Tim with his best ling of 8lb 14½oz.
LOCOMOTION SEA ANGLING CLUBBOAT TRIP REPORTS |
Northerly winds in the days before, and on the day, put this trip in doubt. We also anticipated getting a real soaking.
Surprisingly, in contrast to those onshore, we had a very pleasant day with quite gentle winds, no rain and quite a lot of sunshine.
Unfortunately catches were only a slight improvement on those in March. Two modest cod were boated and a few pouting and whiting.
This was one of those trips when it was ‘touch and go’ as to whether to cancel it or not. The Boatman and Skipper finally decided to go ahead but Bacchanalian was the only charter boat out of Hartlepool that day. The start was quite rough but fishing was possible.
Unfortunately catches were very limited with a total of just 16 whiting being recorded. There was no weigh-in for the heaviest fish.
Another better day than we might have expected for the time of year
Whiting dominated our catches with a total of 33 sizeable fish. The one cod caught, and the heaviest fish of the day, was 1lb 8oz boated by Geaorge.
A bitterly cold day although reasonable conditions for the time of year. We were able to fish on the drift for quite a while but then the Skipper anchored Bacchanalian. Members at the back of the boat tried uptiding but with little or no increase in success.
Whiting were plentiful and of a decent size. About 50 were boated but only two cod. The heaviest fish was a 2lb 4oz cod caught by Gordon.
Your webmaster was not present on this trip but, considering the time of year, it was quite productive.
Most unusually 3 mackerel and 8 octopuses were caught. Mackerel are rarely seen this late in the year and though we have caught one or two octopuses in the past - never as many as this.
Fortunately for the anglers on Bacchanalian there were also the more usual winter species - a total of 27 cod and 3 ling. The heaviest, boated by Gordon, was a 4lb 12oz cod.
Another forecast threatening strong winds meant the postponement of this trip. It was rearranged for 06 November 2011 but had to be cancelled due to high wind speeds, from the north, being expected.
Due to strong winds and moderate to rough seas being forecast, this trip was called off.
Report to follow.
This trip was our first opportunity to run our postponed 2011 Competition Day - which must be a rough ground trip. The weather was surprisingly kind despite the wind rising as the day wore on. Mackerel were not plentiful so it was fortunate that the cod and ling were responding to pirks and other lures
Whilst the catches were not on the scale of our recent trips on Sarah JFK, Derek, Skipper of Bacchanalian, found us quite a few fish with some in double-figures before gutting.
As with all our weighings, Competition Day placings are based on fish after gutting. Several anglers had ling which were in the running for the heaviest fish until mid-afternoon when Barry hauled in a cod estimated at 14lb before gutting.
There were six ling in the range 8lb 3oz to 9lb 2oz competing for the prize for the second heaviest fish.
Another windy day greeted us on the quayside at South Shields but, whilst no large fish were boated, this was another excellent day because of the excellent number of fish caught.
We had 66 cod of keeping size as well as 25 coalfish (coley) and 1 ling.
The inshore forecast indicated winds up to Force 7 (8 is Gale Force) and a sea state of rough or very rough! Reluctantly but wisely, our Boatman and Skipper decided that our Competition Day would have to be postponed.
Competition Day will now become the first available rough ground trip - the next possibility being 21 August.
The day started a bit breezier than expected but our high hopes for this day were fully justified. Mackerel were not as plentiful as we expected but, otherwise, the day was outstanding and all anglers had a pleasing catch; mainly cod.
This exceptional day was the best for the Club since my online records began and few members can recall a better one. Skipper Allan (of Sarah JFK) found us plenty of fish; most in the range 4 to 8lb.
The heaviest fish was going to be a hard-fought battle amongst several anglers until, at the 11th hour, Reg hauled up a cod to beat them all. After gutting it weighed in at 14lb 3oz - well done Reg!
WOW! Little else can express our delight following this trip on Sarah JFK.
Mackerel were resonably plentiful providing fresh bait which caught fish, jiggers/pirks too produced good results for our anglers and some had success with shads. Fish were boated steadily throughout the day as we visited a variety of wrecks.
A total of 75 cod, 3 ling, 1 pollock and 1 octopus were caught. This is by far the largest catch, in terms of the number of fish, during the last decade. None were into double-figures but it was still a wonderful outing. Gordon had the heaviest, a cod of 4lb 11½oz.
Skipper Derek had taken a party out on the Saturday; they caught nothing and the only highlight was when one of the anglers lost his hat!
With a large tide and the strong winds forecast to continue, Derek and Reg agreed that it would be best to cancel our trip on the Sunday.
After one of the poorest winters in the Club's history, our April trip on Baccanalian turned the tables on our former lack of success. To begin with, the weather was beautifully bright, quite warm at times and with little wind until the afternoon; even then it gave us no problems.
The sea too was very calm - smooth at times, mostly slight with a mostest choppiness in the later part of the afternoon.
Best of all, the fish were there and feeding well. Skipper Derek took us down to the 'ling grounds' and, indeed, we caught a few. However, in terms of numbers, many more cod were caught.
The final tally of sizable fish boated was 28 cod and 10 ling. The heaviest, caught by Tim, was a ling of 5lb 10½oz.
A modest tide, moderate wind speed and some sunshine made us really optomistic that this could be our best winter day this season. Derek, the Skipper of Bacchanalian, planned to try a drift but expected that we would need to anchor-up before the day was over. The wind and tide proved kinder than he expected and we drifted over seveal stretches of rough ground throughout the day.
Despite the pleasant conditions, we did not find much in the way of fish. Most anglers were lucky if they felt a bite or two and only one pouting and one whiting were boated.
The inshore forecast for the region showed winds rising to force 5 or 6 so, sadly and once again, the trip was cancelled. Not a good winter season so far!
Very strong winds through the preceeding days and a forecast with little improvement led, once again to a trip being cancelled.
The inshore forecast was not good for this day but our biggest worry was road conditions for memebers getting to and from Hartlepool. Skipper Derek agreed with our Boatman and the trip was called off.
The poor start to our winter season continued with, again, just 4 sizable fish being boated although this time they were all cod. Barry caught the heaviest at just 2lb 5½oz.
A very poor day with only 4 sizable ling being caught. Tim had the heaviest at 6lb 13oz.
A modest day with mainly ling, 14 in total, being caught. 4 pollack completed the catch. The heaviest was a 9lb 10½oz ling boated by Reg.
Despite strong winds in the days before and after this trip, the forecast suggested wall-to-wall sunshine and a smooth sea. This, our first trip of the year on Flamer II, was not quite that smooth with a choppy sea and a swell that rolled the boat during drifts. The forecast came good in the afternoon and the fishing was steady all day.
Everyone went home with at least one decent fish and as many mackerel as they wished.
Eddie had a good ling quite early on.
The forecast for our annual competition day was excellent with gentle winds and calm seas.
The morning proved to be just like the forecast although by lunch time we were almost becalmed and barely drifting at all. The morning gave us a reasonable supply of mackerel for bait and a moderate number of other fish. The really pleasant surprise was that several decently sized pollock were boated.
Shortly after midday we decided to move to another mark. It was as if we had moved into another day! The sea was choppy and the wind had risen significantly. The rest of the afternoon was spent trying (and mostly failing) to keep our rigs on the bottom. A small number of fish were caught but nothing like the morning.
By the end of our competition day, the sizeable catches amounted to 2 cod, 13 ling and 8 pollack.
Heaviest Fish - Danny - ling of 7lb 9½oz
Second Heaviest Fish - Reg - pollock of 7lb 9oz
Heaviest Catch - Chris - 19lb 2½oz
Second Heaviest Catch - Danny - 12lb 4½oz
A very successful (and rewarding) day for Danny!
Winds up to severe gale force 9 were expected on this Sunday, leaving our Boatman little choice but to call this trip off.
With heavy rain forecast, we feared that it would be quite a miserable day. Whilst there was steady rain, and some torrential storms, ashore, we had only drizzle and some dry spells too.
The fishing was good too with 25 cod, 15 ling and one pollock boated. Reg will submit the 3lb 5oz pollock for the Specemin Fish trophy. Ian had several cod including one of 7lb 5oz but Eddie had the heaviest fish of the day - an 8lb 7oz ling.
Quite a decent day considering the quality of the spring so far. Although no cod were caught all day, 8 sizeable ling were.
Tim had the heaviest fish; a 7lb 3oz ling which also proved to be the heaviesty fish of our winter season.
Despite strongish winds being forecast, they were due to be from the west. Consequently, on the night before, our Boatman and the Skipper decided it was worth a look from the coast in the morning.
The sea didn't look too bad but as we met and talked to the Skipper, the wind strengthened considerably and it was agreed to call off the trip.
Although the day was cold and a bit breezy at times, conditions were amongst the best that we have had on a winter trip for a long time.
Surprisingly too, catches were better than on a winter trip for many years. Eleven cod and one ling were boated.
Peter caught the one ling and it proved to be the heaviest fish of the day at 5lb 11½oz.
A decent total catch was made on our first outing of 2010. Five cod and twenty two dabs were boated with the heaviest fish being a 5lb 8oz cod for Ian.