Keith Lusher 06.12.24
Residing alongside the Gulf Coast, there are specific setups that rise to the highest of the checklist with regards to concentrating on sure fish. Having the suitable rod and reel for a particular species could make the distinction between a profitable journey and struggling. Take, as an illustration, redfish. These fish are in a category of their very own with regards to measurement and energy.
I’ve grown up fishing for these fish that decision the shallow marshes of Louisiana dwelling. And if there’s one factor I’ve discovered about these fish, it’s that you just higher convey the perfect gear to the battle, or these fish will embarrass you.
I had the prospect to check out a brand new redfish setup this week after I made a visit to the marsh alongside the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain. I paired a PENN Spinfisher VII Spinning Reel with my new Fenwick Elite Rod and headed to a deep canal that winds from the marsh and into the lake. It’s referred to as Todd’s Bayou and is notorious for producing high quality inshore species akin to speckled trout, redfish, and flounder. On this journey, I used to be particularly concentrating on redfish.
I began early within the morning as June could make for uncomfortable circumstances as early as 9:00 a.m. As I opened up the motor and cruised alongside the Lake Pontchartrain shoreline, I scanned the financial institution for the doorway to Todd’s Bayou, and after a 15-minute boat journey, I arrived at my vacation spot.
The water was pouring out of the bayou, and there was loads of baitfish scattering throughout the floor of the water, which is all the time a superb signal. I threw down my trolling motor and started working either side of the bayou, being that Todd’s Bayou is barely about 50 ft huge.
Having tried out quite a few rod and reel combos, I knew precisely what I used to be searching for with regards to particular qualities in a redfish setup.
My first concern was the rigidity of the reel. PENN has all the time supplied a stout saltwater reel, and I wasn’t stunned to be taught that the PENN Spinfisher VII displayed no flex after casting and retrieving quite a few occasions. The CNC Gear know-how has all the time been a robust level for PENN, and this reel appears to be persevering with PENN’s fame for making inflexible reels.
As I moved deeper into the marsh, I discovered my first redfish and was in a position to take a look at the combo’s drag and total energy. I used to be throwing a Berkley PowerBait Saltwater Bonga Shrimp when a redfish threw a wake within the strategy of chasing it down. The redfish made a tough preliminary run the place I used to be in a position to maintain on and take in the energetic fish surge away from me. The HT-100 drag system, made with carbon fiber washers with a max drag of 25 kilos, dealt with the run extremely as the road launched from the spool easily with none sporadic jerks.
Whereas reeling the fish in, the reel rotated easily, which has by no means been an issue with PENN reels. The six ball bearings have been greater than sufficient to make this occur.
Ask any inshore saltwater fisherman, they usually’ll let you know some of the necessary qualities of a reel is its capability to resist saltwater. The PENN Spinfisher VII looks as if it was particularly made to deal with the salt. The IPX5 sealing saved the heart of the reel fully separate from the outer shell. So whether or not it will get hit with a wave, otherwise you let it journey within the spray all the way in which dwelling, you don’t have to fret about saltwater stepping into the gearbox or drag system. That is actually necessary to me when discovering a superb redfish reel.
As for the Fenwick Elite Rod, I used to be proud of its capability to struggle the fish for me. Let me clarify. I selected the 7’6″ size rod particularly for the sort of fishing as a result of I needed to match a robust rod with good parabolicity to the reel. I’d extremely suggest contemplating this when searching for your subsequent redfish rod. The Fenwick Elite was VERY spectacular with the way it dealt with the redfish. Actually, the reel’s energy mixed with this rod made the fish truly really feel smaller than it was. As I used to be combating the fish I believed it measured possibly 18 inches nevertheless it turned out to be bigger. I used to be in a position to boat-flip the 23-inch redfish after I obtained him to the boat.
As I labored my means again to the duck pond the place the bayou begins, I used to be in a position to boat 4 extra redfish with this masterpiece of a combo and caught my restrict. I labored my means again out and caught three extra for enjoyable. My largest redfish was what is taken into account a bull purple that measured 28 inches, and it was no downside for this rod and reel.
Ultimately, I used to be completely happy with my new redfish mixture and suggest the rod and reel for anybody who’s concentrating on redfish or any bigger inshore fish. It’s going to be onerous to seek out one other combo that’s higher in my e-book!
