82lb 11oz Cod In Norway

[Coddy]

MONSTER COD IN NORWAY RAISES THE BAR

 

 

11:00 - 15 February 2006

 

If your ambition runs to being the European Record holder for the Atlantic cod you will have to seriously raise your sights.

 

The latest edition of the European line class and all-tackle records reveal a monstrous specimen of 82lb 11oz taken off Norway, an area with a reputation for immense fish. It dwarfs the UK record of 58lb 6oz caught off Whitby in 1992.

 

Dave Uren, who runs Warrior out of Plymouth found a wreck free of nets some way south east of the Eddystone and his anglers made the most of the opportunity. Steve Newton broke two of the City Engineers SAC boat records. He had an exceptional whiting of 4lb 6oz and a pollack of 20lb 12oz.

 

This species was not plentiful but a dozen or so, all in double figures, came over the gunwales.

 

Another plaice season is upon us and the first fish at the Skerries Banks are imminent. An ever-increasing number will arrive in the tide-swept area between Start Point and the Bell Buoy at the Banks northern end to provide steady sport for the next two months or so.

 

Dinner plate-size fish are in the distant past but the average size of the many hundreds that will be taken from charter and privately owned boats will not be far off 2lb.

 

Plaice fishing is a light tackle game and you need a 10ft double-handed spinning rod or a very light uptider that has a soft tip action or a 12lb class boat rod of not less than 7 ? ft.

 

A small multiplier is loaded with mono no heavier than 10lb, or braid that has ultra-thin diameter for its breaking strain, lending itself perfectly as it allows less weight to be used.

 

This is a huge asset in the fierce tides that sweep across the banks during the middle range and springs which heighten the flatties' inclination to feed.

 

Keep the terminal trace featuring a length of up to 15 ft on the bottom and this is achieved by constantly allowing a foot or so of line to run off the reel.

 

Simply using more lead to keep the rig close to the bottom is no answer as sensitivity is destroyed and bites are not easily detected.

 

Brightly coloured beads are a main part of the flattie game and tiny spoons that flutter in the tide appeal to the inquisitive nature of the species.

 

The trace is run off a plastic or wire boom, which also acts as the weight carrier, or you can use a ball lead that is cushioned against the trace swivel with a small bead.

 

Most banks flatties are at the base of the dunes on the side sheltered from the tide but at the Start end there are deep pits where plaice congregate.

 

The species takes a bait with a degree of caution and you need to feel the light "pluck" that signals initial interest. This is the moment to allow a couple of feet of line off the reel to take tension off the terminal rig.

 

A few seconds later the fish will come a more determined attack but you must curb the desire to strike instantly. Count to three before smoothly lifting the rod, this being sufficient to set the hook.

 

Banks plaice have a preference for peeler crab, soft crab, sandeel, worm, squid and cuttlefish and you can't do better than combine them in a cocktail.

 

Make sure you have a very sharp knife to cut the squid into ultra clean-edged strips not less than 6in in length. You need sharp, long-shank fine wire hooks, usually size one to a maximum of 1/0. On the other side of Start Point is Lannacombe Bay, where there is also good plaice fishing and this area gives the better chance of a turbot while brill are possible.

 

The South West region also has the benefit of the Shambles Banks off Portland Bill, noted for its very fierce tides. It generally yields heavier flatties than the Skerries but the number of fish of average size is not so great.

 

The top specimen of 2005, taken by Wyvern Secretary Mike Spiller, was a beauty of 7lb 1 oz and several more in the 6lb class were reported during the season. Dartmouth and Weymouth are the principal ports for charter boat visits to these famous flattie areas.

 

The British boat record for the species continues to be the outstanding fish of 10lb 3oz caught in 1974 at Longa Sound, Scotland, and the shore best is a fine 8lb 6oz set at Southbourne Beach, Bournemouth in 1989.

 

Neither is likely to be beaten in this age of diminishing returns. The European boat record is 11lb exactly, set off Denmark in 1988 and the shore is the Bournemouth fish of 8lb 6oz.

 

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Time to get out there soon me thinks

 

Coddy