Hook Head Tope

[BrianB]

Was fishing for mackerel and codling about 2 miles south of Hook Head last Saturday using baited feathers and got a number of bite offs and even got two tope to chase hooked mackerel to the surface. I was hoping to get a chance at hooking one this week but so far work and wind getting in the way. I have (thanks to Waterford Angling and Outdoor) gotten a few wire traces with size 4 meat hook up-tides made up. My question is what is the best way to target these, tight to the seabed on the drift or anchor up?

[Bob]

Relatively tight to the seabed. I've used long flowing traces in strong tides and caught them. The bait must have been well up off the bed. Tope are a bottom feeding shark but so you'll be targeting them in the bottom of the water column.

[keymcg]

I fished the Tope festival in rathmullan in June. One lad on the boat fished a float with a 30 foot drop in 120 foot of water and caught 5 tope. Several tope also took on the retrieve. Not always feeding on the bottom

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[ste c]

when fishing for them its mostly bottom fishing buy no they dont only feed on the bottom they feed mid water and close to surface too

[Danny M.]

We had them recently in Kilmore on a simple running boom off a 6oz lead, connected to 250lb mono attached to an 8/0 Hook.
A Mackerel fillet was preferred to a flapper.

Rods just were 10g - 60g spinning rods.
Reels were 4000 size loaded with 30lb braid straight through.

Let the bait hit the bottom and then give it 6 turns of the reel up to avoid snags.
Set your drag and get ready to hang on

This was successful at both drift and at anchor.

Good luck!