Innehållsförteckning för October 2023 från Sea Angler

Last month I got a call from a producer at BBC Radio 5 Live asking if I would be a guest on the Colin Murray show where the theme of the evening was fishing. Always happy to fly the flag to promote our wonderful sport I was only too happy to do so. Alongside Colin was Mr River Monsters himself, Jeremy Wade, plus two other guests there to explain the appeal of coarse and fly fishing. When asked what the appeal is of sea fishing versus coarse or game fishing, I explained that the pleasure of fishing is an intensely personal thing: so much so that it can be difficult to put into words why attempting to catch fish from the sea is so addictive. For me, at least, the…

One of the most misunderstood and undervalued states of tide is the low. Go to most popular fishing marks around low tide and you will find plenty of peace and quiet. The commonly quoted ‘two hours either side of high tide’ feels like it is engraved in our consciousness, but with low tide comes different opportunities and access to new, exciting species. I am a predominantly LRF angler, but a lot of this information is just as useful to any fishing technique or discipline. First of all, I will just get the obvious out of the way. If your mark has no water at all at low tide, then clearly this won’t be applicable. But this article is about areas such as harbour walls, piers, beaches and rocky coastline that…

Before any debate on this topic can begin, it must be acknowledged that even reading the phrase ‘the perfect fish’ is bound to ignite division and burning differences of opinion. For one thing, the use of the definite article ‘the’ is definitive, leaving no room for debate or grey areas of crossover. However, perhaps even more divisive, ironically, is the adjective ‘perfect’. Is there such a thing as the perfect fish? Surely, it’s subjective, right? One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, and so it stands to reason that the same must be true of all things finned and fishy. So, where do you stand in the debate? Perhaps you’re one of those who’s keen on fighting prowess in your fish, in which case the bass, with its jagged runs…

SHORE WHITING The influx of autumnal whiting reaches peak numbers in October and few anglers can resist a trip or two with bites pretty much guaranteed. By the end of the month there will also be a showing of bigger whiting appear that often move inshore with the sprat shoals. TIDE TALK Whiting will be present on all sizes of tide, but for peak catches, especially on the shallower surf beaches, it’s the bigger spring tides that produce the goods. Although dropping in size, the spring tides from the 1st of October to the 4th look good. The best results will come on the rising tides between the 12th and the 16th but again the falling tides from the 17th to the 19th are well worth fishing. You get a…

Garmin have long been market leaders in developing new marine electronics products for anglers. My first fish-finder was a Garmin and I’ve used many different units over the years on small boats and large. The technology has changed and improved dramatically in the last few years with faster processing, easier to use, more intuitive, user-friendly controls and sharper sonar. The chart technology has also improved beyond recognition and now, of course, Garmin owns Navionics, the market leading chart software which has helped standardise the way anglers “see” the sea bed they are fishing over. SO, WHAT’S SO GOOD ABOUT THE LATEST UHD? SIMPLICITY Firstly, it is a very simple unit to operate and has a fresh look about it and new UI graphics which increase functionality and configurability. The intuitive…

How to improve your casting skills All levels of casters risk back pain, mostly limited to a bit of stiffness and soreness after a long session on the beach or field. A good rub with Deep Heat soon fixes it. But in extreme cases prolonged stress causes severe spinal issues leading to corrective surgery. Top tournament casters have always been concerned by the risks and, unfortunately, a few have been forced to retire because of permanent injury. I don’t want to ring the alarm bells too loudly, but please be aware that the performance gains from modern tackle and casting techniques have to be balanced against the possibility of doing yourself no good at all. In short, if what you’re doing now causes anything more than the odd twinge in…

Vass is a company that needs little introduction. They have been experts in textiles and footwear since the 1950s and made their foray into the sea angling market back in 2009. They recognised that there was an opportunity to significantly improve upon the existing waders in the sea and freshwater angling. I began using their gear back in 2017 and have yet to look back. As you know, I stick with things that I trust and which continue to perform. The company understood that in sea angling, we needed more durable, high-performance materials that could cope with the rigours and extremities that sea fishing provides. It’s all very well picking up a fly rod for six weeks each summer and enjoying nature’s best sunny weather, but sea anglers fish all…

This month one lucky reader will win an extremely versatile all-round boat fishing combo from PENN. The two-piece 7ft 2in 30lb Warfare boat rod features a powerful carbon blank, heavy duty guides and a x-gimbal which fits into a fighting belt. The rod is paired with a PENN 30LW reel featuring high quality drag washers, line capacity rings and a level wind to lay the line on the spool smoothly. This combo is ideal for taking on heavy-duty species such as congers, cod, tope and rays in deep water. To be in with a chance of winning this fantastic prize simply enter below. Good luck! FEATURES: ■ Lightweight graphite frame and sideplates■ Forged and machined aluminium spool■ HT-100 carbon fibre drag washers■ 2 shielded stainless steel ball bearings■ Line capacity…

MATCH FISHING LEADER BOARD AS OF AUGUST 31ST 2023 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 editor. 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…

Over the years I have heard of the odd bass being caught, including a ten pounder from Norwich. In recent years I have seen more reports of bass being caught on the Broads. These bass are usually small and caught accidently by holiday makers. These bass are often mistaken for zander, which are, in fact, absent from the broads system of waterways. I had a privileged childhood where most weekends and school holidays were spent fishing from the bow of my father’s charter boat based at Bradwell in Essex. One of my first memories was catching a seven-and-a-half-pound bass. Since then, I have caught many bass by various methods and at different locations. Many of the bass we caught were tagged to help build a picture of the movement of…

GREAT SEA ANGLING VENUES Your insight into the best shore and boat fishing that the UK and Ireland have to offer Back in the seventies, the Clyde was renowned for huge bags of fish, in particular massive cod, haddock and coalfish. However, a myriad of factors – not least overfishing by the commercial trawlers and the estuary losing a lot of the effluent that flowed through it from Glasgow’s industries and drains – has seen fish stocks decline dramatically in the last four decades. There’s an argument to be had about the deterioration of the fish stocks in the area with those in the know and those who have other ideas; it’s a debate that will, no doubt, continue. However, in recent years, the upper Clyde has seen something of…

In association with £25 TACKLE VOUCHER WINNERS Fishingmegastore.com awards a £25 voucher prize to each of two winners - the youngster with the best shore fish and another with the top boat catch. The winners can use the voucher to select tackle from Fishingmegastore.com which is based in Glasgow and Edinburgh. ■ Send your Young Rods entries by email to sa.ed@kelsey.co.uk…

TALES FROM THE TIDELINE You’re not bloody going on your own, and that’s final!” my mother chimed as her eyebrows shot up into a point. “Imagine, you, all alone, on some bloody beach! You could get kidnapped or swept away or… or…” I could already sense that I had weathered the first, biggest, bluster of the storm and now only had to ride it out to its inevitable conclusion. “But mam, I’ll be fine. I’m not going far, honest! I’ll be really careful and stay down at the close end of the beach.” By this point I had been an angler for over a year, though I preferred to call myself a ‘fisherman’ because of the worldly-wise, rugged, tough connotations it carried. But in this year, none of my angling…

UK & IRELAND SPECIALIST SPECIES HUNTING I can clearly remember the first time I saw a bluemouth. We were drifting for blue shark about five miles to the north west of Sybil Head, off the mouth of Smerwick Harbour, County Kerry. An avid species hunter always looking to catch something new or unusual, I had heard bluemouth were occasionally caught over the ground we were fishing. When I mentioned this my boat partner rigged up a rod with baited Hokeye lures, lowered it down to the bottom, had a bite almost immediately and reeled up a small bluemouth. Of course, I tried to catch one, but despite several hours reeling up all manner or different species, that day we never saw another bluemouth. Several years later I did catch my…

Check out the step-by-step video at: youtu.be/aFBzENcd4Ic The Three Turn Thumb knot is probably the best knot for tying heavy mono (100lb- 500lb) to hooks or swivels. Requiring no other tools or materials it is simple and quick to tie giving you a strong knot connection when fishing for species such as sharks, conger eels, tuna and billfish which require mono that that is too thick and not supple enough for many other knots. Step-by-step 1. Holding the hook horizontally, pass the mono through the eye of the hook and bring the tag end back towards the spool (A). 2. Hold the hook between your thumb and forefinger with the shank of the hook in line with the inside of your thumb (B). 3. Take the tag end of the…

Those of you who enjoy targeting specimen fish over rough or mixed ground will know the importance of having the best quality shock leader or rig body you can lay your hands on. When it comes to targeting huge fish abroad while big game fishing, you may want some stretch in a leader, particularly if you choose braid as a mainline, as it cushions the sudden moves of the fish and makes a good buffer. Also, a stretchy leader stores and releases some of the power while casting. Generally, if you are fishing rough or mixed ground around the UK from the shore, where you may encounter boulders, undersea ledges and man-made structures, you’ll want a leader with the best abrasion resistance you can get. You’ll notice that some leaders…

Most anglers are aware that twice a month, every month, the coastline experiences a sequence of larger than usual tides. These are known as spring tides. They occur around the periods which coincide with both the new and full moon when the sun and the moon are aligned and when the gravitational pull on the earth’s atmosphere is at its greatest. During spring tides the sea level rises higher than normal, and also retreats much further down the beach. As we will see, these monthly occurrences offer opportunities to both shore and boat anglers. But before we look at these advantages let us first consider the bi-annual events which occur when the sun is directly overhead at the equator, known as the equinox. During the equinox, typically around the third…

Although lugworm, king ragworm and white ragworm are regarded as good baits when targeting flounder, there is little doubt that in an estuary environment, harbour ragworm, or ‘maddies’, are widely considered the ‘steak and chips’ of the flounder’s diet. One hundred and sixty eight all-round sea anglers across South Wales were asked to consider the following question: “Forget the age-old saying “lugworm in winter and ragworm in summer” – if you had to pick just one species of worm to use exclusively for the rest of your fishing career, which one would you choose?” Their responses were as follows: 10 per cent chose harbour ragworm; 12 per cent chose lugworm and 78 per cent chose king ragworm. Shore and boat anglers in different regions of the UK may or may…

GREAT SEA ANGLING VENUES Your insight into the best shore and boat fishing that the UK and Ireland have to offer The stretch of coastline to the south of Strumble Head, near Fishguard in West Wales, is one of the most inspiring venues I have fished on mainland UK. It’s a venue where deep water runs right up to the rock edges and on many days there will be just enough swell to cause a fringe of foaming white water around the base of the cliffs. More often than not the water is beautifully clear. From a high vantage point atop the cliffs you will be able to see kelp shrouded reefs extending out into the Irish Sea along with deep gullies and an occasional sub surface rock pinnacle, all…

In association with HOW TO ENTER Email only to sa.ed@kelsey.co.uk Please supply these details: angler’s name, age, address, telephone number, email, type of FISH, weight of FISH, where caught, DATE caught, BAIT/rig, whether caught from shore or boat, if from charter boat, give name of boat, port and skipper. Please state if the FISH was retained or returned. Send us your entries and win some great prizes ■ SHORE LURE OPTION: Solaris 4000 or 5000 reel, RRP: £60, Epixor 15-50g rod RRP: £80 ■ SHORE LURE OPTION: Solaris 4000 or 5000 reel, RRP: £60, Epixor 15-50g rod RRP: £80 ■ BOAT: Classic CLX, RRP: £60 Cortez Boat Rod, RRP: £90 ■ SHORE BAIT OPTION: DSA reel RRP: £60, Wave Power surf rod, RRP: £80 YOUR TARGETS... Catch a FISH on…

Ireland is one of my favourite places to fish. Over the best part of 20 years I have been fortunate enough to visit the emerald isle many times. We have enjoyed all manner of angling in various places over the years and enjoyed it all. However, we had never made it much further north than Clifden on the west coast, and this time we hoped to do so. After watching reports of the tuna fishing from afar for many years, as well as hearing reports of various mixed species competitions, it was somewhere I was keen to visit. We based the trip around fishing for bluefin tuna with the legendary Adrian Molloy for a couple of days, as well as some general fishing too. However, in short, our first attempt…

They say that the simplest ideas are often the best and this is one of those occasions. The carp and coarse guys have been using feeder systems for decades. Boat anglers have been using chum methods for as long as boats have put to sea and it seems a little leap of logic to suggest that a similar method wouldn’t work for anglers fishing the shores of our little island. David Watts, of Sharnbrook Tackle in Leicestershire, has been selling Surf Feeders for nigh on 25 years, although they were a new product on me. It’s a fairly simple premise: a rigid plastic capsule with a series of holes around its circumference which slots into a Gemini weight (I tried out the 150g and 180g grip leads) which you stuff…