Mike Fox

I believe it starts at 9 a.m. Mike

Mike you have a PM. Mike

There will be a boat jumble at Cobb's Quay on Saturday 12th April. This happens to be one day before our first Species Competition, and might give members a chance for the odd bargain if they can't attend the Canford Magna boat jumble on 13th. In addition, the RNLI will also be there with a stand, leaflets and handouts, and SEA Safety Checks will be given by members of the local SEA Safety Team (including Carol) on the day. It might be interesting to pop along with any questions you might have, and discuss them with other RNLI representatives. Any club members based at Cobb's Quay (or visiting) are more than welcome to have a Safety Check on the day, or to stroll along and chat safety with some other Safety Advisors. George will also be in attendance, helping to "man the stand" and might welcome a chance for a friendly chat. Mike Safety Officer

Charlie, I know the area to the South of Jersey fairly well, and there's fairly untapped fishing all over down there. You might like to take light-ish spinning gear for the following? Sliding Float: Garfish (hunt in packs), Mackerel, and Scad on fish baits, Grey Mullet on Bread, Pollack/Wrasse/Bass on live prawn, Bass/Mackerel on livebait - if the garfish leave you alone. Bottom: Black bream on fish, worm, and scallop frills (tackle shops/restaurants sell them!), lunking big wrasse on crab/worm. Peelers might get a bass or two. Chance of red bream too. Pick your spot, and little need for long distance. Spinning: Bass, mackerel and pollack on lures, and soft artificials. Look for deep water, drop-offs, or edges of rocky spots, and anywhere there is a "feature". Remember being an island, that there should always be shelter from the wind on the "other" side. Lots to think about, but biggest shock will be the tidal range. Almost 40' on Springs, so take a bucket on walks to low water marks for wet rock rolling and foraging. Plenty of small fish (maybe 10 species?), peeler, soft back and hardback crabs, prawns - all useful if tackle shops closed. Always a chance of something for the pot too, including oysters, edible crabs and lobsters. Beaches have shellfish such as clams and razers near low tide marks, and lugworm casts, if a red plastic spade (or garden fork from home) is handy! Hope you have a great time! Mike

Following my car crash last Monday, I am now signed off with whiplash injury to my neck which seems to be getting progressively worse. As a result, Frisky and crew might not be getting out to play on Sunday. Early indications are for strongish northerlies, an occluded front, and rather cool, for those who are inclined to get out. Mike

Sounds a well planned trip with a huge variety of bait. Could I just ask you to check the identity of the ray again carefully? I've had Spotted Ray from where you stated, but have never seen Thornbacks that small in that area. Just to add to confusion, if you change your mind and decide it wasn't a Thornback, just check if the spots go to the edges of the wings - because a small Blonde Ray and a Spotted Ray are also hard to tell apart, and this is the distinguishing characteristic. Fishing is fun isn't it? Oh - and all three have "thorns". Perhaps one of the other members could pop the link to the Ray Identification guide on here. I printed it last year, and can't find the link. Thanks! Mike

Sounds like a cracking trip! I've been looking for decent pollack inshore for years, and never had anything like that size. Could you pop some more details of where and how, please? Thanks, Mike

"First you get into the ideal Photoshop pose...." Mike

Useful report - thanks! How far off were you, and what baits did you try? Mike

What a great trip, and such a fantastic introduction to the club to a new member! Nice one Gordon and Mike! Mike PS Hope you told him about the wet, bumpy trips, where you lose loads of tackle, and go for hour after hour without a bite too !!!!

Duncan, It was good to meet you, and I think you'll get a huge amount out of boat ownership. The 175 is a cracking boat, and one of our committee members, Adam, had a beautiful example. I like your suggestion of "sanction" rather than "consequence", and I agree that this is a practical, workable approach. Do drop me a Private Message (PM) as soon as you want that check doing. Being a new member, I'll try to arrange this as quickly as I can at a mututally convenient time. If you have a detailed chart on board at the time, and if it's me doing the check as I hope, then I might be able to give you an idea of how to find some good "general" marks to get you started. Welcome to the club! Mike Safety Officer

Nice one Tom! Mike

Not sure if all clear bowls are the same, but mine has a drain point on the bottom, and a couple of times a season I'll drain out any water that I can see, without the need for bleeding the system. Not all fuel supplies are the same. Some contain water, others (bottom of tank) can be very cloudy. I remember having to do two filter changes once after filling up (Jersey I seem to recall) as the engine was very hesitant due to fuel not getting through properly. Definitely worth carrying spare filters! Mike

Rich, It's also important to rig the bait effectively, and not mask the hook point. Try small ragworm, rag tipped with a small bit of squid, squid strip, or mackerel strip - size 4 is good, and you will catch bigger stuff too. The "party squid" referred to on another post are good, but might need a larger hook, such as a 1 or 1/0, as can be a "normal" squid head cut lengthways. I have also caught them on 5/0 hooks on double squid baits when after ray, and this has definitely sorted out the better quality fish. You will also find that early bream can be shy biters (small hooks best), and you will get shy "plucks" instead of the traditional "rattles" you get later in the year. If you wait and wait, they will rob your bait, if you strike you miss. The only technique I've found that works is to lift the rod tip slowly, and try to encourage them to snatch it. If that fails, back down to the same spot, and wait for the next pluck! Good luck - but the early ones can be frustrating! Mike

I'm not convinced biodiesel is the way forwards, and ethically it is arguably much worse than taking immature bass, a topic much closer to angler's hearts. - It's inefficient to produce. Only about 1% of solar energy can be turned into biofuel using current technology. - This low efficiency means that if 100% of the agricultural land in the whole of Europe was dedicated to biofuel, it would meet less than 10% of the current demand for fuel in Europe alone; - Conversion of agricultural land to biofuel production is already eliminating grain and food surpluses throughout the world; - Food and animal fodder prices are rocketing across the world as a result; - Starvation in third-world countries is escalating, and as a direct result of biofuel production eliminating surpluses, thousands of people are dying. This ethical debate is complex, is not fully appreciated by all politicians and environmentalists, and you will hear more in the press over the coming years. Personally, I'm waiting until the technology improves, and other biofuels such as ethanol and methanol come on stream, from sustainable waste energy sources. Mike

Sounds an intriguing decision chaps! I look forward to hearing the tales of the build, and maiden voyage. Hope all of your plans come together, with a minimum of hassle. Am told reliably by a good friend of mine that the hull and deck costs one third of the project, the engine and associated installation a further third, and the final third is tied up with the mast and sails..... Mike

A lovely boat Adam, am not surprised she sold so quickly! Loved the single drift comment Duncan! Last time I was down there in July last year, it was blowing a F5 against tide, and the Alderney Race was a little whumpity. I had 9 plump mackerel in a bucket, ready to drop a half fillet or 36..., but given the conditions, I didn't want to spend too long on the bank and find the tide taking me BACK through the Race up to Cherbourg again. Would love to play to be honest! Maybe on a neaps in late July / early August? However, I do have a cunning plan. I suspect there are medium-sized turbot much much closer to Poole, if you know where to look. I know of two marks where there are plaice-sized ones, and there might be bigger ones there too! Mike

Hi Adam, There was a lengthy post about this last year. See: http://www.pbsbac.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=6229 Lots of implications outside comments here. Another good discusion topic! Regards, Mike

Hi Mike, All three boats on your list will be fine for inshore fishing, but if you do start to spend more and more time further out, you will increasingly encounter larger waves, and rougher conditions, warranting something physically larger. Please note that Recreational Craft Directive lists all 3 of your selected models as Category "C" for inshore. Offshore Category "B" vessels start to appear at about 23' in length, and typically have more space, accommodation, freeboard, and built in stability. However, if they are used offshore, they will need appropriate safety equipment, such as offshore flare packs (more parachute flares), with consideration given to being out of VHF range, so EPIRB and even needing a liferaft to be carried. However, with a boat of this size, you might also be looking at a marina berth and winter storage costs, which can be prohibitively expensive. Lots to think about, but there is plenty of good fishing inshore, and it could keep you amused for many years at a much lower cost! Mike Safety Officer

Probably not Tom. They look like a cross between a skate and a shark, and have all of the fighting characteristics of a sack of potatoes. All the ones I saw were returned! The angler fish (Lophius piscatorius) with the huge mouth and dangly "lure" on the first dorsal spine is not protected. They are found in club waters, and are most likely to be caught on a live-bait in deep water over rough ground. I remember helping to fillet one, and there was 7lb of useable tail on a 35lb fish. The fish is good to eat though, hence the high price of "monkfish" for kebabs etc. Mike

DEFRA has announced that the Angel Shark is now a protected species (sneaked in in the middle of other protections including sea horses and water voles). http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2008/080226a.htm http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/39332/all This is the fish we anglers call monkfish (Squatina squatina). I'm not aware of any being caught in club waters, but was on a boat in the Bristol Channel when 7 were boated in 1981, all around 40lb in weight. If you catch any, these should all be returned. Mike

James, Just a little word of caution. I had a Mercury 5HP outboard with a charging circuit on my first boat, that I linked to my battery to trickle charge it. I must have done something wrong, because the cables over-heated, melted, and caused an electrical fire on board, while I was at sea. Take great care, and advice from someone who can advise from a position of authority about your model of engine, and electrics! Oh, and test it at length while strapped to a pontoon or similar. Mike

Best of luck with the sale and purchase Dave! Mike, Carol, and George

Happy Birthday old feller! New spinning rod perhaps? Mike and George

Welcome to a great bunch of anglers, who continue to teach me things after over 40 years of angling! More information on this Forum, and in this club than a lifetime's subscription to any magazine! Hope you join fully! Mike