First sailing, and something I rarely do. Mixed a fly angler with a lure angler. Both Mark and Alyn were happy to do this, so I capped the boat off there. I like fly anglers on my boat. Sadly, fish were much harder to find, and especially didnt seem to want the fly today. Sometimes it happens. But Alyn did get a good feel for what it is all about, and I suspect, with that knowledge, next time he returns he will fare better.
Meanwhile, Mark and I confirmed there were bass there, taking five apiece. Some nice quality fish were there, ensuring Alyn would at least get a feed for his efforts. But on the whole, a bit of a struggle compared to the previous day at the same time, despite quieter seas.
So, to make up for it, he decided to stay on for the next sailing, Mark also, as he was down for all three. And we were joined by Mitch, and Fred Bishop MBE. Many Sussex anglers will know Fred, as he has been very active in the promotion of angling for far longer than the almost twenty years I have lived here. Not so many will know that his MBE was not for services to angling, but actually, for heroics from the Brighton bombing in 1984. Always a pleasure to fish with Fred.
This was a much better sailing. The smalls seemed to be a consistent 41cm with some better quality fish showing also. Including a belter for Fred, which of course, made him a very happy Fred.
Alyn dropped a cod, which means they are travelling nicely along our coast .and bodes well for future sailings. Conversation and laughter didnt really stop,. And the fish kept coming also. A total of 18 bass in the end. as well as mackerel, gurnard and Cuttle fish.
Third sailing, and Alyn, Fred and Mitch said their farewells, to be replaced by Max. Dicky and Tom, all returnee's. I was a bit more worried about this session. I suspected I could find fish for the first hour and a half, but was worried about the second half of the trip, as tide dropped away. We agreed we would give the last hour a full on cod hunt should that be the case, in the discussion that followed me announcing the bad news. Cool plan.
Tom actually wanted Cuttles, so we made the effort to net a few of the ones we surfaced. He ended up with seven. Big mackerel and small gurnards also. Dophins were spotted by Dicky as we transited. I stopped the engine, and tried the dolphin call. Six adult bottle nosed dolphins proceeded to turn and head towards us. Amazing.
And of course, there was bass. We got to nine, and then, it was apparent the tide dying had its effect. Time to go cod fishing. Which also went really well. For bass. A further three, including a belter for Tom. Other than zero cod, a really excellent day.
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