Jersey adventures part 2 with the LRF guys

First of all, the LRF guys team shot

Awake at 3.30am after around 90 minutes sleep, we were finally boarding and things were looking up. The predicted swell soon became apparent and the boat was moving around quite a lot. Whilst I tried to get my head down Lee disappeared to the toilet, I wouldn't see him again until 3 hours later. It's fair to say that he hadn't enjoyed his ferry ride along with 85% of the passengers on the boat. Fortunately, I am very good on boats so retained the contents of my stomach for the duration. It was a relief for everyone though when we arrived in Jersey for part 2 of my Jersey adventures.

As is customary now on my visits to the island, first stop was MrFish to see Mick and Bob who were also joined by Lee Birch and Mike Hayes this time around. We had a good chat about all things fishy and were also joined by Steve Mullins who kindly offered to help me on my hunt for a red mullet. After a good hour, myself and Lee decided to go and meet up with Scott at the hostel. The 3 amigos now together we thought up a game plan for the remaining hours of the day and got the rods ready for action. I had told Lee about the abundance of Giant gobies found in the rock pools all over the island so the first thing on our list was to get him one. I took them to a mark on the North coast I'd caught tonnes of them at on my previous trip including the beast and it wasn't to long before I found the first giant of the day. Scott was soon getting a few as well whilst I switched my attentions to the tiddlers in the pools hoping some of them would be two spot gobies. Switching to one of Scott's size 26 hooks I soon found out that they were in fact a mix of tiny rock and giant gobies. Lee then called Scott over to have a gander at one he'd landed and it was confirmed that he had his first giant goby and already his 4th new species of the trip. (The other fellas will add some photos)

Mission accomplished, the next effort saw us fishing for the rays which both Scott and Lee had never caught before. I'd made up a load of rigs in anticipation and chucking out sandeel and squid wraps (my favourite ray bait) we were soon getting bites from the doggie population which seem to plague everywhere nowadays. Scott however did get our target landing an Undulate ray of around 3lb. Even better was to come though for Scott all be it through some good luck. Whilst he had been reeling in his ray he'd caught his other line, pulling it right into the rocks. After photographing the ray he noticed his other rod knocking away and proceeded to bring in his first ever topknot and his 2nd new species of the night. Myself and Lee had to make do with dogfish and Pout though, I hate dogfish!

Our second day saw us hit St Helier harbour where we had hoped for another hoard of species. We did have plenty of fish throughout the session, the main culprits being the mass of black and rock gobies. In between the hoards of gobies though we did winkle out a few corkwings and a single ballan wrasse but it failed to produced anything exciting. At around 12ish, we headed over to MrFish once again to meet up with another LRF nut, Andy Marquis who had made the trip over from Guernsey to have a fish with us as well as to pick up his rather nice new red rod. Lee was suffering from the previous days boat trip and decided to give the next session a miss so whilst he got some kip, I went off to dig some lug leaving Scott and Andy to have a session on the rocks nearby. An hour later I went over to see how the guys were doing and still fishless, Scott tempted me to get out my LRF gear once more by showing me a pool with a few 2-spot gobies in, a species I'm yet to catch. 30 stressful mins later, defeat was admitted and even the size 26 hooks seemed to big lol Scott did get a single sand goby, but that was it. The evening saw us part ways, myself heading off with my smelly stuff in hope of a red mullet whilst Andy, Scott and the now recovered Lee headed out in search of a Scad. I'll leave the lads to tell there part of it but I failed to get a red mullet, catching a number of rockling and pout instead. My highlight was this double header of rockling, one a 3-beard, the other a shore rockling.

Day 3 : After the disappointing previous day, the Sunday was a day I was looking forward to, mostly due to the fact we'd be having an afternoon session with Steve Mullins. During the morning we headed to the North West coast to get out of the wind and hopefully hit into some wrasse and bass. It was very hard work again with Lee managing a single wrasse on a stick bait and myself hitting into a few small bass on my newly acquired mad shads mounted on a Xorus jighead. As is usually the case though after calling Scott and Lee over, the fish had disappeared. Then the time came to meet Steve on the beach to get some lug and try once again for the reds. We were also joined by Roger Mortimore, who I thoroughly enjoyed chatting to and listening to all his fishing stories, including his recent Oman adventure, very jealous. After digging plenty of worm we headed off to a few of Steve's marks, where despite our best efforts it wasn't to be on the red mullet front. The second mark he put us on did produce a steady flow of doggies and pout though which Lee and Scott were all to happy to catch. A huge thankyou to Steve though for his time and effort, sometimes it's just not to be and when the fish aren't playing nice there's not a lot you can do. With Roj keen to join us again the following morning though, it left me with one final chance to get my target.

Day 4 (the final one) - I have to say, with just the one day left and still no new species on my list, I was starting to get a little frustrated, but I was going to put in all my effort to this one last attempt. We all met with Roj at 8.30am and after a quick coffee and breakfast bap we headed off to a deep rock mark. Scott and Lee fished lure only whilst myself and Roj targeted the reds with some of the left over lug. The weather was awful, raining for the majority of the morning and hailing as well. Roj was first in with a small bream and then we both had dogfish to add to the mix. With all hopes of a red gone, I saw a small tap on my rod tip and immediately thought bream. I let it develop and eventually hit it connecting to something small. On the way in I picked up some weed but when I finally saw the fish surface and I had it on the rocks, I realised I'd got something a little special. It was my first ever Baillons Wrasse, a cracking looking fish and this one I believe is a specimen. My 64th species of the year, very happy chappy! At this point we departed from Roj, who had to shoot to work and decided to have another bash in St Helier harbour. Apart from a small dragonette I had on a huge bait it was yet again a 

goby fest with Scott getting loads of the little blighters on his LRF gear. I did try my best again to tempt a few 2 spot gobies I'd seen but once again, they were just to small for my hooks. 

With only a few hours remaining we decided to have one last bash at a North coast breakwater. Lee tried his best to bag a topknot whilst Scott and I raided the rock pools with the LRF tactics whilst Dan Ferguson who had come to join us watched on in disgust. When we got a few unfamiliar lookng gobies though we got excited. They may have only been a few cm's in length but were fairly confident that we both ticked of another new species. This time it was a painted goby. The blue tinge to the first dorsal was a giveaway feature as well as the clear markings on its flank and the number of rays in both its dorsal fins. Here are a few pictures I took. From these you can clearly see the distinctive markings and colours on the fish. 

 Both myself and Scott tempted these little stunners on a size 26 hook and a slither of Power Isome. So another species ticked off, 65 and counting. With that done we had to leave for the ferry, saying our goodbye's to Scott and leaving him in the very useful hands of Dan who was gonna take him to one of his marks in the search of a ray or conger. Read Scott's report for the details.

Thanks alot for reading and thanks once again to all those who helped us in any way, it's always a pleasure to come to Jersey and I'm planning another trip before the year is out. Jersey adventure part 2 is over, but part 3 is soon to come.

Tight Lines,
Ross

3-BEARD SAVES THE DAY

Bull Bay/Llanbadrig 26/02/12012

Not much to report from tonights session. Myself and Steve started at Bull Bay fishing at the back of the hotel over low water. Loads of pots all over the place so very restricted with casting. Gave it a good hour and a half with not a sniff so decided to change marks. A quick drive to Llanbadrig where we fished one of the ledges to the right of the church. Weather had turned miserable on our descent so was only gonna give it another hour or so before calling it a night and cutting our losses. Did pull out this nice 3-beard though of 1lb 13oz. Not big enough for the species list though as I had been pipped by an ounce by Ade Roberts (TSMIIC) Well done mate! Still a nice fish though and definitely better than a blank. Only other point of note was this interesting little bird we saw on the way back up. We think that it may be a Rock Partridge but if anyone has better identification would be nice to know from you. It was fearless and we managed to get within touching distance before it took off giving steve the fright of his life :)

Cheers for reading, Tight Lines, Ross

The night I smashed my pollock PB 4 times!

 South Stack Area 01/02/2012



Decided to fish a mark I found last year whilst out on the kayak in the south stack area. I had fished it a few times last summer with a few of my fishing pals and had a lot of success, catching 3 species of wrasse including ballans to near 5lb and pollock upto 4lb 9oz as well as many other species. With that in mind, I thought that it may be worth a try for the pollock/coalies this time of year. Myself, Ed, Jon and Martyn set off at 8pm
 aiming to get to the mark for low at 10.30 and fish it up to mid-tide. I had warned the others that the route to the ledge was a bit sketchy and to bring minimal gear which was definitely a good idea. After a short 10 minute walk it got interesting, scaling down one side of a ravine then up the other side just to have a small interval walking before the final descent to the mark. This took a further 20minutes or so in total. Finally reaching the ledge and everyone looking very warm despite it being below 0, we got set up eagerly anticipating the fishing. Jon and Ed went for the conger option and fished big mackeral baits close in whilst I opted for a 1-up rig baited with cocktails of rag/macky, rag/sandeel to target the pollock/coalies and anything else interested.

 My first bite came within 30 seconds of touching bottom and when the fish surfaced from the depths, I was shocked to see a fish I have never caught before, a topknot (species11, pictured top right). What a great start to the evening! Anyway, pictures taken and fish released it was back to the fishing. Again it wasn't long before my rod tip was rattling and up came my target species for the night, a pollock of roughly 1lb. What ensued after this was absolutely crazy. It had taken about 15mins but the rod-tip gave a quick bounce before slowly starting to arch over. Striking the fish I immediately knew it was a gooden but what was it. After a nice battle it was on the surface, a nice pollock. This one was a lot bigger than the first and at a guess was around the 3lb 8oz mark which was a new PB for me so I was chuffed. It was then quiet for thirty minutes or so

 before the bites were back again. The rod was arched over again with another good pollock and for the 2nd time in an hour I had a new pollock PB with this one being slighty bigger at 4lb-ish. Thinking this was my lucky day I continued with the same method catching a few more decent pollock and occasionally losing a rig to the very rough ground, but I couldn't care less. It was nearing midnight before I had my 5th pollock, just a baby compared to the two bigguns I'd aleady landed, but still around 2lb. Then finally one of the other lads, Jon, managed a fish, a small shore rockling which saved him the blank. Not really expecting much else I rebaited once more and chucked out into the little gulley I had found at about 20 yards out. Bang almost instantly and again I knew it was decent. After a short tussle freeing it from a snag the glimmering flanks appeared just under the surface and would you believe it, it was even bigger than the others, this one definitely being over 4lbs. I'm on the record list I thought, brilliant but it wasn't over. Having run out of rag now there was only one option, whole sandeel, how could these pollock resist. It took a few casts to find the gulley but sure enough it was found and after a long 35 minute wait a quick knock followed by a tell-tale slow arching of the rod indicated fish-on. This was no ordinary fish though and as the yards of line emptied from my spool I started thinking it could be a strappy.

The fish was constantly diving for the snags as I tried my best to heave it in and with the grating feeling of the line running through the rod I thought I was fighting a losing battle. But, after a few minutes the tides turned, it was in mid water and coming up nicely. One last dive for freedom before it was beached on the sloping rock ledge. My god I thought, its huge. Couldn't quite believe it but it was another pollock (pictured left). The fish measured a whopping 66cm's and for that reason this one was officially weighed at Malcolms at ABC the morning after and came in at 6lb 4oz. What a fish and yet again for the fourth time that night I had a new PB although this one will be a hard one to beat. Bait depleted I resorted to my last option, big mackerel baits to see if I could have a bit more luck than the others with the congers. It wasn't to be on the conger front but I did manage a nice 1lb+ 3-bearded rockling (species 12) to my nights achievements. Fishing now over at around 2am we climbed our way back up and over the steep cliffs to flat ground. A quick stop at menai bridge green to take a quick photo and give some of the other fishing lads some food for the next few days and it was home to bed. A cracking session, with my total being 7 pollock, a topknot and a 3-beard. Unfortunately Ed and Martyn blanked but it was very apparent that they had enjoyed the session and thats what fishing is all about in the end. Jon had saved his blank with his shore rockling but also thoroughly enjoyed the mark. This is definitely a mark I will be returning to soon if the winds are right! Below is a picture of the catch at menai green, the fish being in size order and the smallest being roughy 1lb.

Hope you enjoyed the read,

Tight Lines, Ross

Was this the night of a real monster?

 Point Lynas 22/1/2012

First of all a big thankyou to anyone who posted advice on WSF for us. Was much appreciated.

 As this was an unofficial Bangor Uni Sea Angling Society (BUSAS) meeting we had a few more than usual. A couple of the lads decided to opt for moelfre whilst myself, Ed, Jon, Martyn, Mark and Ash headed upto to Llam Carw and some deep water. None of us had fished this area, so before unpacking the rods we decided to have a wander around the headland. The area looks superb for a spot of deep-spinning! Can't wait to get the lures out up there when the water warms up a bit and the clarity is better. Unfortunately though the conditions on the day were not so good; fairly strong winds, a big swell and very murky water, so we decided to take a short drive to Point Lynas in hope of shelter. We set up on a couple of the ledges to the right, further back towards Llaneillan Bay which as hoped for were completely out of the wind. Fishing commenced at 3ish, just before low water and it didn't take long for myself and Jon to start pulling out the whiting on rag baits. For us at least, this continued throughout the remaining hours of daylight. For the other lads however, a slow start with no fish between them for the first couple of hours. It was just as dusk was approaching that the bites started becoming a little more interesting. Ed and Jon who had started fishing for conger close in were getting strong rattles from time to time but upon

striking would hit nothing but fresh air. Ash and Martyn fishing a little further along had managed to hook up a lobster as well as a few whiting and a solitary doggie between them. My first and only doggie was also caught during this period as well as a tiny poor cod I persuaded using a baited feather rig down the side. With the scratching rigs having now gone quiet is was time for a tactical change. Out with the 2-hook flappers and in with the beefed up conger rigs. As I was rigging up Jon had another knock on his conger rod and this time had managed to hook the culprit, this 3-bearded rockling pictured right. Greedy bugger had taken down 3/4 of a mackerel mounted on two 6/0 hooks lol. I had opted for a different bait though, freshly caught whiting. I've not had much luck with whiting in the past but as I had decided not to buy mackerel it was my best option. Half an hour past by and nothing, when out of nowhere whilst tidying up my gear the line started stripping off my reel, I was in on my whiting! The tell-tale head shakes were there and

from the off it had conger written all over it. After a short tussle, battling it from a snag it was free and on the surface. At roughly 6lb it was only a small strap but nevertheless a conger and my 9th species of 2012. Shortly after this Martyn, Ash and Mark decided to call it a day and head home whilst myslelf, Jon and Ed, who was desperate not to blank fished on and hallelujah he managed a couple of fish. Firstly a semi-decent poor cod and then a tiny whiting. Having now made everyone happy and with it nearing high tide, it was time for us to leave. On the way home Jon suggested as a bit of a laugh to text Martyn to tell him about a huge 33lb Conger we had landed last gasp. Martyn took the bait! Little did we know he'd taken it so seriously he had posted it on WSF. Now if that isnt fuel for the banter wagon I don't know what is :) So as you can figure the beast was not tamed tonight, it was merely rumour. It is out there somewhere though and one day just maybe!

Hope you enjoyed the read, Tight Lines, Ross