Wedger

Went to see Chris at Greenham & Regis the other day. Very nice chap- good demo. Now my brain's starting to settle down again just thought I'd ask the audience. Modest budget! so I looked at the ICOM 421 VHF/DSC radio. A Standard Horizon CP175C (colour) plotter mit 6" screen and a black box FF550 fishfinder/sounder to plug into the plotter for the display. An outside chance that if the discounts are high enough at 'the show' we might squeak a CP1000C with 10" screen. Observations please...................

Actually sounds like your Irish steelheads are stocked (or escaped fish) that have returned to the sea running habit for survival reasons. i.e. avoiding adversity such as poor food high temperature acid flush etc. or perhaps the grub is just better at McDonald's than O'Connor's. The steelhead might be just a (sales pitch) label.

Hi Richard, The Salmonids family carry what are commonly referred to as salt cells in the gills. These become active as the juveniles grow and commonly will allow any trout or salmon to tolerate salt water after 6 months of age or so. Evolutionary wise this suggests that our modern trout have evolved from families that routinely lived in salt to brackish water at some point, returning to fresh water to spawn. Good examples of both are our atlantic salmon and our sea trout version of Salmo trutta. The rainbows we farm today are a domesticated outbreed from both the shasta and steelhead rainbows. Apparently the pure strains of both were not ideally suited to farming, but this basic function of salt tolerance remains. It must be one of the fundamental components of salmonids to have remained functional across a wide range of family members and through cross breeding. Some may be better at it than others but we are able to farm both rainbows and browns in salt water, although I believe estuarine waters are preferred for brown trout. T

From a few weeks ago here's Steve Porter's report of my last shark day. Friday 26th August. Our third attempt this year to catch a shark. Fairly blustery conditions made fishing difficult but within ten minutes of having "Sea Magnet" rubby-dubby in the water we had a large porbeagle on the surface by the boat. The shark seemed very interested with one of our balloon floats and we expected it to take the bait at any moment. Sadly the fish became entangled in the line. This appeared to spook the shark causing it to swim off at speed dragging the float behind it until it eventually came free. That was our last shark encounter of the day. One success of the day however was our trial to keep small rainbow trout alive in our live bait tank. About twenty trout remained in a healthy state all day in seawater, dispite being bred and reared in fresh water where they had remained right up until just yesterday. The reason for the experiment was to have an alternative bass bait once the mackerel began to thin out. I tried out a 6 inch live trout as bait lowering it to the seabed 120 feet below and then reteaving it. The trout coped well and remained very active. On lowering it the second time I kept it on the bottom and within 5 minutes had my first bite. The fish was hooked and landed. It was a bass of just over 6lb. This fish caught not on a known bass mark, but on a featureless seabed on a neap tide proved that small trout are a good alternative bait. The bass was returned to the sea.

Be careful Chap! I've seen two nasties there! I fished a neap in winter of 2002 for flatties, calm as you like, but in only 3-4 feet and close to the channel. A huge ship came through displacing 20,000 tonnes or so, I'm told. Ripped my 'donkey', err, 'Ass' off the mark and bared the sand as it passed for the whole length of Hook Sands no -one hurt from the 6-7 boats anchoured there so far as I can tell, but I wish I had a loo on-board. Secondly. Same time of year. A French Reg. Princess App. 30' came storming in from SE, IoW. Obviously knew where he wanted to be........... No idea how to get there safely. He steamed directly for the entance and past me by only yards................. Came 'stuck' mid Hook Sands on dropping off the plane............... = blood and goo all round!! Just...................... and I mean just slowed enough to prevent major headache!! Be safe Chap! It's not you.............. it's the others you have to watch!

Had a little trip from Mudeford on Sunday. I'd planned to take out a friend who is interested in buying the Wilson, but at the last minute he failed to get cover for boys footy practice. Still, fuelled up, hitched on, and a slight to moderated northerly, I couldn't say no. I took a few live trout to try, although they were perhaps a little too large for inshore work, but it was, in practice, an extension of the bait survival and hardiness trials started on Tango Bravo last month. They passed again 110%. 25 fish in my live tank all day, full salinity. The trick of winkling out a bass however, was only achieved by a couple of locals . I eventually discovered they were using tiny live smelt. Not deterred I headed out beyond the ledge and dropped a bait down. Only moments later, a long slow pull. WEED? Nope! neat peck marks to the head.............. dead bait New fish on, drop down............... long slow pull ............................dead bait Must have been fishing in 'Cuttle Central' 'cos you couldn't drop a live bait down without it getting killed Just for distraction, as much as anything, I dropped a mackerel strip down to ring the changes. I'd forgotten that 'Cuttle Central', is just one neighbourhood of 'Dog City' Back to macky bashing till we drifted far, far, faaaaaaar away. Well, guess what? Odd mackerel still turning up

Nice one Chap!! I saw a kayak fishing out from mudeford on Sunday, looks great fun! Must be an up-and-coming sport. Hope to see you on the tide some day. Wedger

Swift change of plan. Most likely going from mudeford for the morning. Still the offer of a few live fish if anyone is there but PM me to let me know so I don't waste any. Trev.

If you think, what small fish (nice fish) are around early and late for the bass to eat???? In the spring the smolts get a bashing in April and May............... in the Autumn sprats get a rough ride. Both are quite similar in size and appearance to the trout. Quite honestly, the bass are stuffing so hard this time of year, before they head off, they'ed take a well presented live bait if it's drops on its nose. No small bait Duncan! Interesting mark on the bass's scales. Been had by larger fish at some stage but well healed. Fish RETURNED.

the trout is about 6 oz fished on a 6/0....................... dream on.............

I'm out early (06.00) Sunday from Baiter (unless there's greater interest for Mudeford) to show a family friend my Wilson. It would be a waist not to fish a little as well. Currently I've taken to the notion that a live trout is as good as a live mackerel, particularly when the mackies are hard to come by. I'm going to take a few along so if anyone would like a few FOC to try let me know NOW! so I can bring enough along. I tried some last month. They last all day in full sea water, are as hardy as hec (same fish tried for three drops to 125 feet and would still out run a mackerel). I know the tides are iffy but it's the only slot I have. All welcome BUT PLEASE LET ME KNOW My first trial close to a bass mark did this!!

Thank you very much guys. As always, top amswers!

Rich, Many thanks..... I'll give him a go Trev

Typical, went off half cocked again. photo of the little darlin'

I have acquired a great little Shakes. PresidentII but it has a broken rim to the spool. Has anyone got spares available or know where I might go?

Kam You have a PM Trev

Hope you all had a great day chaps!! Sleep tight Coddy Mid-week looks a bit lumpy already so hoping things smooth off a bit by Thursday and Friday for Sharky phase three!

Matt, We used frozen blocks floated next to the boat in a net sack, the colder and larger the better to get a slow even melt. However, if using the small 20oz bombs, the Australian idea of a transom tube would perhaps be more economical as it is more easily controlled. (Charlie, Great White is you man for that). We used probably 70kg + over 9 hours. You would use less by an order of magnitude with a trasom tube. The key is to keep the stuff frozen hard until you use it! The only coment on loation would be... get away from the main traffic lanes, calculate your drift with wind and tide in mind, particularly in respect of obstructions such as shoals and pot lines. Happy hunting Trev

Just to say 'Hope you have a great day chaps' Sorry I can't make it I'm on a course for the weekend and two full days out at the end of next week! Run out of points! Good Luck Wedger

Over the last few months I've had great pleasure in fishing with Steve Porter and friends on TangoBravo. Quite honestly some of the best Bass I've ever caught have come this year on board TangoBravo. Having chatted to Steve about my own angling success with Sea Magnet over the last three years, he decided to give sharking a go using Sea Magnet for the rubby-dubby trail. Here's Steve

Errrrrr........ Specimen, How heavy is your kayak now??

If it were me, I'd stash a big, deep cycle battery below decks, connect it to a solar panel on the roof and just flick the switch on when the engine is off.

Jack, You'll do pack tope all day just there. They rarely go into doubles (not while I'm out anyway ). Try dropping a couple of hook sizes on a finer snood and fishing a long fine sliver of mackeral belly Wedger

Had me guessing too when I first had one, but there is a fool proof way to tell at a glance. The tope is the only shark of this type to have a disticnt cleft in the tail below the upper lobe. In the smoothie it is absent. The neat and distinct triangular teeth of the tope also distinguish it from the smoothie which have grinding plates with rough denticles. Acid test.......... When retrieving the hook, and the said fish clamps down on your finger, quite apart from the varying level of pain, there will be one of two bits of evidence which tells you which fish you have. Black fingernail = smooth hound............. Claret on the deck = tope........

Adam, Many thanks, Looks like your up for an early one Hope you have a great day . Should be a few bass on the marks for this set Trevor