Albuen

A stretch of coast with sand bottom and scattered rocks covered in bladder wrack is often called leopard bottom, because it resembles the pattern found in the leopard’s fur. These bottom conditions are always important to fish, since the sea trout often hunts above the sand between seaweed bushes and rocks. The contrast between the sand and the food options along the bladder wrack provides the sea trout with an advantage during the hunt.

This aquatic plant functions as a brilliant hiding place for the small food options, and simultaneously they oxidize the water around them, which provides small fish, shrimp, and sand hoppers with good living conditions. The eelgrass is also used as a resting place for the sea trout when it migrates along the coasts and particularly in late fall when the trout are headed for the river.

Along with the eelgrass, bladder wrack is the most prevalent aquatic plant along the Danish shores. This seaweed attaches itself to smooth surfaces such as rocks, gravel, and other variations on the bottom. The bladder wrack is a good hiding place for food options and fish. Bottom conditions with bladder wrack are good indicators of fish being nearby.

A coastal spot with varied bottom conditions is often a good place to find the fish. In different seasons of the year, the fish prefer different bottom conditions – depending on weather conditions and the presence of food options. For that reason, choosing spots with varied bottom conditions can prove effective, since you’re almost sure to find fish nearby.

Formations of rocks, gravel, or sand created by current, wind, and weather form a compressed and lifted seabed, which provides fish with optimal conditions. There is often a huge water flow on these reefs. The depth is often greater on the sides of a reef, which means that the current will often be stronger there. Shoals of smaller fish roam in proximity to reefs in order to hunt, since the small food options are whirled around in the current. In their wake, the sea trout and other predatory fish follow. Reefs are useful spots year round, and they are optimal stops for sea trout when they migrate. Spending more time than usual on such a spot can easily be worth it.

A rip channel is a deeper area between coast and bar, or an underwater groove of a significant depth. A rip channel usually has a dark bottom shaped by rocks and bladder wrack, but it can also consist of pure sand or gravel. You can’t avoid finding these rip channels on the coast, since they are some of the most common bottom conditions in Danish waters. The size of a rip channel varies greatly. Even the smallest rip channels, only a few meters wide, can contain many fish. The sea trout swims around these rip channels to hunt for food. In line with the tide, the fish cross the bars to reach the rip channel that’s closest to land, since that often contains the most food options.

In many fishing spots, large areas of the bottom are covered in sand, and often the coastal angler will skip these areas since they don’t seem like much. However, it’s worth considering that many small fish like sand eel and sprat often migrate across the sand bottom, and they have sea trout and other predatory fish chasing them. On days with waves, unclear water, or dimmed lighting, you’ll likely find predatory fish in these areas. The sandy areas along the deeper water or close to dark areas can be true sea trout magnets.