Swanage Pier Day 1.

Scott has been to Swanage Pier a number of times in the past and I have been curious of his antics there. A short while ago, Scott commented on how I should go and I replied "perhaps I shall join you on one of your adventures." Literally a couple of days after that conversation Scott text me to ask if I could get a couple of days off of work to go down and to cut a long story short, I managed to negotiate the time off of work and we headed down to Swanage on Monday the 16th Sept, with the view to fish the Tuesday and Wednesday. We knew from the off that we were going to be predominantly targeting Mini species, this I was keen to do as there are a few species I have been wanting to catch for a while and they have consistently eluded me. There was also one particularly interesting specie at Swanage which was a must have for me; The Baillon's Wrasse. I was quite prepared to use bait if it meant catching one.

Full of anticipation, myself and Scott rocked up at the pier ready for opening at 8:00am, we paid our dues and fished the lower decks. From the off I was using a dropshot rig with Berkley Gulp Angleworms for a lure, these things are just excellent for targeting mini's!

Scott was using scaled down bait rigs on ultra light gear and was catching straight away, it took me a minute to get in on the action, but I was soon catching consistently along with Scott.

My first fish was a Pouting, it was also the first one I have caught this year so quite welcome.

The fish came thick and fast and I couldn't believe the amount of Corkwing Wrasse present!

Scott was out fishing me with his baited rigs but it really didn't matter, we were both catching a lot of fish and having a lot of fun, heres a couple of Scotts Corkwing;

Wading through the multitudes of Pouting and Corkwing Wrasse, I eventually landed my hoped for fish, again to a Berkley Gulp Angleworm.

My first ever Baillon's Wrasse!

I was pretty stoked to catch a Baillon's Wrasse, they aren't common at all in UK waters, albeit there are plenty to be caught at Swanage!

After some time catching Mini's on the inner pier I decided to have a go fishing on the drop on the outer pier, to see what was about, I was using a Yoshikawa Paddletail rigged on a Decoy Delta Magic jig head.

It was quite fun and I caught a succession of Pollock to around the 1 pound mark probably. 

No photo's of the larger ones :/

I did at one stage hook a fish that I didn't recognise and it took my lure close to the surface, I have to admit I was being a fanny and lost it! I think It may have been a Scad and I was a bit gutted, I have never caught one before. I'll never know exactly what it was though and I just have to put it down to one of those things.

After a while trying for another I rejoined Scott on the inner pier and rigged up my dropshot again. The place just fishes non stop and I can't get over how easy the anglers down south have it, you just can't go wrong! We were catching just tons of fish and it was as I said to Scott "I can't believe neither of us have had a Tompot yet" that I bought one to the surface! Again this is a first for me and I am always pleased with new species and the chance to get a monkey off of my back.

Possibly one of the coolest looking mini species?

Scott swung in a Tompot too at one point and seemed to lose it somewhere.

We were getting quite alot of attention from the anglers fishing the upper pier at one point and they told us that they had only had a single Mackerel and a Garfish to their names. Upon realising there were Gar about, Scotts species hunting brain kicked in and we headed off to the shops for some shirvy ingredients, Scott has yet to catch a Garfish. Scott set up a float rig and baited the swim with his concoction and a Garfish approached, the mental thing was it didn't take Scotts bait. However Scott did catch a succession of Pollock, this one being the largest;

I was pretty surprised to see how the garfish was behaving, it was just milling around and casually eating bits of the shirvy. Every time I have encountered them on my local marks, they have been feeding quite aggressively on baitfish and in shoals.

The afternoon got pretty wet and windy, the conditions saw us taking shelter on the inner pier again.

The weather didn't bother the fish one bit though and we continued catching.

More Baillon's for me

Among a myriad of other things, a Rock Goby for Scott.

With the weather worsening we decided to go and check in at our hotel and then get some grub. Originally we had planned to go to Weymouth that night but with the forecast saying it was to be dire, we knocked that on the head. However, after dinner we soon realised that the weather was not to bad at all so we headed along the front at Swanage to see what was about. I actually had a pretty crap time of it as I kept getting wind knots in my Sunline small game. Scott on the other hand pulled out a few fish using a reins Palpuntin jig, the first being a bit of a shocker.

A Sand Smelt, hooked fair and square! I never realised they would take a metal.

Later n Scott also caught two Turbot with his jig, which pleased him no end and I too was pleased for him as I know how hard he has tried in the past for them on lure.

Well, that was a pleasant way to end a very fishy day! 

I must admit I did fish like a fanny at certain times during that day and I lost a specie I have never seen before, I also got smashed up a few times by fish running under the pier, but you live and learn (I hope).

Top Water Bassing

With some nice tides on the cards today, but with only a couple of hours spare I decided to fish a high tide mark. The mark itself is shallow and rough. You can really only fish it for a couple of hours, after that the ground just becomes too snaggy and difficult.

On arrival I clipped on my Heddon Super Spook Jnr in Chartreuse and cast out. Tap, pause, tap tap, pause on the retrieve. I was about three casts in and the lure was nearly at my feet, when my lure was engulfed with an almighty splash, it was like someone just threw a boulder in the water. It took me totally by surprise and my heart raced.

The fish made a straight beeline for this rock;

I tried to pull it away knowing this was the fish I had been looking for like all year, yet under it went and like that my braid was severed on the submerged barnacles! Adrenaline turned to bewilderment and then a sickness in my stomach that I cannot even describe, I had lost a cracking fish and left my one and only Heddon lure in its mouth, I was totally gutted!

With a sullied feeling and shaky hands I tied another leader and clipped on my Zipbaits Fakie Dog. I worked the lure in a similar fashion to the way I was working the Super Spook Jnr and before long I had a take and a feisty fish of around 3lb was landed.

I was getting lots of boils and a couple of them sizeable, but as the tide receded I knew I had lost my only chance of a decent fish, I did manage a couple more schoolies.

My walk home was filled with mixed feelings; relief that I didn't blank, disappointment on losing the biggest lunker I've ever hooked and guilt for leaving a fish swimming with a lure attached. I had thoughts of "what could I have done differently", "did I do something wrong" etc. I think I just have to put it down as one of those things and continue searching for my girl.

Yet I do know this; it makes it difficult to feel content with saying "all my fish were released".

Tight lines all!

Chilling on the Llyn Peninsula.

With the very small tides this weekend I just could not be bothered fishing for Bass, they are about but they are few and far between in this area. To be honest I've had a challenging run with the Bass of late and couldn't be bothered anyway. Perhaps when all the holiday makers and pleasure craft owners go home, things will pick up again.

I therefore decided to head up the peninsula today, I originally wanted to fish the deep water at the very end, but the wind and swell prevented me.

I opted for the shelter of a nice little spit on he North for some light rock antics, I wanted nothing too serious, just some fun.

Arriving on an ebbing tide things were hard going to be honest, I saw some mini species swimming around a stone breakwater and realised I had left my small hooks at home. Rummaging around my gear I did find one and rigged a dropshot rig with a piece of Gulp! Sandworm as a lure/bait.

I had a short succession of tiny Pollock.

They are a bit boring to be fair and it would have been nice to get some small Wrasse species or something,  I guess you just have to catch whats there.

I decided on a short move and on my way I found a critter basking on the path, I do like finding beasties on my jaunts!

Climbing on to an outcrop I changed my lure to an ima Trilobite rigged on a weedless jighead and fished "on the drop".  The occasional Pollock was landed.

I then tried some Yoshikawa Paddle-tails  I bought off of eBay for 99p, I wasn't expecting much, but they are excellent! Fishing OTD again, I had plenty of little Pollock.

As the tide turned I caught a Ballan Wrasse on one too. Wrasse are quite possibly my favourite species, full of character and colour !

A shoal of Mackerel fry swam into the cove I was fishing in and they were getting smashed by the Pollock. Mackerel fry are just amazing to look at and they have a really superb colouration.

These Mackerel fry were darting about, trying to escape the feisty Pollock that had them corralled in the cove. I matched the fry as near as I could with a Tict dart jighead and the smallest ima Trilobites. Twitching the lure to make it dart near the surface three or four times before letting it fall proved absolutely deadly and I was getting near a Pollock per cast!

I picked up another Wrasse on the same technique too.

I finished my session with a few more Pollock and a few Blennies whilst on the way back to the car. Catching Blennies is just sheer childish fun yet strangely addictive, I have Scott to blame for this!

The session turned out just the way I wanted it to; fun and fish filled!

Till next time, tight lines.