Mark Jones and his brother enjoyed a cracking day at Wimbleball where Mark boated a personal best rainbow of 8lb and and another fine rainbow of 5lb 10oz. Marks fish plus another four over 4lb were tempted using dial bach’s and buzzers. Marks brother boated a 5lb rainbow first cast! The venue is certainly providing some superb sport despite the inclement early spring weather.
Bulldog fishery has reopened after a winter break and offers some fine sport.
Ross Prior from Barnstaple took this double figure Brownie and bagged out with a 5 fish ticket for 19lb 6oz.
Fish tickets are 4 for £30.00, and 5 for £35.00, catch and release for £20.00/ day. Should anyone bag out and wish to carry on fishing its £5.00 with barbless hooks. All brownies to be returned, this allows other anglers the experience of catching double figured Brownies.
Fishery open dawn till dusk, days’ notice required for booking. Contact Nigel Early on 07767492800
Lure Weekend which was another great success with lots of fish caught! Please find enclosed the Winners and pictures attached.
Aaron Chuck won the overall Competition and caught 6 Species consisting of Pike, Perch, Rudd, Golden Rudd, Rainbow Trout and an amazing 15lb Common Carp with a total of 210.5cms!! To catch a Carp on a Lure is pretty special! Runner up was Michael Molloy with 6 species and Third place was Thomas Wilson with 5 species.
Biggest Cat was caught by Thomas Wilson who managed to land a 133.5cm Wels Catfish which gave him the fight of his life and also his Team Captain Ben Humber caught a Catfish within the same hour measuring 130cm, great angling!
Biggest Trout was caught by Dominic Cooke, a Rainbow Trout measuring 50cm.
Biggest Perch was 37cm caught by Mark Hawitt, 2nd biggest was 36.5cm caught by Alan Dicks.
Biggest Pike was 65cm caught by Lee Paynton.
Winning Team was Team Fox with 7 Species totaling 359cms.
So lots of Fish were caught throughout the weekend a jolly good time was had by all having fun, making friends and fishing – what more you could you ask for!
Aaron Jones sent us in this catch report from Melbury at the weekend. ‘After work session on melbury Friday night produced these 4 lovely carp to 18.14lb, all caught using Nash scopex squid off of the pre baited spot. 2 large hand fulls of 18mm baits over the spot after each capture kept them feeding’. Nice one Aaron…
Aaron Jones did a quick overnight session at Melbury and had been hauling again!!! Aaron said ‘After my Friday night session I decided to have another go last night and again they kept coming, all fish caught off the same pre baited spot of Nash scopex squid again topping up after each fish with 2 large handfuls of 18mm baits’. Aaron’s fish were 20lb 3oz, 17lb 4oz, 17lb and a low double.
A FEW NOTES ON BIG FISH CATCHING ON ROCKY SHORES
The next couple of months have much to offer the dedicated sea angler in North Devon with the open coast likely to see anglers land a variety of specimen fish. Fishing Open coast rock marks can be a dangerous pastime so always give careful consideration when planning trips. Safety should always be top of the agenda so always study the weather forecast and tide times. Local knowledge is invaluable when choosing where to fish but if this is not available study wind direction and check against a map to see how this will impact on the location. Google Maps can prove very useful for checking out marks giving some idea of topography. Ordinance Survey Maps will show public footpaths that give access to marks.
Joining a local angling club can also be a great benefit but you will need to make the effort to join and get to know the anglers before they give away all their secrets.
Always respect property and never leave litter it loses fishing and scars our marvellous coastline. It also ruins our reputation as environmentally caring.
During the winter months warm waterproof clothing is essential if you are to enjoy your fishing trips. Chillcheaters located in Braunton offer a superb range of quality gear that I can wholeheartedly recommend. Sturdy Footwear with good grip is vital for scuffling around on treacherous wet rocks. Rock Grip boots with studs are one of the best investments I have made in recent years and I struggle to comprehend how I once coped with standard wellies etc.
Lighting has dramatically improved in recent decades with headlights now light in weight offering powerful lighting options and long charging life with small batteries. I am currently using a Fenix HM 65 R that purchased from Veals Mail Order.
Big fish on the open coast demand strong tackle to give any chance of landing them so choose rods capable of casting 8oz, reels that can hold plenty of line with a good retrieve capable of pulling terminal tackle clear of snags and bullying big fish from rock and kelp.
Main lines of between 20lb b.s and 30lb b.s. I use a pulley rig for 90% of my winter fishing.
A leader with at least ten yards of line on the reel( With rig hanging from the rod tip) gives a chance of lifting moderate fish out of the sea. When targeting big fish I have started using Mason 49 Strand wire 175lb b.s. This is kink resistant an advantage with the large numbers of strap eels around the coast each winter.
Sakuma Manta Extra hooks are reliable with 4/0 to 8/0 suitable for big baits. A Pennel set up is probably more reliable for hook ups. There is a trend at present for using single catfish hooks. This can reduce snagging over rough ground and these hooks are without doubt capable of landing any fish hooked in the Bristol Channel.
Many will be reading this thinking that this approach is over the top. But there is no way of knowing what will take your bait. Tope, conger, spurdog, bull huss and big ray are all likely.
Big fish baits are order of the day with Ammo the best quality available in my experience. Mackerel, Squid, Bluey, Launce, herring, fresh pouting, whiting, rockling and flounder all have their day.
Landing fish is often the most risky time so ensure you have the right gear to give yourself a good chance. In calm conditions it might be practicle to grab the trace and fish using heavy duty gloves. Generally a long handled capacious net is the best option for bull huss and spurdog. A long handled gaff is an option if used carefully avoiding the vital organs but is a last resort in my view.
The key to success is of course being in the right place at the right time. Location + Weather + Tide + Experience and a little luck!
The minds eye stores many thousands of images some of which lie dormant whilst others linger on the surface never fading completely. As a teenager I fished from the Banjo Pier at Looe in Cornwall a place I have revisited on numerous occasions since those formative angling days in the early to mid seventies. Strange how certain things stick in the mind, I just checked out the year Carl Douglas released Kung Fu Fighting. For some reason I remember this playing in the amusement arcade in Looe all those years ago in 1974. I was thirteen and by then fishing at Looe with the local lads. ( I never actually liked the song but it stuck in the mind!)
My father had introduced me to sea angling during our annual holiday to Looe which almost always fell during the last week of September and first week of October. Then as now fishing was prohibited from the Banjo until October 1st. prior to 1974 I had fished with my parents and it was garfish, mackerel and Pollock that would drag a brightly coloured sea float beneath the surface. The garfish would toy with the bait causing the float to dither before sliding beneath the surface or lying flat as the garfish swam up with the bait. I probably caught my first fish from Looe when I was seven or eight.
Those childhood and teenage days are long gone, the essence of those days remain etched in that marvelous minds eye. Strange to say that whilst I have revisited the Banjo on many occasions with Pauline watching the ebbing and flowing of the tide, the coming and going of boats and the vast seascape I had not taken a rod in hand at the venue since my last holiday with my parents back in around 1976/7. This was I guess partially due to timing as it was generally out of bounds due to it being summertime.
I remember clearly how I had fished for grey mullet on the ebbing tide in the eddy formed as the estuary meets the open sea beside the old banjo. When discussing a trip to Looe with the Combe Martin Sea Angling Club where better to fish for mullet than my old haunt? My connection with Looe had resulted in a long-term friendship on Facebook with fellow angler Matt Pengelly. Matt is a fanatical sea angler who has fished Looe all his life. I have exchanged stories of Looe with Matt on many occasions and over the years he has freely shared a vast amount of information to which I owe him a big thank you.
As regards to the Looe mullet Matt confirmed my thoughts in that several generations of mullet later little has changed. Hence close to fifty years after catching my first sea fish I find myself on the banjo pier rod in hand along with our son James and five other members of the CMSAC mulleteers.
Quiver tips and floats are employed and mullet are caught up to around three pound.
I drop my orange tipped float into the ebbing flow. After drifting a few yards it dips slowly beneath those familiar clear waters. I lift the rod in expectation and feel a familiar gyrating motion transmitted through the line. I swing the garfish up into my hand, “Look a swordfish”, cries out a young child. I remember such comments being made all those years ago. The green scales stick to my hands and that distinctive small of fresh garfish triggers childhood memories.
I chat with Matt who has joined us on the Banjo for a while and he tells me of plans to redevelop Looe and its Harbour. I am saddened to hear of these plans to bring prosperity to this old Cornish town. The pleasures of Looe are simple and special and locked in my minds eye and I am sure in many others who have trod a similar path.
Looking back, I have a wealth of memories relating to fishing and the places it has taken me to. I also have memories of Ilfracombe when it had a pier and how the removal of that pier has contributed to the loss of a community. I Remember how on cold winter nights we would gather on the pier safe above surging waters; ever hopeful. Sadly I feel the essence of angling holds no tangible value to planners and councilors. The social benefits are overlooked in the search for marinas and visions of splendor.
Where lies the value in a garfish and a disappearing float?
Many thanks to the Summerlands Team for welcoming me into their treasure trove of fishing tackle to promote my book “I Caught A Glimpse”. It was an enjoyable couple of hours spent chatting with local anglers and reminded me of the importance of tackle shops in maintaining angling rich community.
Wistlandpound Fly Fishing Club members travelled to Clatworthy Reservoir high on Exmoor and enjoyed some fine autumn sport. All members caught but it was those who were in the right place early in the day who secured the best bags of hard fighting rainbows. On arrival at the lake overnight showers were clearing away and a vivid rainbow stretched across the lake as autumn sunshine beamed down onto the lake.
I started my day at the top end of the lake and used a bead headed Montana on the point with a diawl Bach and black buzzer on the droppers. A floating line and 8lb b.s leader completed the set up. Casting out with a stiff breeze blowing from my left I retrieved the flies slowly delighting as the line drew tight and hard fighting rainbows surged to and fro before being coaxed in the waiting net. Within just over two hours I had completed my five fish bag limit and spent the next three hours taking in the scenery and atmosphere. White clouds drifted quickly across the vivid blue sky, I watched as three buzzards drifted high on the thermals mewing continually as they often do in late summer and early autumn. Brown and bronze hues are starting to appear amongst the green signalling that the seasons change is starting to paint the countryside. Hard to believe that another summer has drifted into the past. The last time we fished here was in the spring with summer to come.
Wessex Water Ranger Danny Ford told me that it had been an excellent season with good fishing and plenty of anglers returning frequently to enjoy the fine sport on offer. We are very fortunate to have Clatworthy and Wimbleball offering the region some of the best trout fishing in the country.
Result :-
1st -David Eldred – Five trout 11lb 3oz
2nd – Colin Combe – Five trout – 10lb 9oz
3rd – Wayne Thomas – Five trout – 10lb
4th- Dave Mock – Four trout – 9lb 14oz
5th – Andre Muxworthy – Three trout – 7lb 8oz
6th – Paul Grisley – Three trout – 6lb 14oz
7th – Nigel Bird – one trout – 1lb 15oz
