Adam F

I had a nightmare looking for a Warrior 165 about 8 months ago - everything I saw advertised either was sold, a real state or out of my price range - in the end luck stepped in and I found one not being 'commercially' advertised at a brokers in Portsmouth. Hang in there - it only takes one boat! BTW - whats your budget? In hindsight I wish that I had gone new from the outset....4 months after buying my 165, the 5 year old engine went bang and it cost me

Sean, Cracking boat! - Bet you cant wait......gunna be an extra special xmas this year!

Jack - Will do. You have probably already seen it, but www.boatsandoutboards is one of the best places on the net to look. Just had a quick look and by co- insidence this one has just been advertised today: http://www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk/view/PMB140/ Adam

No - never tried it, but supposed to be a good attractant for Cod and Pollock.....worth a try I suppose?

Who's fishing then? Lw at baiter is 3.45pm, so we will have to be coming in at 2pm ish I think?? Whats the harbour fishing like for flounder at the moment?

Well, with the weather holding out so well at the moment, and having done a few cod trips this year - we decided to have a crack at the unusually late bass still showing of Portland. The tides dicated that an early start was not needed, so at 9.00am we met at the slip. Billy very kindly turned up with a bucket of hermits (cheers mate!) and we headed out across a smooth sea round to the Bill. We had intended to fish another reef mark just off the main race, but as we neared the headland a plethora of boats were already drifting the race! - So we joined the que and took our chances! My day wasnt so good. It was 'one of the days' where everything that could snap, tangle, break etc - did! and with having to skipper the boat almost constantly through the turbulant waters it made fishing, very difficult. The wind was a F1-2 if that all day, but the big tides around the race produced some very dramatic water!! BW behaved impecably all day, and I was very impressed we way she handled the waves and swell, she kept up with all the bigger pro bass boats all day! Fishing was hard - drifting at 6 knots at times, with 12oz lead and you HAD to be hard on the deck. Bob was a star and produced 6 cracking fish while loosing a few others. I on the other hand had just a couple and lost most of the gear in my box!!! Storm Sandeels proved to be the tactic - fished on the Portland Rig (which really proved its worth) A surprise catch was a hoard of mackerel! (in Dec!!!!) and a garfish! - Crazy! The water temp was over 10C, while off the needles last week it was barely 8C. Sub tropical weymouth. We had a good 4 hours at the bass before we came in close to have a hot bacon roll and tea. A few decent wrasse on the hermits and it was time to head home. Not a red letter day like last Friday, but a good day non-the-less!

Squid seems to be in short supply at the moment, and this is pushing the price up somewhat.....a shop in Xhurch was reportedly selling 5lb boxes for 12 quid!! Neil at Bournemouth Fishing Lodge has just called me - he has just taken a large order of 5lb boxes - he will do them at

She'll come round to it - dont worry!!

Nuff' said!!! - Thanks Peter!

Cheers Guys - not how I thought it was tied. I was imagining more of a 'helicopter' rig. (Common rig used in carp fishing) This utilises far less swivels. Is basically a snap swivel at the bottom, a bead, a swivel, a bead and then a stopper. This enables the bait to swing 360 degs. but not up and down. Surely a 6-8' hook length would give the bit / lure all the action and freedom it requires - would all those swivels help that much?? To me they are just weak links in the set-up? Im off Bassing to Weymouth on Fri - hence to Q's, and the Portland rig has had good press this year??.......

The question is a little too general Kam. Do you mean main line to leader or main line to the hook length? If to the leader then either the SIG or the Albright knot are the best. If the main line to the hook length, as you would when tying a running ledger for example, then I use a swivel and attach using a grinner. Hope this helps

What is it? How do I rig it up? and Why is it considered better than a normal running ledger?

.....The scourage of the sea, the kennel club, the obligatory hound, - the only thing you catch when you have a 8 squid bait down for cod, but when you NEED to catch one for a comp - they vanish!... I am of course refering to scyliorhinus canicula, the lesser spotted dogfish.

The Navman VHF will connect to the Garmin - no probs. I was meant to be codding, but left for work yesterday at 4.00am and didnt get home until 9.00pm last night....little tired! Plus I have mountains of work to do today, and I'm out Friday anyway, so I took a rain check. They havent called me yet, so I guess no cod.....

Kam, I bought the Garmin 182C about 6 months ago from http://www.sportextreme.com/pz802x20281yUSD/ This was the cheapest place I could find on the net. They are based in Norway, Denamark or somewere like that. They are a cracking unit, and I would well recommend them. Check the site, but mine with ext. antena was -

Does indeed!...Interesting! - While they were catching flounder, we were hauling HUGE cod!!!!

....stream of consiousness???

We all know what the REAL solution should be - even those who rely on the sea, but their is still too much at stake 'in the wings' to ban fishing in certian areas. Whole industries, and the salaries of the 'fat cats' rest on these decisions. It is these 'fat cats' who are influential in the decison making process, and whether this is right or wrong, thats the way it is at present. It will take time, and defiantly more damage to eco systems, but things WILL change, that I am sure of. Adam

You must be a mind reader!

I think we are launching from Lymington and headed for the IOW area....no specific mark! !!!! Mark - I only live about 20 mins away from Lymington and 35 mins from Poole, so it makes sense for me to meet you at the slip. Im sure James will give you a hand? I reckon an early start - so meet at the slip for 6.30am??

As Mark says Kam - you have to give it a shot! Just follow a few of the other boats and have a crack. Flounder fishing is always done in the harbour this time of year, so it is usually calm, even on a windy day. You can usualy find shelter behind one of the headlands or islands and the fishing is pretty relaxing. Light weights and rods are the order of the day! Come on over!!!

Well done Alan! Sounds like you had a cracking day! - I cant believe the bass are still in and readily hitting the Storm lures! I may give it a crack on Fri??

Bob - Im on holiday again Friday....same time, ....same place??

Thanks Charlie - Ive got the PM, things are a little hectic at the moment. It is a very definate possibility - so maybe we will speak in the new year??

And finally - look at the size of the head!! The feet in the picture are Rachael's!!! A 2lb cuttle went in without touching the sides!