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.