July Continued

I decided to have a quick session out yesterday to try for a Blonde Ray. Not that I've caught one before, but I felt conditions were quite good - overcast, slight onshore breeze, water quite clear but a little bit of chop on the water. I was a little later to the mark than I planned so I ended up starting fishing pretty much dead on low water.

First casts made, and I had quite a long wait before a bite resulted in the regular doggie. I played around with a spinner for a bit to see if there was any mackerel but there was no takers there. I did notice upon retrieving the big rods a bit of brown sludge on the line which meant dreaded algae. A poor session here last month I feel was the result of a lot of this algae in the water so I thought this session could head the same way. Fortunately it seemed to disperse as the tide started to push, and another doggie give me a bit more optimism.

It was nearly time to pack up and I was retrieving one rod when I turned around and noticed the other line had gone slack. I took up the line and waited to feel any indication of a fish, not wanting to strike too soon and miss. Sure enough it was fish on and it felt a bit more than a doggie. I took my time as the fish stayed deep until it was about 20 feet out, then I could see the distinct shape of a ray making its way to the surface.

I had hopes it would be a small blonde ray, however as it broke the surface it was obvious it was actually a spotted ray, and quite a nice one at that. It continued to scrap at the edge of the rocks but eventually I got it on its back and was able to bring it up the rocks.

With this sudden action I dropped the ray into a rockpool while I quickly baited up another rig and cast out. I had just returned the ray and started packing my gear away when the rod I had cast started to develop a good bend. Again I waited before setting the hook, this time though this fish came in easier than the first. Another slightly smaller spotted ray was soon at my feet, a quick photo and then released.


That was the end of the action as I had to pack away and get home. Didn't quite get what I was after but a good little session with my run of good luck continuing nicely!

Hound Hunting Pt2

Went after hounds again with Paul after finally pinpointing the right area. While it meant a 5am start to collect enough crab bait for myself, the rest of the day was pretty routine.

Expectations were high with us thinking it would be a busy night, with reports from this area being pretty consistent with people landing several fish in a session. Sport wasn't as hectic as we had predicted, we had to wait till the sun dropped before getting the bites. 

Just before the head-torches came out I had the first run and beached a lovely smoothound of maybe 7lb. It took a while but eventually we had the next bite and it fell to Paul, and he landed a fish of a similar size. He was also next in with a good take, however the fish had other plans and decided to head off to Ireland like a steam train and snapped his mainline! I had two more fish late on, plus we both had at least two runs each where the fish dropped the bait. 

I even managed a bit more hand to fin combat as my last hound shook the hook at the edge so I managed to skip down the rocks and lift it out while it was still cruising the shallows! Just a short entry this time, will leave the pictures to do most of the talking.

There be Monsters

 Saturday night just gone, me and Paul were planning on trying for rays but now the weather seemed to turn for the worst we were undecided whether to go. In the end we settled on Benllech as its normally a banker venue for at least doggies and whiting with a chance of something a bit better. Come the evening, although it was a biting cross wind the rain eased and we were quietly optimistic. After the usual suspects I had a good pull down and a belting huss was at the surface. Unfortunately it did what huss do best and spat the hook. I had a feeling it would be a one good fish session and I saw that as an opportunity gone. I strapped on a whiting and cast it short hoping for another.

It sat out for a while with a few sharp pulls but nothing definite developed so I left it to see if the fish would come back, while I was keeping occupied with another doggie. Nothing happen for about 10 mins so I decided to bring it in. Initially I thought I was snagged but then the snag started to fight and move. Soon the head of a conger appeared..... then the rest of its body and christ almighty I've never seen anything like it. It took me on a merry dance around the rocks, lunging into the gulleys and around the rock ledges in front, but my 30lb snood was clearly holding so we set about trying to land the beast.

I led the fish around to a ledge that just had a few inches of water on it where I could slide it on and get hold. It was another 5-10 mins before the fish surrendered and I dragged as much as I could onto the ledge. Paul didn't fancy getting to near it (understandably) so I passed him the rod and went down. As i pulled the line it inevitably snapped, instinct took hold and I dived on the fish, wrestling on my hands and knees in a puddle on the ledge! Eventually I managed to turn around and push it up the seaweed to higher ground where we finally could appreciate its size. We didn't weigh it, the flexi-tub wasn't big enough but I did have a body sized measuring stick, I'm 5'10" and the fish almost matched me! After the photoshoot she went back quietly snaking back to the depths.

Once things calmed down we had a visit from a very bold fox looking for a free meal. Paul upped his terminal gear and managed a conger of his own, a nice fish in its own right of around 6-7lb. This added the gloss on a truly memorable night

July Starts with a Scream

After the success at Holyhead the previous week, I decided to end June with an attempt at a shore tope. Unfortunately when me and Paul got to the mark, near Rhoscolyn, we planned to fish, the wind put us off trying to climb down. A quick rethink and we pitched up at an alright looking spot just around the corner. Despite being somewhat prepared for snaggy ground, we weren't prepared for it to be so snaggy. A big rod was put out with half a mackerel, getting stuck both times and losing everything, leader and all on the second. I did have slightly more success fishing close in with bits of rag, catching a few small wrasse before the last fish being species 15 for the year, a poor cod.


Fast forward nearly two weeks to Tuesday just gone, with the big tides I decided to have a crack at some bigger smoothounds. After spending the day getting all my gear sorted I made the drive up to penrhos to try and collect some crab for the session. This is when my optimism started to drop as even after two hours searching I barely had 10 crinkly crabs, but with a couple of squid for back up I thought I would just manage for the session.

Had a little explore around a couple of beaches just outside Valley before picking my spot, however I got "the feeling" that it could be a difficult night. The couple of hours in daylight went by with no action so I set up just away from the rocks where at least I wouldn't lose any gear. Out went one of the softer crabs I had managed to collect, along with squid on the other rod, and I sat down considering an early finish get get to bed before midnight. I decided to leave everything out and tuck into my last buttie to lighten the rucksack for the walk back. At the point when I was mid bite the ratchet on the crab rod screams and just keeps going. I lift into the fish, and after a few minutes when it makes 2 more runs I see the leader, then a nice smoothound in the shallows. A quick dash down and my prize was I my hands. It wasn't big, maybe 6lbs at most, but I was over the moon and glad to get one bigger than a pup this year.

This obviously lifted my spirit no end and I decided on one more cast to try and prove it wasn't a fluke. It took a while, maybe 30 mins, when the line dropped slack and I was in again. Unfortunately this fish decided it didn't want a photo and dropped the bait about 15 metres out. With no bait left I had to call it a day there but I was happy to land one and know that it wasn't a fluke so will be back again on the next big tides.