My brother's birthday. That could wait, I was going fishing. Surprise surprise! Yesterday's bassing was postponed to today and Mark was on his day off and meeting us up at Sea Palling. An hour after leeaving the house I was on top of the ramp getting unloaded. I didn't want the trolley so carried the Tempo down the ramp and returned for the rest of the gear. I turned my back for a few minutes and it was gone...
There's something about these new yaks of mine, people keep taking them out to sea. Everyone knows the OK's but DAG and RTM are less commonly seen out this way and knowing my preference for fast and light yaks they can't keep their hands off. Which wouldn't be a problem but I now had to leave my gear where it could get covered in blown sand. Yep, it was windy again!
I reposessed my Tempo and got ready, sticking a Jointed Minnow 13 in mackerel pattern on the inside rod and a set of hokkais with jig (hook removed) on the other, just in case of something different. I paddled out, the sea flattened by the 20mph offshore wind. Out to the reef, turn left towards Waxham and start the slow run down close to the rocks.
Fifty yards...bang! I felt the pull through the seat and it was fish on. Three minutes from launch and I was fighting the first kayak bass of the year on my LP Magnet and xtrafleXX combination. I love fishing for bass on this light gear and they clearly enjoy it too (well they wouldn't queue up to play otherwise would they?)
Well, it was in size and plump but being the first of the year and caught so quickly I decided to be kind and pop it back after a quick snap. It went away strongly.
I turned back for another pass having tied a lure onto the outside rod after snagging a rock and losing the hokkais..
Same spot and the rod went down again, fish on again! I got it most of the way up to the boat and then crossed lines, the small, fine wire trebles and the slack saw it escape, the first one of the day. One all!
Third pass? No, I carried on down to Waxham, taking another on the way and losing two after swapping to my pink Minnow 13. I took the treble protectors off and saw rusted hooks that were blunt and needed changing. "Hmm, need to change these, probably losse anything I hook." So, halfway down the reef with this on the outside the rod went down and a decent fish was fought for a minute before getting off. "Told me so". Another fifty yards and it banged down again, and another one gone. I brought it in and one of the trebles had snapped. fair enough, my fault entirely so I took a treble from another lure and carried on.
Down at the bottom reef now, fully submerged. Not quite enough water though...I was a quarter of the way down and slap bang over the top of it when a wave picked me up and deposited me on a rock, now in mid-air. Legs out so quickly I stayed upright for the three waves it took for me to get off. Interesting; I pulled out a bit and got twenty yards; here was a decent fish! A good hard scrap from a plump and fresh 2lb'er, my favourite eating size.
The water started to colour up as the tide ran harder. I passed the start point then headed up towards Eccles. I took two off one of the reefs, 2lb'ers, losing another one as it was being lifted into the kayak; 4:3 to the away team at the cost of one jig and 3 hokkais and a Jointed Minnow 13 in silver/black that had hit a rock, then 4:4. I turned and had a few more goes, getting a third. Shaun was on one at this point, his luck not in today. Mark was on ten or so. I carried on up and had another then turned and came back down before landing with a snapped paddle spigot (just made things wobbly) and going to the car to swap to my Wing, grabbing a coffee for Shaun and I at the same time (Mark was down on one of the southern reefs fighting a seal).
The spigot was well-worn and I'dd expected it to go long ago, not replacing it as the blade was seized onto one half of the shaft. My own fault for padlding without tightening the centre joint for too many trips which gradually wore the carbon down. I had spare shafts at home and with the aid of a hacksaw and butter knife used as a chisel I managed to get the blade off the remnants the following day. In the meantime though I had fish to catch... it was now 6:4 to the away team.
Down I went towards Waxham, taking a 2lb'er on the pink Minnow 12 and then got to the bototm post where a young seal started to giving me the wink. yet another amourous seal confusing me for a potential mate! I'm pleased we aren't in an area known for Great Whites...it's bad enough having these nibbling the stern. It followed me for a reef and a half, riding my wake every time I paddled and I just enjoyed the game.
One more fish on the way up but I lost it, snagging the treble on the cuff of my trousers moments before landing; 7:5 and then, another, on the way back down to the starting reef , a 2lb'er that also snagged my cuff; I freed it and lifted it up; it bounced off the treble and almost escped but I brought my footup, it flew back into the boat and my foot came down on top of it! I sat still and looked at it, let the amazement pass and then grabbed it! Into the tankwell with the others and I tried one last reef before heading in. squall blew up aand I travelled down, struggling to stay inshore, as the gusts blew waves up. That was it, Shaun and I headed in.
Well, what can I say? a cracking day's sport with my freezer replenished with some fine plump bass fillets, two at 42cm and the rest at 46cm the last of 2013's eaten the day before. One for dad, one for Bill, and five for the four of us (three fine meals there). And so, at the end of the first couple of days of proper fishing on my new Tempo I'd landed 65lb of prime North Sea fish of species we absolutely adore eating and which I ove catching in very different styles and with very different gear - and I had bait for my pots to boot. I think I'm going to enjoy this yak, moving over to the dark side has its advantages. A new Sith Lord is born, just call me Darth Hooker!
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