ALDERNEY* BRIGHTON* BRISTOL CHANNEL* CHESIL* DARTMOUTH* EAST SUSSEX* HAMPSHIRE* HUMBER TO THAMES* KENT* NORTH EAST* NORTH THAMES ESTUARY* PLYMOUTH BOAT* POOLE* SCOTLAND* WALES* WEST SUSSEX* WEST WIGHT* WEYMOUTH*
ALDERNEY REPORT by Mark Harding
We've been fortunate enough to experience some really good fishing yet again. The Autumn never lived up to the Alderney hype but since November we have been on song. The best of it is on the dark nights on the smaller of the two spring tides during the month. Red Mullet, Sole, Tope, Conger and Huss are all affected by 'light' pollution and in our case here the only light pollution is the moon and headlights! Some nice Sole have been caught with the best session of 5 fish. To some anglers around the UK they might be thinking 'only 5' I know but when they are all over 2lb and the best knocking the door of 4lb that is terrific fishing. Throw in a few Red Mullet and some Bass too it is a brilliant session. The best of the Sole fishing tends to be in the early hours of the morning and occasionally you'll pick up a Plaice too. The Red Mullet haven't been as prolific as in previous years but some nice fish have been caught with several over 2lb. They're not very sporting but do give a distinctive nod and a rattle, however they taste terrific hence why they fetch a good price on the fishmongers slab. My missus has a terrific recipe for them and it is a joy when I winch one up the beach. As you'll gather from my previous words that they are caught whilst Sole fishing they are generally caught on worm baits on simple rigs, often very close in too. We have had a lot of Bass around again this year too. Bags of up to 27 fish with fish to 10lb 2oz. These are again on worm baits if you want numbers of fish, squid or crab have been pulling out the bigger specimens. Several Smoothhounds have been caught as well, an advantage you gain when you fish peeler crab. Again several fish have been over 10lb. Tope have continued to be caught when fished for. Not many local rods fish here which is amazing and I am sure if more anglers that visit target the Tope then more would be caught but with table fish such as Sole, Red Mullet and Bass around then the Tope option falls down the wayside. Despite that fish to 30lb have been landed. Conger and Huss are virtually ignored too but there are plenty there. The odd Codling has shown too. They seem to be here most months but only in small numbers. One or two Rays have been caught, the odd small Blonde and a few Small Eyeds to 9lb. This month is a better month for these species plus an Undulate or two.
Day time fishing normally consists of a bit of bread and a float for some Mullet or plugging for Bass. The plugging rather strangely has tailed off but at the beginning of this reporting period the fishing was fantastic with plenty of fish to 6lb. I had 4 sessions myself and never blanked, in fact that's the last time I managed to go!! Others have tried over Christmas and it has proved to be slack with all the Bass now seem to be feeding from the bottom. Very often just around Christmas we find that the hard plugs do tend to slow down a bit but a switch to softer shad baits cast and retrieved does the trick. Not so this year it would appear. Some good tides just coming up so we'll give it another go I guess. The Mullet fishing has been very good. We are still awaiting the arrival of the bigger fish though it would appear but bags of up to 5 fish have been caught, the best fish reported has been just shy off 8lb. When the sea is calm plenty of fish spotted jumping around the bays. A welcome run off Black Bream just before Christmas boosted the stocks around Alderney, till then the main run of fish had been around 2lb but some cracking fish came in from the Breakwater with a smattering of fish around 3lb 8oz. Some Giltheads were caught too with most around the 2lb mark.
Looking ahead, without a doubt the remainder of this month will continue to fish well for the species mentioned before tailing off. Thick Lipped Mullet will hopefully run till March, they'll have a better chance of doing so I would imagine as high sea temperatures have kept them away the last two years. Watch my latest reports pages on my website if you are thinking of making that last minute trip. Boat fishing will hopefully start to slowly get in to the swing of things. Firstly it will be the Winter wrecking for Pollack and that will be quickly followed by some bank fishing for Turbot and Brill. If you fancy a trip out then you just need to contact Colin Dukes on 07974437740 or 07781 432248.
Many thanks to those of you that take the time and trouble to visit our wonderful island. Tourism is a big income for the little place but it does produce some wonderful fishing most of the time. If you've not been before then it is well worth a visit.
BRIGHTON MARINA BREAKWATERS by Dave Grinham
Returns next month
December was a bumper month for Cod off Brighton Marina with good catches up to the 20lb mark. Pictured is Steve Johnson aboard Channel Diver with his 20.5lb Cod caught on a big cuttle bait on 13th December.
BRIGHTON MARINA BOATMAN'S ASSOCIATION By Alan Edwards
Again its been a poor start to a new year, but at least everybody has been covered in the white stuff. As you would expect, we have had to cancel most of the bookings we do have, but on the odd occasions we have ventured out of the harbour, the fishing has been just brilliant, mainly due l think to the commercial lads having just a 50kg per month allowance as a cod quota. Its meant a lot of cod for the charter fleet, most of these fish being in double figure's with the odd 20lb+ around, add in the sprinkling of doggies and some cracking whiting, and it's good fishing.
If you fancy drowning a worm and can't get a place on a boat then give me a call on 07840 057471 and if l can't help l'll find someone who can.
Returns next month
Check out our website www.fishingramsgate.com for a trip out on Duke IV.
WEST SUSSEX REPORT By Mike Perfect
Whiting have continued to make up most of the catches with the odd codling but these have been few and far between. West Worthing beach has produced some flounders, as has the pier with a few rockling thrown in. Shoreham harbour arms and adjacent beaches have given similar results. Some nice flounders have shown in the rivers Adur and Arun.
LITTLEHAMPTON REPORT by Neil French
Its not been a great start to the new year,despite bookings and reasonable seas,the big freeze hit hard,the boat and deck was covered in ice, the throttle cables froze,the marina closed and travelling down to the harbour in anything other than a 4x4 was lethal,as a result I cancelled most days opting instead to catch up indoors with tackle repairs and trip preparation for the spring.The winds predominantly from the east when we did venture out resulted in a bitter and uncomfortable short sea which kept us close to shore in an effort to get some lee of land,the Dogfish are now epidemic and its difficult to keep a bait down long enough to get another species interested before yet another doggie grabs hold.The Cod are now starting to thin out in numbers,but there are still fish to be had,most averaging around 7/8 lbs,the best we managed in Jan went 18lbs,but I have had a couple of reports of fish of 20lbs taken on private boats.There are plenty of medium sized Congers moving on the ground,especially on dull days and when the water is coloured which has been most of the time !!,in the past weeks.Channel Whiting can still be found on the softer ground,and we have had a few surprises around the reef edges, with both Rays and Pollack in double figures grabbing squid and cuttle baits meant for Cod.A rarity in our part of the world and worth a mention is the 7lb Coalfish that also turned up aboard" Shelley Anne".February can be a slow month which is why I take the boat out along with others for antifouling and servicing before we kick off the new season,if you do get out this month,offshore wrecks should produce some big Pollack if water clarity is good.Wishing everybody a Happy New Year and personal bests in 2010.
www.spiritofarun.co.uk neil@bandelectronics.co.uk Tel 01243 582299, Mob. 07831 848561, Fax 01243 585294
WEST WIGHT REPORT by Arthur Savage
After four weeks of gales and heavy seas, it's good to get back fishing again. The sea is the colour of tea, with a very large swell making from the West. The fishing this month was very good, even after all of that blow. The Cod were still on the inshore marks and the catches were good. Most of the Cod being landed were around 12lb, average; however, we did manage a few up to 22lb. Talking to one of the inshore trawler skippers, he reported one Cod of just over 40lb, after he had gutted it, which goes to prove that some of the monsters are still out there to be caught. The Channel Whiting are still there, with one being reported of 5½lb; the best fish we had weighed in at 4¾ lb, which was a personal best for the angler. I don't think we have seen the best of the Channel Whiting yet, we just need the weather to hold. Other fish in the area are Thornback and Spotted Rays, plus the occasional Undulate up to 17½lb. Congers were on the scene, with the best fish weighing in at 61 lb (and returned to the water). However, this real cold spell will see them disappear into deeper water very quick.
DARTMOUTH REPORT By Mike Concannon
CHARTER NEWS
I have spoken to most of the major charter boat Skippers out of Dartmouth and nearby Ports over the past couple of weeks. The adverse weather continues to spoil any chances of getting out to sea on the mid-Channel wrecks in pursuit of those big hard fighting winter Pollack. Most of the better boats have managed to get to sea on just one or two calmer days since late October and have found some top quality fish on those rare occasions.
I recorded an interview with Phil Tucker for BBC Radio Devon late last week. Phil wanted to know whether charters were managing to get out to the deep water marks on occasional calmer days. I reminded him that sadly many anglers would have liked to come out to fish with us, but that the dreadful road conditions elsewhere in the Country made their travel arrangements a non-starter in most cases.
A couple of Skippers, Dave Harrison, who charters his "Gemini", and Ian Noble, who charters his big white and blue Blyth 33 catamaran, "Samuel Irvin 3" have taken the opportunity to take a short holiday abroad in warmer weather during these harsh conditions. Both are now back home and raring to go as soon as the weather allows them to do so. I reported last month that Chris Roberts, who charters his bright golden yellow hulled Evolution 38 "Anglo Dawn III" out of Salcombe, has also been out of commission while he recovered from surgery on an old Rugby injury to his shoulder. I am very happy to report that Chris has made a full recovery and is now busting to get out to sea from early in February.
You can see details of available dates throughout the coming months when local charter boats which include, "Gemini", "Samuel Irvin 3", "Outlaw of Dartmouth" and "Anglo Dawn III" will happily take out individual anglers or full boat charters, whichever suits you best. You can easily view these dates via www.fishingdartmouth.co.uk/how_fishing.htm
Please spare a thought too, for your favourite tackle shop. Many have seen their business contract as sport anglers have bought little if any tackle. Please support them whenever you can, or we could lose some of our manufacturers and retailers due entirely to circumstances beyond their control.
So, you may ask, what has been caught from local boats during recent weeks?
HAPPY DAYS POLLACK - The best Pollack I have heard of, weighed in at 23 lbs 2 ozs. It was caught aboard Aaron Lidstone's Dartmouth charter boat, "Happy Days", during mid-December, by Matt Ham, for whom it is a personal best for this specie. It was hooked on an Eddystone "Eddyjelly" soft lure, fished on a lead head. On the same trip, Tim Dyer caught a Pollack in excess of 20 lbs, while Skipper, Aaron caught another which weighed-in at 19 lbs 14 ozs.
OUTLAW POLLACK - Owen Mallia put to sea on Saturday 19th December, with a party of my regular angling pals, aboard his Vigilante 33 charter boat, "Outlaw of Dartmouth". They caught some excellent Pollack from the mid-Channel wrecks, including a beautiful specimen fish by Mike "The Conger" Morgan, from Aberdare, who is fast becoming famous for his hand made wire anti-tangle booms which he sells on line via www.mtcbooms.350.com On the same trip, other pals including Nigel Foord (Fish Recorder for Torbay & Babbacombe ASA), Lestin Jones from Aberdare, Geoff Whitmore from Croyde, David Whittaker from Barnstaple and John Hernahan from Barnstaple also caught some excellent quality Winter Pollack.
Many of the same chaps were at sea again with Owen aboard "Outlaw" on Saturday 2nd January. John Adams from Braunton caught the best fish of the day, a specimen Pollack which when first boated was thought to weigh around 20 lbs. When weighed alongside the quay, on return to Port, several hours later, it tipped the scales to 19 lbs 12 ozs. Fish do quickly lose weight when they have been taken from the water.
GEMINI POLLACK - Dave Harrison was at sea on Saturday 16th December with members of the Penywain SAC, fishing the mid-Channel wrecks out of Dartmouth, in his local charter boat, "Gemini". Dave told me: Are you ready for a shock? "Gemini" has been fishing on the mid-Channel wrecks. It was our first trip for weeks. We had the Penywalin SAC aboard. We fished a total of 3 wrecks. All our fish came on "Sidewinders", "Shads" and "Jellyworm" soft lures. We had a very cold start to the day, clearing the frost of the deck came as a big shock to the system, when you've just returned from Grand Canaria with temperatures of 23 to 27 degrees everyday. I get told many times I have the best job as Skipper, although it didn't feel that way at 6.30 this morning. It's still a great job. Paul Rogers caught an excellent Pollack on a Rhubarb and Custard coloured "Sidewinder" soft lure. Shay Thomas caught another on a similar lure. Kevin Dillan used another R&B Sidewinder to hook his specimen Pollack. Colin Thomas kept his ears warm in a suit with a full hood and caught another superb Pollack.
DEBORAH JANE POLLACK - Latimer Corbett, age 16 years, caught another excellent Pollack from his Father Dean Corbett's private boat DH3 "Deborah Jane", which is commercially licensed to land fish for sale at market. Latimer's specimen was weighed-in at Paignton SAA at 19 lbs 5 ozs.
NOTABLE SHORE CAUGHT FISH
"ROCKY'S" WRASSE - During December, Fellow member of Brixham SAC, widely renowned psychopathic comedian, Rob "Rocky" Marshall, went angling from the rocky shoreline near Berry Head. "Rocky" caught a fine Ballan Wrasse. It used to be said that they are a fish of warm shallow water, clearly that is another myth dispelled.
RUSSELL'S CONGER - Friday 1st January - Another member of my home club, Brixham SAC, Russell Farley, went fishing with his Brother, Darren, from shore on the South side of Berry Head. Russell Emailed details of their adventure. Here's what Russell wrote: Went Conger Fishing New Years Day, from shore at Berry Head, Brixham. My Brother, Darryll, had the first fish, but I took the last and biggest one at 21 lbs 1 oz 11 dr. Conditions were a bit lumpy as the swell from the strong winds was still battering the rocks. Darryll did a good job of gaffing my Eel.
SHORE FLOUNDERS - My good pal Alex McDonald, who works for Swift Tackle Ltd, the Exeter based importer of top quality hooks by Sakuma, and lures by "Red Gill", the ever popular and effective artificial fish attractors Emailed. Alex and his pals have been shore fishing for Flounders in the Kingsbridge inlet over the Christmas break. Here's what Alex wrote: I am sorry that I did not send you many pictures last year. We had problems with cameras and I went back to my old film camera, but I got a new one for Christmas, so will try and send you more. My Brother, Bruce, was down over Christmas and we did a lot of Floundering. My best was 3 lbs 1 oz. Bruce caught another fine Flounder which weighed 2 lbs 12 ozs. My pal, Gary Tucker beat us both fairly and squarely when he landed a real specimen Flounder, which tipped the scales to 3 lbs 6 ozs.
JUNIOR ANGLER SHORE FLOUNDER - Email received from my good pal and fellow member of Brixham SAC, Jason Upham, who took his lads fishing for Flounders from shore at Kingsbridge on Saturday 26th December, with great success. Here's what Jason wrote: I went with my lads on Boxing Day, to try for Flounders at Kingsbridge. After several moves due to Crab trouble, we found a spot where they weren't feeding and Shay had a couple Flounders at 1-3-0 and 2-7-13. A nice fish to finish his year with.
CHESIL COD FROM SHORE - My good pal Jamie Hopwood, who is a fellow member of Brixham SAC, Emailed. Here's what Jamie said: All this waiting to get out fishing is killing me. It should fish it nuts off when we do eventually get out there. Anyway, I went fishing the other day with Pete Flavell and Stuart Shorthouse from Brixham SAC. We headed to Abbotsbury, Dorset, where we fished from low water mid-day up until high at midnight. It fished well in the daylight, but then just switched off when the light fell. Strange. Never the less, at about 8 pm Pete shouted over, "Fish on", so I headed over to give a hand to land it, as it was hairy there; very steep shelves in to the wash, when to my amazement, this "fella" started to dance on the beach holding his whopper of a Cod, which weighed-in at 12 lbs 2 ozs.
Full SAN competition details here
Read Mike Concannon's full Dartmouth report with photos in this month's SAN
HAMPSHIRE COASTAL REPORT By Allan Watson
What a time we're having with the weather although the fish are there and feeding for the beach and boat anglers as long as we can tolerate the cold. There have been cod and whiting turning up virtually any of the local beaches from Hayling to Hillhead on a mix of bait though lug and squid still tends to be the best baits. Boat anglers are taking cod from the Solent right out to the Overfalls and one of the better baits seems to be a pout or whiting livebait along with penneled squid baits just make you keep the bait clear from masking the hooks. There are some good whiting to be had as well and squid or mackerel baits will account for them forget the worms unless fishing a match because they will catch plenty of pout and smaller bits and pieces but these can be taken on a lot cheaper baits.
Rovers Tackle Open, Lee On Solent
Fished on a measure and release basis Chris Clark won the Lee match with a total length of fish measuring 389cms with John Brown just behind on 377cms and Steve Carter in third place with 335cms. There was a mixture of whiting, pout, bass and rockling recorded with John Brown taking the longest fish pool with a 41cm bass with Ian Golds runner up with a 34cm whiting and Dave Edwards in third spot with a 33cm whiting. Rovers hold monthly matches on a Thursday night give them a call on 01329220354 for details.
Gosport and District AC Beach Championships, Browndown
Mark Caisley landed 4 pout, 7 whiting and a rockling for a weight of 2.7kg to win the latest GDAC beach competition held along Browndown beach earning himself 105 points towards the club championship. Clive Jones was runner up with 4 pout and 3 whiting for a weight of 2.0kg and 79 points while Ian Gay also landed 4 pout and 3 whiting for 1.52kg and 61 points. Although there were no monsters caught, Clive Jones had the heaviest fish of the night a 440gms pout, there were plenty of small fish to keep the rod tips nodding although they can be a nuisance if they keep robbing the bait.
Results: 1st Mark Caisley 2.7kg, 2nd Clive Jones 2.0kg, 3rd Ian Gay 1.52kg, 4th Andy Pellatt 1.41kg, 5th John Richardson snr .96kg, 6th Andy Shepley .92kg.
Stamshaw Lake and Allan's Marine Hangover Open, Stamshaw Shore
As expected fish were hard to come by in the 2010 Hangover Open and 42 anglers only managed 2 flounders although a few admitted to missing baits, which could be due to either the DT's or shell shock but the weather was good and the "crack" was even better and all had a good time. Picking up the top prize of £140 was Pete Kerley with a flounder weighing 1lb 7ozs which he landed first cast while the runner up prize of £75 went to "Big" Jim Aldridge with a 1lb 2oz flounder that he landed on his last cast, in all honestly he didn't even know he had it on. The rest of the prizes were down out of the hat and waiting the draw can be just as exciting as waiting for a bite.
Browndown Beach Open, 34 pegs
Match organiser Steve Carter put on an open match and Browndown and 34 turned up looking for a few fish and Mark Purkiss struck it lucky with a rod bending cod of 10lbs 2ozs. Along with cod there were bass, dabs, whiting, rockling and pout landed, measured and released and the weights worked out on a measure to weight chart. The match was sectioned into 2 zones and in pegs 1-18 Mark Purkiss took the honours with 15lbs 8ozs, Dave Padmore was runner up with 5lbs 12ozs and Steve Carter was third with 5lbs 4ozs. In the second section Darren Phillips was first with 5lbs 14ozs, John Brown runner up with 5lbs 13ozs and Duncan Beck was third with 3lbs. As you can see there are still plenty of bites to be had, worm, squid and mackerel re the top baits just make you wrap up warm.
Ben Shons from Portsmouth with a 6lb 7oz cod that took a whole squid bait fished just 40 yards out from Eastoke Corner at Hayling. After or during a blow the cod and bass will be patrolling a lot closer in along the beach while on still flat nights not only will they be further out there will be a lot more whiting as well.
PLYMOUTH BOAT REPORT By Geordie Dickson
Returns next month
EAST SUSSEX REPORT by Kevin Morgan
THE NOMADS
On Wednesday 16th December The Nomads fished the 6th Nomads cup, their final competition of 2009. Eighteen anglers fished at Langney Point and Pevensey Bay, with Ian Hopper landing 20 whiting for 10lb 10oz. Second with 21 fish for 10lb 7oz 6dr was Colin Mason and third Lee Taylor with 9lb 6dr. The heaviest fish was a pout of 1lb 3oz and the heaviest flatfish a dab of 5oz 4dr jointly shared between Paul Hayes and Colin Mason.
The Nomads held their annual Christmas Open on Sunday 20th December with 81 anglers fishing in calm conditions. The winner with 16lb 4oz, Trevor Rooney! Landed an excellent cod of 11lb 12oz 8dr as well as whiting, winning £500 first prize as well as pools money. Second from Wales with 12lb 2oz including a 7lb cod was Robert Tuck (A zone winner). Third Colin Crosby (C zone winner) landed 21 fish for 9lb 8oz, fourth Craig Buy with 8lb 14oz 8dr and fifth Nick May with 8lb 2oz 8dr. Ian Hopper picked up money for winning B zone with 6lb 9oz. Top Lady Glynis Jones landed 2lb 8dr, top junior Harry Vanstone with 3lb 2dr, 2nd Luke Morley with 1lb 3oz 4dr. Trevor Rooney’s cod was the heaviest round fish as well as being a club record for the Anderida Club. The heaviest flatfish was a flounder of 1lb 8oz 6dr for Bryn Homewood. The pairs winners were Robert Tuck and Gary Strange with 17lb 15oz 4dr, runners up were Simon Watkins and Trevor Rooney with 16lb 10oz 2dr.
THE TERMINUS
The final results for The Terminus season saw Dennis Puttick winning the championship with 305 points, second with 298 points was Fred Puttick and third with 225 points Peter Fountain. The heaviest flatfish for 2009 was a sole of 1lb 11oz for Peter Fountain and the heaviest round was a smoothhound of 5lb 1oz for Dennis Puttick.
On Boxing Day The Terminus club fished their annual open with 26 anglers braving horrible wet and windy conditions to fish at Normans Bay. The winner Paul Parsons managed to catch four flounders at close range for a weight of 2lb 2oz, winning £200. Second with two flounders was Peter Bettley for 1lb 8oz, also the heaviest flatfish with a 14oz flounder winning a total of £130. Third was Phil Metcalf with a flounder for 12oz winning £80. Fourth Joe Plumstead with a whiting of 8oz which was also the heaviest round fish winning a total of £100 and fifth with a last cast rockling of 2 ½ oz Fred Puttick winning £60. Unfortunately other prizes had to be drawn for.
ANDERIDA CLUB
On Wednesday 16th December Anderida fished a club match in Pevensey Bay, with 20 anglers fishing in fairly calm conditions. The winner with 22 whiting for 10lb 4oz was Ian Hopper. Second with 8lb 6oz including the heaviest fish a nice cod of 7lb 3 ½ oz was Colin Isaacs. Third Paul King with 7lb 8oz including a cod of 6lb 6oz and fourth with a cod of 5lb 10oz, Bill Simms. Again no flatfish were caught and Phil Metcalf again won the draw for this prize.
The final match of the season fished on December 30th proved to be very difficult fishing, with only a few whiting and one cod being caught. The winner Paul King managed 7lb 5oz, including the biggest fish a cod of 6lb 15 ½ oz. Second was Ian Hopper with whiting for 2lb 12oz and third Ian Mostram with 2lb 10oz. The pairs final winners were Ian Hopper and Ian Mostram with 5lb 6oz against Tom Jarrett and Phil Metcalf with 3lb 1oz. The final championship positions were very close with Phil Metcalf finishing as club champion, with Paul King just narrowly beating Marco Marsiglia to second place by two points on the last match.
GENERAL
Darren Mitchell of Mitchells Groundscare Machinery Services organised a beach match in Pevensey Bay recently, in strong winds and heavy rain. Although Darren managed the top weight with 12lb of whiting, the prize winners were as follows. First Mark Petit with 8lb 9oz including a nice bass of 3lb 8oz, second Keith Bean with 8lb 4oz including the biggest fish a cod of 6lb 4oz and third Phil Metcalf with 7lb 8oz. Keith Bean won £100 for the biggest fish with Anglers Den donating the first prize for the winner Mark Petit. No flatfish were weighed in although Phil Metcalf managed to draw that prize out of the hat.
On Monday 28th December Phil Metcalf organised the annual winter Cod boat Festival, with the biggest cod from each angler winning prizes. The over-all winner with a cod of 18lb was E.A.A. member Nigel Harris, second also from E.A.A. with a cod of 16lb was Ron Yates. Third Steve Baldock with a fish of 13lb 8oz and fourth Steve Wells with 12lb 11oz.
Steve Hanks of Hook Line and Sinker organised a New Years Day Open along Bexhill seafront, with 24 anglers fishing a measure and release competition in bright sunny conditions. The winner with 10 fish (mostly whiting) for 129 points was Eastbourne angler Trevor Rooney. In second place Clive Ford from Bexhill with 114 points, 3rd Ian Hopper with 111 points and 4th John Ryder with 105 points.
On Saturday 2nd January Bob Hammond-Edwards was fishing on board the privately boat U2 based in Eastbourne Marina. Only about 1 ½ miles from shore using cuttlefish for bait Bob hooked an excellent cod that weighed 27lb 5oz later at The Eastbourne Angling Club.
On Sunday 3rd January Colin and Ian's January open was held in Pevensey bay, fishing from the Kiosk to Billy's Tower. The winner over all winning £200 with whiting was Dave Rudland from Worthing with 2lb 11oz. Second Lee Taylor from Eastbourne with 2lb 10oz. Third was Jamie Morgan with 2lb 8oz and fourth Tony Kirrage with 2lb 6oz. They all fished in B section. A section winner Paul Stephens won £100 with whiting for 2lb 4oz, second Phil Metcalf with 2lb 3oz and third Tony Waters with 2lb 2oz. The biggest round fish was a whiting of 1lb 4oz for Tony Waters and the heaviest flatfish a flounder of 10oz for Peter Cornwall. Top junior was Macaulay King with 3oz and the pairs winners were Jamie Morgan and Tony Waters with 4lb 10oz.
Full SAN competition details here
BOAT REPORT FOR NORTH THAMES ESTUARY AND PORTS OF BRIGHTLINGSEA, WEST MERSEA & BRADWELL by Lee Bolingbroke
This has been our best cod season for some years, certainly with the size fish we have been catching with fish up to twenty pounds and plenty of fish to five and ten pounds etc. Last year we were catching fish to five pounds inshore with a few bigger fish offshore and these fish have been packing on the pounds to give us a bumper year this year and with commercial netters restricted with the amount of cod they are allowed to catch this has paid dividends for us. As usual as we enter January fishing has become a little more difficult because of the bait fish that have turned up, i.e. sprats and herring, many of the big cod we are catching have been spitting them up when landed ,also the bigger fish move off to spawn but this will not last long and usually by mid to end of January we will be catching quantities of quality cod again.
With the cold weather we have been having, skate have made a disappearing act, probably out into deeper water where the temperature stays more constant, or dug into the mud and fairly dormant. We are catching some very big channel whiting around two pounds which is a nice addition to the catches but other than that it's cod or nought else, other than a few pouting which no one really likes.
The river Blackwater is still producing a few fish but it certainly is not fishing as well as it was a few weeks ago and the river Colne is the same. Tides are playing an important role in catches and it seems to be the first dropping tides that are fishing the best with the small tides offshore, if the weather allows, the best.
February should see a big boost in numbers of codling again and I think February and March are going to be exceptionally good, fingers crossed. It will be good to see the weather warm up a bit and as I write we have 8in of snow outside with anglers ringing in to let me know they can not make tomorrow's trip, very frustrating but understandable, my heating system on the boat has been working overtime of late. I will not be sorry to see the back of January, not my most favourable month and count down the days towards spring.
THE HUMBER TO THE THAMES by Ray Power
Returns next month
WEYMOUTH REPORT By Paul Whittall
I'd like to start this port report off by thanking Mr Steve Parker. I have never met Steve but he is obviously a man who puts a massive amount of effort into his fishing both for himself but on the behalf of others too.
On 29th December Steve posted a thank you to Dave Pitman, skipper of Weymouth based charter boat Atlanta on the Deepsea website. There was a break in the weather and Steve and his friends managed to get a day's fishing in. Steve has a website (www.madpolka.co.uk) and on it gives a very interesting run down of the day's events and what was caught with whiting and the occasional cod the main target species.
From a skipper's point of view it was good to be reminded of how much effort you anglers must put in to actually come to your chosen port…you know; all the preparation the night before, the early start, the journey down which often takes place in difficult conditions at this time of the year….etc etc. Believe me, we skippers are aware of the efforts you make and fully appreciate them and your support.
So, if you have a computer, take a look at Steve's website. It's informative and very instructive and very readable. So, thanks again Steve and I am very glad you and your friends had a good day out from Weymouth aboard Atlanta.
You will no doubt know that I am not in Weymouth. I am away until late March. This is because I struggle with the weather. Not just because I HATE the cold with a vengeance but I get so frustrated at all the trips we all work hard to put together only for the weather to call it off. Here, in Phuket (Thailand) I know that it's going to be warm……BUT it's not a bed of warm roses.
December here was very windy and it still is pretty breezy. That means no angling from the local longtail boats. The fishermen still go to sea and bring back plenty for the market but they are used to their small and lively boats and they are not fishing at anchor of course. So far our fishing here has not been successful and it's clear to me that we are not getting to the best fish marks as I see on a daily basis the fish that ARE coming to the market. There's still much to be done.
The bigger boats that are fishing well offshore are expensive but it seems that distance is very important with the Similan Islands and Andaman Islands the places to go. After MUCH asking I have at last found a boat that will operate at a reasonable price for us cash strapped Brits.
Game boats out of Phuket are expecting to charge £1,200 or more per day with 4 anglers maximum. A trip to the offshore islands is going to require a couple of days at least with 3 to 4 days preferable. You can see that is going to be very expensive. Many of our 'European' cousins don't seem to care about these prices. There are a lot of Russians in Phuket (plus Scandinavians and Germans) and they just don't give a damn about prices. We have always been regarded as the 'poor man of Europe'. Well, it's pretty clear just how far behind everyone else we seem to be.
So, I have found a boat that will do a 3 day, 2 night live aboard to the Similan Islands (70 miles offshore) for 60,000 Baht which is £1,200 for the whole trip with up to 6 onboard….thus 10,000 Baht or £200 each for the trip (or £300 each for 4 people). Hopefully my next set of customers will be having a go at this so I may have an entertaining report from Thailand next month to throw into the Weymouth report.
Back to Weymouth. The weather has been freezing. It's been very hard work out there for you all. There's been some excellent whiting fishing with the area around the M2 ground to the north west of Portland Bill producing whiting to 3lb. The phrase sent to me by the Weymouth skippers is ' three pounders galore'…so it's not just the odd good fish but plenty! There's been a few cod from different marks such as at Abbotsbury and on the Adamant Bank to the east of Weymouth.
The commercial bass boats are still catching a few bass in the Portland Race but are pushing conditions to their limits. One bass boat crashed into heavy seas trying to break out of The Race and blew his windows out…(or in) so that's goodbye to the electrics at least….but fortunately he did get home safely.
No Weymouth skipper has reported any wreck fishing as yet but January used to produce some very good offshore Pollack fishing with February and March being the prime months. If any of you do manage to get to sea, please email me a report….I'm relying on you all to give me the info to construct the next two months port reports!
From the weather reports (yes, I keep in touch with them over here…very sad person, me) I see that there is a chance for some fishing at the moment. Very cold but calm….let's hope the forecasts are correct regarding the wind and some of you are managing to get out and have a good bit of fishing.
Once again, take a look at Steve Parker's web site….we need some of the positive enthusiasm Steve has to rub off on us all!!
Please let 2010 be better than 2009!!
Good Luck to all of us and thanks to everyone for coming to Weymouth.
BRISTOL CHANNEL REPORT by Dave Roberts, AlyKat
At last we are beginning to see a few cod! All marks seem to be producing though not in any great numbers. Mike Jane from Weston-Super-Mare took a nice fish of 15lb whilst Geoff Baker had one of 12lb. There seems to be lots of tiny codling around and I mean tiny! Fish of 5 or 6inches are all over the place with a fair number in the 3-4lb bracket. This bides well for the coming month or two, hopefully, at least there is hope. The past couple of years have been disastrous here in the Channel with very few cod to shout about. Whiting are still showing but both numbers and size have been disappointing. With recent frosts, conger, dogs and rays will get their heads down for a while. At least this will give the cod a chance to find the baits. Worm will be favourite bait for the cod, though squid will tend to winkle out the better fish. So if the New Year leaves you bored to tears, get down to Minehead for a real chance of a cod or two!
My new Offshore procharter 38' hull has now arrived and work has already commenced so our target for completion around the end of May is still a reality. Anyone interested, give me a ring.
Minehead boats as always on www.deepsea.co.uk and bristolchannelangling.co.uk
BRISTOL SHORE REPORT by Jansen Teakle
First off, happy New Year and apologies for the lack of report last month, but I really felt that the channels shore sport was of such a poor quality through December I would have been struggling to pull something together.
Looking across at the weather station, the outside temperature is barely above zero and four or five inches of snow is hiding the green grass. Finding the incentive to venture out is a lot harder than it should be at this time of year and at least two planned trips have turned into lead making sessions when the 'can't be bothereds' kick in! Those that have been able to access the coast and brave the Siberian wind have found plenty to keep the rod tips rattling away in the form of tiny codling which seem to be swarming the upper channel marks. With the water temperature undoubtedly at its seasonal low around this time, the channel's thornback population will be reluctant to feed and will have moved off into deeper water leaving just a smattering of codling and the very occasional bucket mouthed swimming pig.
One such fish was recently taken by Mike Bullas fishing from Clevedon Pier, a Cod weighing in at a belting 21lb. Undoubtedly, this is a fish of a lifetime for anyone and you can see from the picture on page 1 just what the conditions were like he had to contend with; I can only imagine the fun trying to get it in the drop net! Indeed, a true winner of the lunker cod lottery and about time such a fish was taken from the pier.
The deeper water marks traditionally throw up the odd monsters around this time with both Brean and Sandpoint giving up the goods in recent years to the dedicated and/or lucky few. Sandpoint did produce some sizeable Codling over the festive period, fish to 5lb were taken but again, these were thin on the ground.
Club matches competed on the beach at Weston were very scratchy affairs, with five bearded rockling and just-in Whiting making the bulk of the catches. The humble Flounder seems to be the most recent victim of the channel's fish abducting aliens, as in the case of one club's festive gathering not a single flat fish found its way to the scales! Add these to the vanished shoals of Whiting and Codling and it makes for a quiet days fishing.
By the time you are reading this there is a good chance that sport will have picked up, but only if we lose the flow of bitter East and North easterly winds that are currently crippling the channel.
A couple of weeks of warm southerly winds are just what is needed right now and if this happens some respectable sport could be on offer up and down the Channel. The last couple of lean Codling seasons have certainly peeked in February and March and there have also been some good Thornbacks taken. Fishing with crab baits on the deep water marks would be the best approach, although the reef marks at Hinkley and beyond could be a good bet for a big ray.
North Devon marks will show Huss, Congers, Pout, Rockling and there is even the chance of a Spurdog from some marks.
Again, this all rides on the weather improving. In the mean time, I for one shall be tying rigs, loading reels and warming my hands over a pot of molten lead!
Mike Bullas with a 21lb cod caught whilst fishing from Clevedon Pier.
POOLE REPORT By Steve Porter
Well, I cant really begin my report this month without passing on a vote of thanks from all local charter skippers to you, our sometimes mad bunch of anglers who have braved some pretty horrendous conditions lately in search of a few fish. There is no doubt that some conditions have been very challenging, but your continued support throughout of the local fleet has ensured we have enjoyed the odd payday. On some days, conditions have resembled those that we have seen on the TV programme 'Deadliest Catch". The only difference that I could see was that UK charter skippers are not clad in just a T-shirt shouting instructions from a warm wheelhouse. Those boys on the TV have it easy.
For a charter skipper, taking anglers to sea during the winter months has other challenges apart from the weather. Imagine this scenario. A new bunch of guys arrive on the boat one morning. They are full of enthusiasm, although clearly not experienced anglers, they are dressed in trainers and jeans for a days winter cod fishing. During the safety brief one of them interrupts and says that the last time they went cod fishing they caught over eighty. Obviously, that was six months ago, but as a skipper, you take a sharp intake of breath as you realise that today's crew has unrealistic expectations. Another briefing follows, explaining that a summer cod trip of less that fifty cod is a poor day, but one cod on a winters cod fishing trip, is a good day. Their faces show disappointment even before we have left the quay, but with luck, a few conger, the odd cod and a box of whiting will save the day before the cold penetrates their jeans and water gets into their trainers. Those boys on the TV have it easy.
Thankfully, this years inshore winter cod fishing has seen a slight improvement in cod numbers caught with several boats reporting catches of up to nine a day, although catches of winter cod in these quantities are the exception rather the rule. Most days see numbers ranging from zero to half a dozen. The usual conger, pollack, rays or several varieties, bass and even the odd ling are also making up the catch. The largest cod that I have heard about was a fish of 30lb falling to John Cascarino who was fishing from his own boat, Blue Rose. Whiting have also been a popular target fish and this season has seen some huge specimens landed. Many boats have reported whiting to 4lb with one private boat landed a 5lb 10oz specimen.
Flounder fishing from within the harbour is at it's peak now and we have certainly had enough of a cold spell to reduce the activity of feeding crabs. Reasonable numbers and some fine specimen flounders have been reported.
December 14th was the night of the Poole Charter Skippers Association Christmas Party, which was also supported by the Poole Bay Small Boats Angling Club, as well as other anglers, divers and commercial fishermen. The night was an enjoyable one with a four-course meal followed by live entertainment and a disco. This year, we are planning another such event, which is scheduled for Monday 13th December. Again it will be open to anyone that wants to join us. If interested, just put the date in your diary. I'll provide more information on the party and how you can join us later in the year.
This coming year will see a couple of changes to Poole's charter fleet. Firstly, I am really pleased to be welcoming back John Keggie with his boat Oberon who is coming back after a five year period away. John has been catching common skate from the west coast of Scotland but will be back in Poole from April where I am sure he will quickly re-establish the great reputation that he had when he last operated here. Oberon will be available for trips from the 2nd April. If you want to book John, then call him on 07793 120958. Another change to Poole's fleet will be the arrival of yet another catamaran in June. Local skipper Paul Smith has sold his boat Rapid Fisher, which is being replaced with a brand new fast catamaran, which is being built especially for him.
Well, that's it for now. I doubt that we will be afloat much in February although there is still some good fishing to be had if the weather and tides allow us to venture offshore. Most boats though will be laid up undergoing their annual maintenance etc.
CHESIL REPORT by Heggy
Whatever happened to the Christmas spirit, the fish certainly were not into it. I always look forward to the Christmas break, plenty of mixed fishing with the chance of a variety of specimen fish, this year it just did not happen, I know a few people found one or two, mainly isolated bigger ones. The month had started well enough, decent Cod continued to be taken, some excellent Whiting and the usual Dogs and Pout, top match weights were exceeding 30lb, well at least for those that made it to the right venue at the right time. Yes George Murphy it's your turn to get my mention in despatches, I told you I would get you back for all those booby prizes that come my way in the club raffles. George was convinced, as he sat all alone in his car in the Abbotsbury car park, that the rest of the Dorchester club had got it wrong, lots of phone calls later he was convinced he had it wrong, an hour after everyone else had started George arrived, never mind there is always next year, for the diary Dorchester SACs 2010 Christmas fayre is at Abbotsbury. Perhaps he did not get it wrong, perhaps he was just a year early.
Unfortunately the weather again decided to play a major part and an almost continuous easterly from just before Christmas and the current prolonged cold spell has contrived to reduce catches to very very poor, a few Whiting and Dogs and an odd decent Cod, mostly fish between 8-10lb, best I'm aware of is one of 13lb 4oz taken by local angler Ben Stockley. January sees the start of almost all the local club seasons, so now is the time renew memberships or join and get into the club scene, an ideal place for beginners, where help and advice is readily available and there are the matches for the more experienced anglers and of course this month sees the start of the 2010 Samalite league, anyone interested should contact Paul at Denning Tackle. Last years winner, ex world champion and master angler, Joe Arch travelled from South Wales to Chesil for almost every match, a fair few miles, pity some of our own so called match anglers from just along the coast don't participate in a league that has arguably the best venue and quality fish month on month on the south coast. We even have a back up venue that can produce better results than some areas top spots so all matches go ahead whatever the weather and the prizes are superb. This time last year I said that the 2008 winner Dave Chidzoy would not be far away in 2009. He was the runner up this time around, amazing consistency. Congratulations to both anglers.
Only a few reports from Portland, the extreme cold seems to have more effect on the rock marks than anywhere else, before the cold spell Ballans to nearly 8lb where taken with good numbers of 4-5lb fish but as the water temp dropped so did the number of fish, there is still time to find a decent specimen if the water temperature rises even slightly. Most surprising results came during the annual Weymouth Bangers and Beans match fished within the inner confines of Weymouth harbour, this match is a local tradition and is always fished between Christmas and the New Year, 2pm to 7pm, irrespective of the tide. This years match saw an extraordinary number of Flounders caught, particularly for such a small harbour. The winner, Reg Clough took four with the best an incredible 3lb 5 1/2oz, possibly the best one ever taken from the harbour.
Ladies - Wales needs you!
The qualifier matches for the WFSA Ladies Sea Angling Team start in April and we are looking for new competitors to come and join us. To be eligible to compete you need to be born in Wales or have lived in Wales for 3 years or have Welsh parents or grandparents.
If you have limited match fishing experience then don't worry we will be holding a series of training sessions which will help you to learn new skills and develop existing skills. We are looking for people who are able to work as part of a team and who are willing to learn and develop their fishing skills - a full training programme can be provided to support you.
This years selection process will form the team for 2011 when the team will travel to Italy for the World Championships. If you would like to find out more or have a chat about the selection process then please call Helen Pearce on 01970 820063 or email helenpearce@toucansurf.com.
Helen Pearce, Welsh Federation of Sea Anglers, Ladies Team Manager.
SCOTLAND REPORT By Barry Scholes
Returns next month
NORTH EAST by Nigel Proctor
Hi Everyone,
I'm Nigel Proctor and I've been foolish enough to accept Normans request to take on the role of NE correspondent in Sea Angling News, so I hope over the forthcoming weeks and months you'll send me all your club match results, catch reports, news items and any photographs and stories you'd like to share with other like minded anglers throughout the UK and I'll try and do them justice.
So who am I? Well, I'm based in Hull, and fish predominantly the Holderness beaches and occasionally the rock edges around Scarborough and even more occasionally up to Whitby, I'm into boat angling (in a big way) and fish from Bridlington up to Whitby (although not as frequently as I'd like). I'm also a marine biologist, so if you come across any strange species or have any marine/estuarine related queries, please drop me a line with descriptions or preferably a photo.
Norman tells me the boundaries for the North East are the Humber to the Scottish Border, so clearly I'd need input from as many sources as is possible, it's difficult knowing what's going on, on the Holderness coast at times, never mind having to account for an additional 160 - 170 miles, so I hope you'll bear with me and drop me frequent e-mails and updates with regard to your activities and catches.
In return, I'll try and keep you up to date with what's going on in 'our neck of the woods' and there is plenty, I will not be getting all political on you, so you needn't worry about that, but there are a number of issues in the pipeline such as the initiation of Marine Conservation Zones (MCZ's). This is the process set up by the Labour government to try and implement conservation zones in the North Sea, which may be fully protected, may have no restrictions or alternatively may have restrictions of some form. Net gain, the title of the North Sea project, follows on from a similar series of projects in the South East (Balanced Seas), South West (Finding Sanctuary) and the Irish Sea, which is strangely called 'the Irish Sea Conservation Zones' (I hope they have a little more imagination when they come to consider the impacts of their zones on sea angling). I guess the real question is, to what extent will we be affected? At this moment in time, nobody knows, but one thing for sure, it isn't going to be a painless process for sea anglers.
There is also the change from Sea Fisheries Committees (SFC's) to Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (IFCA's) of which we have two in our region, the Northumberland SFC and the North Eastern SFC. The changes in the way these management bodies are run may be minimal, however, it is likely that the number of members appointed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) will be reduced, whilst the number of councillors may be increased. This will mean a lower order of representation and potentially poor knowledge base of local fisheries, notwithstanding the potential for increased environmental commitments of already overburdened staff, leading to a lower order of enforcement. Well, it's a very short and sweet introduction; hopefully next month will see a bit more flesh on the bones, and hopefully a massive improvement in the fishing, because Lord knows it can't get any worse..... Can it?
Finally, I'd like to say a big thank you, on behalf of anglers in the NE, to Sam Harris for all his hard work and reports during his stint as NE correspondent, and in the hope that Sam will continue to make available any information, news and club match reports he receives. Unfortunately, due to travelling around a lot, I will be unable to take verbal reports, however, written items and club match reports/results can be sent to nigelpms@yahoo.co.uk
MORE REPORTS & PHOTOGRAPHS IN THE SAN EVERY MONTH
We welcome your letters, emails and photographs. Write to The Editor, Sea Angling News, 27 Lower Bere Wood, Waterlooville, Hampshire PO7 7NQ Tel. 02392 265445
More
Discount Fishing Tackle Offers from
Tacklebargains
|
||
*SEA ANGLING BOOKSHOP *FRESHWATER/COARSE FISHING SECTION
***** FISHING GAMES + PC SOFTWARE *****
Where to Sea Fish in Britain and Ireland (John Bailey's Fishing Guides)
The Sea Angler's step-by-step guide to rigs and baits Great Salmon and Sea Trout Loughs of Ireland
© Sea Angling News