Caerhayes, South Cornwall - 12lb huss

[gilbo]

Back to work today but took a trip down to Caerhayes near Gorran on Easter Sunday.

 

Daughter used the Frenzy and I paddled out in the Drifter Angler. Went around to the left inside the Dobman point.

 

Fished for a short while but wanted to try some of those Prawn / Crab traps (the collapsable ones that cost around £5).

 

Left three out for a couple of hours and first one up had a 12lb bull huss in it. I am amazed it managed to get into the trap and had a bit of a job trying to get the lively thing out of it. Was black and came up out of kelp and rock. Second one up had a single dogfish in and third empty. Fish were returned alive.

 

They are pretty fun things to use and well worth dropping one down for a crab, lobster or 12lb huss!!!!!

 

Weather looking nice this weekend and so will be off for another session - this time to do some real fishing with bass and mackerel showing down there.

 

[chaz62]

Hi gilbo, good to see your nets produced (maybe not the target species), might get myself a couple for this summer

Just looked on local.live for your possible launch site, quite small beach with car park and woods to the right?

if thats the place then loads of potential. Bet the car park was packed though, by the way how long is a 12lb huss

and how can it fit in that small space?,

Cheers,

Chaz

[scotsgun]

gilbo,

 

I was thinking of getting a couple of those in the hope of a few crab however worried about them being easily wrecked. Are they pretty good and what did you use as bait?

 

Also, i noted you have a Drifter that's supposed to be for bigger blokes. I'm thinking of getting one - what do you think of yours?

 

Marc

[boomphat]

Drifter is for bigger blokes like Cyril Smith! If you aren't that big then get a more streamlined kayak.

[scotsgun]

5'10", 50 inch chest, size 19 collar and approx 18stone - ex rugby prop.

 

My wetsuit is XXXL and is still tight across the back.

 

I'm a big boy....just ask codshed

[Martin Hurst]

Ex rugby prop - the drifter will suit you fine , big wide and slow

[scotsgun]

Oh, but you're a harsh man!

 

What kayak would you suggest?

[gilbo]

A reply to all I hope as there were quite a few posts.

 

The beach carpark is excellent with a small shop / cafe and a toilet block. It doest get very busy apart from the high summer holiday time.

 

When I pulled that prawn trap in I thought I had four or five doggies in it. The big huss had got in and twisted itself up into the trap. The weight was estimate and it was 3 1/2 ft long ish. Mouth that could suck on a grapefruit. I reckon them traps are fine and fairly sturdy. I would suggest that you anchor them well so they cant smash and rip on rocks and kelp. I used an 80mm open flange on each of them which was about 2lb in weight each. This was tied a metre up the main line. On each rope there was a 6" red and marked buoy (marked with my name and contact as this is the regs for hobbie potters!). I allowed more than 6 metres of slack to allow for the change between high and low water and also along the length of the line caught in some heavy steel bolt nuts so all the line sank. Dont want a boat to get them caught in their prop. Bait was some mackerel heads and half the frame that I froze down a couple of weeks ago after having some mackerel fillets for my tea. Dont bother with the little bait pouch and zip - just bung em in there!

 

Anyone buying them should check the entrance hole size as some are just a couple of inches round. The ones I got had a good 125mm to 150mm entrance.

 

The drifter is fine for a big bloke and am pleased with my choice. Its very stable and paddles well. It may be a little slower than the prowler but we are sit on top owners who fish! If I wanted a racing kayak then I would have bought one!

 

Your sizes and weights are similar to mine - just under 18 stone and 5ft 11", 19" neck and 48 chest with 42" waist. I am not a big fatty but a solid and wide build. The cockpit area of the drifter is roomy and excellent for you size. Have a go in one and I know you will like it.

 

[nifty]

Hi Gilbo,

It's amazing what can get into some of these pots and Huss are a common capture as are Decent conger and Bream and Trigger fish.

Just one thing I would say from my experiences working occasionally on commercial potting boats is that they will not just put bait inside the pot as they reckon the Crab/Lobster can get at the bait from outside of the pot and don't always enter. If you put some lead or some sort of weight on the bottom of the pot opposite the bait pouch, it will sit upright with the bait at the top and the intended quarry have to go inside to get at it.

With the netted foldaways we use just check carefully the area around the bait pouch as the stitching on the ones I've used has been suspect and it's worth strengthening with some strong mono. Spider Crab are the worst things to get out, they seem to grab hold of every bit of netting.

Stu

[nifty]

Forgot to mention the obvious in the last post regarding just putting the bait in the pot. A couple of hungry shore crabs or Doggies getting inside to the bait will devour it and the pot will be baitless and not working attracting more desirable Lobby's or prawns.