Ammo baits and Veals mail order gear at work on Reel Deal Charters a tope estimated at 40lb made a great start to a recent day afloat.
SEA ANGLING ROUND UP
Graham Snow secured first and second in Bideford Angling Clubs Monthly Rover landing a fine brace of mullet. A thick lip of 5lb 21/4oz and a thin lip of 4lb 53/8oz. He also took first in Appledore Shipbuilders Monthly Rover with the thick lipped mullet of 5lb 21/4oz Jazza John took runner up spot in Appledore Shipbuilders Rover with a smoothound scaling 11lb 15/8oz and Graham took third with his thin lipped mullet of 4lb 53/8oz.. Jack Pike dominated the Junior section with ballan wrasse scaling 3lb 13oz, 3lb 8oz and 2lb 14oz.
Combe Martin SAC members continue to compete in their two month long species competition. John Shapland is currently leading with 31 species with Dan Welch very close behind of 30 species.
I have had a couple of visits to the coast to try and add a couple of species to my own tally but have struggled to catch a fish let alone species and those that I have caught tended to be those few I have already caught. Bit of a reality check after a week in Norway catching big fish!
Ross Stanway got among the spotted ray at Ilfracombe landing five in a short session.
Combe Martin SAC’s Fun Fishing Event has been rescheduled to Saturday September 2nd as a result of boat landings on the Sunday. Full details of this event will follow shortly.
Record Clingers on the Pier – Fishing In miniature
George Stavrakopoulos is a great fan of LRF fishing and using the techniques to tempt a wide range of species from Ilfracombe Pier. His comments below will come as a revelation to many died in the wool traditional sea anglers who wield tackle strong enough to subdue fish far larger than generally encountered close to the English shoreline.
“I caught the shore cling fish otherwise known as a Cornish sucker on my 0.5 to 7 g rock fish ultralight lrf rod mated to a shimano stradic 1000 loaded with 4lb braid on a drop shot size 18 Kamasan b980 specimen barbless hook using 2lb flouro trilene imported from the states. Was kind a funny as in the last month or so I have witnessed 3 Connemara cling fish off the pier one of them being one I caught and on the way down to the pier on that day I was saying to my fishing buddy Tim Poat how I’d love to catch a Cornish sucker and I did !! A lot of people laugh at the mini species but I love them and think they’re soo…. cool. I watch people on the pier blank time and time again using hooks that are too big and tackle that’s too heavy, whilst on the light rods it’s nearly always non stop action. There’s no Bristol Channel or British record for this fish species so I have submitted claims for both. The fish was obviously returned alive after a few photos and a weigh in. I’m waiting for a positive ID confirmation from BRFC they’ve sent the photos to the Natural history museum in London.”
Big Tope for Sarah on Reel Deal
Bideford Angling Festival
Reel Deal tope for six year old
Six year old was on holiday with his dad and took a trip on Ilfracombe Charter Boat Reel Deal where he boated a fine tope on Ammo mackerel with rods reels and a 8/0 varivas big mouth extra from Veal’s mail order.
CMSAC SPECIES Competition Latest
After a month of Combe Martin SAC’s species competition John Shapland has a slender lead with 30 species. In runner up spot is Daniel Welch on 28 and in third Ross Stanway of 21.
The event seems to have stimulated some very interesting fishing with a wide range of species recorded including dragonets, cling fish and various mini species. Strangely no one has registered gilthead bream, garfish or golden grey mullet!
The competition is sponsored by High Street Tackle Ilfracombe.
Smoothound and thin lipped mullet
Stuart Taylor was targetting bass when this specimen Smoothound weighing 11lb 12ozs Saved a blank session.
Graham Snow won Bideford Angling Clubs 24 hour rover with a thin-lipped grey mullet of 3lb 151/4oz. Antony Smith was runner up with a mackerel scaling 1lb 21/2oz and third Andy Clements with a wrasse of 3lb 103/4oz.
Graham followed this win up landing a brace of thin lipped mullet weighing 4lb 7oz and 3lb 81/2oz.
Bideford’s Clive Baddick Joins winning Team
Bideford based Clive Baddick qualified for the finals,of the civil service sports competition where they fished the 6th of July. The south West team won,3 boats 12 areas so 12 on a boat,simple the winner on a boat scored 1 point they had two boat winners and i come 4th so they scored 6 points, the second team had 11 points,the boats fished were supernova,skippered by Lyle Stantiford,top cat 2 ,and wild frontier 2 .The South West Team was Vernon Allen who won the individual competio. ,Mike Patton who one time was England manager, and Clive Baddick.

Sea Angling Round Up – Shore

Sea Anglers have been enjoying varied sport along the coast with thin lipped mullet providing top sport in the estuaries. On the open coast bass and smoothound are giving good sport with spider crab among the best baits. Ali Laird landed a bass of 7lb 10oz and Ross Stanway a bass of 7lb 12oz.
Paul Hutchings landed a brace of smoothound on dirty squid from a local beach the best 10lb 3oz.
Thick Lipped grey mullet can offer superb sport for specialist anglers in local harbours and rock marks.
