Latest Fishing Reports: United Kingdom
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12/2022
Fishing Report by Scott Belbin
on Galloper (Brightlingsea, Essex)
Dec 2022 by Scott Belbin
Report on-board Galloper
As we head into spurdog season I thought I would give you all a gentle reminder of what our winter offshore trips can produce. This time I will look back at what we had earlier this year in anticipation of what may be on its way.
Trying to arrange offshore trips at this time of year is always a bit of a lottery. Getting those ducks to line up can be a real pain at times. Not only do we need enough people willing to head offshore on a long trip but we need them to be booked on the right tides and we need suitable weather. i ended up cancelling more trips than I have done in the past last winter and spring. Unfortunately after several years of commercial pressure the thorn-back rays weren’t as numerous as they had been so we had lost our ‘get out of jail card’ if the weather was marginal. Luckily a catamaran like the Galloper is more comfortable than most boats in a bit of weather so we can still get away with a lot.
Even so our eyes remain fixed on the weather each time the tides come around. Hoping that out of the unpredictable barrage of weather systems pushing through there may be a window for us to nip out in search of something different. Luckily the many sand banks within the greater Thames estuary afford us a lot of shelter from the right wind direction and they also break the seas up pretty well so swells can die away very quickly here.
Although we have got among some packs and seen some big numbers of spurs at times in the past. I am still happy when I see the first one on board each trip. Although the spurs have become our main focus on these trips I try not to make it entirely about one species. After all I accidentally bumped into these fish while chasing cod the first time. We continue to see some great variety on these trips and although the cod are pretty rare around here currently I still hold out hope of seeing one of these too.
Our first trip of last season was a nice little warm up to ease us in. as usual heaps of hungry dogfish wanted our baits and if we fished through these then we could catch the occasional whiting! Thankfully it wasn’t long before the first spurdog found its way up the scent trial to the boat. We sat it out and picked a few more up as the day went on. Over slack tide I decided to try another mark for the last hour and picked up a few more spurs, a couple of rays and a smooth-hound before home time. A lot of the spurdogs around here are double figure females and very fine looking fish too. Definitely worth catching.
We managed a couple more trips as the weeks passed by and we got closer to springtime and the hope of some slightly more settle weather. a few weeks into the season and we had a nice steady days fishing despite the wind and tide doing funny things. The spurs came thoughout the day. a small pack would pass through and result in a few more decent fish to the boat between the dogfish. of course there were smooth-hounds mixed in too. These may not be as big as some we catch kin the summer but are a welcome sight on a winters day. what the hounds lack in size the spurs make up for and with several doubles throughout the day the biggest fell to Wayne at 18.8lbs. this was one of over 30 spurs we had that day and the lads even snuck a couple of thorn-back out too.
I don’t know where I got the idea of springtime coming and with it more settled weather but it didn’t work out that way. When the weather was good the tides didn’t suit offshore. Every time the tides came around another weather system would push through. over a month had passed since our last trip offshore when those ducks did eventually line up. By then things had changed somewhat, the water was warming up and the fish were on the move. We had a few days on the bounce offshore and although we did find a few spurs they were mostly small males. Thankfully there were plenty of other species to be had. As well as the usual whiting, dogfish, thorn-backs and hounds wee saw several nice bass, a lot of herring and even quite a few mackerel for our efforts.
It would be easy to write off the spurs now but I have spent a lot of years chasing these fish now and have a fair understanding of their habits. The next opportunity came around and we found ourselves back out there looking for something different. As ever those lesser spotted dogfish were ravenous but the lads worked hard to get through them. Thankfully they were rewarded with some nice spurs to 17.8lbs plenty of hounds, thorn-back rays, pouting, whiting, bass and a fine blonde ray for Barry.
We lost the next set of tides to weather and with the water now getting quite warm and the fish spreading out I had all but written off the spurs. Towards the end of the season they are very hit and miss. Anybody can luck on one or two but just well they could miss them. As luck would have it we managed a couple more on general trips but they had one last hurrah for us. we were on an offshore trip with very little to show for our efforts. I thought we might luck out a spur but things weren’t looking great as the morning turned afternoon and afternoon turned to home time. Just as the tide came right Wayne (yes the same Wayne) leaned into a decent fish. it fought well and made our day as it was another high double figure spurdog for him. While we were unhooking this another rod leaned over. Before too long the lads were playing 4-5 double figure spurs at once. It was madness for the last hour or so with multiple hook up after multiple hook up. I simply couldn’t keep up with the net and disgorger. The lads were having to deal with the fish them selves as I tried to grab a couple of pictures and weigh the bigger fish. it was so busy that often their baits were barely touching the bottom before the rods were arching over! Barry (yes him again) managed the biggest at over 20lbs and many more were around the same size. It was a very busy hour or so to end the day with over 30 spurdogs and a great way to end the season.
As I mentioned earlier not every day is a red letter day like this and our winter offshore trips aren’t all about spurdogs but they tend to be our main focus currently. We will be running trips like this from now until the end of April and I have spaces this week (weather permitting) on Friday 16th and Saturday 17th. Next spaces after that are over the Christmas period. Please note I wont report on this years spurdog trips until I have finished fishing for them as too many people want to let me do the leg work for them. If you would like a trip out there either as a group or individual then please get in touch and book with me.
Remember it is often worth giving me a shout if you are cancelled else where and still wish to get out, as we have lots of sheltered fishing available and a big catamaran which makes it even more comfortable.
Spaces as follows
10/12/22 Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
16/12/22- offshore trip 4 spaces @ £100pp
17/12/22-offshore trip targeting spurdogs, smooth-hounds ect 3 spaces @ £100pp
23/12/22- Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
24/12/22-
27/12/22 Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
28/12/22 7 spaces @ £60pp
29/12/22-offshore trip 6 spaces @ £100pp
31/12/22-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
01/01/23-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
02/01/23-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
Not all dates advertised, other spaces available for full boat bookings upon request
For regular updates, availability and more information please visit www.essexseafishing.co.uk find us on social media or call Scott on 07956411528
View Boats Page
UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Galloper
View Full Charter AvailabilitySat 23/11/2024 12 Hours £115.00pp Bass.View details Sat 07/12/2024 12 Hours £100.00pp Bass.View details Sat 14/12/2024 View details Sat 21/12/2024 View details -
11/12/2022
Fishing Report by Rich Ward
on Shy-Torque III (Whitby, North Yorkshire)
11 Dec 2022 by Rich Ward
Report on-board Shy-Torque III
First day ack at sea yesterday after a few weeks off for the honeymoon and returning to some fresh Northerlies.
Our team of four lads from Great Yarmouth made the treck up to Whitby the day before as it’s such a drive!
The day was planned for Uptiding so we made our way North a couple of miles to start.
The fishing for the first hour was slow with just 4 Cidling caught, but after hearing what the other boats were doing I thought we’d stick it out there a bit longer. It paid off. As the ebb tide built the fish came on steadily and we picked the same mark all day.
The lad’s managing 40 plus keepers with plenty of chuck backs too.
The majority of the fish around the 2-3lb mark.
Best fish falling to Jordan at 7lb 12oz. Well done to him.
I’ll be working the boat up till the 21st December if you fancy a run out.
Cheers for now,
Rich
07733 233352 View Boats Page
UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Shy-Torque III
View Full Charter AvailabilityTue 19/11/2024 8 Spaces 9 Hours Need 3 more for trip go-ahead. Uptiding trip. Will sail with just 3 anglers. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Thu 21/11/2024 8 Spaces 8 Hours Uptiding trip. Will sail with just 3. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Mon 25/11/2024 7 Spaces 9 Hours Need 3 more for trip go-ahead. Room for 7 anglers. Excellent wrecking tide. 4.4m. Will sail with just 4 anglers. James 1. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Tue 26/11/2024 5 Spaces 8 Hours Need 1 more for trip go-ahead. Room for 5 anglers. Excellent wrecking tide. 4.6m. Will sail with just 4 anglers. James 1. Dave Bradshaw 2. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Sat 30/11/2024 5 Spaces 8 Hours Need 2 more for trip go-ahead. Uptiding trip. Will sail with just 4 anglers. John Price 1. Rich Wallen 2. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Sun 01/12/2024 7 Spaces 8 Hours Need 3 more for trip go-ahead. Uptiding trip. Will sail with just 4 anglers. Si England 1. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Sun 15/12/2024 1 Space 8 Hours Shy-Torque Uptiding Competition starts. Cash prizes! Room for 1. Si England 1. Rich Reynolds 2. Andy Howard 4. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Mon 16/12/2024 1 Space 8 Hours Shy-Torque Uptiding Competition. Cash prizes! Room for 1 angler. Al Sutcliffe 1. Cliff A 4. Lawrence Byrne 1. Chris Williamson 1. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Tue 17/12/2024 6 Spaces 8 Hours Need 2 more for trip go-ahead. Shy-Torque Uptiding Competition. Cash prizes! Room for 6 anglers. Olly 1. Lawrence Byrne 1. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details Wed 18/12/2024 6 Spaces 8 Hours Shy-Torque Uptiding Competition. Cash prizes! Big Sam 2. Cod / Coalfish (Coley/Saithe) / Ling (Common) / Pollock.View details -
10/12/2022
Fishing Report by Lee Brown
on Kelsey Leigh charter (Tyne, Tyne and Wear)
10 Dec 2022 by Lee Brown
Report on-board Kelsey Leigh charter
Cod to 10 lb spaces 7th 8th January down tiding inbox lee cheers or call 07974252450
View Boats Page
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05/12/2022
Fishing Report by Scott Belbin
on Galloper (Brightlingsea, Essex)
5 Dec 2022 by Scott Belbin
Report on-board Galloper
Our general trips remain productive, with a constant run of bits coming through. the whiting are on the baits instantly with the dogfish close behind. As ever in between we are catching rays, pouting, even late bass and a smattering of codling too. The easterly winds stopped us heading offshore for a couple of trips last week but we changed tack and kept the rods tips rattling inshore. the estuary is still loaded with whiting and dogfish the same as everywhere. The lads changed down to some flattie rigs and found snuck out a few dabs too. These were a welcome change in between the other fish on a windy day.
The Petley family and friends joined me for their pre-christmas get together and were un-detoured by a grey, December day and strong easterly wind. we crept a little further out to start with to make the most of the tide first thing. I warned the lads we may have to head closer once the tide died off but luckily the Galloper sat lovely all day. the fish even played ball too with 3 rays on the first cast! We kept plugging away all day with a couple of moves in between and a constant stream of bites and fish. Gary had set his sights low as he never has much luck on the boat. He told me on the way out ‘I will be happy with one fish Scott’. Now I must admit I like a low bar, it takes the pressure off me but I was sure he could do better than just the one fish. he ended the day with several ray and a codling as well as countless whiting and dogfish throughout the day. between them the lads had 11 rays and 4 codling with all of the other bits keeping us busy all day. I know it’s not going to break any records but surely better than being stuck inside watching TV?
Please note I have full boat availability both days this weekend (10th and 11th) and spaces offshore the week after.
Our next offshore trips will aim for spurdogs, smooth-hounds, rays and who knows what else as these trips can produce all sorts of fish. As ever I will hold back reports on these until after the season finishes in the end of April. If you want to get on board one of these trips then please get in touch. I have spaces for full boat bookings and individuals.
Remember it is often worth giving me a shout if you are cancelled else where and still wish to get out, as we have lots of sheltered fishing available and a big catamaran which makes it even more comfortable.
Spaces as follows
10/12/22 Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
11/12/22- Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
17/12/22-offshore trip targeting spurdogs, smooth-hounds ect 4 spaces @ £100pp
23/12/22- Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
27/12/22 Whole boat or individual availability for general trips
28/12/22 7 spaces @ £60pp
29/12/22-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
30/12/22-offshore trip 3 spaces @ £100pp
31/12/22-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
01/01/23-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
02/01/23-possible offshore trip @ £100pp
Not all dates advertised, other spaces available for full boat bookings upon request
For regular updates, availability and more information please visit www.essexseafishing.co.uk find us on social media or call Scott on 07956411528 View Boats Page
UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Galloper
View Full Charter AvailabilitySat 23/11/2024 12 Hours £115.00pp Bass.View details Sat 07/12/2024 12 Hours £100.00pp Bass.View details Sat 14/12/2024 View details Sat 21/12/2024 View details -
12/2022
Fishing Report by Roger Lennon
on Skerry Belle (Ramsgate, Kent)
Dec 2022 by Roger Lennon
Report on-board Skerry Belle
Should be a few more cod showing now the temperature is dropping, also thornbacks on the Goodwin's with the big females nudging well over 15lb, plenty of other species to keep the rods moving with channel whiting plump dabs smoothhounds pouting whiting and strap conger on the wrecks, most trips at mo producing 40-50 fish a rod, so there's some bumper months ahead, remember all equipment baits supplied and hot pies for lunch,
Bookings 07805250427
www.ramsgatefishingcharters.co.uk View Boats Page
UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Skerry Belle
View Full Charter AvailabilityWed 04/12/2024 8 Spaces 8 Hours Offshore trip Bookings 07805250427 Bass / Cod / Spurdog / Turbot / Starry Smooth-hound.View details Thu 05/12/2024 8 Spaces 8 Hours Offshore trip Bookings 07805250427 Bass / Cod / Thornback Ray / Turbot / Starry Smooth-hound.View details Fri 06/12/2024 8 Spaces 8 Hours Offshore trip Bookings 07805250427 Bass / Cod / Thornback Ray / Turbot / Starry Smooth-hound.View details Tue 10/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details Wed 11/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details Thu 12/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details Fri 13/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details Mon 16/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details Tue 17/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details Wed 18/12/2024 8 Hours Offshore trips Bookings 07805250427View details -
02/12/2022
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
on Sea Urchin IIl (Whitby, North Yorkshire)
2 Dec 2022 by Andy Savage
Report on-board Sea Urchin IIl
It was nice to get five days back to back this week. I’ve already reported on a couple of days which gave us some excellent fishing, but it’s only right to add a bit of balance. Not every day can be a “red letter” day. Although to be fair, we still caught ok.
On Tuesday we had a mixed day. Starting off Uptiding, then running to some inshore wrecks around slack water. Once the tide got away, we went back to fishing at anchor. We picked away steadily whilst uptiding, but didn’t find any of the better stamp of fish we caught the day before. The inshore wrecks were dead. We tried three wrecks for no fish at all.
Following Wednesday’s cracking sport; Thursday was another run off to the 20 mile stream wrecks. We started on the same productive wreck as the day before and took 3-4 fish a drift, but the average size wasn’t quite what I was hoping for. We took a few fish around 5lb, but nothing better. I took us to another wreck just before dinnertime, and the catch rate went up significantly, with 5 or 6 rods taking fish every drift. Squid on muppet bait traces took almost all the fish. Everyone had quite a few to take away and plenty were thrown back.
Today saw us back out in the 20 mile stream wrecking. It turned out to be a really frustrating day for me. The first wreck had a seal on it (as it has on every occasion I’ve been this year) and it was hungry! There were very few bites anyway, but Mark Wilkinson managed to hook something of reasonable size. Halfway up his rod slammed over as the seal came for its breakfast. After a bit of a tussle, Mark got some of his fish back!!!
We moved on to another two wrecks for next to nothing, then I made the call to run back in to a wreck 10 miles closer in. Finally we found a few fish willing to feed. Pleasingly, we picked up fish every drift for the rest of the afternoon and there were a fair few for the pan. It wasn’t the day I’d hoped for, but every day is different.
Thanks to everyone for coming out fishing with me. I really appreciate the bookings and will always try my best to get us on some fish. View Boats Page
UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Sea Urchin IIl
View Full Charter AvailabilityTue 19/11/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 5.50 David Craine - x 2 Joe Clough - x 1 Ian Hepworth - x 2 John Ditchfield - x 1 Damian Walker - x 1View details Tue 26/11/2024 1 Space Available Good Wrecking Tide - 4.67m Paul Stone - x 2 Steve Ralphson - x 2 Chris Chatham - x 1 Rob Stevens - x 1 Bod - x 2View details Tue 03/12/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 5.22m Dave & Del - x 2 Neil Kennedy - x 2 Stephen Austin - x 2 Petras Sinkonis - x 1View details Fri 06/12/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 4.97m Ian Purdom - x 1 Joe Clough - x 1 Craig Henshaw - x 2 Christopher Arrand - x 3View details Sat 07/12/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 4.83m Jimmy Yeung - x 1 Steve & Ryan Martin - x 2 Waldek Myśliwy - x 3 Marc Smith - x 1View details Mon 09/12/2024 7 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 4.88m Will sail with 4 anglers. Joe Clough - x 1View details Tue 10/12/2024 6 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 4.74m Will sail with 4 anglers. Aaron & Steve - x 2View details Sat 14/12/2024 3 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 5.46m Jeff Mosey - x 4 Oliver Venus - x 1View details Tue 17/12/2024 5 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 5.48m Will sail with 4 anglers. Ian Purdom - x 1 Shaun Marchington - x 2View details Thu 19/12/2024 4 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 5.15m Stan Matthews - x 1 David Craine - x 2 Greg Ince - x 1View details -
01/12/2022
Fishing Report by Roy Smith
on SWN Y MOR (Amlwch, Isle of Anglesey)
1 Dec 2022 by Roy Smith
Report on-board SWN Y MOR
Hi Anglers to get to some offshore wrecks yesterday with bit of gap in the weather took a while to find a wreck with decent amount of fish on. We had a lot of snap outs with large fish but managed to catch quite a few to 9lbs. A large shark following 6 lb pollock to the surface nice to see . Will have to have a go for them sometime often attack fish on offshore wrecks. Trips still available if weather and sea conditions ok. Thanks for your custom and Happy Xmas and good fishing Cheers Roy
View Boats Page
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01/12/2022
Fishing Report by Lee Brown
on Kelsey Leigh charter (Tyne, Tyne and Wear)
1 Dec 2022 by Lee Brown
Report on-board Kelsey Leigh charter
Coddling to 3 lb and few octopus cod moving in now inbox lee we fish all year round thanks lee
View Boats Page
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12/2022
Fishing Report by Pat Jones
on Kerrykim (Amlwch, Isle of Anglesey)
Dec 2022 by Pat Jones
Report on-board Kerrykim
Hi
We have finished for this year and I would like to thank everyone who has fished with us.
We will start again in April of 2023.
Cheers
Pat View Boats Page
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30/11/2022
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
on Sea Urchin IIl (Whitby, North Yorkshire)
30 Nov 2022 by Andy Savage
Report on-board Sea Urchin IIl
The Three Amigos turn out to be one wreck wonders!!
Mark Johnson, Bob Nicholls and Jeff Hoggard booked the boat for themselves today. With the falling tides, Uptiding wasn’t really a great option, so with the settled weather, I thought that some of the wrecks in the 20 mile stream might be holding a few fish. We haven’t been able to fish them for quite some time with the poor/inconsistent weather we’ve had. The lads were in agreement, so we headed out at first light.
On arrival at the first wreck, I set up the drift and as soon as Mark got to the bottom, he was into fish. He cranked up, what appeared to be a decent fish, but it turns out that two nice plump Codling had jumped straight onto his pennel hooks. I immediately thought that there must be a few down there….and boy, was I right!!
The rest of the day was spent on the same wreck. We caught fish after fish after fish. I lost count of the number of drifts where we were all playing fish at once. It was absolutely fantastic sport. The average size of the fish was equally impressive as the quantity; with loads in the 5-7lb bracket. Whilst we didn’t land any monsters, Jeff Hoggard took the biggest Codling at just over 8lb, but that didn’t really matter, it was the quality of the fish which impressed so much.
It truly was a day to remember and one as anglers we always hope for. We all caught loads and it was a day spent in great company.
Thanks very much for your excellent company lads. See you in a couple of weeks. View Boats Page
UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Sea Urchin IIl
View Full Charter AvailabilityTue 19/11/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 5.50 David Craine - x 2 Joe Clough - x 1 Ian Hepworth - x 2 John Ditchfield - x 1 Damian Walker - x 1View details Tue 26/11/2024 1 Space Available Good Wrecking Tide - 4.67m Paul Stone - x 2 Steve Ralphson - x 2 Chris Chatham - x 1 Rob Stevens - x 1 Bod - x 2View details Tue 03/12/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 5.22m Dave & Del - x 2 Neil Kennedy - x 2 Stephen Austin - x 2 Petras Sinkonis - x 1View details Fri 06/12/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 4.97m Ian Purdom - x 1 Joe Clough - x 1 Craig Henshaw - x 2 Christopher Arrand - x 3View details Sat 07/12/2024 1 Space Available Uptiding Trip - 4.83m Jimmy Yeung - x 1 Steve & Ryan Martin - x 2 Waldek Myśliwy - x 3 Marc Smith - x 1View details Mon 09/12/2024 7 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 4.88m Will sail with 4 anglers. Joe Clough - x 1View details Tue 10/12/2024 6 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 4.74m Will sail with 4 anglers. Aaron & Steve - x 2View details Sat 14/12/2024 3 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 5.46m Jeff Mosey - x 4 Oliver Venus - x 1View details Tue 17/12/2024 5 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 5.48m Will sail with 4 anglers. Ian Purdom - x 1 Shaun Marchington - x 2View details Thu 19/12/2024 4 Spaces Available Uptiding Trip - 5.15m Stan Matthews - x 1 David Craine - x 2 Greg Ince - x 1View details
