Oh... My... God!

2008-06-24T03:02:00.000-07:00

OMG! Has it really been that long since I went fishing? This situation needs to be rectified... and fast!

Fortunately, although I do have rather a lot of projects on at the moment, I have permission from my wife to go fishing whenever the pressure of work gets too much and I can realy feel it right now!

Carneweather Point - 10/04/2008

2008-04-10T00:50:00.000-07:00

Imagine you are a photographer, a photographer specialising in landscapes.

You left home in the chill of the pre-dawn and stole quietly out of the house leaving your wife and children still sleeping safely and comfortably in their warm beds. You have work to do.

A short drive has brought you to the place you want to be on the western edge of Bodmin Moor. The chill is invigorating as you pause briefly before heading out onto the moor; it is going to be a good day!

There is a special quality, a magical quality about this time of day; a quality which many people never experience. Small birds are shaking themselves awake and proclaiming their territories, crows are cawing and suddenly a majestic bird, a buzzard salutes you no more than five feet away and low, only head-height, for the sun has not yet warmed the earth creating the thermals that will carry him spiralling upwards into the skies from where his mewing cries will cover the moor.

You walk on, your feet in cold shadow and the rising sun in your eyes.

You work and you are pleased with your work. You think, you hope, that there might even be a chance to get some shots of that buzzard later and then... a chill, a chill which has nothing to do with the frost clinging to the grass at your feet, creeps down your spine, spreads through your limbs, up and around your head where it grips viciously. It is an emotional chill, a realisation. You have left your bag with your spare film (you still enjoy shooting on film) back at the car, a mile and a half away! In an instant the magic is gone and you have lost heart. You curse yourself for a fool.

The day ruined, you retrace your steps to the car. You see nothing and the only sounds you hear are the cries of the crows which sound like laughter.

But, as you near the vehicle and mentally picture yourself stowing the camera away and making the dismal drive home, another thought strikes you and you realise that the magic is not quite dead - the merest glimmer remains, like the last embers of a fire, ready to be breathed into life again. For you are also an angler and in the car you keep a spinning rod and a small bag of tackle. The day may yet be saved!

What do you do? Do you go home or go on?

***********************************

Twenty minutes later I was pulling into the small National Trust carpark at Lundy Hole. From there I sent a quick text home advising of the change of plan and turned off the phone to forestall any questions.

Carneweather Point

Carneweather Point is a rock mark between Polzeath and Port Quin on the North Cornish coast (OS map Explorer 106 - W95, N80) and Lundy Hole carpark is not far from Porteath Bee Centre.

From the carpark cross the road and follow the path towards the sea where you will join the SW Coastal Path. Turn left towards Rumps Point and follow the path uphill. At the top of the hill there is a fence with a stile. Do not go over the stile but look to the sea (on your right) and you will see a steep grassy slope leading down to rocks. This is your mark. The slope is extremely slippery in wet weather. A reasonable level of fitness is required for the walk from the carpark and the descent to the rocks (and particularly for the ascent back up from the rocks) but it's really not a bad walk. Not too long, not too difficult.

Take ALL the usual precautions when fishing isolated rock marks. Do not fish alone (Oops!), tell someone where you are and when you will return (I did that!) and watch the swells!

Reputedly, this mark will produce fish at all states of the tide and all times of day.

The seabed is sand with rocky bits to the sides. A good cast out to sea will land on sand.

Species possible in summer:

Pollack, Mackerel, Gurnard (Red, Tub and Grey), Bass, Garfish, Plaice, Dab, Turbot, Wrasse, Conger (mainly at night) and Dogfish. Also, occasional Small-eyed Ray. (Sounds good doesn't it?)

It was about two hours after High Tide by the time I was tackled up. Tackle was simple:
Spinning rod
Fixed-spool reel loaded with 8lb braid
Running leger. 1oz (or 1.5oz?) lead directly on the braid above swivel
5' of 7lb flourocarbon.
Storm Sandeel (medium) with hook pushed in mouth and out the top about halfway along it's back.

The first couple of casts, straight out, brought nothing but the third... a hit!
Out again... a hit!... it's a Bass!... it it must be a Bass... WOW.... STOP!... come here you...
Eventually, it was a Mackerel. Beautiful! They really fight on light gear. Back you go!
A couple more casts... nothing. Then another mackerel. And that's how it went for two more fish. They were out as far as I could throw and coming in the first ten feet or so of the retrieve and on or near the bottom.

After these four fish it went quiet and I cast out to the left a few times... nothing.

I cast out to the right. First cast, a hit! A pollack! Not big, about 10" but as beautiful a fish as you could wish to see! Then another. These came within yards of the rocks.

That was the pattern for the first hour... out front for mackerel at range and out to the right for pollack close-in. The mackerel didn't seem to drop back as the tide went out, they remained where they were but after an hour the pollack moved round to the left-hand side of my fishing position. Why? I don't know.

It wasn't 'every throw - a coconut' or even every third or fourth throw, but it was great sport and after two and a half hours I'd had a 11 mackerel and 10 pollack. A magnificent result, I think!

A long-handled net would have been a great help. I would have had great difficulty if I'd hooked something bigger.

All fish were returned.

Author's edit - 10/04/08 19.20hrs.

Please note - My tackleshop contacts tell me that although it is not unheard of for mackerel to show up at this mark this early in the year it is unusual and generally speaking they should not be expected for some weeks yet (certainly not in any numbers). Oh, well - that's fishing!

First Post...

2008-03-26T03:14:00.000-07:00

Okay, the site now exists so all I've got to do is go fishing (and hopefully catch some fish). I'm soooooo excited. No time to write now I've got maps and a Tide timetable to study!

Oh, that's my first tip - when visiting a new area get yourself a good map and a Tide timetable

My second tip is to visit the area at low tide and look for the 'fishy' features like weedbeds, sandy patches amongst the rocks, etc.

Take a camera and take photos to remind yourself.

If possible have a root around in the rockpools to see what little creatures live there as they are fish food.

I did a lot of this last year - no fishing but lots of preparation and I hope it will now pay dividends. Watch this space...

my Cornish Angling blog

Oh... My... God!

Carneweather Point - 10/04/2008

First Post...