Off to Portugal on Sunday for a week, fully expect to be humbled again, but a friend who is already out there did catch a 10lb+ bass yesterday

It’s going to be my second time out in SW Portugal and I can’t wait. For all that I felt pretty much humbled by the conditions and the fishing, an itch was created that needs more scratching. I love a challenge and I am not remotely adverse to a week away from the UK in January as well! I miss my regular Indian Ocean fishing photo trips in the middle of a UK winter, and a bit of time in such a magical country as Portugal is a pretty good substitute…………..

Plus of course I get to fish whereas I was never an angler on those remote Indian Ocean saltwater fly fishing trips. I loved every single second of getting to experience such incredible parts of the world, but I do love my fishing and that week in Portugal last winter spoke to me. I only caught two small bass but I was smitten by the whole thing. You know how some places just feel right? Ireland is in that category for me of course, and to it I am adding Portugal. There is a chance of catching a bass of a lifetime, but more than that is the whole experience for me.

A couple of mates have already been out there for a few days (bastards!). They caught a good few fish up to about 8lbs, then John landed a 10.5lb bass yesterday in some really heavy conditions. He rang me from the mark and I could not be happier for the bloke. I have grabbed the photo above from our WhatsApp group. Us other lads who are heading out on Sunday have been suffering a torrent of photos on the group of fish and awesome looking locations and ground and seas, to the point that we are collectively all chomping at the bit and repacking again and again. The only thing worrying me slightly is the wind forecast for Sunday and whether my flight will actually take off.

I am not taking a full length rod tube with me and instead I am relying on the travel rod I took with me last year and which did a really good job of coping with what can be demanded of you on the west coast. I’d love to see what the new Samson Long Cast Travel 'Todos' 12ft Spinning Rod 30-100g is made of because knowing Grant Woodgate the designer and angler behind the Samson Lures gear I bet you it’s ideal, but I will have the sub-£100 Penn Overseas II Inshore Spin 9’8’’ 30-60g with me. I fished with it last year as a sample when I had no idea what the price of it might be, then I found out that the rod had been launched recently. I am genuinely shocked that it’s so cheap, because whilst it’s not the last word in high-end refinement, it gets the heavier lures out there very easily and it’s pretty damn good to fish with for long periods. I frigging hammered the thing for a week last year and I will do the same to it this time around. I also like the fact that this rod comes in a proper travel tube whereas the way more expensive travel rod I mention below doesn’t. Review of the Penn to come, hopefully after landing a great big bass on it!

Last year I matched the rod with my Penn Authority 3500 spinning reel, and I will also be taking a Penn Slammer IV 3500 as a backup. Both reels are loaded with 36lb Berkley Sick X8 braid, not because I expect to catch 36lb bass, more that I have fished with the Sick X8 braid so much now and to me the 36lb feels and fishes like say a really good 25-30lb 8-strand braid. If the swells are too hectic to fish the west coast and we need to tuck away a bit on the south, again I will use the stunning HTO N70 Labrax Special Travel 9’4’’ 7-42g rod and pair it with the Penn Authority 2500.

I won’t go into any of the lures I am taking with me because it’s all such a big learning process out there for me. Trying to figure out what you can hold and fish effectively when the swell is really rolling in is a big part of it and I find it fascinating. My mate Henry has had a good few bass out there in the last few days on the Samson Lures Shad 45g. I don’t have any myself but if I can’t resist then there is a very well stocked tackle shop out there which we will no doubt be visiting. You all have a good weekend and I will try my best to keep you updated next week when I am out in Portugal. Hell, I am even taking my running kit because I so want to keep going with it. I ran my fastest 5k so far before lunch yesterday……………..

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