FishingGuernsey

Hi Stax, How are those things landed from the cliff. Usng one of them grapple hook type things ike i've seen on rex hunt (and in one of your pics)? How do they work and where can I get one online? There are a few spots here where I could do with one of them as drop nets are difficult to use at them. I guess anything hooked is terminal though? No C&R? Cheers Andy

Turbot is superb if cooked right.

Had a response on my local forum about the bass today It was in response to my questioning the ever incrasing effort when the "expert" Dr Pawson (sp?) said that an increase in effort should not be allowed. Why can it not be understood. Should also note that it depends who you ask as to how many fish are in the West of Guernsey breeding grounds. The anglers say not as many, hard to catch and small average size (few exceptional tides though with big fish) and the commercials say there are so many they don't know what to do with them. Strange that.

If the bass could be seen on the surface in range, might be worth a go with the lure rod and a popper or shallow diver.

We catch loads of cuttles down here using squid jigs. I get them in the day as well off the end of the breakwater. Just chuck the jig in, let it snk and retreive slow. Get them after dark as well. Must be easy to catch as I have a freezer full and never pay for them.

The main problem with letters getting printed in the press is everything else that's going on in the island. a few local politicians have really messed up and it has created a lot of response and these letters get in first. there is an individual at the press who may be partly responsible for the lack of letters making print on fishing issues but i am not going to say anything and have no evidence of this making any difference but i have ways to get a letter printed as is. It's all about contacts on this island...

The main problem with letters getting printed in the press is everything else that's going on in the island. a few local politicians have really messed up and it has created a lot of response and these letters get in first. there is an individual at the press who may be partly responsible for the lack of letters making print on fishing issues but i am not going to say anything and have no evidence of this making any difference but i have ways to get a letter printed as is. It's all about contacts on this island...

Question is, is this the SFC admitting there are problems by banning the pair teams only so the RSA have less to moan about when they are slammed with a bag limit system. Well i hope not but the underhand way that some commercials work I would not be overly surprised.

Hi all, I know this may turn political but i wanted to let the majority who may not visit the other forum that the catching of the breeding shoals of Bass off Guernsey's coast has started again, earlier this year, big numbers of fish heavy in roe are now being caught by the commercials, they are even going out in the force 9's we currently have so that has to say something. If you want to write to the press as has happenned in previous years, please do to mailto:newsroom@guernsey-press.com. Cheers Andy

It's a shame as the slaughter of the breeding bass shoals at Boue Blondel has just started again. Earlier than ever. Nothing can be done to stop it. SFC just aren't interested because the experts continue to say there are plenty of bass, so go catch as many as you want.

Let's hope it does make a difference Glenn!! The local boats can still fish so no objection from them.

I know it's been mentioned in passing elsewhere but Guernsey SFC have banned pair trawling to it's 12 mile limit for vessels with a combined power over 500 horsepower. See this pdf for information: http://www.fishing-guernsey.co.uk/SACN/November2006Licencevariation.pdf about time... Shame the local team has a combined power of 490hp. How convenient... Suppose you could say a step in the right direction though. Note that the document also contains a landing limit on bass of 5 tonne per week amongst other things. Will try and review better soon. Cheers Andy

I have Penn V3's which are great for general work but not heavy stuff like conger. I have 2, that says it all...

2000 is a long time ago. Bass landings in Guernsey alone last year (2005) were 173 tons (commercial figures). I very much doubt that 400,000 anglers each manage to land 1kg of bass a week. Lets be realistic here. If only all of them could catch that many bass, I mean 52kg a year. Did you account for out of season etc etc???

Thanks im and Bob. yes I am shore fishing. boats make me puke... Found that the V3 is simply bent in half at the slightest thing and though the reel can handle it, the rod is simply too soft. Feels like a spinning rod when You get 7ft of angry eel attached to it and hence don't get anywhere. great all round rod though and nice to fit in the boot being a 3 piecer, good for rockie bashing and general casting.

Hi all, Went congering the other night and have decided that my penn V3's even with heavy tip are not adequate for conger, up to 30lb where i fish at the moment (unsure of the big ones...) and the chap next to me had one of 20 the same night. Lost one under a rock a couldn't hold it with the rod. I am after recommendations for a decent rod. My 525 seems OK for a reel and I guess I need 30lb mainline? Was using 25 but told ths is too light. I'm new to congering really. Can someone recommend some rods for the conger, don't need to cast that well but I guess I want to be able to use it for other things as well (wrasse, huss etc). P.s. I am not made of money but give me a range of rods and if you know approx price that would be great. Cheers Andy

The fish down here are going mad. Had a session for bream today and had a few though small, biggest was 1-6-0, kept it for T, others returned. While doing this I was mulletting as well. now I know that other fish are known to frequent the groundbait trail but never thought on this one. Good bite, float vanished at top speed, not much of a fight but thought my luck was in until I saw a red flash. Bum. Little Pollack I thought at first but then it hit the surface and it's none other than ballan wrasse of about a lb. Stupid fish. as i said i know all sorts appear in the shirvy trail but didn't think a wrasse would take bread on a no 8 and 6lb line. On another story, same day, my mate was bassing with a big worm bait and 4/0. Thinks he's into a bass, silver flash under the water, net the fsh and what is it? A bloney mullet - 3-10-0. It appears we should all be changing tactics for mullet. never thought of throwing a 4/0 and king rag for them but hey!! Shows what I know...

are sandeels migratory like some other fish species? I would guess they might be but some areas more than others?

--> QUOTE(Norm B @ Oct 24 2006, 04:42 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I clicked on the link to the page and there were links to everything except the SAN, that's all. Don't know about links to everything... Fixed yours up now though

You didn't ask?

I've never had a trigger but apparently they are a little tricky to hook with very small mouths but I have had soem classic trigger bites in that I have had a really good bite and fish on for a few seconds before reeling in with no hook. I might try and scale down the hooks a little and try some aberdeen patterns. We get triggers on several marks in the same place as bream so you never know!!

They are up there with the best. really nice to eat and the wife's favorite fish even ahead of bass when i bring them home occasionally.

Sign of the times again and it is why there are less poepl post catch reports on here, the old anti's get going etc but lets not go there. Anyone else had anythign recently? Down here it's all been really late but there have been some different species. 3 couches bream over the british record, a couple of ray on live eel when people have been bassing but not many fish generally speaking. is it the same all over or are others enjoying a bumper year?

Grant, try mulleting, the big ones feed better in the winter though you may not see them like in the summer. Go for a deeper mark and shirvy up with the float starting at 8ft and work deeper a ft at a time. The records all come in december/january normally. You don't get all the smaller ones causing a mare in the shirvy either. We do get the odd Cod here but i wouldn't bother targetting them unless you go for squid bait that might be taken by bass or conger as well on mixed ground sort of thing.

Quite happy to let someone else do the work if anyone else could be bothered to get off their arse and write a simple letter when required (e.g. response to a consultation) or a letter to the local paper to highlight something, or try and get peoples views on a subject, gather information on a particular subject and present it to whomever but as I can't see anyone else bothering and i wish to make a difference to the fishing which has been the worst year for me ever this year, I have to do it myself. It comes back the the analogy that If you want something done, do it yourself...