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If you are going to fish for plaice from a boat, then the most obvious starting point is to take the boat to a place where the fish congregate. You will, for example, find plaice over sandy or gravel bottoms, such as areas a short distance out from productive beaches, but they will not be spaced evenly from one end of the beach to the other. Instead they will collect in particular spots where the food is abundant. Moor your boat directly over such marks and you can have a terrific day. Miss it, sometimes by just a few yards, and the numbers that turn up scarcely justify the effort of spending the day fishing.
So what do you look for? You can use the echo sounder, if the boat is fitted with one, to chart the bottom, looking out for pits or places where the food may be abundant, but a better bet is to head for places, like sandbanks, near the mouths of estuaries or just around the coast from them, like the famous Skerries, which are fairly close to the River Dart. Once you get there you need to decide exactly how you are going to fish. Some people choose to anchor over a particular spot, but my own preference is to drift with a predator rig. This enables you to cover a lot more ground and, theoretically at least, gives you a good chance of finding where the fish are feeding.
You also need to decide what tackle to use. Personally, I like to use a light baitcasting rod, such as the Masterline six shooter, matched up with a light multiplier such as the Toothy Critter. Plaice will not, after all, give you a heroic battle on heavier gear, but a good one will put up an excellent fight on light spinning rods or outfits like these.
If you are going to get the best sport from a plaice, you will need to tackle it accordingly. Personally I like to use really light rods and reels - a 6 ounce test curve baitcaster - which enables these obliging flatfish to put up a much more spirited performance than conventional rods and reels.
