Adam F

He's and old hand at all of this now - he already has one and has perfected the perfect set-up....baby starts crying at 4am, james is already up, feeds the baby changes nappy - now 5am, sun is up, james is in the car boat in tow....spends all day fishing while 'the other half' does baby duties than comes home to join the other 2 for feeds and sleeps!!.....

Having got the taste for fishing mid-channel last week, Martin and I decided to have a crack again yesterday as the forecast looked reasonable. Bob F was on Maverick and I had Gordon with me. A late start as the flood wasnt until the afternoon saw us wizzing across the bay towards France at 20 knots - it was so smooth Gordon drove and I cooked the breakfast - like a sheet of silk it was! Record time to the mark, and quickly down on a differnet spot rekoned to be good for a cod - hit the bottom,1 jig - nothing, 2nd jig - Bang, cod on! About 7/8lb it was the best of the day and I foolishly said to Gordon that after that we would stuggle - how right I was!! We ended up with 5 cod and 6 pollock for the day, with the best 2 pollock going about 9lb. The wind picked up in the afternoon to about a 3/4 but again it was still smoother way out than around the headlands on the way back in. Another good day - would just be nice to locate a few of the bigger cod that we read about so frequently, are they really that uncommon or are we just fishing the wrong parts?? Anyway off to Majorca for a week now, maybe another trip when I get back!! Adam

Didnt have time to post this yesterday - but had a call from James on Friday night at 1.30am....he must be out congering I thought...he wasnt....but he sure enough he had one to book in: A baby girl born at 12.30am Saturday morning - 10lbs... Sophie Anna Parker (I think) He sounded over the moon, but Im not sure if this was the new family member or the fact he now has 2 week paternity leave to go fishing!!

Many happy returns of the day to Bob F - Alun J and Alan Lake (Domino) I think you are all fishing today - what a birthday! Lets just hope we find a few cod! Strange that we have 3 birthdays together - what happned so special 9 months ago????

Wedger, Nice Boat!!! Im impressed! I also have been considering an MI21, so would love to pinch a trip out one day if I may?? They have a great reputation for speed and seaworthyness...what engine does she have?? Adam

I agree with Mike that Baiter is a bad slipway, bit is is quite sound and in good condition unlike other slips and its shallow nature makes it a little less prone to some of the errors than can happen on steep slips. It can be a pig to launch, but I find it OK - at the recent burnham comp we launched over 20 boats in an hour up to 22' in length without too much hastle. Adam

Charlie - Good question.... Basically they are fished the same as Redgills. A 'flying collar' rig is used - which consists of a long boom (tube, french etc) about 12" long - this keeps the long trace from tangling with the main line. The trace length does vary though. For the leadhead shads (Stormies etc) fished traditioanlly, a 8-15' trace is used and they are fish like a gill. Drop down to the bottom and retreave at a medium slow pace about 20-40 turns depending on the depth of water. This method is generally used for Pollock as they swim higher in the water than the cod. Twin Tails and the other rubbers (inc shads as well) for cod are fished hopper style. A very short - 2-4' trace is used and the rig is literally 'hopped' across the bottom. I.e - tap down and then lift and bounce, maintaining contact each 2/3 strokes with the wreck or seabed - this tends to bring the cod. Hope this helps.

Mine on the blue/clear 4" shad.

It is amazing how fuel is affected. On the way out revs were lower as was speed but due to having to constantly use the throttle in the swell I used 25 ltrs. On the way back we cruised at 18-20 knots at 4800 rpm and used 20 ltrs - flatter sea.

I wouldnt mind - this will be my last weekend for 3 weeks as Im off on holiday. The wind is looking a little fresh at the moment though?? What are the tides? The fuel I used aint actually that bad. Split between 2 if us it is only

We fished a slightly shallower mark in the Hurd Deeps last year. At slack tide it was crawling with conger and ling - but after winding 2 or 3 fish in most of us sat down to have some lunch - winding 30-40lb of fish 370ft is hard work!! Kam - you wont fancy the Deeps, if you thought the Rips were a long way! They are just North of the Channel Islands.

Can I up my order? The Rips took their toll on my Stormy supply! New order: 4 packs of 4" Shads (2 x Blue mackerel ones and 2x Green and Orange 'perch' ones) 1 pack of Sandeels. Ta Adam

You kept that one a bit quite Martin!!! It is a tricky one and I now find myself physically checking whenever I fill Rach's car or the boat with fuel - driving a diesel it is easy done!! Didi you extract the fuel yourself or was it a mechanics job??

Well, I found the trip on Saturday a real experiance. Previously I didnt think that it was possible for a 16' boat to fish 20-25 miles offshore near the middle of the English Channel! It showed that a bit of planning to cover the risks invloved (a number of boats, a good forecast and plenty of saftey gear) could make this possible. Whilst this is on the very upper limit of operating range for me and BW, I would certianly like to repeat the trip this year whilst the Cod are still around. When do they go? Is anyone else up for making another voyage out there in the next few months??

Please find the following link to the write-up on the clubs 48hr Specimen Hunt this weekend. Paul D - Can you put this on the main page? I have emailed it to you with a few photos. Adam

Leigh from the Armoury has very kindly posted back over a shirt that was left there when we visited in May. I dont know whose it is? If it is yours please let me know and we will make arrangements to get it back to you. It is a checked 'Gap' short. XL in size. Adam

Right, they are here! Sorry I didnt post them last night, it has been a long weekend with a long week ahead.... Firstly - many thanks to all 34 of you who entered the comp, a fantastic turnout. It is entries like this that make these events. I will pen a brief report this morning with full details, but a few stats you may like to hear. We had 34 entries, 21 weighed fish in, we had 11 different species, we had 10 entries over 100% specimen. It certianly was a close one this year - with 3 joint places and others all very close. Previous years anything over 100% would have been enough, but not this weekend, 112% was needed to frame. RESULTS: 1st = Peter Russell Snr Black Bream 4lb 114.29% 1st = Charlie Chapman Undulate Ray 16lb 114.29% 3rd = Tony Deavin Black Bream 3lb 15oz 112.5% 3rd = James Parker Conger Eel 45lb 112.5% Click on the link below to view the complete listing. Once again, thanks to all who entered and here's to next years event, when hopefully we will book the Mariner for the prize giving once again. Tight Lines Adam

Frank and Barry on 'Shelia Marie' fishing the Rips...

Martin Burt on Maverick playing a decent wreck pollock

Well, we did it! - After 2 years of talking about it, we finally made the plunge and at 7am this morning we headed South to the Rips. The forecast was good, and after being out Friday night I expected a mirror calm sea...but on leaving the harbour a nasty SE swell greated us. Once we had depth this calmed down, but made us stick to 14 knots on the way out. We made the mark in 1hr 30mins. Fishing was hard work - Bob had a take 1st cast but lost it. We fished shads, live mackerel and twin tails. After 2 hours just 2 lost fish. A move to another mark also failed to produce. We then headed to a wreck - 1st drift, bang, I got a pollock, 2nd drift - bingo! Cod!!! This is how it continued for the rest of the tide, but alas the cod failed to show. The return ebb tide was very poor, so we decided to call it a day and head in. 19-20 knots all the way home made it 1hr 15mins....funnilly, it was rougher around peveril with the ebb race than it was mid channel... Final tally - 12 pollock, best 9lb 8oz, 1 cod - 8lb 6oz. Not a great fishing day, but very satisfying - horizons broadened! Adam

Will, As a guide - take a look at the clubs recommended safety list on the main site. Also recommended is an RNLI safety check when the boat is fully kitted, this is a free service and will advise you on how well equipted your boat is for its intended purpose. Ebay is a good source of boating kit at bargin prices www.nautequipe.co.uk is also a good online store www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk ditto above As well as that try the 'Wanted' section on the clubs site, its surprising what most of use have kicking around! Adam

Currently I only have 14 names booked in for the 48hr comp. Most of these were from the meeting last night. If you are fishing please let me know, failure to book in before fishing will exclude you from entry. email - adam@adamfranklin.freeserve.co.uk Personal Message (PM) from this board Mobile - 07957 829902 Text - As above Home - 01202 823712 (eve only)

Looks like we are heading to the Rips on Sat now. The forecast is slightly better. Leaving Poole at 6am, heading out in a sort of convoy. Adam

Tony, You dont have to fish thw whole 48hrs! The idea is that you have a 48hr period in which to fish/enter, and if you catch a decent fish (10lb bass!!) you can enter it. It is

Why not! Lets take advantage of mdern technology! Email, Text or Phone is all acceptable - as long as you book in and have your catches to me by 6pm on Sunday. Adam