Fishing

Lord Melbury wrote:

seadog wrote:

We decimated the Herring and hence there was feck all for the big uns to come here for.

Same with the Mackerel.
The Jocks must have caught hundreds of thousands of tons in the Seventies & Eighties & virtually wiped out the entire SW stock.
The same is happening now with local pursers from Newlyn & Plymouth catching Pilchards ( or Cornish Sardines as the marketeers call them ) & taking another link out of the food chain.

I used to handline a lot of Mackerel with my uncle who was a fisherman in the seventies and eighties we used to be able to land forty stone as our limit but we could land as much as we like on the massive Russian factory ship that was moored around the Yellow bouys then we would land our limit at the Barbican, everyone was doing it. I also remember watching a big Scottish purse netter ring and catch a huge shoal of Mackerel and thinking that it couldn't go on like that.

What boat did your Uncle have Earwig ?
My Dad was a fisherman on the Barbican during that period.
Remember seeing the Scottish pursers steaming in day after day carrying hundreds of tons of Mackerel.
They were carrying so much their decks were awash.
An impressive sight but terrible for the long term viability of a fishery that sustained thousands of SW handline fishermen for many years & quite possibly still would be now.

Lord Melbury wrote:

What boat did your Uncle have Earwig ?
My Dad was a fisherman on the Barbican during that period.
Remember seeing the Scottish pursers steaming in day after day carrying hundreds of tons of Mackerel.
They were carrying so much their decks were awash.
An impressive sight but terrible for the long term viability of a fishery that sustained thousands of SW handline fishermen for many years & quite possibly still would be now.

He had a 18' clinker built that we used to fish a few pots with and a 32' tub moored in the Yealm, before then he had a few boats in Dartmouth where he grew up. Used to long,ine for Skate and Ray drop a few Sole nets and Mackerel in season. By the early eighties he was working in the Barbican for Brixham and Torbay fish company and used to run his boats part time. He still has a boat and runs two allotments and he's in his late eighties.
Was going to PM his name to you but you don't seem to have a pm facility.

Ah, ok. Yes, once boats & fishing get in your blood it’s there for life.
I switched off the PMs several years ago as I was getting PMs from a couple of the weirdos Then employed by Argyle.

I fished out of the Barbican in the mid seventies at weekends and school holidays with a professional in a 16' clinker built and Seagull Century.
Ray nets, long lines, winkle picking, whiffing for Bass up the Plym and Tamar, gill nets for Salmon, Sea Trout, Bass and Mullet all over the sound.
No safety gear whatsoever, we had a few scrapes at night and in shit weather.
I went to sea in 76, I kept my fishing gear in his store for a few years, handy when I was on leave. He drowned in 1990 though, there is a plaque just up from the Admiral McBride about his death.

Sorry to hear about your mate Seadog.
Lost around Drake’s Island if it’s who I’m thinking of ?
I used to spend a lot of time out with my old man & Uncles.
Long-lining, ray netting & hand lining for mackerel were my favourites.
Also did trawling & scalloping when he got a bigger boat.
All very low tec & no PFDs then.

I never got the story, John Ainsworth, Johnny the Milk, he was a Milkman at first then gradually went full time.
I learnt to chalk the darts in the Admiral, my DHS maths was not up to snuff at first, a lot of fishermen piss taking soon sorted that.

That’s him. Didn’t want to put his name. Seem to remember his body was found near Drakes Island one morning after poor weather.
Only ever knew him as John the Milkman & didn’t know his surname until he died.
Lots of dinghy fishermen in the Barbican back then, making a living from all sorts.

All sorts is right, we had a few scrapes when I was with him, caught in a big squall behind Mountbatten Pier, shipping green seas over the stern and engine all the way back to the Barbican.
Me bailing and him restarting the engine!
The twat dropped the spark plug off the west end of the Breakwater and I had to row the boat all the way back.
We both fell asleep tied up to Mountbatten Pier on the end of a gill net, woke up after it had been light for about two hours. The net was gagged with fish, we took out the Sea Trout as we hauled but left all the Pollack, Bass and Mullet in it and motored back to land. Shitting ourselves as Salmon and Sea Trout were a strictly darkness only affair.

Perseverance pays off. Cracking really fresh Salmon from the Tavy, ten minute fight clear out the water three times then had to land it without a net. Have brined the fillets and in the cold smoker later.
ps. whilst the link works for the pic I'm not sure why it showed the URL and not the pic?

Cracking fish ears. I had 2 small mackerel and a nice size pollock from the sound this morning, first time out for 2 weeks due to the bastard wind.

Earwegoagain wrote:

Perseverance pays off. Cracking really fresh Salmon from the Tavy, ten minute fight clear out the water three times then had to land it without a net. Have brined the fillets and in the cold smoker later.
ps. whilst the link works for the pic I'm not sure why it showed the URL and not the pic?

That's a beauty.

Gorgeous.

Murderers.

POI wrote:

Murderers.

Quite right POI.

Fish is murder!

Chips is murder!

Though saying that I do like a nice piece of cod and chips. Had some last night for tea near the beach at Woolacombe. Yum!

Had a pony burger from my local the other night. Bleddy hansome.

Nearly all mine are released to fight another day, but not the chips.

I always fish barbless too, I have killed enough fish by now.

I crimp my barbs with my leatherman because mainly they are the hooks sold with the lures. A lot of my plugs I rehook with trebles because unless you buy Rapalas for fifteen quid the hooks are shite. I use kamasan and they are great hooks. On Plugs I take the middle hook out altogether and on small plugs just use the one in the ass end. I always carry forceps and they can really help in making unhooking easier on the fish. I had about fifty Bass last year mainly plugging and I ate about six of them. I have taken large catches of Bass and other fish in the past but times were hard and I could run much faster.

Had a nice 3/12lb sea trout last week that we ate for supper was bleddy lovely. Altogether I've had two Salmon, one very small and returned and about 8 sea trout all returned apart from the one we ate.
Off Bassing tomorrow afternoon with a mate of mine will be bait fishing in Whitsands area hoping for nice big one, maybe a few Macky off the rocks at high tide.

Earwegoagain wrote:

Had a nice 3/12lb sea trout last week that we ate for supper was bleddy lovely. Altogether I've had two Salmon, one very small and returned and about 8 sea trout all returned apart from the one we ate.
Off Bassing tomorrow afternoon with a mate of mine will be bait fishing in Whitsands area hoping for nice big one, maybe a few Macky off the rocks at high tide.

What bait you using bhey, peeler crab?

See what they've got in Southway tackle and baits, would like some live Sandeels if not a couple of peelers and as back up Lug. Lug is a great bait but catches more small ones IMO, Peeler with plenty of bait elastic is a great smelly bait though most big bass Ive had have been on Sandeels. Any of the above will take a fish if it's there though.

A mate of mine swears by peeler for bigger bass but like you say they'll take most things ..... except my lures

Most big bass I have caught usually have a big hard back in their gut. Found a huge spider crab, minus the legs in a 5 pounder.