Summer day at Ringstead Bay

Beach day with family at Ringstead Bay. Managed to get a few hours in searching for Bass. Just one Bass and a Wrasse  after covering a lot of ground. Nice paddle though with light winds.

Portland Bill excursion for Bass and Wrasse

Light winds and last of the summer sun had encouraged a long day trip to Portland Bill. A bit of old rag still left from a previous south coast trip but the focus was on lure fishing for Bass and Wrasse. First stop was the far end of Chesil where it met the Bill. My son and I traversed some impressive boulder fields to make our way down to an idyllic spot sheltered from the light easterlies. Loads of Gar were showing but we did not have the hooks or lures small enough to connect. After an hour or so I hooked a nice Bass of about 40cm on the Black Minnow and then the Wrasse started hitting the lures. The neap tide was on its way out mid way between high and low. After several bitten off lures we finally landed a nice Wrasse.

Time for change in scenery and we headed off for Pulpit rock at the end of the Bill. It frustrates me greatly when you can't pay for parking on your card. An app later and 30 minutes of faffing on the phone and finally we could park - is this meant to be easy arghhh? Pulpit rock was busy with sightseers and fisherman but we managed to slot in amongst them. After a few hours of fishing across low we managed a small Pollack and Wrasse but not easy fishing although we were distracted by the impressive scenery. We ended up back on Chesil to see the sunset. A long beautiful day and well worth the trip.

Bass, Wrasse and wrecks exploring the Jurassic Coast

Another day out on the South coast as the baking weather with lights winds continued. Launched yak from Ringstead and set off along the coast in search of Bass. Caught a nice sized schoolie and then lost a really good fish just yards from the boat. The tide was pretty low all day so although plenty of fish about they were hard to tempt. The water was like glass at times with the odd patch of mist rolling in. Snorkeling gave me insight to the busy world under the surface with plenty of Bass patrolling just yards from the beach and small pockets of territorial Wrasse.in amongst the kelp. Weedless lures all the way today made life easy although the Wrasse would make short work of the rubber lure.

Now for something different .. a bit of Bass fishing

Long baking hot day at Studland with family during which time I spent 3 hours out on the kayak. Some really big bass about as I drifted across the weed. Managed three schoolies on turn of tide that all went safely back on the Black Minnow. It was a case of paddling in and drifting out with the offshore. Casting in the channels amongst the weed. I had a big Pollack follow but did not convert.

South Coast Kimmeridge looking like Indo

Cracking swell on the Dorset South Coast shame my surfing was not quite there to take advantage of the most unbelievable waves. All the reefs lighting up down the coast with most of the crowds on the Bench and Ledges. Yellows and beyond towards Chapmans was the unridden realm...

Kayak trip to Lyme Regis

Spent the day kayaking with my youngest son kayaking the ledges to the west of Lyme Regis. An early Bass got me excited but this was short lived as the hours went by without a further take. Over the size limit but it went back as a present to the gods although I felt they didn't return the favour. Towards the end of the day the Wrasse came on the feed savaging my soft plastics and costing me dearly. Great little scrappers on light tackle though. It was a beautiful late summer day though with very little wind and fantastic scenery.

It's been a while but I will recap a glorious summer in the South west...

Spent many wonderful weeks in Cornwall. Kayak fishing and surfing with my family. Lots of Mackerel inshore and a few suprises but no Bass although it is a different story at time of writing with plenty of Bass now being caught along the South Coast.

Little video of two of my lads enjoying prolific Mackerel on the Roseland. One interesting trip out from Portreath saw a close encounter with an Ocean Sunfish and squid surprise. The squid regularly took the feather but rarely stayed on long enough to enter the boat!

 Back in July the Black Bream fishing was superb off the Solent with the shoals feeding on the moving tide and then switching off immediately on the slack.  

The surf was in no way great over the summer but I was super stoked to see my two eldest lads finally getting the bug. Now they know what it feels like to be a surfer!

I need to relocate returning to Bristol and work just doesn't get any easier.

Mixing it up the summer months from Black Bream, to Mullet, to Carp..

Some lovely summer weather has diverted my attention away from the trout to other quarry. My brother and I had a great session focussed on Black Bream from the kayak. Armed with squid and sabiki we headed for the Solent to a mark half a mile out. Within minutes of anchoring up we were into fish and this continued for an hour until the tide went slack. Incredible little fighters and good eating fish made this a rewarding day out. No Bass but plenty of Mullet in the shallows however they were not just not interested. Knowing the tides here is a must too much and its unfishable too little and the fish just aren't there find a happy medium and you will be rewarded.

 

Talking of Mullet huge numbers now up the Severn but still no luck. I am going to down size to Size 18 shrimp patterns as I observed large numbers chasing tiny organisms on the incoming tide. More success with the carp on local lake with warm evenings providing great sport off the top on dog biscuit flies.

 

Poole - pleasant paddle but disappointing catch

Fished Poole Harbour with my bro on the kayak. Calm overcast day with the sun breaking through every now again gave plenty of promise. We fished the boat channel and I had a few solid bites on squid on the bottom but did not connect. A couple of times we landed Spider Crabs but they were more of annoyance than a chance for celebration. After the tide had slowly come in we went inshore looking for Bass and Mullet keeping clear of the nursery area. Eventually the reel screamed off in just feet of water. No Bass but a solitary large Mackerel which I have to say was disappointing after the colossal fight it put up. A bit later into the afternoon and another surprise: after a few unsuccessful follows I caught nice Gar on a surface lure. The Bass were around but preoccupied on something other than what we had to offer. A long day and not much to show for it but a pleasant paddle in the warm late summer weather.

Southbourne Kayaking

Lovely Friday kayaking out of Southbourne with my bro and a friend, Pat, from his village. We set off with feathers, lures and a bit of squid I had left from an unsuccessful boat trip out of West Bay. Is it me or are charter boat trips just an excuse to fill small boat full of fee paying punters putting them on marks which are fished day after day just on the off chance someone on the boat might catch something half decent? Every time I go out I come in disappointed and really wonder whether the skipper has actually made an effort to put you on the fish. Anyway enough of the whinge back to kayaking where even if you don't catch fish its a wonderful experience and bit of exercise chucked in. We fished just a half a mile offshore. Rich picked up a Black Bream immediately. I had many tentative bream plucks and wished I'd taken my coarse hooks or fly hooks. I changed tactics and went onto a weighted eel and on the first cast hooked into nice little Gurnard. Rich and Pat went on to catch some Mackerel and I ended up with a second Gurnard. Not quite enough to feed the family but a pleasant day on the ocean nevertheless.

Solent Kayak fishing trip

Day out on kayaks from south coast. Beautiful spring day with neap tides, light winds and sunny skies. Four of us set out on the two Malibu Twos in search of Bass. Low tide incoming. Despite lots of trawling and fishing with rag, dug from the beach, no bites. Saw plenty of schoolies and a few bigger ones feeding on fry in less than a couple of feet of water just off the spit but just couldn't tempt one. Nevertheless a lovely day for a paddle. Had a workout on the way back with wind and tide against us. Lots of Brent Geese about and surprisingly very little boat traffic. Lots of enthusiasm but just that little bit early in the year perhaps.

Kimmeridge Perfection

Surfed Kimmeridge today with bro. Swell was forecast to be good size with light winds. When we got there it was a lovely glassy 4-5' with only a handful out. Caught some nice lefts on the Magic Carpet and had a real workout as the waves were breaking way out. Only complaint was as the tide dropped the peaks seem to break further and further out with less shoulder. All in all a great days surfing in fairly mild conditions. Although we surfed the Ledges, Yellows and the even the bay were showing form. The Bench was red flagged and we were serenaded by gunfire throughout the session!

Bos Vegas Surf - Surf Trip to South Coast

With a macking swell closing out most of North coast went surfing to today with bro and Rich W to South coast. Checked out Highcliffe which was headhigh at times and pretty wild. Watched a few guys struggling paddling out with no sign  of any definable rips to assist. Very few waves going down. Went to Avon Beach at Christchurch which looked great for SUPs. Wind light offshore with 3' fat waves peeling down the outer bank but just not enough for surfing. Ended up on the West side of Boscombe pier. It was not big but the swell direction was driving a current down the beach so it was hard work and a case of catch a wave then walk up the beach. Not great conditions but the sun was out and it was mild for the time of year. Artificial reef looked unsurfable! Swell was from the west about 10' with a 15 second period, the wind started light W and picked up throughout day.
On way home just past Ringwood thought we had seen a White Tailed Sea Eagle cross above us. Very big bird of prey with pale head. Apparently one has been seen in the area. Despite detouring off the main road we were unable verify.

Kimmeridge Surf - 4ft Clean

Surfed today. First time since end of October. Kimmeridge, the Ledges, was a glassy 4 foot with hardly any wind. Went with bro Rich and friend Tom. Surfed for 2.5hrs high tide going out. About 20 guys out at any one time, pretty relaxed session. Temperature about 10 C which is a heck of lot warmer than it has been of late. Took Magic Carpet out. Caught some lefts and then mainly rights that were basically drops with fat shoulders. Good to work off some of that Christmas flab and get motivated again. Not a big swell but from the South with 12 second period. No photos as Kimmeridge and most of the Country was shrouded in a a light misty, murky rain.