Mike Fox

Well done Rupe and Al ! Sounds like several boats were fishing the same mark, but your experience and skills really paid off. Part of the shock for me was that you used 40 mackerel as bait on your first spot - then ran out and had to fill the livebait tank again for your next one. I haven't seen 40 mackerel all summer. This also tends to suggest you had many hits you didn't connect with!!! Makes you realise the effort needed to achieve this level of success. Mike

Well done all who fished! Some great fish came in, and some really good tales told. Mike

Went out through the Haven for a couple of hours into a SE3-4. Overcast and mild. Only pottered a short while (still no mackerel around the Hook Sands on trailed lines) and got back as the ebb was starting and it was starting to kick up a bit. Harbour full of boats drifting the channels - both North and South of "The Line", but no fish spotted being boated. The Harbour Master was watching intently too! Think I would have chosen a certain sheltered rock mark for the comp, had we been fishing it today. The open sea looked a little uncomfortable. Will await the results with interest! Mike

No real change chaps (and chappesses) to the Inshore (or rain) Forecast: Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis Inshore waters forecast 24 hour forecast: 1800 Sat 14 Jul 1800 Sun 15 Jul Wind Southwest, backing northeast for a time, 3 or 4, occasionally 5. Sea state Slight or moderate. Weather Rain or thundery showers, fog patches developing. Visibility Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Outlook: 1800 Sun 15 Jul 1800 Mon 16 Jul Wind Southwesterly 3 or 4, occasionally 5. Sea state Slight or moderate. Weather Rain or thundery showers, fog patches. Visibility Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Let's do this....carefully! Mike fox Safety Officer

All, In consultation with Adam, and having reviewed the following: Inshore Forecast: Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis Inshore waters forecast 24 hour forecast: 1800 Fri 13 Jul 1800 Sat 14 Jul Wind South veering southwest 3 or 4, occasionally 5. Sea state Moderate or rough. Weather Occasional rain. Visibility Moderate or good, occasionally poor. Outlook: 1800 Sat 14 Jul 1800 Sun 15 Jul Wind Southwest backing east 3 or 4, occasionally 5. Sea state Moderate. Weather Occasional rain, fog patches. Visibility Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. and: http://www.meteonet.nl/aktueel/brackall.htm Which currently shows a potentially thundery, and probably wet warm front crossing the English Channel on Sunday. Isobars seem fairly well spaced apart, suggesting strong winds are unlikely. Personally, I'm not fond of long periods of rain, an Easterly 4 or 5, fog, nor possible thunderstorms with carbon fibre rods, but is it dangerous? Probably not, if you're careful. The comp remains ON at this stage. Should the forecast wind strength increase during Saturday, making this dangerous for small boats, then watch this space. If no further posts on here, then assume it remains on. I would advise all fishing to keep a careful eye on the weather if they decide to fish. This information is only a forecast - and conditions might deteriorate on the day quite quickly if out at sea, and each skipper should use their own judgement. Mike Safety Officer

Just for clarity - is there a minimum weight or length - or does it just have to be a bass to be in with a chance of points? Thanks, Mike

Yes it does Trev! Mike

First you get your pennel hook baits.... http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/20...id-picture.html Mike

Not a booking in...just the first official suggestion of what the weather might be from the Met Office... Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis Inshore waters forecast 24 hour forecast: 0600 Fri 13 Jul 0600 Sat 14 Jul Wind South veering southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later. Sea state Slight or moderate increasing moderate or rough. Weather Occasional rain, fog patches. Visibility Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Outlook: 0600 Sat 14 Jul 0600 Sun 15 Jul Wind Southwesterly 3 or 4, occasionally 5. Sea state Moderate or rough decreasing slight or moderate. Weather Occasional rain, fog patches. Visibility Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Let's watch this space carefully, and keep options open! Mike

Looking really impressive Charlie - well done! Mike

Sounds a trifle messy...

Well done Rich, you've got a great setup there, and as soon as I can get this new job under control (or stop work on the old one!) I should start getting my life back in order and get a chance to join you, as promised. Mike

Wow Steve - any pictures? Mike

Sounds a great trip Martin and Dean. Might be out that way ourselves in a few weeks, so a quick drift or two might just be possible! Mike

Hi Neal, Good to see you out there. A great spot to fish - if uptide of the overfalls! I believe there's plenty of conger and huss on there, as well as tope. Did you check your chart/plotter for the holes near the Ledge? They look superb spots to drop a large bait. Your Arvor 25 looks superb - and very distinctive! Mike

Hi Mike - saw you thundering out this morning, and returning regally this evening. I see what you mean by those high bows being reassuring. Looked very comfortable too. Am impressed at your shoal of gurnard! Have taken one or two over the years, and they are superb eating fish (foil parcels, salt, pepper, butter and white wine!).The colours are vibrant, and the tub gurnard with tinges of blue in their fins are even prettier, I think. Our sonar hasn't given any evidence of mackerel at all yet! Maybe no mackerel - or just not "tuned" properly. Any advice Mike? Mike

It was a later than optimum departure on Sunday, but we had enough tide to get some ebb round from Poole as far as Anvil Point, then we pushed into the gentle flooding neap, with flat seas and BLUE SKIES. Couldn't believe it - absolutely calm, no swell, plenty of boats on the distant marks, and our little hotspot was boat free. After catching a 13.5 lb thornback and a 24lb 10oz tope there last trip, hopes and expectations were high. Anchored up in over 100' of water and the hook bit first drop. We let the boat settle then lowered whole squid and mackerel half fillets on three rods, holding with a mere 5oz of lead. We thought we had it made, but we waited and waited. George had a couple of doggies while Carol and I wondered if this was the same spot. Then I had a tap on the rod, so picked it up and held it, feeling the soft gentle pull so characteristic of a doggy. Struck firmly, pulling it clear, and the large bait clearly wasn't quite swallowed, so lowered back down into the same spot. This time a firm knock, so leaned into it, and the rod doubled over. Clearly no doggy this one - hopefully a blonde ray. It took line, then more with a steady pull, so clearly no tope. It felt heavy, really heavy, and I realised it was taking a lot of line. The 30lb class Ugly Stik was doubled over, so tightened the drag further and further on the TLD15, until full over. Even then line was being pulled off, so I decided to wait it out. All indications were something large, ponderous and heavy, but the drag did its trick, and I eventually managed to get it clear of the seabed and moving slowly upwards. Twenty minutes after hooking it, and after two long dives for freedom, I saw a long white shape in the gin clear water, and I slowly pulled a conger to the surface. All other rods had been cleared, the net and gaff readied, and as our cockpit is quite small, it had to be a single-handed catch and land with this one. I popped the gaff over the side, and pulled the leader to get the eel close to the boat where it started spinning slowly, and I waited until its chin was just over the gaff, and lifted smartly. Unfortunately the gaff point slipped off, and snagged the trace, allowing the eel to back down into the depths. Well, it was a good eel. I've caught them to 55lb in the past, and plenty in the 30-40lb ish size, and knew this one had to have been at least 30lb, but I guess I'll never know for sure. A cracking fight and a fish returned, so all not lost! In some ways, it was quite lucky. Our yacht just isn't designed for fishing, and this would have filled the small cockpit, and could have been quite dangerous until subdued (I have the cutlery and the technique!). I guess I shouldn't have been mentally preparing marinades and lighting imaginary barbecues! Well, we tried for more, but the tide by now was running at over 2 knots according to our paddle wheel log, and the leads were getting too much to handle comfortably, so we called it a day there, trying a few more spots on the way back - for future reference at least! Chatted with Mad Mike who we had seen, but their day didn't seem much more successful - both of us having a shortage of mackerel. We'll be back! Mike, Carol and George

Came round the corner of Old Harry on Saturday morning into a Westerly F4-5, with white horses, but blue skies and SUNSHINE !!!! Carried on round to Swanage Bay, and picked a spot inshore of all of the charter boats out of the peak of the flooding tide - but still close to our target mark, and in the lee of Anvil Point. Set the 5kg Bruce-clone anchor in 55' or so after dragging it merrily for a while, but then snuggled into the shelter of the canvas spray hood and started dropping squid baits, and the odd pot of chopped squid as groundbait. Carol had her new left hand drive Ambassador 6501 to play with, and christened it in fine style with 3 smoothhounds - all male, Common and Starrys. All returned for another day. George and I could only manage dogfish - same baits, same hooks, the lot! I cut the trace of a badly hooked one, as I couldn't find my long-nosed pliars, and George hauled in another doggie about 10 minutes later. It had swallowed the hook, and when I tried to remove it I found two - same size, identical patterns, same trace. It was the same fish I had returned !! It then was returned (again) hook free. A lazy rod used with hokkais, dexters or mini-feathers eventually managed 4 mackerel, but they were very thin on the ground. It was tough out there! Loads of bites from mini-bream (or similar) but they couldn't cope with the 1/0 hooks and biggish baits we were using. The wind didn't drop to the promised "variable 3 or less", and in fact increased to SSW5-6 during the afternoon as a sea breeze tried to kick in. We eventually turned and headed for Poole, with revised plans for our next visit! Mike, Carol, and George

New weekend and Bank Holiday 5:30 p.m. and 7.30 p.m. bridge lifts for the Summer. New 7.30 a.m. lifts on weekdays too. Really handy for those us who can't quite squeeze under at all states of the tide.... Mike 20 June 2007 Notice to Mariners No. 10/2007 Poole Lifting Bridge As a result of recently approved legislation, the Council has been able to approve minor changes to the Poole bridge lifting schedule on a trial basis for Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holidays between 1 July and 30 September 2007. The new schedule will be as follows:‑ 07.30 09.30 10.30 12.30 14.30 16.30 17.30 18.30 19.30 21.30 No on-demand lifts for commercial vessels will be permitted between 16.00 and 20.00, excepting vessels over 40m long. The current schedule of 07.30 09.30 10.30 12.30 14.30 16.30 18.30 and 21.30 for weekdays and the rules for unscheduled lifts will remain in force for the time being. It is intended that this new schedule will also be implemented between 1 April and 30 September 2008. The Bridges Operating Board is also considering further refinements to improve navigational safety in the area. The Bridges Operating Board is made up of the following:‑ Chairman - Peter Booth

Chaps, Good news, the forecast is improving for Sunday: Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis Strong wind warning 1559 Fri 06 Jul 0300 Sat 07 Jul Westerly winds could touch Force 6 at timesuntil early Saturday, mainly around exposed headlands. Inshore waters forecast 24 hour forecast: 1800 Fri 06 Jul 1800 Sat 07 Jul Wind West backing southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 6 at first, decreasing 3 or 4 later. Sea state Moderate or rough decreasing slight or moderate. Weather Isolated showers. Visibility Mainly good. Outlook: 1800 Sat 07 Jul 1800 Sun 08 Jul Wind Southwest 3 or 4 veering north 2 or 3, then backing south later. Sea state Moderate becoming slight. Weather Fair. Visibility Good. Hope you all have a great trip! Mike

While I am unable to offer to crew this weekend, I thought you might like this for your amusement and tittilation.... http://www.boat-angling.co.uk/22.html Mike

News: Adam and I independently came to the same conclusion, slightly earlier than we had expected - the competition on Sunday is OFF, and will be deferred. Adam will post the revised date shortly. The prevailing Inshore Forecast is here: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/marine...area=7&type=All Look at how close the isobars are on the synoptic charts that cover the inshore forecast period: http://www.meteonet.nl/aktueel/brackall.htm Then scroll through to see the synoptic charts for the rest of Sunday. Isobars equally tightly spaced, more fronts, etc. At the time of posting, Sunday info is not yet available from our Met Office, but I would anticipate SW-S 5 or 6, blustery showers, with gusts of 25-30 knots. That occluded front with the Low right over us could also mean Moderate to Poor visibility as well. Please note that it is the competition that is off. If you wish to continue fishing in your own boats, this remains the judgement call of each skipper, as ever. Mike Safety Officer

If it comes with free waypoints, could I just have the free waypoints, please? Mike

Have you tried sailmakers etc? Sounds close to the diameter of sprayhood frames, which are usually 316. Mike

Good post Harry! Always good to get an experienced viewpoint, where additional advantages are so clearly stated. Mike