First sailing, and we had a birthday boy on board. Young Oliver celebrating his 10th birthday, of course with dad Terry. And also aboard, Martyn and Tom, taking a break from the world of keeping Easyjet and Virgin aircraft up in the skies. However, having a birthday boy on board, meant we really had to catch. And again, it was actually hard to find the fish.
The problem with bass at this time of year, is now they are shoaling, it creates a novel situation. Find the shoal, and stay with it, and you can catch silly numbers, as we were last week. But you can also fail to find a shoal. This is not a problem so much earlier in the year, as the fish are reasonably spread across much ground, and so you can usually catch some. But miss the shoals. and it is possible to blank. Which could potentially lead to a very upset ten year old.
Which is why I switched the emphasis to squid. And Ollly scored the first two, which put a big smile on his face. We actually only managed six, whilst also prospecting for cod. Then, the birds that signaled a shoal running along the shingle appeared. I pointed BIF1's nose at them, and headed inshore. Strange though. The bait was all there, but the schoolies that should have been feeding upon it, simply were not there. I headed for my rock island that produced the goods yesterday. And once more they produced. A single schoolie for... Ollie.
There was no second sailing today, as I had an appointment with the dental hygienist. Which left me with a free late afternoon. My housemate Marika, has her friend Marie-Anne staying with her, on a break from her real world in rural France, and both of them have rod skills, and were excited for a go at the squid on sunset. Out we headed.
One of my problems, with the amazing demand for my services this year, is if the weather has been good for sailing, I have been booked. Whereas in years gone by, I had the odd empty sailing, now that rarely happens. Which means opportunities for research and development have been simply non existent. Which means the product I sell hasnt really moved much for a couple of years. Well, as a result of this little trip, an hour was enough to make huge advances with my squid fishing aspect of my business. I finally confirmed what squid contacts look like on my sonar, and suddenly realised so much of what I thought squid did was flawed. Between the three of us, we managed 31 squid, and too much laughter, as squid after squid shot its inky load.
As a result of this, I am finally going to offer a night time totally squid oriented session. It is limited to 3 anglers, as I have to employ a local professional with a full ticket including night passages to accompany us, as my skippers certificate is currently limited to fair weather and daylight. And as such, the cost is high, at £80 per angler. One space now remains available. I would point out that, as much as it is an expensive trip, squid foodies will also know, that the cost of squid in the shops (local, and "fresh") is also crazy high at the moment. There are still no guarantee's, as it is fishing, and this is all a little experimental, but, with Forbessi also with us among the Vulgaris, I suspect it will be a winner. 1600 - 1900 - this Friday. 1545 meet. As always, sms to 07970 112774 secures.
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