Just a single sailing today, despite a calm day, as the swells kicked up by big winds in the early hours needed to subside, and some clarity return for good fishing. Happily, Capt Bruce was keen to join the party which left three spaces advertised. And sold within 45 minutes, which is always very pleasing when you have a period of time where one three hour sailing in seven days is a result, and calling these tiny windows is very difficult, so they have to be called very last minute. It shows to us that our customers are prepared to follow our website, and our facebook page, to see when we are sailing. And this encourages us more and more that we might get away completely from bookings, which over the last two months, have mostly been an exercise in ringing customers to disappoint them with news of cancelled sailings. Its not fun for us or the customers. And with social media being a daily thing for perhaps the majority of the population these days, it seems a natural development and all part of our aim to bring charter fishing into the modern age, developing as much resilience as possible into our business model to allow it to flourish despite the year on year increase in days lost to weather (a fact every charter skipper will confirm).

Bruce and I actually slipped out for an hour prior to the customers arriving, as we wished to find out what the fish were up to. Their usual routines during settled periods, are often very different to their routines the tide after a good smash up. An so it proved, as I could find no signs of the fish on the west side, on the spots they usually like to spend the last of the ebb. We popped east side, and there found good bait shoals, and a single bass to start the day, before it was time to come back for our guys. Al, his lad Charlie, and latest member of the frequent flyer club Gavin, were waiting excitedly for the session to begin.

Armed with the knowledge the east was worthwhile, we popped around there, and slowly the bass counter began to get going. After an hour though, on the bottom of the tide, I took us back west side, as I knew the bait would now be gathering. And so it was. The final two hours of the session gave us some quite fast and furious action at times. No big fish, biggest one was 50cm for Bruce, but plenty of action. An a new first for BIF1. Our first shad... By the time the light forced us in of an oily calm, but still swelly sea, the bass counter showed 46 fish landed. Plus backup mackerel of course. A great session and big smiles all round.

Tomorrows sailings... it was looking hopeful for an early sailing, but that is not to be now based on the current forecast. There might be an afternoon sailing (4 hours) but I will be calling it around 12:00 for a 14:00 sailing. So, if you are available and interested, please keep an eye on our Facebook page, Brighton Inshore Fishing, to see if it will be a goer. Else check in with a call to me on 07970 112774