Indholdsfortegnelse for January 2025 i Sea Angler

It began by reposting the catch picture sent to us by a follower. So far so normal. Fast forward 24 hours and the individual involved asked us to remove the picture due to the vitriolic abuse he was being subjected to as his inbox was flooded by strangers he’s never met objecting to the claimed weight of the fish in the picture in question. Quite why so many people feel the need to take time out of their days to be so unpleasant remains a mystery to me – particularly when there was nothing to be gained by ‘cheating’. At the end of the day, claiming a false weight is only cheating yourself. On this occasion a second photo showed the fish on the scales, at the weight originally claimed,…

Winter is undoubtedly a beast, but often a beauty wrapped in white fur, so enchanting when seen from the interior of the cosy, heated interior of your car. The relentless north-east wind was howling like a pack of wolves; the legendary fire breathing dragons of Wales were sneezing hailstones. I was wearing so many layers of clothes that I bore a remarkable resemblance to the Michelin man, but I still suffered in the extreme cold. One late February, I had taken my 10-year-old grandson on his first fishing trip to Nab Rock near Swansea, determined to introduce him to the magnificent sport of sea fishing. This venue was chosen because we could sit in the relative comfort of the car while keeping a close eye on our rod-tips just five…

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s spurdogs were a very common species, often encountered in considerable numbers all along the west coast of the British Isles. Prime time was generally throughout the winter months and into early spring if fishing in the south-west. Further north, off the west coast of Scotland, they remain locally abundant throughout the year. ROCK & CHIPS The original ‘rock salmon’, spurdog are an important commercial species, hence the considerable overfishing, particularly by longliners fishing for other species. As with many sharks, spurdogs grow slowly and reproduce in small numbers making them particularly vulnerable to overfishing. The result of which was that, in many areas where once they were abundant, the species all but disappeared. Thankfully, much of this excessive overfishing was stopped with a complete ban…

It all began late on a Saturday night. I had been seated at my computer browsing a well-known online auction site, while enjoying what, on reflection, was perhaps a tad too much of my favourite tipple. As a result, my usual sense of caution at online purchasing had been somewhat dulled. A few days later a delivery van pulled up outside the house and the driver presented me with a box containing a couple of fishing reels. This is not an unusual occurrence; however, these reels were almost 50-years-old; is vintage the correct term? I was the proud owner of boxed Winfield International 30 and Winfield Bass Fisher reels, both in excellent condition. Thankfully I had acquired them for what, even in the cold light of dawn, had seemed a…

Our experts solve your fishing problems After taking a dozen of the young anglers out on the club boats a few weeks back I decided that they could repay the club by cleaning out one of the boats, rubbing down all the woodwork and re-varnishing it. We moved one of the boats into our, as yet still unfinished, club room. This space was previously used as a workshop and it easily swallowed up an 18-foot boat. We set about rubbing down the woodwork by hand and then cleaning up all the dust before laying a coat of varnish to all the wood. The team excelled themselves and have completed a fantastic job. I think the club may want us to work on some of the other boats next! On the…

While the porbeagle fishing done by Jack Shine is an incredible and important piece of history belonging to the 1960s, the story itself starts in the early 1950s when Jack and his family uprooted from Cork to County Clare. There he took up the appointment of creamery manager at Lahinch looking out over Liscannor Bay. At the time of his appointment Jack was not an angler. But with time on your hands and fishable rock ledges overlooking heavy ground well stocked with good pollack and mackerel, it was something of a local tradition to cut down a bamboo pole, fasten a length of fishing line to it armed with homemade lures made from chicken feathers, or a spinner, and jig for fish for the table, as well as enjoying lots…

TOP SCORERS – OCTOBER 2024 HOW IT WORKS ■ With £10,000 in tackle prizes the points, based on entries, are awarded to the top three plus section winners and captors of the largest fish caught in each designated Penn match. Penn also awards a prize of a Spinfisher fixed-spool reel to the angler scoring the most points in matches shown in each issue. If there is a tie, the winner will be the angler whose total is from the greatest number of results and is then chosen on merit by the Angling Trust. An angler can win only one reel during the year. To win a prize you must be registered with the Penn Sea League – supply your name, address, phone and email. Send fixtures, results and league registration…

There is a huge jungle of hooks out there and I have no problem with understanding that people have trouble finding their preferred hook. It is easy to lose the overview over all the brands, all the patterns and all the colours available. But fear not – this is just another opportunity to optimise your own individual fishing approach. Finding the hooks you prefer is just like finding your favourite rod and your favourite reel: You fish with what gives you confidence. The best thing about fishing is that no one can tell you what to fish with. You make a personal, and individual, choice when picking out the rods and reels that you rely on. Choosing hooks is no different. It is worth mentioning that I am affiliated with…

Having spent nearly 20 years building a career in teaching, I’m a firm believer in the idea that you never stop learning. New knowledge, new expertise and new experiences surround us regardless of our background; if we’re willing to simply open our eyes, life frequently affords us new opportunities to reach out and grab more understanding of whatever it is that interests us, and angling is no different in this regard. At whichever point in our lives we take up our tackle and begin our lifelong apprenticeship as anglers, aside from the obvious acquisition of knowledge on a basic level, there are innumerable skills to garner which not only help to increase our engagement with, and enjoyment of, the sport, but enable us to gain a certain degree of self-sufficiency…

I’d had this most recent trip to Sandland Brygge in northern Norway booked for the best part of three years. It’s one of the best fishing camps that I have been to in Norway and one that I try and venture back to every couple of years. It was pure chance that I stumbled across Bell Rock Lures via Facebook. One of their posts popped up on my timeline just a few weeks before my departure, so I had to investigate. Needless to say, I liked the look of what I saw, so I ordered a handful of heavier 300g and 500g variants to take with me. A few days later my parcel arrived, and I was very pleased to see that my hunch was correct, and that Bell Rock…

The grey gurnard is a relatively common catch around much of the British Isles but are found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean from Iceland and Norway south to Morocco. They are also found in the North Sea, the southern Baltic Sea and in the Mediterranean from eastern Spain to Turkey and into the Black Sea. Depending on location, the colour of grey gurnard varies from the more usual greyish-brown, to a dull red, often tinged with red on its back and flanks. With its large head and distinctive shaped body, it is hard to misidentify; however, I have seen one or two specimens that have had so much of a red tinge I have had to look twice. The British records for grey gurnard are held with fish that weighed…

Books on angling seem to be something from the distant past in this instant-information, internet age; thoughts of JR Hartley in that ancient TV advert and a world lone-gone pervade. Sometimes, however, sitting down with a book in your hand is a simple pleasure and one that should be encouraged as much as possible, particularly with one as enjoyable as this. Again, in this immediate fix, TLDR (‘too long, didn’t read’) modern world, we find it difficult to find the time. This book, however, is one that you can dip in and out of time and again and find a great deal of delightful and funny short stories which Tom Quinn has collected from two centuries of triumphs, disasters and mishaps from the archives of angling writing and has meticulously…

On the 1 June 2022 Phil Deitch, a well-known, talented sea and coarse angler had a day that would change his life for ever. At only 43 years old he suffered a severe stroke that left him in hospital for 545 days. Those who know Phil know he is a fighter, and since the devastating and life changing incident he has battled relentlessly on the road to recovery. Incredibly, although still needing treatment and round the clock care, he still manages to smile. Within the local angling community Phil was known as the Cod God around the banks of the River Humber. He would spend hours trying to track them down and his efforts were rewarded when he caught the biggest cod for many years during a session at East…

The moon has a major influence on tides, but its gravitational pull also interacts with the brains of fish through their lateral line stimulating short defined periods of higher feeding intensity during specific phases of the moon. NEW MOON A New Moon occurs when both the sun and moon are aligned, the sun and Earth being on opposite sides of the moon and creating some of the bigger tides of the month. The moon rises around dawn and sets near dusk. On clear nights there is no moonlight which in clear water encourages fish closer to shore to feed. It gives good general fishing, but is especially good for tope, rays, huss, conger and big bass. 1ST QUARTER MOON PHASE In the UK, the 1st Quarter Moon coincides with neap…

JANUARY AMBLE OPEN (5th) Maintaining its reputation as one of the biggest shore matches in the UK, the Amble Sea Angling Club has its 47th Open at the beginning of January. Those taking part have a chance of winning prizes drawn from a huge price fund of £7500. There will be prizes for heaviest fish, bag, flatfish and individual categories for juniors and ladies. Register at local tackle shops from December 2024 or from 7am on the day at Radcliffe Club HQ. Weigh in will be from 2-3:15pm back at club headquarters. IRISH WINTER SHORE ANGLING FESTIVAL (30th-1st) Sponsored by Tronixpro, the 36th festival runs from 30th January to 1st February. A real highlight of the Irish winter season in County Wexford, 2025’s event will have a €17000 payout and…

Our experts solve your fishing problems ASK THE EXPERTS When sending your question, please remember to include your name and address CHRIS KENNEDY Chris is a specimen hunting specialist based on Sark and answers shore fishing questions. DAVID MITCHELL David is Sea Angler’s editor and is an expert on sea angling policy and conservation . BEN BASSETT The Plymouth angler and blogger will provide answers on the sport of light rock fishing (LRF), the go-anywhere tactic. DAVE LEWIS Based in Newport, South Wales, our contributing editor Dave answers boat fishing questions. HENRY GILBEY Angler, blogger and photojournalist Henry, based in Cornwall, is our lure expert. BRIAN PASK Brian is a qualified sea angling coach and casting tutor who works with young people and experienced anglers to improve their fishing skills.…

MANSON SUPREME ANCHOR The Supreme is a super high holding, fast setting, fixed shank anchor. It sets immediately due to the spear head and wing tips which cut through weed. The roll bar allows it to self-right meaning that more weight and strength can be built into the load bearing fluke. The twin slots on the shank make it suitable for use in all seabed types and allows a shackle to slide to the front to trip the anchor if it becomes jammed in rocks. ■ Available in five sizes: 7 - 27kg■ RRP: £224.95■ www.force4.co.uk SALTS GONE MARINE ENGINE FLUSHING Salt is highly corrosive for your boat and trailer. It’s a dreary job at the end of the day but an essential part of post boat angling maintenance. Salts…

The first I knew about the American tackle company, Berkley’s, offer of $1,000 for any International Game Fish Association (IGFA) Line Class World record caught on their new Trilene line, was when it was reported in the angling press late in 1983. Brian Taylor from Paignton had landed a Line Class record pollack and would be collecting his $1,000 prize. Further reports of more records for Brian, Colin Davies and a few other members of the Light Tackle club followed. A picture of them collecting their cheques from Vince Lister, Berkley’s UK representative, prompted me to start inquiring about the scheme. Then I saw the distinctive blue and yellow boxes of the new line in Tony’s Tackle shop in Eastbourne and read a bit more about the offer. None of…

DECEMBER • 8: The Colin Smith Memorial Match, fishing 2-6pm, registration 11-1pm and weigh in 6.45pm, at The Welcome Tavern Pub 10 Prospect Row, Sunderland SR1 2DZ. The boundaries will be pier to pier, South Shields pier to the Spiles at Seaham (Not pier) but the Rathouse at Roker and the Walkway and Small Beach at South Shields will also be in bounds. ALL piers will unfortunately be Out of Bounds. Entry £12, £10 towards the Heaviest Fish prizes. (Single Fish). You can only win one of the Heaviest Fish placed prizes but you can win One of the Heaviest Bag Prizes and One of the Heaviest Fish Prizes. £2 towards the Heaviest Bag Prizes. Size Fish to be set according. i.e., cod, coalies etc 35cm, Whiting 30cm (10 Whiting…