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Pollock are ultra-aggressive, powerful fish that inhabit pretty stunning locations across the world. That’s what makes pollock fishing pretty highly sought after in the UK. Their powerful strike and subsequent dive make them a really appetising prospect when it comes to lure fishing.
The late summer months tend to create the best conditions for lure fishing for pollock. They’re at their most aggressive and hungry pre-spawn. The best pollock lures tend to be heavier paddle tails, sinking metals and weedless lures. Heavier lures can stand up to rougher conditions and – crucially – sink should make up your lure box. Don’t forget to take a variety of natural and brighter colours with you.
Whilst some of these lures also feature in the best sea fishing lures and the best bass fishing lures, they perform fantastically for pollock all over the UK.
Table of contents
What does our lure setup look like for pollock?
The great thing about fishing for pollock and bass is that the setup and equipment you use is very similar. Paddle tails and metals are ubiquitously used for both. The main difference is that with pollock we like to use paddle tails around the 40-60g mark and metals in the 40-80g range depending on when and where we’re fishing.
Ultimately fish, particularly pollock, aren’t fussy. You don’t need to spend a fortune on lures and as long as the lures sink and have a quality hook, you will catch pollock.
What is the best lure for pollock?
Like with bass fishing, we have found the most effective lure for pollock fishing is the Savage Gear Surf Seeker. Or at least a metal of that ilk. For pollock fishing in the UK, the best metal lures tend to sit in the 40 – 60g category. They tend to have the perfect combination of casting distance, ability to sink and size.
The major difference is that with bass you tend to fish on or slightly below the surface. With pollock, you’re letting the lure sink to the very bottom and then retrieving it. So be sure you get the sinking variety of the Seeker.
Our Top 10 Pollock Fishing Tips
What makes a good pollock lure?
Pollock live in deep, kelp-rich water in particularly isolated areas. The water tends to be rough and – if you’re targeting bigger fish – in remote locations. As such a good pollock should be:
- Sinking – it’s no use fishing for pollock on the surface
- Heavy enough to cast a reasonable distance
- Closely resemble mackerel, sprat, pollock (yes they’re cannibals) or shad
- Semi-weedless – this one isn’t essential. But as pollock live in such weed-rich waters it’s useful to have lures that are less susceptible to getting caught
At a glance
The 7 best pollock fishing lures
Savage Gear Surf SeekersBest all-around lure – shore, rock and boat fishing
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- The Surf Seeker has incredible casting distance
- Superb in all weather conditions
- Typically a 35g+ is the perfect weight for pollock fishing
- Change the treble hook for a single hook when targeting larger fish
Savage Gear’s Surf Seeker is our bass and pollock lure of choice. No matter the conditions, casting distance, or visibility, this lure just never seems to let you down. The key consideration when using seekers to fish for pollock is that you need to purchase the sinking version. Avoid the floating / slightly sub-surface version(s) when fishing for big pollock in deeper conditions.
As a proponent of natural colours and attempting to mimic shad, sandeels and mackerel. The 35g + models are superb for fishing from the shore and our weight of choice when it comes to pollock fishing. Significantly upwards of 60m cast distance with a 9-foot rod and with enough density to manage rough conditions, these are our bass and pollock fishing lure of choice.
Storm 360GT Weedless Deep ShadsBest heavy-duty weedless lure
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- A 150mm, 91g+ lure that is capable of casting up to 100m
- The best heavy lure on the market for pollock fishing
- Weedless and sinks quickly even in the deepest spots
- Only suitable for heavy-duty rods – c. 100g casting weight
Storm 360GT Weedless Deep Shad is an exceptional quality weedless lure that very closely resembles shad and mackerel. The weight of the lures makes fishing in rougher conditions – synonymous with pollock – much more accurate. When fishing in water that can be substantially more than 50m deep, a heavier lure can reduce the sinking time from 45 seconds to 15. It all adds up.
The articulated paddle head and tail have a spectacularly lifelike action, working as well on the drop as it does on the retrieve. Which is particularly useful when the drop can cover more than 50m. Excellent for shore, boat and rock fishing.
Having some weedless lure options in your pollock fishing box is essential. Pollock live in particularly deep water in and amongst thick kelp, so some snag-free lures are key.
Berkley Power WormsBest curly tail lure
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- A 180mm, lightweight lure great for wreck fishing
- Suitable for both slow and fast retrieval styles
- Superb value at 10 to a pack
- Excellent for fishing on the drop
A good value curly tail worm imitation lure – like the Berkley Power Worm – is essential for pollock fishing. You can’t keep losing expensive lures in every session and we found their action on both the drop and retrieve mustered up some truly huge bites.
For pollock fishing with these worms, tying them on with a Flying Collar Rig worked very effectively for us. A top tip when lure fishing with slightly more time-consuming rigs is to tie a number of them beforehand and take them with you. This will maximise your fishing time, as these rigs can be tricky in blustery conditions.
Pollock fishing is notorious for losing equipment. The deep, kelp-rich water has its fair share of snags and pollock dive into the rocks when you hook them. So finding some good value lures is sensible.
Savage Gear V2 Saltwater SandeelsBest soft plastic for smaller pollock
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- 125mm+ from 28g is typically most effective for pollock
- Excellent for targeting pollock with more finesse
- A lure that attracts almost any predator – bass, pollock, mackerel and even freshwater species like pike
- You get a spare body with the jighead
Another superb lure for the majority of salt and freshwater predators Savage Gear’s Saltwater Sandeels are our favourite soft plastic for smaller pollock and at any one time comprising at least 20% of our lure boxes. The range of colours is perfect for almost any condition. We’ve had excellent success on bright pinks in murkier, rougher conditions and – when the sea is calmer – have used the greens, blues and silvers to excellent effect.
However the weight range – primarily 23 – 35g – is designed specifically for the bass market and is susceptible to being buffeted around. These lures tend to work best for targeting smaller pollock in shallower waters around Cornwall and Devon as opposed to Ireland and Scotland such is their size and weight. You can read more about our favourite spots in fish in Cornwall here.
Colour-wise we’d recommend having some brighter options to hand – pinks are a personal favourite, but oranges are equally effective – alongside more natural colours reminiscent of their favourite prey. Mackerel, sandeels, sprat and worms. All of which are much more earthy and blue / silver in nature. The standard rule of thumb is to stock brighter colours for murkier waters or to target fish when they are more aggressive.
Fiiish MinnowBest paddle tail
- A truly excellent paddle tail with a casting weight of 12 – 60g
- Semi-weedless nature is truly excellent for pollock fishing
- The single hook is set deeper into the lure than Savage Gear Saltwater Sandeel
- The longer tail creates a more powerful action
Fiiish Minnows are a, if not the, truly outstanding paddle tail on the market. The lure itself is made up of three parts – a weighted head, (almost) weedless hook and imitation body. This is fairly unique in terms of paddle tail design and the separate hook and jig head help generate more lateral movement.
The larger size and more powerful tail action create a larger volume of water displacement, which is ideal for slightly rougher conditions and the deeper waters associated with pollock. The larger size options are superb for longer casts and it can be used as a sinking lure by leaving the bail arm open and letting it sink to reach the pollock.
Like with any weedless lure make sure you strike with even more ferocity than usual as the deeper set hook is more prone to falling out. This is even more prevalent when fishing the depths.
Savage Gear 3D Sandeel Pencil Best natural lure
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- Typically comes in three options – 90mm (13g), 125mm (19gm) and 150mm (30g)
- From personal experience, natural colours tend to work best outside of murky conditions
- The slow-sinking lure has a built-in rattle chamber that, when twitched, emits a clicking sound
- The S-curve swimming pattern is ultra-realistic
- Slow sinking and maintains depth when retrieving. Ideal for finding deeper feeding predators like pollock
Savage Gear 3D Sandeel is the most realistic lure on the market when it comes to retrieval action and aesthetic design. Based on a 3D scan of a real sandeel, the slow-sinking lure works best around one metre below the surface with a steady retrieve and the occasional pause and twitch to initiate the rattle chamber’s clicking sound.
The lure comes in three sizes – 90mm, 125mm and 150mm – of which the two larger options are preferable when it comes to pollock fishing. Both of the larger models sink more effectively than the 90mm and the added weight just gives you that extra nudge when it comes to casting distance and retrieval action.
Seatech Barracuda HeavyBest shore fishing lure
- Typically comes in three options – 35g, 60g and 80g
- Superb for casting from the shore and in rougher conditions
- Dense, aerodynamic lures that sink effectively
- Based on sprat and mackerel
- Sinks extremely well
- Tremendous value – and suitable for a real variety of predators
- Don’t fit particularly well in most lure boxes
Seatech’s Barracuda Heavy lure is absolutely tremendous when it comes to casting distance, value and shimmering mackerel and sprat imitation colours. Its weight range is absolutely perfect for the pollock market and the 60g version has a truly outstanding casting distance and the ability to sink to the depths.
Regardless of whether we’re fishing for pollock or bass, we store a number of metals in our lure boxes. For bass, this tends to be Seekers around the 28 – 35g mark. But for pollock, we have a blend of sinking Seekers and 60g + Baracuda Heavies. Perfect for reaching the otherwise unreachable marks.
FAQs
What are the best pollock lures for shore fishing?
When shore fishing for pollock the best lures tend to be sinking heavier metals or large paddle tails that are – preferably – semi-weedless. Pollock tend to live in deep, kelp-rich water. So you need a lure that can sink, has a superior casting distance and doesn’t get too stuck in the kelp. So use a single hook.
What is the best time of day to fish for pollock with lures?
Like most predatory fish in the UK, pollock tend to feed more aggressively for around an hour on either side of high tide. However, because they live in such deep water pollock’s feeding patterns are less reliant on the tide than bass. As such you can fish for pollock throughout the day and have success. But an hour or so on either side of high tide is still primetime.
What is the best time of year to go lure fishing for pollock?
In UK waters we’ve found the best time of year to fish for pollock is between July and September. This tends to be when pollock are at their most hungry and aggressive. This is because pollock spawn offshore in the winter months – typically through November – February – which means they’re in feeding mode during the late summer months.
The fact the weather happens to be at its best is a nice bonus.
What are the best colour lures for pollock?
From personal experience, we’ve found the best colour lures to use when fishing for pollock are slightly brighter naturals. Whites, light greens and light blues reminiscent of mackerel and sprat.
However, when the water is murky having some brighter colours available is absolutely essential as pollock are sight hunters. So having some brighter oranges and pinks for when naturals just aren’t working at the very least gives a placebo effect.
Harry
Hi, I'm Harry. A keen, albeit exceedingly average fisherman. I've spent the last few years trawling London's waterways with - if I'm being kind - varied success and would love to help you avoid the mistakes I have made.
