Back with a bang

Having returned from Ireland after fishing some really tough conditions, it felt really good to be back on the North Wales coastline for a few days. As it was only a short return I really crammed in my sessions and fished hard for 3 days. Unsurprisingly when putting in that sort of effort I was expectant of a few nice surprises. With the TLF species hunt now getting tight at the top, it was time to break out the LRF tackle once again in hope of adding a few more fish on lures. Amlwch was the venue of choice and after some very disappointing sessions there this year, I had my fingers crossed that the mini's had moved into the area properly. It usually takes seconds for a bite when fishing the margins here so it's fairly obvious whether the fish are there or not early in the session, luckily for me this time they were :) First up was the ever present rock-goby which took my sabiki teaser. Then the fun started, with a bite a chuck for around an hour. After a number of small ballans and corkwings, I finally got through to a gold-sinny and my first new lure caught fish of the day. It was not going to be the only new one though. It really was exciting fishing and
although the other fellas on the breaky thought my mini fishing was silly, I couldn't see them catching anything but doggies so I wasn't to bothered and continued racking up the daily species tally with a smile on my face. The next fish was a nice surprise and came in the form of my first Amlwch dragonette which again went for the teaser. Surprisingly not a new lure caught species though due to my Cornish lure adventures at Mevagissey where I had 6 of them. Then there was another period of ballans again with a couple of pollock and a single coalie thrown in. After 20 or so minutes and nothing new I had a move from the end to the ladder on the inside of the breaky. First drop I had species 8 for the day, a blennie followed next cast by another of the blennie species, a tompot. Again more wrasse followed for 10 minutes before I finally got what I'd come for and species 49
 of the year, this beauty on the right, a leopard spotted goby which took the larger shirasu jig head and isome. That put me into double figures for the daily species tally and it wasn't ending just yet, although my stay on Amlwch breakwater was over.

I then switched spots to Sewer pipe in the Ravens Point area in hope of a cuckoo wrasse. I had watched one caught there a few weeks previous so new they were there and my fingers were crossed. The fish were there in good numbers with plenty of ballans jumping on the lures as soon as it touched bottom. I did think it would be a case of wading through them and after a good 20 fish I got the 11th species for the day, a small poor cod. At this point I had my usual shoulder pains so I had a short rest and watched a few guys on ravens pull in a few fish, including a fat tub gurnard. I couldn't resist a few more drops though before calling it a day and it proved to be a good shout. My 12th and last species for the day, a rock cook, again on the isome loaded sabiki. So after a good 6 hours fishing I had another 3 species to add to my lure caught tally and one

 new one for my overall tally. What a result!

Hope you enjoyed reading,
Tight Lines,
Ross

Wrass-tastic mini's session

 North East Angesey 13/05/2012

With the horrible winds blowing from the South West, my ideal species bashing mark was unfishable. Undeterred though I headed to find some shelter up near Amlwch and found a cracking little spot. I arrived there a few hours after low water and was hoping for some more species to tick off the list. I started off with LRF tactics, fishing a small piece of power isome (rag immitation) on a size 10 jighead and used in conjunction with a 0.5oz lead. The first fish of the day came after just 2 casts, a little pollock. I caught around 8 pollock before switching to more conventional mini-tactics. Now armed with a 3-hook flapper of rag baited size 12 sabikis it was wrasse time. I lost count of the amount of ballans and corkwings I caught, probably close to 20 of each in the end, but nothing of any decent size, will have a go with hardbacks soon to target the better ones. It was coming to high water and I still hadn't landed anything new so I moved a few hundred yards to another nice looking spot. The usual small ballans were there in force as well but after a while they turned off and I started to get a few more interesting fish. First off was a couple of small LS scorpion fish and then a few casts later, my 2nd rock cook of the year, which was a right fatty for its length. I kept at it, pulling in almost a fish a chuck for a good 90 mins and finally I got one of the species I was after, a gold-sinny wrasse (species 34) I could go home rather happy now but knowing there were at least a handful of species down there I was yet to catch, I continued. Only one more species came out and

 unfortunately it was one I'd already ticked off, a rock-goby. Though it was caught on unbaited sabikis, s new one on lures :) Last time the camera decided to pack in before I could get a photo so heres some proof of this one.So after 4 hours or so of mini-bashing I left the rocks a very content fisherman, with 7 species for the day and one new one for the tally. Just cuckoo wrasse to tick off now then from the wrasse family, unless I can somehow blag a baillons from Jersey later in the year, not holding out for that one though. The next report will hopefully involve a few smoothhounds from a boat trip we have planned for the 16th, weather permitting of course but I have faith in Gethyn to get us some fish regardless as long as its not called off, fingers crossed.

Hope you enjoyed reading,

Tight Lines,

Ross