Life's a beach

I didn't expect to catch anything, mainly because it's too early for bass and the tides were all Pete Tong. So I decided to fish within walking distance rather than drive to a mark further around the coast.

I wanted to give the new rod a few chucks to see how far it could throw a lure. While I was pleased with the distance I was getting with a Dexy, the rubbers didn't fly half as far.

They had another problem I hadn't thought of before I forked out on them - the attachment loop's on top of the head, slightly back from the nose, rather than being at the sharp end.

This means rather than bounce along the sand as you retrieve them through shallow water, they dig in and plough through it, meaning they're probably best reserved for deeper water.

The beach is shallower than I remembered, with just a couple of feet of water at today's 5.7m high tide even 30yds or more out.

We're coming out of neaps, so the springs on the way will see another two metres or so, meaning three times as much water over the beach, which would give me a bit more confidence. There were no gulls, fulmars or terns to be seen today - I guessed that meant there wasn't much on the move out there food-wise, either.

I'd forgotten how lovely the beach is, as the tide came in over acres of clean sand, helped along by the slightest of swells. On a sunny late spring day, I hadn't bargained for the amount of people who'd be on it either - or the paddling kids and dogs chasing balls thrown in the sea. But it was good to get out for an hour, try something a bit different and learn a little more along the way.

Among other things, I'm going to drop down from 50 to 30lbs braid. This should put a few yards on my casting without massively increasing the risk of cracking off on the cast or busting on a snag or a fish (assuming I ever get to actually hook one...), bearing in mind most of the places I'm planning on fishing are pretty snag-free.

The Drennan Spincast rod feels like a lovely bit of kit as well. Light as a feather with a crisp, tippy action. It's also the first 8ft rod I've ever owned, unless you count the time I broke the top foot or so off a 9ft rod.

Perhaps it needs teaming up with a slightly lighter reel than the Baitrunner I borrowed off one of my drain rods.