TomBettle

01418809029 Is the actual number for Ewen. 9020 is some poor bloke in an office somewhere.

Please contac the seller directly. Just posting this as a favour as he is a technofobe. Dave Saywell of Castaway Charters (Posh boats not us lot) 07860793450 is selling a Pilot 17 and Mariner 40Hp with Galvanised Road Trailer on behalf of his brother. The boat is currently at Parkstone Bay Marina and Dave's wife does not want it on the drive so consider him a motivated seller! Boat seems well used, but fair condition. Engine looks fine. As does the trailer. Expect to need to refit any nav gear and safety gear - treat it as a bare package. Asking

Happy Birthday Dan Hope to see you afloat a few times this year.... and no speeding in the harbour! Tom

I am assuming that our newest member is the one and only, top Penn reel doctor from way up in sunny (sunnier than here) Scotland. Hi Ewen Welcome to Poole Bay Small Boat Angling Club. We may not be the largest angling club in the world, but were are a pretty good bunch. I know you have some family interest in the area so dive in and ask questions and I am sure you will be made very welcome indeed. All the best Tom PS: Any chance you can send me a ring for my Captiva spinning rod?... It's the second down from the tip eye!

...I've progressed to Norvegian Coffee now, but still with milk.

Ps.... I don't fly back until Friday afternoon... What's the chances of blagging a proper trip out tomorrow???

I am typing this after tying up in Tromsoe town marina, Troms Explorer's second home (her customer pick up point). We arrived at out final destination at 20:00 local time after completing 2103 nautical miles and 119 running hours. Current position for all you boffins...: 69* 38.996N 018* 57.707E Knackered, but pleased to have delivered her safe and sound with great help from Martin and of course my Norwegian friends! Lot's of silly mishaps, fun and games on the way, carrying on until this afternoon. Some of which I shall tell you about when I get back. As a by the by, we didn't pass the arctic circle at 11.15. That was Holger and Oistein's little joke to lull me into a false sense of security. Actually we crossed at 20:30 yesterday in the middle of a stunning fjord. I was loudly awaken from my cat nap to the crash of pans and Holger shouting for me to get my camera. I was then dressed in a life ring and fenders (go figure?!!!) for my picture to be taken next to a landside monument marking the crossing. Oh, I have a catch report, but I ma not sure if it quite falls in to club waters. The first ever fish to be caught on Troms Explorer were taken in a 20 minute session whilst waiting for the Norwegian Electrical Safety Certificate man (we failed by the way). Whilst fishig alongside the harbour wall in Finsess I managed 6 Coalfish to 6oz and 2 codling to about 2lb. Not quite the Barents sea monsters I have dreamed about, but a first for the boat and a first for me.... See you all soon Tom

Hello from Norway! We (Holger, Oistein, Martin and me) are sat in Stavangar, just a little bored. We arrived at 09:00 this morning and it was cold, wet and grey, just much prettier. The boat has to be declared to customs on first port of call in Norway.... It's Sunday.... Holger phoned customs and they literally said (in Norwegian), "what the hell do you want me to do about it". Hopefully we will get a visit at start of work o'clock tomorrow morning so that we can continue on our way. Unfortunately, Martin has to jump ship tomorrow and will be home in time for Thursday's meeting, but i am going to do my best to go as far as possible. That said, it looks unlikely I'll get all the way to Arnoy as I need to be at work for Saturday at the latest . It's been a hell of an adventure, extreme highs and hours of real boredom. Lack of sleep and long watches, but hugely rewarding all the same. See you all soon Tom

I am hoping to be going several times in coming months and next couple of years. Holger has sold his rib now as he has now got a new toy. I am delivering it with him, leaving Poole on Sunday night to Arnoy. I'll hope to be going with a number of people including Dave and will normally be aboard Troms Explorer, but I am now also involved with a couple of other camps that do self drive too.

Very very short notice, but if anyone out there has appropriate navigational skills (can plot a course on paper and plotter) and is prepared to take watches at the helm then the delivery trip of a lifetime is open for you to join in on. Troms Explorer will be leaving Poole (Parkstone Yacht Club) late on Sunday night or on Monday. Onboard is currently two Norwegian skippers and myself. To help us all maintain safe watches it would be lovely to have a fourth. The upside is the small boat voyage of a lifetime all the way to her home in Arnoy, way way up in the artic circle. Food etc will be covered onboard and, of course, your flight home (remember your passport). The downside, it's very last minute, we don't know if it will be Sunday night or Monday we leave, you'll be away for about 6 days, although we don't know for sure and they can't actually pay anything! If you have the basic skills (don't worry, you won't necessarilly have to park her) and fancy being part of a tremendous journey then PM or call me. Cheers Tom

Sikaflex for both. The clue is in the name ....flex. It has to do that or it will split the seal and leak.

Reg an Arvor 18 is going to be pretty tight with four of you aboard. You'd almost be better off going for a smaller centre console style open boat, at least you would have room to breathe. What Newboy mentioned about the Germans and their freezer vans is now, I believe, banned and I think there is something like a 25Kg limit on the number of fillets you can take home. Even if not, I know the Norwegian guides really frown on those that are simply taking truck loads home. Food and drink is silly money, so do eat what you catch and expect a dry week unless you bring your own in with you. That's what I am doing, I am going in by boat and will have my supplies safely onboard. Tom

Contact Matt at Marine Electrical Services. 01202 666066 Brilliant and very above board. Tom PS: OUt of interest, who are you insured with? Most decent marine insurance companies will insure an amount for personal effects, an amount for electronics and so on.

OK Grabbing a whole tree for luck and praying for minimal snags, Troms Explorer is to be launched on Wednesday pm and steamed by two of the Norwegian skippers to Poole leaving Padstow at dawn on Thursday. She'll have her first engine services done at Parkstone Yacht Club on Friday and some last minute electronics (most of them) along with any easy to manage snags will also be done before a planned departure for Arnoy late on Friday evening! Keep your fingers crossed guys. Tom

Troll a Williamson "Live Mackerel" I have a couple you can borrow, ready rigged onto 150lb flurocarbon, 6 knots Max. Or any big Rapala. Ideally you want to be just under the surface rather than bouncing over the top with the lure

Yep Giant Bluefin were common in the North Sea until the 40's, dieing out by the 50'2 after we managed to wipe out the Herring. Bluefin are a regular site of Donegal, although they are proving a very tough fish to hook. There are suspicions that the same fish run the gulf stream up towards Scotland with the run splitting. Some go towards the Porcupine Banks where it is known to be full of various Tuna and Billfish and others head around Scotland towards Norway. I strongly suspect some canny Scotish anglers may have plans to do some exploring. In addition, that run of Bluefin are, I believe, the fish that leave the Med in August, These fish split into two runs with some heading towards the Azores and others heading North up past Biscay to the tip of Ireland. There is no reason why these fish wouldn't come within striking distance of mid range boats working from the Western Approaches. Beyond that, it is common knowledge that we do have a very targettable Albacore run off the Western Approaches and Souterhn / Western Ireland. These fish are a decent size sport fish in the 30lb region and it is these that could well be nudging up the channel in numbers. There are sporadic sightings of larger Tuna and these are more likely to be Big Eye than Bleufin as the Channel is not really on their flight path North. But with the occasional Broadbill turning up through the Channel and North Sea, who knows what's really out there. It's pretty much assumption until such point that hard and regular evidence is seen. Interesting isnt it? Tom

I plan to head out there on Friday with Adam aboard Quest II. Tides are much tamer than they were out there yesterday. Still managed a good day with Olympic Cod managing to catch up with the lures at a drift speed of almost 5 knots. The fishing is FAR better though once the drift is running between .6 and 2.5 knots. Neap tides are more preferrable and much easier. If fishing neaps, try and use 12lb or 15lb micro thin braid and this will allow the use of 6oz or 8oz leads. My own braid is too thick, its one of the "Extra thin" vaireties, but is 23lb and I was needing 10oz+++ to feel the bottom. If you go any heavier you will need 1lb plus in bigger tides and will still not feel anything. Keep it light and the Codling will show there worth.

Well done Mike What boat were you on? I am taking some guys out (or they are taking me out?) on their own boat from Weymouth on Saturday and hoping for a few Cod.

I've always just thought mine was an Albright knot Charlie. The only difference is that I wind 17 turns in one direction instead of 10 in one and then 7 back down... Mine seems to hold well, held my 700lb Blue at the braid to mono knot on the little 50VSX reel (heavier line) I was using and we cranked the drag right up on that when we had touched the leader.

..how do you do eight and a half turns and still poke it the right way through the loop Paul?

Some double and do less turns, I keep it single and lots (17) of turns. It still ends up neat and tidy and doesn't slip.

I always use a modified Albright knot Andy. Make a loop in the mono and hold between thumb and forefinger on the right hand. Thread the braid up through the loop and proceed to wrap it right round the loop 17 times (don't ask why 17, it just works). Keep the wraps reasonably neat. I tend to use my mouth to wrap the braid around as my hands are busy and it also helps wet the knot which helps it to slide up tight nicely. After 17 turns take the tag end of braid and put it back through the loop the way it went in to start with (this is very important, the other way will just slip free). Pull it up gently and help by teasing the 17 loops together if need be. Once tight, check for slippage with a good pull on the main ends and then trim to within about 1mm. On my Big Game braid to mono knots I also add a blob of superglue. This is more for confidence than anything as these can have the drag forced up to over 60lb at times. On all my Uk kit, the above works perfectly.

For a boat of your size go for Bennett or Lenco Tabs, NOT the economy fixed tabs like Smart Tabs. A pure guess would be that you'll want 12" x 9" tabs for your boat. They will certainly be very effective. A word of caution will be that Bennett would recommend much bigger than necessary... no idea why. If you can stretch to it, go for the LED trim level indicator as it makes life easier not just going by "feel" alone. I don't recommend the new Auto tabs that are supposed to self level the boat as there are times when you want the bow up a little and times when you want it trimmed down a little. In addition, I prefer the plate style tabs from the brands above rather than the drop down ones from QL. The QL ones work very well, but don't effectively increase the waterline length of the boat and create even more drag than the plate ones. Forget any marketting twaddle about increased speed or economy. The tabs will improve ride by giving the most comfortable trim. They work by creating drag which will obviously slow you down a fraction and increase fuel consumption. Tom

Yes Get the ferry to stop on the rips for a couple of drifts.

Well done Stu Great to see you finally worked out how to tie the hooks on!!!! Keep at it and it will be Bass, Bream and Cod next. Tom