Fast forward…it’s 2011 and I have avoided doing any overtime until the end of Friday…I’ve had a great time out midweek with bass and a seal and I’ve invited him along to finish the week on the water; he’s only gone and agreed hasn’t he! It was only later in the day that he started to remember and started to shit himself ;D Tough. I loaded the P15 on the roofbars as well and set off with three boats through the traffic.
I arrived on the road above the wreck and swore. It was choppy, from the wind, and the water was coloured up. I suspected fishing would be difficult. With time to wait before Carl arrived I got both yaks rigged up and down to the beach. The temptation was, of course, too much so I left one on the beach and went fishing ;D
Nothing.
Nada.
Rien.
It was clear I’d persuaded him to drive all that way for bugger all. I was flinging the last of my trusty Dexter Wedges out at all angles over the wreck – by the semi-exposed boiler, by the tallest piling, by some of the shorter ones, between those places…not a touch. I chucked it right down towards the end piling and let it sink. Reeled it in a bit and then bam! Fish on. Not huge and struggling against the tide but still giving a good account of itself a 38cm bass came aboard. That was tea sorted at least, though I’d need a decent amount of chips for two ;D I carried on, a bit more heart in it now, but it’d gone dead. No sign of Carl yet either.
Ten minutes later and in the same spot Bam! This one was bigger. This one was staying down. It was heavy, it was against the tide, it was strong and it was pulling, nodding and running; diving too and it took line. I got my net out for the first time this year ;D
Up it came finally and was into the net without even a proper view of it…a beauty. 51cm, 3lb. Good, chips are too bloody greasy, I could do this with salad instead ;D Then I saw someone approach the Prowler and start digging round – then wave. He’d arrived so I unclipped and paddled in. He’d seen it from afar and the landlubber’s term of ‘****ing hell mark’ followed as he dived into the set of Sidewinders I’d left for him to use.
I launched him and then followed. I clipped him off to a buoy on the inshore side and we started banging lures out towards the wreck while shouting across the water to each other in conversation ;D He seemed to be quite happy and was soon into the swing of things.
When I say into the swing of things I mean into the swing of things.
36cm bang on, his first bass, first yak fish and first yak caught meal. That meant we could have a fish apiece and I could keep the biggie for a family meal. Perfect result. My Dexter had lost its mojo now and that fell to a white with orange stripes Williamson lure, a tuna lure. I knew it’d have its day but I’d yet to take a fish on it – colour and shape were ‘right’. I’d put that on for him as he’d need the weight to cast and sink in that wind and tide run with the rod I had available…and now I knew it worked.
http://www.williamsonlures.com/products/lipless_lures.php
Then the wreck ate it.
It ate my last two shads too, both of us leaving one in the structure.
I gave him my rod with my last Dexter and went for a troll but the current was too fast to troll downtide and uptide wasn’t worth the effort so we headed in for a nice, dry landing.
They didn’t half roast up a treat.
(Slashed, drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper laid on a bed of olive oil, parsley, red chilli, red pepper, thyme and lemon juice. 220 degrees for around 20 minutes, the base being roasted for ten minutes prior).
As for my brother, well, he loved it. He loved the fishing, loved the fish, loved the whole evening. Some of you will probably meet him soon.
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