Kayaking Angler: Last Chance Saloon…08/10/2013

Last Chance Saloon…08/10/2013 Yesterday was supposed to be Trimingham but no car meant no way. Bruce was up for driving though and though I had to be on shift later an early start would allow us to have a go. This would likely be my last chance for bass, mackerel, sandeel and weever for the competition as it’s blowing up later in the week and Monday would be the next chance I could head north ; probably too late. An early start then… Nice sunrise when I went out to the car to get some bits. Shepherds warning? I’m a fisherman, meaningless.

Bruce picked me up and we headed north. Kept failing to find the track but at least we could see the sea. I hoped he wouldn’t fall as I wasn’t insured to drive his car.

Coffee. How hard is it to get coffee? Really hard. We lost twenty minutes searching before finding some half decent stuff in the Mace when we went for cold drinks instead. Result. Losing time was fine, with that tide we didn’t want to drift too far so 930 was the earliest we should really hit the water. Seabreeze was already there, last seen at sea palling when I landed with two bass and he said he’d come down to see if I was about as he was interested in kayak fishing. Steve at Norfolk canoes sorted him out and he’s loving it; just needed to christen his yak with a sea fish having managed pike already.

Ian was next and once we were all sorted we launched. Swell rolling in was slamming into and over the sea defences so it was all down to timing, waiting for flat spots; all out okay and out to the deeper, clearer water. Bruce’s luck still bad as a rod tip had snapped overnight.

I got out about five hundred yards and dropped down to troll; I was looking for the edge of the bank but may as well try for a ,mackerel on the way. Nothing. Got to my first spot, reeled in and dropped straight down…two minutes? Five? BANGGGGGG! 12lb class bent over nice, pulling, thumping, what? One good one or more smaller ones?

Sweet, a couple of minutes and they’re in the boat, a brace in the forties, one on the speed jig, hooked on the assist hook at the top and one on the pink sabiki.

Point eight for leg 4…

The wind pushed me right off the mark, the tide too. I tried paddling back to it but it was far too much effort, especially with all the marks around. I found one promising lot, Seabreeze fairly close and also paddling. I said there were fish here, dropped down, and a minute later had another bass in the boat. He was impressed! On a pink hokkai. He got one straight after, yak christened! As his first yak sea fish it went back. The water was clear still but that damned wind and tide was pushing us down at over two knots. Not good.

Nothing for ages, very few marks. A couple of shoals that passed rapidly under but didn’t take – herring maybe? Wish I still had some sabikis. I wished I had tinsels too but seem to have run out. It must have been an hour before something else came up; bruce had taken mackerel, seabreeze had taken one near me, I couldn’t get one for love or money…but I trolled up a sandeel for point nine.

Padlding back up as things eased I bumped into FishieH. Stopped and chatted, stole a seasilver off him for the mackerel. He’d had nothing, was despondent. With my leg on his yak he suddenly hauled in three mackerel. MY THREE MACKEREL. I’d been waiting for them. I didn’t know whether to cry or punch him in the head. I just swore at him for a bit. A couple more sandeels followed, tried liphooking them on the feathers but no joy. No marks further out, a few big marks of shoaling fish here and there on the bottom and at fifteen feet but no, I couldn’t get another thing. I did however swear violently at Seabreeze when he hauled a mackerel in close to me again. I gave up as we started getting pushed past the launch; we should have left by now anyway. Leaving FishieH further along and still heading our way the four of us early birds (he’s travelled a lot further so I only mean relative to the launch time) we landed. I was the only one with no mackerel and Ian had managed a couple of weever too. I don’t like Ian any more. He also had a lovely bass. He’d had sandeel too – he’d had my four targets and I’d had two. Still, for once we decided to take some trophy shots on the beach. My three went 36 (but plump) 42 and 45. Ian’s went 3.5lb and he had a huge mackerel. Bruce had bene plagued by maybe twenty sandeels and had the one mackerel – which he wanted – Seabreeze had returned his 2.5lb bass so just mackerel for the photo. He we are, a good variety.