointed out, shore fishing generally has more bait stealers so a lot of times you'll find that striking them won't get you anywhere.

What if the pulls are very fast? I tried striking at those it always no hook. Or could it be a crab? although that would be weird as my trap is just 2 metres away from my bait p.s. what if the jetty is quite deep, say 7 metres and whole pran is used?

What sort of trap are you referring to? trap and bait ?

What do you mean by pulls very fast? Did you tighten your drag.

Live prawn generally is a good bait, but not long lasting during day time at Jetty.

If the rod tip springs back immediately, it's not a green light for striking. But if you know it's a sizeable fish you can hook up, take up the rod and slack the line a little. This will encourage the fish to bite more firmly for a strike.

Vidic wrote:What sort of trap are you referring to? trap and bait ?

What do you mean by pulls very fast? Did you tighten your drag.

A crab trap, and there is bait (rotten Fish) inside. The rod tip bends up and down continuously, and i tightened the line.

Peace wrote:But if you know it's a sizeable fish you can hook up, take up the rod and slack the line a little.

How do you know if it is a sizeable fish? Ill try slacking next time though

If the twitching intensity of the rod tip is high (relative to rod power), it may indicate a sizeable fish is trying to take your bait.

Thnx peace and vidic