The Fishing was Rubbish and a Warning!

I decided to grab a few hours fishing yesterday and wanted to see if the Mackerel had arrived in the Plymouth area yet. I took my spinning rod a bum bag and a handful of spinners and initially headed for the Hoe foreshore, visiting West-Hoe pier, Elphinstone and the rocky area's in between before getting the water-taxi to Mountbatten Pier. Apart from one small Pollock I blanked rather spectacularly. I guess it's the case of being in the right place at the wrong time, and this was certainly supported by a few people saying that they had seen Mackerel being caught in the last few days.

Unfortunately this blog entry isn't just about the fishing being rubbish, it's also about the subject of anglers leaving so much rubbish laying around when they finish fishing. At West-Hoe, there was line, feathers, packaging from frozen baits, and bags tied to the chains, all this despite litter bins being available a short distance from the entrance to the pier. This was repeated at various marks all along the route I took. I finally arrived at Mountbatten, which when I was a teenager growing up in Plymouth was off-limits to everyone unless you served at the base. All that has changed and the pier has been refurbished, providing everyone with a fantastic recreational asset. From the anglers point of view, the local authority have provided stainless steel bait cutting trays, and litter-bins dotted along the entire length of the pier. On arrival the pier was busy with families enjoying the fine weather, individuals walking their dogs, and numerous fishermen dotted along both sides of the pier. I found a gap and before I could start fishing had to clean up my spot of packaging, line, a baited hook and two beer bottles. It didn't take long as the litter bin was only thirty feet away, but I guess that's my point. My actions caught the attention of an angler and a passer by who both expressed their concerns about the mindless actions of what I hope is a small percentage of anglers. I fear that if this continues then venues just like this will be closed to all anglers as it's just matter of time before a child or an animal is injured.

The warning comes from a conversation I had with Ian, the fisherman I met at Mountbatten, and refers to lone fishing, but this not about the usual safety advice about tides and weather. He told me of an experience a friend of his had when he decided to snatch a few hours fishing late one evening at another popular venue. On arrival there was no one else fishing, but a short while later two young men arrived and initially seemed to just want to chat, but the conversation changed and they started asking how much the gear was worth and attempted to walk off with his second rod becoming threatening. Fortunately this was interrupted by the arrival of another angler. This incident has left the angler shaken as he felt it could have turned nasty, and as a result he now plans his fishing sessions with others and will not fish alone, and this is after 50 years of fishing. I have to say that a few times, I have felt very vulnerable myself when fishing alone from a venue that is safe from the usual point of view, and this isn't the first time I have heard of an angler facing aggression while pursuing their hobby. It is sad that we now have to add this to our list of concerns to keep ourselves safe when fishing, but it wont stop me pursuing the sport I love so much.

Misty Mornings and a Mystery Catch

A very early start saw my son, his friend and I head for a mark on the Salcombe/kingsbridge estuary; the target species being bass. After unloading the car we were faced with a 20 minute walk which took us to our mark. Reports from one of my local tackle shops, indicated that good numbers of bass ranging from schoolies up to a reported 6 1/2 lb had been caught at various marks along the estuary. Our chosen tackle was 11' light estuary style rods casting up to 3oz, and the chosen bait being lugworm. As usual my trusty Shimano spinning rod and a small box of plugs, spinners and soft plastics travelled with us too. As you can see from the photograph, which was taken at about 5.30 am it was one of those very misty and atmospheric mornings. I had decided it was best to use simple running leger rigs, with Gemini links to facilitate a quick change of leads if necessary.

Our baits weren't in the water too long, before a sharp nod on the rod tip indicated the first interest of the day and a school bass of around 1 1/2lb was quickly landed, photographed and returned to fight another day. We continued to fish up to, and over high water, with another four bass, all around the same size as the first one, and an eel being caught between us. It was great that we all caught, as that held the boys interest. At times during the session, I saw fish jumping and splashing further down the estuary and got out the spinning outfit, trying a "Sidewinder" sandeel lure in all the colours I had to no avail, and a swap to a "Storm jerking minnow" produced nothing also, not even a follow. I guess it was a rather optimistic attempt as the water was a bit coloured.

On the walk back to the car, the boys wanted to try some lure fishing, so I left them to continue at a safe spot while I carried the rest of the gear back to the car. On my return, I found the boys struggling to unhook this very handsome fish. As I approached, I initially thought they had managed to hook a bass but it became quickly apparent that this was not the case. The fish had large round scales which came off very easily. I still had my camera with me so took this photograph before returning it. It swam away eventually, and we really hope it survived the ordeal. I have been trying to identify the catch, and at first assumed it may have been a sea-trout, but have since discounted this, my efforts on the internet lead me to believe that it may in fact be a Shad, either a Twaite or Allis Shad. If anyone can identify or confirm my thoughts I would be very grateful.

The Beginning

The idea of this blog is to share my fishing experiences since returning to the sport after a substantial break. I was amazed at the advances in tackle and techniques that had taken place and the pitfalls for born again novices like myself. Following this first blog introduction I will concentrate on my fishing sessions, sharing techniques, tackle and rig tips, and what and where works for me in my own fishing locality of South Devon and Cornwall.

A brief history...... I grew up in Plymouth and as a result it seemed natural that I would eventually turn to sea angling as a leisure pursuit. In the beginning I fished the Hoe sea front, Plym estuary and Penlea Point which I used to access using the Cremyl ferry, taking my bicycle with a rod strapped to the cross bar. I thoroughly enjoyed those days fishing with friends and more importantly having fun catching the usual Pollock, Garfish, Wrasse, Mackerel, and very occasional Bass which frequented these shore marks. The reasons that I stopped fishing now completely escape me, but perhaps it was because of work commitments and other things became more important, or perhaps because I forgot it was supposed to be fun.

My return...... I returned to sea fishing about two years ago now, this came about because of the purchase of Sky TV where I inevitably found re-runs of "Fishing On The Edge" and "Wild Fishing", both being presented by Henry Gilbey. These programs both inspired me, and reminded me how much I used to enjoy the sport.

Mistakes...... I guess the first big mistake I made was to purchase a budget sea-spinning combo deal from a famous high street catalogue store. As a value-for-money item it was great but it was a bit of a scaffold pole due to being constructed out of hollow glass. The 150gm casting rating should have been a give away but at this time this rather escaped me. I caught some fish after many blank sessions on this outfit , returning to the piers I used to fish as a teenager and unfortunately still using the same techniques I used as a teenager. This wasn't much fun at all, especially as when I did hook up I barely knew the fish were. I knew then I was fishing with far to heavy tackle.

Getting it right...... My advice to anyone starting or returning to the sport is to visit their local fishing tackle shop for advice. I was lucky living near Plymouth to have some of the best tackle shops around including Clive's Tackle and Bait, Sea View Tackle and the Tackle and Bait Shop. It was a visit to Clive's and a chat with the owner that I was fitted out with more suitable tackle for my immediate needs in the form of a really balanced outfit consisting of a 10' Shimano Nexave 15-45gm spinning rod matched to a really nice small Grauvell bait runner spinning reel loaded with 8lb line. Not only did I get advice about outfits, I also got help with terminal tackle, bait presentation and tips on where to go.

Fun, fun and more fun!.... By now it was about the beginning of June 2007, the Mackerel and Garfish had arrived and it was these species I targeted that gave me so much fun, and increased my passion for the sport. On this light and balanced outfit with the clutch set correctly I actually experienced a decent sized mackerel of around 1 1/2lb actually taking some line as it sped off in the deep water of Rame Head, and the acrobatics of those accommodating garfish certainly kept the sessions busy. My best fish of this period was a shore caught Pollock of 3lb 8oz, not a large fish by any standards, but this put a serious bend into that light rod and a broad smile on my face. I also had the very rare catch of John Dory while float fishing at Mount Batten Pier, at around 6 inches long it was the most beautiful fish I had ever seen with the long tendril's off its dorsal fin. Initially I thought it was a Trigger fish, however, another angler identified it for me. I had failed to understand how rare this fish was until discussing it in my local tackle shop, I had been very lucky indeed. I have to say catching it was a complete fluke as I was float fishing ragworm for Pollock, but that's the joy of sea fishing you just don't know what will turn up. I was now also seriously into conservation angling and all but a few fish that summer were returned to swim safely off.

Two years on...... So that is the introduction to my blog. I would now consider myself a fishing fanatic these days and have since included fly, lure and surf fishing to my repertoire and my home bears a passing resemblance to a tackle shop. Like a lot of anglers, who experience some success, I stayed doing the same thing and visiting the same marks until relatively recently. I have purchased numerous DVDs made by presenters such as Henry Gilbey, Mike Ladle and Ed Schliffke. These have been invaluable in refining techniques, giving me ideas and inspiration to try new things and I would recommend them and the following of other anglers blogs to anyone wanting to improve their fishing, but more about that in future posts.