Latest Fishing Reports: Sea Urchin IIl
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08/09/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
8 Sep 2024 by Andy Savage
Weekend catch report aboard Sea Urchin.
We had the back end of the Spring Tides to work with the last two days; a 5.4m on Saturday and a 5.2m today. This was always going to present challenging fishing conditions, as almost the entire weekend would be spent drifting the various rough ground marks. We’ve been struggling to find many fish on the ground with the copious amounts of feed in the water, so it was a case of cross your fingers and hope for the best.
Luckily there were rafts of Mackerel to get us started; one drift gave loads of bait for each of the days. We started of trying the three mile ground, but with the tide pushing the boat through at almost two knots, moved out to the five mile ground, which was also unproductive. Both days gave very slow starts with just a couple of fish boated by late morning. A move out to the nine mile ground gave us the best results.
With us fishing the WCSA Autumn Festival, we were really looking for one big fish, and the lads understood that and credit to them, they all battled on both days. We found one patch which gave us fish on Saturday and today, so we spent a few hours there maximising it. Neil Fell-Edwards has fished with me for a couple of years and has been after a double figure Ling for that time. I was made up for him yesterday when he caught himself an 11lb 13oz fish giving him a new Pb. Well done Neil.
Today the same ground gave us an even better result when on only his second boat fishing trip, Richard Szpijak hooked into what looked like the bottom. He just couldn’t move it with the light rod he was using……then I saw it “nod”! After confirming it was indeed a fish, Richard wrestled for about five minutes with what was obviously a very good fish. As he was fishing under the boat, we didn’t see the fish approaching, but then a massive head appeared and the body just kept on coming. After only two trips, he now has a new Pb Ling of 23lb 3oz!! When your luck’s in, it’s in!
The fishing was hard all weekend and I really want to thanks the lads for being fantastic company and sticking with it, even when the lines were streaming and we weren’t getting anything. Well done lads. -
31/08/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
31 Aug 2024 by Andy Savage
Today I once again had the pleasure of The Keel Inn Fishing Club from Barnsley aboard. They came with a slightly depleted crew, with only five anglers able to make the trip this time, but they more than made up for it with the brilliant banter they have.
After encouraging results yesterday and with ESE winds forecast for the afternoon, we had a chat and the lads were happy to run south to some wrecks in a similar area as the day before, which involved a bit of a steam, pushing tide. The sea was almost flat clam when we arrived at the first wreck and when three rods of the five went straight in I breathed a sigh of relief; there were a few feeding fish at home. Like the previous day, the stamp of mainly Ling was decent again.
In fairly short order, “Chips” Mallin bumped two (or maybe the same) what he said felt like big fish. Next drift he was into another chunk as his Mackerel baited muppet trace was snaffled. After a slow but steady scrap I scooped up a nice Ling which weighed in at 16lb 14oz. Next drift, we had four fish on at once which resulted in a brace of 8lb Ling, an 11lb 13oz Cod for Tog Edwards and a 13lb 2oz Ling for Gaz Jones. It was like we could do no wrong!
The wreck kept us entertained for a couple of hours and as the sport slowed a little, we had a run down another couple of miles to a nicely spread wreck. We were on the run into slack water, so the drift speed had slowed from 1.2knots down to 0.4knots. The wind blew us gently across the wreck and we got plagued with 3-4lb strap Ling every drift, which isn’t ideal as they don’t go back to the water very well after capture. Just as I was about to move us, Daz Tango hooked a slightly better one a smidge under double figures, but that was the best we got.
Another chat, and we agreed to go and have the last hour on the same wreck that we started the day on, to see if we could get one of the monsters that Chips had lost off. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be, but the lads got a couple of smaller Ling each drift to keep it interesting.
For once; the weather was ok, the fishing wasn’t bad and the company was excellent. Thanks very much lads for a fantastic day out. -
30/08/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
30 Aug 2024 by Andy Savage
After a week off for a family holiday, it was back to sea again yesterday.
With a small neap tide, I hoped to spend the day wreck hopping, but unfortunately it just didn’t turn out that way. The only part of the day that went to plan was catching plenty of Mackerel to start off. With a WNW breeze, the wind pushed us out to sea across the tide (which I don’t like) and we tried three wrecks for nothing at all. Then we found one wreck that did one or two fish a drift for half an hour, but then it dried up.
We then tried rough ground at five miles, three miles and another wreck for literally nothing. It was a headbanger of a day and I was as disappointed with the day as the lads were, despite the effort we all put in.
Today with light winds “forecast” and still only a moderate tide, we agreed to have a go on a few wrecks, but to run south to try and get away from the massive amounts of feed that I believe is blighting the sport at Whitby at present. It was one of my fishing days, so there were only seven of us fishing, giving plenty of room. First drift on the first wreck and we had three rods in, wrestling up three reasonable Ling in the 6-8lb class which was a relief after the previous day.
Just as we were getting stuck into a few fish, the wind lifted and whoever guessed the weather should give their head a wobble!! We were treated to NW winds in the 15-17mph range which really made it lumpy and tricky fishing conditions. Credit where credit’s due, the lads just carried on taking fish every drift. We didn’t find anything massive, but a nice stamp of Ling including a couple of doubles to Dave Sharp and Simon West were good to see. We didn’t have loads of Codling, but we did take a couple over 6lb.
Mackerel on muppet traces dominated, but Squid still did a few. Streaming lines meant the shad’s didn’t get a look in.
Thanks for a really enjoyable day lads. -
17/08/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
17 Aug 2024 by Andy Savage
I had a group of my Saturday regulars on today. It’s always really enjoyable for me to have regular anglers aboard. Firstly, they’re always excellent company and secondly, they’re good anglers, so I can base my angling decisions on whether they’re catching or not.
Today we had a slightly larger tide (4.7m). The W/SW winds were forecast to be a touch stronger, so all in all, I left Whitby without a real plan for the day.
We clonked a load of Mackerel at the Bell Buoy in about twenty minutes, then went to a nearby wreck to see how it looked for drifting. The lines were running back a touch with the fresh offshore breeze, but when I checked with the anglers, they said they were paying off very little line which was encouraging. We fished two nearby wrecks for absolutely nothing, then had a couple of drifts on rough ground for one undersized Codling. It was decision time…..
I spoke with the boys and we chose to run south to try some different wrecks in the same area we fished yesterday. Thankfully, the breeze dropped away as we steamed down and the drift wasn’t bad at all on the first wreck we fished. Unfortunately, we lost more gear than fish we caught. After four drifts, we pressed on.
It was a day for bait fishing today. Most went with 16oz leads on muppet bait traces, baited with Squid and/or Mackerel #standard We took a few fish off the next wreck and then it died off; and that turned out to be today’s pattern…..catch a few, then move on. One thing that was different from yesterday was the lack of strap Ling we caught. We got pestered by them yesterday, but today we took more Codling than Ling. We wreck hopped for the remainder of the day, taking fish here and there. The average size was much better than yesterday, but the overall quantity was nowhere near as good. Quality not quantity it would be fair to say.
Steve Martin took the biggest fish of the day. Firstly he snapped a 12” inches off his rod when he got stuck in a wreck. Then, despite the offer of using one of my rods, he cranked up a 13lb 12oz Cod! Well done Steve. -
16/08/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
16 Aug 2024 by Andy Savage
One out of three ain’t good……
I haven’t posted individual reports from my last two trips because quite simply; the fishing wasn’t very good and we only caught odd small fish. The lads who were on the trips fished hard and I did my best to find a few, but it just wasn’t to be. Strap Ling around 3-5lb were the mainstay with an odd Codling and Pollock. It got to me a bit in the end and I know I wasn’t my normal self, as I hate it when I can’t deliver for the anglers. It felt like every decision I made wasn’t the right one and if I didn’t have bad luck, I wouldn’t have any luck at all!!
Thankfully, today saw an improvement with a bit more consistent sport. With it being a small tide we were destined for a day on the wrecks. I opted to run south and try a few down past Robin Hoods Bay. The first one we stopped at gave us one, two or three fish each drift for an hour. Quite a lot were undersized Ling, but there were a few better ones among them.
Most of the lads were using fresh Mackerel fillets or squid and Mackerel combo’s on muppet traces. I saw a couple of sets of Hokkai’s go over but they just got attacked by the Mackerel. Shads did produce a few fish, but it was probably a 50/50 ratio of foul hooked to hooked fair and square. The water still has a funny green colour to it and visibility doesn't appear to be very good. After a couple of less productive drifts, we moved on and that formed the pattern for the day.
We fished four wrecks in total and caught from them all. Slack water was around 1100hrs and with a bit of SW wind, we kept moving throughout, which helped keep the bites coming. The last wreck we fished is one of my favourites and today it didn’t disappoint. We only had time for half a dozen drifts, but it did 4-6 fish a drift until the wind pepped up a bit and spoiled the drift line.
Ian Kellock was top rod today and took a fish almost every drift, all day. Biggest fish fell to Peter Burton, a Ling of just over 11lb, which had the remnant’s of a set of Black Hokkai’s in it, which someone had snapped off on recently! Most bizarre capture was Len Brumwell with a Scallop which clamped on his bait.
Thanks for a great day lads and restoring a bit of my morale. Onwards an Upwards.......hopefully things keep on improving. -
06/08/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
6 Aug 2024 by Andy Savage
It’s been an enjoyable but busy couple of weeks since I last did a report.
The first week was spent fishing in Norway with my good friend Ian Kellock. The fishing I experienced in Torsvag was just brilliant. I wasn’t bothered in the slightest about bait fishing for monsters and spent the majority of the time fishing with light lure rods and slow-pitch jigs.
We didn’t encounter anything enormous by Norwegian standards but the sport was excellent. I had hoped for a few nice Haddock (which I got) and a 20lb Coalie (which evaded me); so we’ve got unfinished business next year.
The real enjoyment came from exploring the massive areas of rough ground and working things out for ourselves. We both think and fish similarly, so it was a recipe for an epic week. Cheers Ian.
Arriving back in the U.K. I was straight back at it with three trips over Friday and the weekend. Unfortunately for the lads I had aboard, the fishing was a real struggle. There’s masses of feed on the ground and the fish just don’t seem to be dialled in to feeding. We picked up odd fish here and there, but unless you were after big-dog Mackerel, it was a tough gig.
Today was a Lure Fishing competition, with £150 for first place and £50 for second. No bait was allowed at all and the lads got stuck in with the lures all day. It wasn’t the easiest of fishing conditions and the more experienced lure anglers shone through in the end. Ian Kellock taking first place and Tony Firman second.
It’s looking like a couple of days off again with the current forecast, but hopefully things pick up with the next set of neap tides. Thanks to everyone who has made the trip over and fished hard. I really appreciate the support.
Cheers, Andy -
22/07/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
22 Jul 2024 by Andy Savage
Apologies for the delay in the catch report …..Saturday saw the lads from The Keel Inn Fishing Club aboard. A day I really look forward to, as they’re all brilliant company and the p**s taking is relentless and brutal in equal measure!!
It was the last day of the Summer Competition and with a 16lb fish required to get in front we had a couple of options. With it being a 5m tide, we would usually split the day between wrecks and rough ground. But with very light winds and not great numbers of fish showing on the rough ground, the lads were happy to fish the wrecks all day in the hope that a better fish would come their way.
With the tide being fairly slack, we started on a wreck just over a mile from the pier ends straight away. We got a couple of fish every drift, but they were just strap Ling in the main. We then moved out to the rough ground at three miles to try for some Mackerel; which turned out to be patchy, but we got enough to get us going. Whilst drifting the rough ground, we noticed that despite the predicted tide, nobody was actually paying out line on the drift and they were all fairly vertical. That was the decision made, we opted to commit and run South to have a go on the wrecks for the rest of the day.
We were pushing the Ebb tide but thankfully, there were no boats ahead of us, so we could pick and choose the wrecks which suited the drift the best for the whole day. The Ebb tide produced fish off every wreck, some more than others. Tog Edwards managed to find the biggest Codling of the day at 5lb 8oz and Gaz managed a 10lb 6oz Ling. The fishing was far from fantastic, but that seemed to be the same across the board when speaking to the other Skipper’s.
When the Flood tide came through the sport literally dried up. We took only a handful of fish for the last couple of hours and unfortunately, the monster we were searching for didn’t materialise. The lads fished hard all day and whilst they fish hard, I will never stop trying. Thanks for a great day out lads. -
17/07/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
17 Jul 2024 by Andy Savage
It was fantastic to get back out to sea today.
Gary Grantham and five friends had the boat booked for the day and they’re always excellent company a decent anglers to boot. With it being a small neap tide we ran out to a patch of rough ground to try and catch a few fresh Mackerel to supplement the Squid. After around 30 minutes we only had 20 or so, but couldn’t afford to waste any more time……we had some “wreck hopping” to do!
We opted to push the tide and try some wrecks south of Whitby which I always enjoy fishing, especially when they’ve not been pressured too much recently. The first one we fished, everyone went over with the usual muppet traces baited with Squid and/or Mackerel. We had a reasonable start taking five fish the first drift and the same again the second. Along with a couple of strap Ling there was a reasonable stamp of Codling with almost all them being 4lb - 5lb and no chuck backs.
This wreck kept us entertained right the way through slack water before sport slowed a little. With plenty to go at nearby, we moved on to try another; caught a few, then moved on again. The pattern for the day was set, and on the turn of tide the breeze eased off giving us a cracking drift line. The lads all fished brilliantly and as the day progressed, the stamp of Ling improved and we managed to take plenty in the 5-7lb range along with half a dozen low doubles. Gordon Blyth was “Top Rod” today and put together an 18 fish box of Cod and Ling plus a few throwbacks. But everyone got in on the action which is what it’s all about.
It was one of those days where if we couldn’t get a few with the excellent tide, weather and sea conditions it would have been a bad job. But the boys didn’t disappoint with some solid angling and great banter. Thanks lads for a great day out. -
25/06/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
25 Jun 2024 by Andy Savage
I’ve struggled to find time to do a daily report recently, but the last three days fishing has seen a familiar pattern emerge each day for us.
All three days were spent fishing on Spring tides between 5.1m and 5.3m, not enormous, but certainly a quick enough drift to make for challenging conditions with a bit of breeze. On these size tides, the days are generally spent on a mix of wrecks around slack water and drifting rough ground when the tide was running.
The way the periods of slack water fell, meant we started each day with a couple of wrecks. It was noticeable, that as soon as the tide dipped, the fish started feeding well and we had a reasonable start each day taking Codling and Ling with a couple around the 7lb mark. Slack water was quiet each day, then as soon as the new tide bent through, there would be another feeding spell until the tide built up to full speed.
Each day, once the tide was at its peak, sport literally stopped. The fish were there, but clearly just weren’t feeding. Over the three days we’ve fished rough ground at 3, 5, 7 and 20+ miles with very similar results.
We kept on the move during these periods, trying different areas and lines, but we had meagre pickings, with just an occasional odd fish. Thankfully on Sunday and Monday the second slack periods also delivered a few nice fish to end the day, which was great.
Tactics wise, it was the “Whitby usual”…Muppet traces baited with Squid and/or Mackerel for the wrecks. Baited Hokkai’s on the rough ground. Shads were tried a couple of times, but not with much consistency. My son William accompanied us on Sunday along with Grandad. He’s caught on rough ground plenty of times, but on Sunday he had his first go at wrecking fishing. He landed (on his own) his first Ling from out of the wreck at 4lb 8oz, so it was a proud Dad moment for me! He’s only 11 and it was a battle royale all the way up.
A huge thanks to all the anglers who’ve been out with us the last three days. Everyone was fantastic company and I am so grateful for the support. -
22/06/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
22 Jun 2024 by Andy Savage
Great to be spending so many days back at sea again.
The last two days have seen us fishing on building tides. Friday saw a group of mixed experience anglers aboard and it was planned to be a mix of wrecks around slack water and rough ground when the tide was pushing.
Unfortunately it didn’t turn out like that, as the South Easterly wind just kept building throughout the day, presenting the anglers with some challenging fishing conditions.
Even with 16oz leads on, the lines soon streamed away from the boat. This is where the more experienced anglers have the upper hand, as they are able to keep the tackle on the bottom in order to get bites. Joe Clough, Ian Smith and Chuck Stubbly managed to do this consistently and kept the bites coming throughout the day.
We spent the majority of the day on the rough ground at five miles, drift fishing with squid baited Hokkai’s. For the lads who could control their gear, there were plenty of small Codling, Haddock and Whiting willing to feed. To end the day, we ran back into the three mile ground and picked off some lovely clean Codling, with Chuck taking a new PB of 7lb 12oz. Great angling in adverse conditions.
Today I had the Keel Inn Fishing Club aboard for the first time this year. A great bunch of lads who are a pleasure to have aboard. Stacks of banter and there’s some solid anglers amongst them as well. The first couple of wrecks we tried weren’t too bad. Tog Edwards helped himself to a 7lb 4oz Codling on only the second drift. We took a dozen fish, then tired another one. This time Daz Hilton had a 7lb 12oz Codling to knock Tog off top spot for biggest fish of the day.
The rest of the day was spent on wrecks and rough ground. We caught fish in almost everywhere we stopped, but it was just odd fish here and there. Certainly a lack of consistency. I felt there were more feeding fish on the ground yesterday, despite today’s weather conditions being much better.
Everyone fished hard all day but Tog was certainly the most consistent, regularly being the first one to catch on a drift. Whether it be muppet traces or Hokkai’s, he rang the changes well. Good angling. See you next month lads.