Combe Martin SAC are holding a pop up fishing event at Ilfracombe Pier on Saturday March 23rd. Whilst it is a club members only event prospective new members are welcome to come along for a chat and perhaps enter into the Fun and species league.
SEA ANGLING NEWS ROUND UP
Michael Hammett won Appledore Shipbuilders December Rover with a whiting of 1lb 9.75oz. Josh Atkinson took second and third place with whiting of 1lb 7.25oz and 1lb 5oz.
Joan Cairns won Triple Hook Clubs Open Ladies Flounder Competition with a flounder of 1lb 7.5oz. Amber Chapel was runner up with a flounder of 1lb 5.5oz.
I visited Ilfracombe Pier last Sunday evening and attempted to catch a squid on a jig. After half an hour of casting and retrieving my confidence started to ebb. Persistence sometimes pays off however and I eventually felt a strange weight on the line. I was delighted to swing a squid of perhaps 12oz onto the pier.
I was told that before I arrived several herring and mackerel had been tempted. It also seemed slightly surreal to watch a garfish swim past close to the surface. Mackerel and garfish were once considered to be summer fish but as sea anglers we are getting used to the blurring of the seasons. It seems that we should cast off the traditions and try to ring the changes to keep abreast of nature as climate change rewrites the rule books.
North Devons top shore mark?
Ilfracombe Pier is often overlooked as a great shore fishing venue but on its day when conditions are right it can produce the goods. Over the years it has probably produced more species and specimens than any other North Devon mark. Whilst this is in part due to it being easily accessible and heavily fished its is also a good mark offering deep water and mixed ground. Ilfracombe angler Toby Bassett is a frequent visitor and catches a wide range of species from the mark with tactics ranging from LRF to standard shore tactics.
“Well what an afternoon that was, rocked up to the pier mid day, and normally i just put small baits out for the mini stuff but changed it up today and put a big octopus bait out as far as i could first fish out a lovely little huss, next chuck my biggest bass to date a cracking silver bar knocking the scale between 9 and half 10.. To top it off i caught 3 lobsters as well”
The veterans amongst us remember the days of the old pier when it provided a safe stable fishing platform at all States of the tide.
VARIETY ON THE PIER
Fishing covers a wide spectrum and its always good to hear of anglers successes and experiences. Ilfracombe angler Toby Bassett is an allrounder who catches pike from the local reservoir, sharks off the coast and also enjoys scaling right down to experience the wonders of multi species fishing with LRF tackle. Many thanks to Toby for his account below.
Every year i try and catch as many species as I can and this this year like everyone else I have been limited to just the Bristol Channel due to travel restrictions which has given me plenty of time to focus on local marks and where better then the pier to rack up my tally? I have always heard of weird and wonderful fish coming on out on the LRF gear so thats been my main goal and the clingfish always in the back of my mind as one of the more prized mini species, so when i actually caught one i was stunned, such an awesome slimy little morsal and a big tick off the list! That brings my tally to 20 species so far this year, i still have a few trickier fish to target as the year goes on such as the illusive tadpole fish and the dragonette but this cornish sucker has made me one happy focker lol! Toby Bassett
A Humorous Tale – Bass and smelly huts
Myself and
were on day 2 fishing with no sleep in early September – maybe 1998 from memory.
“Don’t it always seem to go That you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”
“Don’t it always seem to go
That you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”
So goes that song by Joni Mitchell
Long time North Devon anglers will remember the old Ilfracombe Pier and many have fond memories of fishing from the old Victorian structure that was built in1873 at a cost of £10,000. The pier was the base for Ilfracombe & District Angling Club for many years its members holding regular competitions from a venue that was safe and easy to fish from. I remember many wild winter nights fishing from the North End waiting for the rod tip to lunge forward as a cod seized the bait. One of the joys of the old pier was that you could go there at any-time and meet up with other anglers catching up with the latest angling news. It was also an ideal venue for Junior anglers and I am sure many caught their first sea fish from the safety of the pier.
I was chatting with Keith Reed fish recorder for the Bristol Channel Federation of Sea Anglers. Keith was reminiscing about his fifty years as fish recorder with the federation. Back in 1941 young Keith aged 9 or 10 caught his first fish; a pouting from Ilfracombe Pier. The fish was taken back to be eaten at a time when catch and release fishing would have been unheard of. Evacuated from Bristol after their house was bombed young Keith started an angling journey that has lasted to this day with Keith in his mid 90’s. I wonder how many other anglers began their fishing lives at the venue.
Looking back the old pier was a valuable asset to the anglers of North Devon. But did we really appreciate it at the time? As a member of the Combe Martin SAC I only tended to fish the pier when it was too rough to fish from the rocks in safety. Many of my keen young friends would deride the pier saying it was a Noddy’s venue. It was true that a range of anglers fished the venue and a stray cast would often entangle more other angler’s lines than fish. This was however one of its greatest values, for it was a safe place for those anglers starting off and very often after a few tangles they would get good advice and learn quickly as a result.
The Pier always seemed to have big fish stories and the stories of huge conger dwelling in the caverns beneath are legendary. Even now the occasional conger is tempted from the base of what remains and in 2014 Mark Frith landed a conger of 43lb.
The landings that remain still provide a useful fishing platform but only over low water. Each winter it still brings rewards for those who fish it and it still has that community feel about it. But it will never be the same as the Old Pier where you could take a walk at any-time to chat fishing. In summer visitors would of course stroll along the pier watching the anglers gazing upon brightly coloured floats bobbing in the sea. It was a place of life the heart of a seaside angling community… “Don’t It always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”.
Wayne “
Tony Irwin wrote on a recent Facebook post : “I fished with my brother in law in a storm there once during the night we fished into the channel inside from the parapet wall the tide was and one cast (and we were using 8oz leads to combat the wind and tide) was blown up onto the pier as it was pitch black we had no idea until I tried to reel in at first We thought I had a massive fish on! I then realised the line was tight going right . My brother in law climbed up on the pier and my lead and rig was jammed right on the top that’s how strong the winds were but we did finish up with at least two or three doubles if I remember rightly. It was a wonderful winter fishing venue and anglers were always welcome in the hut to have a hot soup. They loved anglers back in those days not like owners of piers these days.”
A bass from memory Lane – Ilfracombe Pier 1981
Barry Kift sent me this picture of his personal best bass weighing 11lb 3oz, caught from Ilfracombe Pier in 1981
Well, after taking a walk down the pier the evening before, and seeing a 9lb Bass landed myself and my brother, Lee Kift decided to go the next evening. Fishing side by side, Lee went to help land a conger down below. Asking me to look after his rod. Well, 2 small bites later, on his rod,.I was hooked into this. By the time he came back up the fish was nearly at the pier. He shouted, GIVE ME MY ROD, I told him to f*** off and go back down to land it ! He was not best pleased and hasn’t forgiven me to this day 😳😳😳 cant imagine why 🤣🤣🤣
Variety on Ilfracombe Pier
Combe Martin SAC hosted an LRF float fishing social on Ilfracombe Pier where several species of fish were landed including black bream, wrasse, pollock, bass and garfish.
(Above)Jake Moule fished Ilfracombe after dark to land a 10lb 12oz conger. Several spotted ray have been tempted from the pier on sandeel bait.
Combe Martin SAC Fun FIsh 2018
Combe Martin Sea Angling Clubs annual fun fishing event on Ilfracombe Pier always brings plenty of smiles and this year was no exception. The title of the event explains what the day is all about nothing too serious just a few hours fishing with the chance to meet fellow anglers and special guests. The event focuses on young anglers so the competition is geared towards under 16’s accompanied by a responsible adult.
This years guests included Dominic Garnett who writes a regular column for the Angling Times and works with the Angling Trust to promote angling. https://dgfishing.co.uk/
(Above) Dominick Garnett gets involved coaching young anglers
Steve Dawe is an all round angler who has a particular interest in species fishing and is raising funds for the Stroke Association.
In January last year he started a fund raising challenge to catch 52 species of fish in a year and has surpassed this already landing his 64th species during this years event, a rock goby.(Below)
(Below)The Coastguard raised awareness of the need to take care at the waters edge offering advice to all who attended.
(Below)Ilfracombe Aquarium were at hand to identify any rare species caught and also hope to obtain specimens for the aquarium.
http://ilfracombeaquarium.co.uk/
High Street Tackle kindly sponsored the event with an array of prizes presented to the winners.
Fun Fish rules were – To reduce tangles CMSAC suggested 1 rod with 3 hooks, Barbless hooks preferred but not compulsory.
The top prizes were for the anglers under the age of 16 with the most points.
Points awarded: – 2 points first of each species, 1 point for second of each species.
Prize for longest fish – Lyn Wilson garfish – 57cm
Prize for heaviest fish – Lyn Wilson – garfish 9oz
Family prize for most points – A Family Ticket for Ilfracombe Aquarium -The Welch family with 51 points
Ross Stanway won the adults section with 16 points and was presented with a signed copy of Dominick Garnetts book Crooked Lines
Winner of the event eight year old Effie Welch (14 points) received an LRF rod, reel and line
2nd – Charlie Stanway 11 points
3rd – Solomon Welch 9 points
4th – Ben Clarke 8 points Joshua Jeffery 8 points
5th – Phoebe Dawe – 5 points Jordan Choules 5 points
This years event was once again a success with a really friendly atmosphere and plenty of fish caught to give the young participants encouragement. One of the events main targets is to introduce young people to a pastime that can provide a lifelong interaction with the environment as Dominick said to me if we recruit one young person into a life of fishing we have been successful.
The below pictures give a view of the event that is made successful by those who take part.