Scratching in the surf

Now certainly is the time of year when the fishing around South Devon can be particularly tough. The whiting have all but gone leaving the main targets relatively small, not easy to find and you simply have to put the hours in to get great results. This is not exactly an inspiring time for the everyday shore fisherman. The recent weather with a succession of low pressure systems causing strong winds and downpours  also does not get you feeling like heading out. There are fish to catch though if you want to enjoy a few hours on the beach as my dad and I have been doing recently.

If you have read my previous posts you will have seen that my dad has not long got into his shore fishing. For Christmas I had a 12ft rod remade up for him and ever since he has been chomping at the bit to get out and christen it. With the fishing not being too brilliant we opted not to travel far and have been hitting the beaches in the Dawlish and Teignmouth areas of the coastline. Our first sortee was to a small cove to the West of Dawlish beach. This was an area I had wanted to fish for a long time but had always been scuppered by big storms whenever I ventured down. This time, despite some high Southwest winds, the beach was decidedly fishable. The surf was stirring things up close to the shore and there was some fishy looking colour to the water.

The cove is surrounded by two small breakwaters protecting the train tracks behind. Beyond the breakers there are small broken reefs and gulleys. The place has a lot of potential for good fishing in my opinion. This first ever session saw us casting from the centre of the beach on a rising tide. I fished a large bait into the surf hoping for a nice bass and another rod further out to see what else might be about. Dad was getting to grips with casting his new, more powerful rod and was flicking small baits just beyond the breakers, at most, 40 yards. Squalls of rain and breeze came and went as the tide slowly rose. I knew fishing would be tough and the first couple of hours proved me right with no bites and barely a touch on any of the baits. Just before dusk began to settle in I noticed my dad’s pull down sharply and rise back into position, a definite bite but not the bass bite I expected to see in such conditions. Dad was keen to see if he had a fish but waited patiently to see if the bite would show again. A cup of coffee later and he could take it no more. A bend in his rod tip showed me he had something on and it wasn’t long before a nice plump flounder was sliding up the sand out of the churning waves.

Not the biggest fish but it made my dad’s day and got him a fish on his new rod. It was in great condition and duly went back strongly. Inspired, dad carried on casting just beyond the surf line saying he wanted a bigger one! Unfortunately that didn’t transpire. Darkness fell completely around us at the top of the tide, broken only by the lights of the passing trains, their rumbling muffled by the pounding waves. I struggled even after dark and had no bites at all. My dad however thoroughly enjoyed himself adding pout and shore rockling to his haul. With the tide ebbing away we became aware that there was a chill in the air and looked up to see a glorious clear sky full of stars which seemed in sharp focus that night. We called it a night a couple of hours after high water and arranged our next trip for the following week.

This time we made our way to Teignmouth to fish the main beach not too far from the mouth from the River Teign.

This is a beach I have had some really good fishing sessions from in the past. My personal best flounder came from nearby and the bass fishing can be non-stop later in the year. The river itself is one of the most famous flounder estuaries in the country. With large gusts of wind blowing straight down the estuary the beach was the obvious choice to have the breeze coming over our backs. We adopted the same tactics as the week before and fished the tide up. Once again bites were hard to come by until just before dark when dad missed what looked like a good flounder bite; my fault for telling him to lift into it too soon! Not long after the sun had disappeared behind Dartmoor did the fish come on the feed in force. I got the first bite on a small bait cast as far as I could get it (not a bad distance with the wind behind!) It looked suspiciously like a whiting but I was very pleased to find a small bar of silver skim its way through the coloured sea to my feet.

This was followed straight away by another. Then my dad’s rod start tapping away with the signs of another fat little school bass. The fish were really on the feed. I’d set dad up with some small wire booms on his rig which seems to work fantastically in the surf, the short snoods rarely tangle and the catch rate was much higher than for my plain flapping rig. He was over the moon to land a double shot of bass and a whiting, followed up with more bass. He then added a fat five-bearded rockling to his count.

He was catching two fish to one on me using his scratching rig in the surf and was overjoyed at the end of the session when he tallied up six species over his two sessions, three of them new fish for his catch list. I was happy with a few schoolies myself and I also winkled out a five-bearded rockling for my annual species tally right on the last cast of the night. Two very enjoyable trips at not the best time of year. It was awesome to see my dad really getting to grips with his fishing now. We will be out together again very soon to try to up his species tally and see what else we can get from the local surf beaches.

Elsewhere around the coast it has been a similar story of school bass and various smaller species. Interestingly a few smoothounds, small plaice and rays have started to show in the South Hams areas, hopefully a sign that it won’t be long before things improve dramatically. My good friend Mark has been out and about trying for the big predators. A few strap congers have come his way. He also caught an intriguing rarity, a topnot, on one of his conger baits.

A fish I’ve never seen in the flesh but becoming a more common capture in these days of species hunting and LRF fishing.

The coming weeks locally will see hopefully more plaice turning up around the South Hams. Small eyed, spotted and thornback rays are also viable targets as the month progresses. If the weather settles down a bit and the sea clears, mackerel will also be showing from the Torbay marks.

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Scratching in the surf

Now certainly is the time of year when the fishing around South Devon can be particularly tough. The whiting have all but gone leaving the main targets relatively small, not easy to find and you simply have to put the hours in to get great results. This is not exactly an inspiring time for the everyday shore fisherman. The recent weather with a succession of low pressure systems causing strong winds and downpours  also does not get you feeling like heading out. There are fish to catch though if you want to enjoy a few hours on the beach as my dad and I have been doing recently.

If you have read my previous posts you will have seen that my dad has not long got into his shore fishing. For Christmas I had a 12ft rod remade up for him and ever since he has been chomping at the bit to get out and christen it. With the fishing not being too brilliant we opted not to travel far and have been hitting the beaches in the Dawlish and Teignmouth areas of the coastline. Our first sortee was to a small cove to the West of Dawlish beach. This was an area I had wanted to fish for a long time but had always been scuppered by big storms whenever I ventured down. This time, despite some high Southwest winds, the beach was decidedly fishable. The surf was stirring things up close to the shore and there was some fishy looking colour to the water.

The cove is surrounded by two small breakwaters protecting the train tracks behind. Beyond the breakers there are small broken reefs and gulleys. The place has a lot of potential for good fishing in my opinion. This first ever session saw us casting from the centre of the beach on a rising tide. I fished a large bait into the surf hoping for a nice bass and another rod further out to see what else might be about. Dad was getting to grips with casting his new, more powerful rod and was flicking small baits just beyond the breakers, at most, 40 yards. Squalls of rain and breeze came and went as the tide slowly rose. I knew fishing would be tough and the first couple of hours proved me right with no bites and barely a touch on any of the baits. Just before dusk began to settle in I noticed my dad’s pull down sharply and rise back into position, a definite bite but not the bass bite I expected to see in such conditions. Dad was keen to see if he had a fish but waited patiently to see if the bite would show again. A cup of coffee later and he could take it no more. A bend in his rod tip showed me he had something on and it wasn’t long before a nice plump flounder was sliding up the sand out of the churning waves.

Not the biggest fish but it made my dad’s day and got him a fish on his new rod. It was in great condition and duly went back strongly. Inspired, dad carried on casting just beyond the surf line saying he wanted a bigger one! Unfortunately that didn’t transpire. Darkness fell completely around us at the top of the tide, broken only by the lights of the passing trains, their rumbling muffled by the pounding waves. I struggled even after dark and had no bites at all. My dad however thoroughly enjoyed himself adding pout and shore rockling to his haul. With the tide ebbing away we became aware that there was a chill in the air and looked up to see a glorious clear sky full of stars which seemed in sharp focus that night. We called it a night a couple of hours after high water and arranged our next trip for the following week.

This time we made our way to Teignmouth to fish the main beach not too far from the mouth from the River Teign.

This is a beach I have had some really good fishing sessions from in the past. My personal best flounder came from nearby and the bass fishing can be non-stop later in the year. The river itself is one of the most famous flounder estuaries in the country. With large gusts of wind blowing straight down the estuary the beach was the obvious choice to have the breeze coming over our backs. We adopted the same tactics as the week before and fished the tide up. Once again bites were hard to come by until just before dark when dad missed what looked like a good flounder bite; my fault for telling him to lift into it too soon! Not long after the sun had disappeared behind Dartmoor did the fish come on the feed in force. I got the first bite on a small bait cast as far as I could get it (not a bad distance with the wind behind!) It looked suspiciously like a whiting but I was very pleased to find a small bar of silver skim its way through the coloured sea to my feet.

This was followed straight away by another. Then my dad’s rod start tapping away with the signs of another fat little school bass. The fish were really on the feed. I’d set dad up with some small wire booms on his rig which seems to work fantastically in the surf, the short snoods rarely tangle and the catch rate was much higher than for my plain flapping rig. He was over the moon to land a double shot of bass and a whiting, followed up with more bass. He then added a fat five-bearded rockling to his count.

He was catching two fish to one on me using his scratching rig in the surf and was overjoyed at the end of the session when he tallied up six species over his two sessions, three of them new fish for his catch list. I was happy with a few schoolies myself and I also winkled out a five-bearded rockling for my annual species tally right on the last cast of the night. Two very enjoyable trips at not the best time of year. It was awesome to see my dad really getting to grips with his fishing now. We will be out together again very soon to try to up his species tally and see what else we can get from the local surf beaches.

Elsewhere around the coast it has been a similar story of school bass and various smaller species. Interestingly a few smoothounds, small plaice and rays have started to show in the South Hams areas, hopefully a sign that it won’t be long before things improve dramatically. My good friend Mark has been out and about trying for the big predators. A few strap congers have come his way. He also caught an intriguing rarity, a topnot, on one of his conger baits.

A fish I’ve never seen in the flesh but becoming a more common capture in these days of species hunting and LRF fishing.

The coming weeks locally will see hopefully more plaice turning up around the South Hams. Small eyed, spotted and thornback rays are also viable targets as the month progresses. If the weather settles down a bit and the sea clears, mackerel will also be showing from the Torbay marks.

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Chasing Winter Silver

On a blustery and damp Monday night in February, I find myself searching for silver. The ‘Tamar Tarpon’ (I unfortunately can’t take credit for that excellent nickname) aka the Atlantic herring, rumoured to be in the river in huge numbers. An LRF angling opportunity on my doorstep I’d be a fool to miss. Not one to sit bored watching television, I ready the rod and make my way to the river.

I don’t fish the Tamar often enough, it’s the river that divides Devon and Cornwall neatly almost the entirety of the border. The lower reaches and the mouth of this river are only a two minute walk from my house, yet in my own desire for wilder climbs I often ignore it. Not this night though, tonight I’m embracing my local, if not exactly picturesque, fishing marks.

Drizzle, wind and low temperatures, what else could you possibly desire?

The sun is long gone and the only illumination left is the orange glow of streetlights. The cloud is low and reflects the light pollution, almost gives the impression there’s embers burning behind it. I’m at my first mark and it’s as far removed from the more poetically beautiful coastline, only a few miles away, as you can get. North Corner Pontoon in Devonport. It’s grubby, ugly and home to many a rat, but I love it. I caught my first fish here, a tiny ballan wrasse, so I’ll always have a soft spot for it. It’s a popular mark and there are already two anglers bait fishing on the pontoon.

I’m not interested in fishing from the pontoon though, I require a casting point where light hits the water. To the right there is a large accessible ledge with a streetlight beaming onto the surface. I know this to be a fish magnet, any area with artificial light on the water at night, provides a great chance of holding fish. The wind is strong, though not consistent, so I opt for a heavier jighead than I’d ideally like. Three grams might not seem like a lot, but it falls a little too quick through the water column for my liking, but it’s the only way to get the lure out there in this wind so I persevere. I lift the rod tip constantly to slow the fall but I’m cautious not to be too erratic.

Small ‘ballzy worm’ lures bring small plucks and hits but nothing concrete. I switch over to an inch of the ever reliable Power Isome and it brings instant results. I use a slow pulsing retrieve through the artificially lit water and a fish is on. The spirited dive with no real power gives up the perpetrator immediately, a tiny pollack. Quickly I follow it up with two more. The silver fish are eluding me!

Fishing at night and quality photos do not go hand in hand, but these micro pollack deserve a little limelight, they save many a blank!

It’s very clearly obvious the herring aren’t here so I move on. I head to probably my least favourite mark in Plymouth, Mount Wise. I have no real reason not to like it, the area holds fish and regularly throws up great catches yet I can’t get on with it. It’s a very open and exposed promenade with few obvious features besides streetlights. I suppose it doesn’t help that it holds a greater selection of trolleys and baskets than your average Tesco! It’s these snags that make me thankful I’m using a cheap AGM jighead tonight, I can afford to lose two or three of these.

These cheap AGM jigheads are perfect when fishing snaggy areas, combined with a length of Power Isome you will always find fish.

There’s three fishermen bait fishing on the most prominent spot, a small pier that juts out a couple of metres to either side. To the right of me at the end there is an angler fishing LRF under the streetlamp. Unfortunately the spot I wanted to try but alas I’ll try left. I make my casts into the dark, the random gusts of wind blow me off balance. It’s not easy to keep in touch with my lure at times. This is both the frustration and joy of winter LRF, the conditions are awful but the satisfaction when you catch a fish is addictive. I keep casting, trying out different depths but, with only one stray hit to work with, it’s uninspiring stuff!

The three guys fishing on the pier have moved and I’m wasting no time in trying there. The gap between one side of the pier and the inside wall is well lit and calm. If there’s fish anywhere they must be here. I cast out and then twitch it back, keeping it about a metre under the surface. A solid hit! Then another. The hits continue without a hook up right until it’s under the rod tip. I cut down the Isome so it barely extends past the hook and recast. The hit is instant again but this time I connect. The fish feels rather strong and it’s definitely not a pollack. It is a few metres out and is dogged in it’s fight against me. Though not large enough to take line, I’m relieved when I see silver. Unfortunately though, not silver enough to be a herring. I get it on land and it’s revealed to be a sand smelt, a rather large one too.

A chunky little sand smelt, a welcome sight on chilly nights!

Sand smelt are a small species of pelagic shoaling fish. They are unusual in that they are not particularly slimy and smell rather pleasant. It can only be described as cucumber-like. The one I hold in my hands is certainly the chunkiest I’ve ever caught, though still only about five inches long. I try to contain it’s wriggling for two seconds to take a picture, not easy in the wind and drizzle. After a couple of satisfactory photos it is returned to swim again.

I really want a herring now and subsequent casts have brought me only more smelt. As lovely as they are I want a real pull on the rod, something that right now only a herring or a bass is going to provide. The LRF’er on the end looks like he’s packing up, so I figure he’s worth chatting to, perhaps he’s had more luck with the herring than I. I walk over and on the floor in a plastic bag is my answer, it’s full of herring (and a little annoyingly, an undersize pollack, but I’m not in the mood to pick a fight). The chap is leaving but says there’s plenty of herring here still, which is music to my silver deprived ears.

The streetlight beams directly onto the water here and you can occasionally see fish flashing under the surface. I put on a slightly longer piece of Isome and cast out just beyond the light. I twitch it back for immediate results. A real pull back, then another, then I strike and connect. This fish is no smelt! It’s turbo-charged and takes line handsomely then shakes the hook. This happens again twice. The fourth fish is truly on and I yank it in just so I can see it.

This photo really shows the varied colour palette in the herring. True disco balls in fish form.

The ‘Tamar Tarpon’ in all it’s iridescent glory, those silver scales reflecting blues, pinks and lilacs at me. A true disco ball of a fish. Their mouth is incredibly thin and it’s easy to see how the hook pulls out so often. Trying to take pictures of such a lively fish, whilst also trying not to shake any of it’s scales off is a test. Their beautiful large scales seem to be held on by a thread, they lose them so easy and I’m careful to minimise touching the fish. Unlike the angler before me I require no food for the pot, just the simple joy of catching such a beautiful thing. I quickly return it.

With that tarpon-like mouth and slim, streamlined build, it’s no wonder these fish fight so well.

I’m now hooking fish after fish, a lot are shaking the hook right at the end. This suits me as I’m only here for the fight. With the drag set light the herring rocket off! Some go deep and fight like a scad, others do their best impression of a garfish and leap from the water. In difficult wind and a constant drizzle, it’s a relief to find such electric sport. I milk each fight and there are many, I lose count but it’s easily over twenty in only fifteen minutes. Only mackerel can rival this species for sheer numbers, greed and outright speed!

With a massive smile on my face I head home, my lust for silver abated. As I drive home I see the flickering of televisions on curtains, I imagine the people inside, warm but numbingly watching television. I’m chilled to the bone and smell of herring, but I know who had the more memorable of nights.

If you enjoyed this post then take a look at my blog.

You can also find me on Facebook here. Feel free to contact me if you would like any advice or if you just want to talk fishing.

I’m on Instagram too, search – benbassettfishing.

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A rough weekend ahead

The UK is currently being  hit by storm Doris and it looks like it will continue throughout the weekend and into middle of next week. As you can see from this vide shot by Izzy Ismet of Underwater Explorers, conditions on Chesil are pretty rough.

This morning the wind has dropped and the beach is fishable. It is one of those short windows of opportunity that most anglers are unable to take advantage of. However if you are not working today, it could be well worth the effort of getting some bait and traveling to Chesil. There is always a good chance of a decent Cod or two and there should be plenty of Whiting around. Let’s not forget the large Conger that we have seen during February and March over the past couple of years.

The bad news is, that unless you can  get out today, you will not be able to get on Chesil for the next few days. That doesn’t mean that you can’t fish, you will have to look at other venues. Have a look at this article on where to fish  in a SW gale

You could always have a try in the rivers as I did yesterday. I fished the  Stour and managed a number of Pike, the biggest being this one of around 8lb on a lure.

If you are interested in winter lure fishing for Pike, take a look at my video from last year. It is from the same stretch I fished yesterday

Sea Conditions: Water temperature 8.4°c

Chesil Beach: rough with coloured water becoming unfishable on Saturday

Portland: rough with coloured water water.

Portland Harbour: wavelets lightly coloured water

Weymouth Bay: calm with lightly coloured water

Chesil Beach forecast:  If you don’t get on Chesil today, I wouldn’t bother trying tomorrow. It will be unfishable. There is the chance of a small window on Sunday morning, but I wouldn’t risk it myself.

If you are going today then use black and blow lug, or large fish such as Mackerel or Squid on  up and over rig.  There is a good chance of a Cod and some Whiting, but expect plenty of Dogfish and Pout.

Portland: keep clear of the rocks close to the waters edge, they will be very dangerous with the large swell.  This rough and coloured water are ideal for Bull Huss and you may well see a few Conger as well. Large Mackerel baits, fished with a rotten bottom rig should keep tackle losses to a minumum.

Portland Harbour: The harbour will provide sheltered fishing over the weekend. There have been plenty of Flounder caught recently and that should continue over the weekend. A wishbone Rig baited with rag worm would be my choice to target them.

Weymouth Bay: Another good venue to get shelter from the winds. Flounder and Dabs will be the main target during the day, but as darkness falls Rays and Whiting should make an appearance.

The Piers will not be the most comfortable of marks, but the inner harour could provide some good LRF fishing, if the water is clear enough.

Guiding: Bass fishing in the spring should be even better than in previous years. The ban on all commercial fishing during February and March, combined with a huge cut in the quotas, will all go to help increase the stock levels. The season carries on until the early winter, so make sure you book early this year.

I specialize in lure fishing and I am offering Fly fishing this year as well. I am still more than happy to go after the multitude of species in this area with bait, whether that is big Wrasse, explosive Smoothound fishing or targeting the tastier fish such as Plaice and Bream. If you want to book a session or find out more information drop me an email at [email protected]

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Whiting Wonderland

My fishing trips have been rather one dimensional through January. Following a successful trip first out finally locating a few winter flounder I decided to head out to the open coast for much of the month in search of dabs. These little flatfish have become scarce in South Devon in recent years. A few decent specimens still appear in January, usually from the South Hams beaches, but they are also caught from the deeper water marks around Torbay. I had a couple of sessions in the bay in the month, firstly at a favourite rock mark, Thunder Hole. As with many of the Torbay rock marks this location is based around an old limestone quarry but derives its name from the past when there used to be a blow hole in the rocks. This has long since eroded away but the sea still surges up the gulley with some ferocity.

The mark isn’t the most comfortable to fish with rocks standing at angles but it is worth the effort if you put the hours in. I was hopeful I might find a dab or two casting onto the clean sand out towards the centre of Torbay but unfortunately I was plagued by whiting. Every cast resulted in at least one fish, each around the 10oz mark.

Two weeks later a similar story was the result when I headed to Babbacombe Pier, also in Torbay. In the past I had had good results here for dabs in the wintwr including a personal best of around 1lb. The pier is a short concrete platform which juts out into Babbacombe Bay. The range of species it is possible to catch here is phenomenal; virtually anything could show. The pier was busy when I arrived but I managed to squeeze in at the very end, ideal for casting onto a sandbank in the bay where the flatfish like to hold up. However it was not to be and another succession of average sized whiting devoured my baits before anything else could find them. I did get to witness another angler fishing a club match land a lovely 1lb fish. This was huge and should have been much heavier but it was very thin. Rain came down halfway through my session which saw the majority of guys leave and eventually I had the pier to myself which allowed me to fan my casts around a bit more. I found plenty more whiting but was finally rewarded, not with a dab but a feisty small conger eel.

With January over and whiting everywhere I felt a change of scene was in order. I contacted my good friend Mark to see if he was up for heading out. Mark is passionate about fishing for big predators from the shore and spends a lot of his time casting large baits in search of a conger eel or big bull huss. Despite this Mark has enjoyed fishing alongside me when I’ve been searching for flatties. However this time I felt I wanted to see how the heavy duty fishing is done. Years ago he had shown me a spot on Sharkham Head, close to Brixham. Having only fished it once before I suggested we try to avoid the whiting and have a go here. The area is well known for its rough ground, perfect for big predators to hunt around. A good number of double figure huss and eels are caught in the area every year. From here Mark would have the opportunity to fish heavy and I was keen to search out the ground further out to see what potential the mark might have for other species. A few years had passed since we’d been down and it took us a while to find our way through the undergrowth to the location. Casts were made in the dying light of another beautiful winter day. I had found that the ground further out from our rock platform was decidedly mixed. I use sharp but springy hooks which bend out of snags quite well under pressure and managed to not lose too much gear. I also had the pleasure of catching a beautifully marked sea scorpion before the light faded away. He was in full breeding colours! I love how boisterous these fish are and he buzzed angrily before I popped him back in the water to continue his search for a mate.

Not long after we lost the light we also hit the bottom of the tide. Mark suggested this was a good time for interest from predators in his big fish baits cast no more than 40 yards from our perch. His feelings were spot on as not long after a couple of short runs clicked off his ratchet. Feeling for the fish to run again he expertly lifted into something which fought back. Excitedly I got my gear out of the way in case I needed to get down to land the fish. My excitement, and Marks, were short lived as not long after a conger eel rolled on the surface before spitting the hooks and dropping back into the depths. It wasn’t a huge fish, maybe 10lbs at the very most but it would’ve been great to get it ashore. The next few hours flew by without anymore interest. I landed a small pout but it was very quiet. I had started to think about how catching lots of whiting might have been preferable to a slow session on the rocks when, half tide up, Mark’s ratchet buzzed into life once again. This time the fish really scrapped. A tug of war ensued and I hoped we would be seeing a decent eel but instead a decent huss rose to the surface. I scrambled down the rocks to help lift the fish up to our camp. I am always impressed by the power of these animals. We speculated that it might go to eight pounds but the scales only pulled down to 6lb 7oz. Still a great fish to see.

I will have to get myself some slightly heavier gear and have a concerted effort at targeting some of these predators myself, they could persuade me away from flatfish, especially when its a wonderland for whiting on the open coast through the winter. I think the mark has a lot of potential for a number of species and I will experiment here again at another time of year to see what might be about.

We are now entering the doldrum times around our coast. Whiting, dogfish, pout and rockling have been the main catches recently with a fair few bass around. Interestingly mackerel are being caught around Torbay with plenty of herring mixed with those shoals. February is a tough time to fish in general but locally huss and conger eels will still be around from the rough areas. Now is a good time to try for thornback rays from the estuaries of the Dart and Salcombe. Night tides are best but these fish can be caught in daylight, finding the right state of the tide is the key. Early plaice may start to be caught toward the end of the month.

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LRF Profile – The Giant Goby

With the continued popularity of Light Rock Fishing, it perplexed me that there are not more detailed guides on mini-fish species. Having spent all of 2016 species hunting, I wanted to put my own mini-guides out there for the intrepid LRF angler, starting with one of the biggest and, in most places, rarest rockpool predator.

Gobius Cobitus – the giant goby, truly lives up to it’s name. Of all the inhabitants of the intertidal zone, few can rival this fish for size. Growing to nearly a foot long and weighing up to nine or ten ounces, it is the king of the rockpool. From an angling perspective it’s an intriguing target, with location being significantly more important than tactics when targeting them.

A large male giant goby, in full breeding colours.

These fish are plentiful around the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic. The UK is at the northern most tip of their range so they are much rarer in our waters. Unfortunately, if you live further north than South Devon, you are going to be extremely lucky to find them. Though recently they were discovered in a rockpool survey near Newquay, so perhaps as our waters warm they will move northwards, like many species already have.

For the species hunter or mini-species enthusiast who wishes to catch this sometimes very elusive fish, fishing on the south coast of Devon and Cornwall is a must. It takes a particular breed of angler to actively seek out such a fish, their habitat being predominately along rocky and sometimes dangerous coastline. I often find the best giant goby rockpools whilst out targeting wrasse or bass, they share the same habitats and bringing an LRF set-up with you can prove great fun, especially if the larger fish are not playing ball!

I tempted this goby from a tiny rockpool, having unexpectedly spotted movement in the corner of my eye.

As you clamber across rocks from gulley to gulley you will come across rockpools. The average angler might ignore these but very often they can hide giants. If you are loud or clumsy you will often see splashes or ripples caused by spooked fish, shooting back under the nearest rock or boulder. If you are tactical and quiet, keeping a low profile, these fish can prove quite bold. A small lure – and I really mean any small lure that can be worked effectively in shallow water – slowly pulled seductively near a crevice can result in a ferocious take! Giant gobies are not shy biters if they don’t feel threatened. Many times I have had two or three attempting to take the lure, fighting amongst themselves, with the largest normally winning the prize.

A more typically coloured giant, refusing to let go of the lure!

Not every rockpool will hold fish, but if you find one goby then there will undoubtedly be others. You can easily lose an hour trying to tempt the largest fish in the rockpool. The ideal pool will be around a foot deep and be full of small boulders and crevices. The fish need to feel comfortable in order to make it a home. Don’t ignore the rockpools that are further up the rock-face and look lifeless, if they have an inlet of water (be that salt or fresh) they will quite often surprise you, especially if the weather has been particularly rough. Giant gobies will of course live in deeper water too, though I find this an inefficient place to specifically target them, with wrasse or pollack being much more likely to take your lure first.

Another male fish, who fell for the classic two inches of Isome on a jig head trick.

Lure selection is by far the easiest part of trophy goby hunting. When they are confident they will take almost anything. I found my first goby by casually flashing a metal shore jig in a likely rock pool, the fish shot out and hit it. I quickly changed to a more suitable size eight jig head with Isome to land it, yet I could have realistically caught it on the jig if I had persisted and know others who have. These fish have big mouths and will hunt anything that has the misfortune to swim into their path. Small Fiiish Black Minnows and crab imitation lures are well within the feeding ability of the larger specimens. Though for the best success I prefer lures no larger than two inches, with scented or flavoured just slightly outperforming unscented lures.

Four of the most common gobies in comparison. clockwise from the top left – giant goby, rock goby, sand goby and black goby.

One of the trickier aspects of species hunting, especially when targeting gobies, is identification. Gobies are notoriously tricky but giants are fairly simple to identify. Firstly even small giant gobies are much broader and round in profile than their cousins. They also have much smaller eyes in relation to their heads. Their colouration ranges from light brown to nearly jet black but will always have a ‘salt and pepper’ speckling across them. In the breeding season, which appears to be in late winter/early spring, some males turn very dark and develop a beautiful blue edge to their rear fins, if you look closely you will see faint blue stripes around dark spots in their dorsal fin. They really are a stunning fish to look at.

Detail of the intricate markings on the male’s dorsal fin.

It’s crucially important you practice catch and release with giant gobies. Firstly, they are protected by law and it is a felony to kill or take one. Secondly, being such a rarity in British waters by a whole, it’s our duty to be responsible when targeting them. Since they are a rockpool inhabitant, they are a tough species and with gentle handling they swim away strong, with only a bruised ego for their troubles.

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Late winter fishing options

February can be one of the worst months of the year for fishing, especially on Chesil Beach. It is hard to get motivated and leave the warmth of your home, to sit on a windswept and wet beach, just to catch a few Rockling and the odd undersized Whiting. Having said that, I would rather do that and catch a stunning sunset, than sit in front of the TV.

A big thanks to fellow angler Izzy Ismet of Underwater Explorers, for the picture.

So do we have to look forward to in this late winter spell? Daylight fishing on Chesil may not produce much, unless we get another good SW blow, but night tides produced some exceptional Conger over the past couple of years. There is no need for big casts to get to them, they often swim very close to the shore looking for Pout and Whiting that Squid have attacked then dropped.

Pollock are in their prime during the winter months and as soon as we get some clear water, I will be targeting them with lures from the shoe. Marks such as Chesil Cove and Portland Bill are amongst my favourites. I have found that using small metal shore jigs such as the  one pictured below from Fladen, have proved deadly, with sessions where you are getting a hit or a fish on almost every cast.

Another of my favourite species in the winter has to be Wrasse. I prefer to target Wrasse using lures, but this is much more difficult during the colder months. This is one of the few times that I target them using bait. Hardback, or hermit crab are a brilliant bait, but on some days they prefer Ragworm. If you are targeting Wrasse at this time of year, you will have to go heavy. I use 30lb mainline straight through to the rig, then use a simple one hook flapper with a rotten bottom.

Flounder fishing can be in its peek during the latter part of Winter and you can see from some of the reports from Leo and Tom Just how good it is.

The Purbecks often fish well for late Bass and large Rays. They are not the easiest marks to fish, but the effort can be worth it. as Ben Stockley proved on a recent trip.

 

Lets not forget LRF. For me the best time for LRF fishing is in the winter, when a lot of the larger species are not around. Yes you don’t get as many species as in the summer but it is great fun catching Flounder, Gobies and Herring on light tackle. We will be featuring a lot more LRF in the coming weeks.

Sea Conditions: Water temperature 8.3°c

Chesil Beach: Slight swell with lightly coloured water

Portland: Calm with lightly coloured water water, except on the East side, where the swell is in excess of 1m

Portland Harbour: wavelets clear water

Weymouth Bay: 1m surf extending out to 50m with lightly coloured water

Chesil Beach forecast:  As I mentioned earlier, Chesil isnt exactly the hot spot of shore marks at the moment. However with strong easterly winds forecast, long range casts are possible. This may get you out to the odd larger Cod that could be hanging around. There should be some reasonable sized Whiting after dark, as well as a Conger or two.

Portland: A large easterly swell will make for difficult fishing on the East side of the island, but tuck into the West side and try for some Bull Huss, Conger and large Rockling.

Portland Harbour: So many anglers forget how good the Flounder fishing is in the harbour. Sanndsfoot Castle ad Hamm Beach are both excellent marks. Small hooks and Ragworm on a flapper rig, will often produce double shots of fat Flounder. If you can find an area where the water depth is 5m or more then you have a good chance of a nice Thornback Ray.

Weymouth Bay: whilst the wind continues  to below from the east the beach will still have a lot of surf running. This is great for a late bass and Flounder.

The Piers will not be the most comfertable of marks, but the inner harour could provide some good LRF fishing, if the water is clear enough.

Guiding: Bass fishing in the spring should be even better than in previous years. This carries on until the early winter, so make sure you book early this year. I specialize in lure fishing and I am offering Fly fishing this year as well. I am still more than happy to go after the multitude of species in this area with bait, whether that is big Wrasse, explosive Smoothound fishing or targeting the tastier fish such as Plaice and Bream. If you want to book a session or find out more information drop me an email at guiding@fishingtails.co.uk

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