Innehållsförteckning för August 2025 från Sea Angler

Back in June’s issue I talked about Sir David Attenborough’s new film ‘Ocean’ and his attack on overfishing and in particular the methods of bottom trawling where weighted chains, metal beams and scouring dredges are dragged across the seabed destroying everything in their paths. Little did I know then that less than two months later the UK government would be consulting the public on a proposal to ban bottom trawling in 42 ‘marine protected areas’ around the coast of England. You can read my analysis of the situation in this issue, starting on page 46, including how you can contribute to the consultation by submitting any evidence you have in support of the proposals. Like I said back in June, banning these most destructive fishing methods – even only in…

Just over 10 years ago I spent a most enjoyable week fishing the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, a truly stunning part of the world which is quite possibly my favourite sea angling destination outside of the tropics. We had just enjoyed our first day’s fishing and were sat at the bar in the Marina Inn. Musing over the possibilities and options for the following day, the most perfect pint of Guinness in front of each of us, Mike Hennessy suggested, “How about trying for a bluemouth?” Paul Flannery, our skipper, nodded in confirmation that this would indeed be a good option adding, “Yes, there are plenty out on the far reefs; the weather forecast is good enough. We could certainly do that.” The following morning our day’s crew gathered…

In association with MONTHLY WINNER £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…

Time seems to race past ever more quickly and trips that are on the horizon soon appear in the rear-view mirror. I have just booked up for next year’s ‘Looe Basher’, as it seems to have been christened on our WhatsApp group. This fishing excursion to Looe each year has become an annual trip with all involved keen to repeat the excursion each year. An annual trip to Looe in Cornwall is, in truth, nothing unusual for Pauline and I as the lively fishing town on the south coast of Cornwall has an enduring appeal that sank into my soul as a child in the 1960s. Looe was where I started my angling journey catching mackerel, garfish and pollack float fishing from the Banjo pier. The blue shark brought back…

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. DANNY PARKINS Southwest based Danny has worked within the angling trade for 20 years for various brands. 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. SHORE ANGLING Q Is…

TRONIXPRO BAIT STOCKER The ideal product to get all of your bait essentials organised. Four removable internal trays allow you to separate your session bait with ease and configure the trays in whatever order suits you. Made from EVA, it’s easy to clean, won’t rot and will last for years. Maybe you want to use ragworm and lugworm on your session, you can separate these out using the longer trays. Want to take some frozen crab as well? Then the smaller square trays are perfect to store them. And if you’re just taking a large quantity of one particular bait, removing the trays completely gives you ample room to conveniently store it. You can also mix and match the trays with some containing bait and the others filled with baiting…

After six weeks of the wrong type of wind I launched the boat from the slipway: radio, check; fuel, check; lifejacket, check. All set and expectations high. But why wouldn’t the engine start? No kill cord – an epic fail on my part resulting in a highly stressful race home to get the cord while the I left the boat moored at the slipway. A few weeks later the boat was launched from the slipway again. Kill cord attached and again, expectations were high. But where was my phone? Plugged in at home where I left it to ensure I had full charge before going to sea. Could I go to sea on my own with no phone? No, and I simply couldn’t cope with racing home for the second…

JULY • 19-20: Skua 2-day event Talacre 80 peg limit. Day one 1030-1430, Day two 1130-1530, Measure to weigh conversion. No crab/ cart - no crab of any description. No white rag, 3 hooks, catch and release. All hounds must be measure and returned, prior to casting back out. Min size limit 18cm. Mackerel, sea trout, herring, launce, weevers do not count. Prepayment PayPal or bacs. Peg draw on the day, 4 zones of 15 anglers, £60 entrance fee per angler. • 20: Penarth Holiday Open Penarth Bob Galley 02920706995 • 20: Skegness Pier Angling Club Chapel Point, Chapel St Leonards, Lincs 12:30 till 16:30 Chapel Point car park Booking in from 11:00 Pegged £10 Entry Russ Parsons - 07385 150259 - russinskeg@gmail.com • 20: Reckitts summer open catch and…

It’s mostly a myth that fish will eat any food they come across. The reality is that they have seasonal, monthly, weekly and even daily preferences governed by food type availability. If there’s a glut of some specific food item, they are often preoccupied with it, ignoring all other food forms. Recognising these patterns will improve your overall results significantly. MATCH THE HATCH From late March to late June bass are most likely found feeding over rough ground and inside estuaries. The shore crab peel begins loosely in March, accelerates through April and May, then peaks in June. This is the main reason the bass work these habitats and if you’re fishing any other bait than peeler or soft backed crab, you’ve instantly put yourself at a major disadvantage at…

Being born in the South West of Scotland, from an early age I had access to some of the best inshore fishing available in the UK. I still have pictures of my dad and his dad holding huge tope, cod and buckets full of mackerel in Whithorn at around the time I was born in 1979. Moving to Port Logan at the age of six, I fished from both boat and shore, recording anywhere from six to 16 species in a single day and I usually only kept what I would cook on a beach fire or take home to the freezer. I paid for my Sea Angler Magazine subscription by selling fresh mackerel to holiday makers in the picnic area and any money left over would go towards new…

We’ve all been there: nothing you are doing seems to work; although you know the fish are there, somewhere. You want to cover a lot of ground in searching for a strike and drifting isn’t going to work because tides and wind direction aren’t making it easy to achieve the right lure speed. The solution: trolling – towing lures or baits behind a moving boat. I’ve used it extensively, particularly in estuaries, but also when moving through an aggregation of fish feeding on the surface. Yes, it can be boring and on the face of it doesn’t require any skill on the angler’s part; however, quite often I’ve found it a rewarding way to fish and it’s certainly not as simple as just dragging a bait or lure behind the…

Our experts solve your fishing problems Fishing in my stretch of the East Sussex coast has been very quiet this month, but we have been out there and trying nonetheless. The youth club continues to increase in numbers. New arrivals are finding out about us by word of mouth – always the best way to get new business. If our current club members are enjoying themselves they talk about it in school, hence the interest from new youngsters. One thing that needs to be considered when looking at our catches is that, as a club, we fish the tides that are in front of us. These are often not the tides that we would choose! In spite of this we have had a few fish including a new youth club…

FLORIDA Of all the places I have fished over the years it is Florida that stands out in my mind for so many reasons. It’s the first place I tried my hand at ‘game fishing’ and the memory of that first trip is still something special as I caught my first sailfish on that very first trip. The part of Florida I’m referring to is of course the Florida Keys, the famous string of islands that are joined to Key West from the mainland USA by a series of spectacular bridges. The whole area gives access to deep water big game fishing to the south, incredible flats fishing to the north and, under the bridges, some amazing shore fishing. You really are spoilt for choice. CHARTER BOATS There are numerous…

As a young lad growing up in Gravesend my friends and I fished the muddy reaches of the Thames from the Ship and Lobster beach in Denton through the Shorne Fort. Local anglers used to talk about soles being caught from the foreshore but I never seemed to be lucky enough to catch one. With only my pocket money for bait we used brown shrimp, fish bait from the fishmongers and blow lug. If after a trip to the coast we had any remaining bait we would use it down the river. As time passed the amount of soles showing along the stretches of the Thames increased with some really good catches throughout summer and through into the autumn when the larger fish show. A basic two hook rig seemed…

Ling are a member of the cod family. They have long been a popular species with boat anglers, not least because they make excellent eating. Ling have long slender bodies and are rarely misidentified with other species. The average size of most ling caught on rod and line in the UK is probably between 10-20lb, but much larger fish, including specimens in excess of 20lb, 30lb and even 40lb, are taken in many areas. The current British boat caught record for ling stands at 67lb 5oz, with a fish caught at Muckle Flugga in the Shetland Isles in 2013. However, the IGFA all tackle record for ling is held with a monster that weighed 88lb 6oz that was caught in 2002, again in The Shetland Isles. The British shore caught…

So Anna, what do you think? What can we do to breath some life into the interior of this drab and dour wheelhouse?” I watched silently as, clearly deep in thought, she surveyed her surroundings, holding my breath as I waited for the makeover maestro to pronounce. “Well Dave,” she eventually began, “I’m thinking leopard print – yes, definitely leopard print. We’ll need to re-cover those bench seats and probably the captain’s seat as well. Yes, a bold leopard print fabric. Next we’ll need to brighten things up; I’m thinking we should paint the rest of the cabin throughout in a vibrant shade of pink, possibly add some snazzy pink chenille curtains. We should finish things off with a pair of fluffy dice!” “You don’t think that would look a…