Mr Fish
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2020
- Messages
- 21,344
- Reaction score
- 73,926
- Points
- 116
- Location
- North Devon
- Favourite Fishing
- Shore
Was up at the crack of stupid this morning for a wrasse hunt down at Boscastle at a mark I checked out the other week.
I really really hate getting up early and I didn’t sleep well either, but figured with a 90 minute drive I needed to be out before the emmetts and grockles were on the road, the car park filled up and the mark was swarmed under (maybe, never fished it before so wasn’t too sure how busy it gets).
Part one worked well, I was up almost when I planned, had a mostly clear run down, any slow idiots I encountered obligingly turned off fairly quickly and I was in the car park about 8.30am.
Should also add here that for once I woke up without any pain and everything seemed good.
Trudged up to the mark carrying a cool bag, rucksack, drop net, and a heavy bucket of hardback crabs I caught yesterday. Far far too many crabs, the bucket was half full ? and it’s a BIG bucket.
It had been drizzling thus far and upon arriving I discovered that even with spiked boots, Cornish slate is slippery when wet!
In fact, spiked boots possibly made the problem worse on the flat surfaces.
Very gingerly made my way down this lot, passing rods and bucket etc down to the next ledge and resorting to going down on my arse on more than one occasion.
Good news is the rain had stopped and things were already drying out, so the rest of the day wasn’t a problem.
Soon up and fishing...
It’s about 40 foot up there...
The drop net was intended more to lower fish back than try to land them, as the fall would probably kill them, although if needs be I’d have attempted it, but really a drop net is a two man operation so I’d resigned myself to swinging them up or handlining if I had to.
I had hardbacks, about 10 peeler and a pack of mackerel to try for garfish or macks later.
This mark just screamed wrasse, it was ridiculously deep, several seconds to hit bottom after casting, I could see the weedy drop off and even at low tide the bottom was nowhere to be seen in the clearly water.
To start with, I was getting pecks on the peeler and on the hardbacks - small wrasse pecking is par for the course, just ignore them and change the bait if you think it’s mullered.
Early on I had a half decent bite on the hardback, that I missed.
Then I waited. And waited. And waited....
Where the hell were the fish? The peeler baits weren’t huge and even a wrasse of a pound would scoff it easily.
I tried in close, over the side, at distance, or as much as I could with half full old multis with 30lb line, under the rock wall to my right, all over.
Just those odd pecks and a steady loss of leads and several rigs.
This was when I realised two things - I hadn’t packed nearly enough lead and had already lost half, plus I’d forgotten to pick up the packet of wide gape thick crab hooks ???
The hooks I’d just have to make do with what I had. A bit smaller than I’d have liked but it would have to do.
The leads... I got creative...
About as aerodynamic as a brick but would you believe, once I started using these I only lost one ???
I decided to set up the float rod now the tide was flooding and as I did so, a ratchet screamed off.
At last!
Unfortunately I bullied the fish quickly up in the water - you’ll see why I shouldn’t have - as I would normally do in the ‘relatively’ shallow North Devon waters.
An absolutely stunning fish, truly amazing colour. I didn’t weigh it but figured maybe 1lb 4.
Now the gutting bit
You’ll see its guts poking out there? I brought it up too quick and the pressure change was too much. I did actually slow down halfway through but the damage was done.
I lowered it back very carefully in the drop net, but it floated away belly up and stayed in view for an hour, haunting me ???
Really don’t like to see these fish die but I’d never fished for them in such deep water before and literally just didn’t realise until it happened. I mean, I’ve seen it on boats but didn’t even think about it from the shore.
Lesson learned.
Put one wrasse rod up (can only fish two rods during the competition and I stick to the rules even though no one would know what I did) and got the float rod out.
It soon became clear my lighter float just wouldn’t have the range to get out into the tide where there’s more chance of mackerel and garfish, so I retackled with a heavier float.
Unfortunately either I’d picked up the wrong weight or the wrong one was supplied with it, but either way, although it cast nicely, it was cocked that deep I could barely see the damn thing!
Gave it one drift before reeling in and towards the end of the drift, what float was visible in the foam disappeared.
It gave a decent account of itself and I saw it was a small pollack.
I forgot the 40 foot distance. Smallish, yes, but not THAT small and too heavy to winch up on light float gear.
A bit of careful handlining and I had a keeper pollack. Oh, and an audience, as I glanced up and saw about a dozen people up on the path watching me!
The pollack was very deep hooked, so kept it, turning my back to the crowd to quickly gut it so they weren’t treated to a gore show.
I would have happily put it back if it had been lip hooked.
But still no more wrasse. I think the fish gods were very angry at the loss of one.
I continued casting here and there, refreshing baits, swapping to the float occasionally, nothing at all.
I did wish I had some ragworm but there hadn’t been time to get any the day before, if I even could.
Did reel in this alien thing, that was hugging or possibly making love to my live crab. I tried to photograph that but it dropped off before I could set the angle up.
Another chap came down about mid afternoon and admitted he wasn’t too serious about it but popped down for mackerel occasionally.
He had one almost straight away, but as the accursed of the fish gods was stood next to him, it dropped off at eye level ?
He didn’t get any more ???
There was a hell of a swell down there too, quite glad I was up high...
Oh, and I think @Cfish or @Tow-rag might have been having sexy time down the coast somewhere (not together!)
Oh yes, the pain part. Well, I was fine up to about midday, then I started getting the usual abdominal and lower back aches. Not too bad, took some pills to head it off.
But I guess the constant motion up and down rocks didn’t help, it just got worse and worse.
I was actually enjoying the fishing and being out in the sun, but it becomes harder to enjoy as every motion causes more pain (I’m sure some of you can relate).
I stuck it out until just after high, then decided enough was enough and packed up before limping down the hill. A sit in the car and some water restored me somewhat and I headed home, again actually making quite good time.
So a good day in parts, but baffled at the lack of wrasse.
I like the mark and it’s relatively accessible, I would like to return.
But is it not really a great wrasse mark? Was I fishing in the wrong areas or was it just one of those days?
I really really hate getting up early and I didn’t sleep well either, but figured with a 90 minute drive I needed to be out before the emmetts and grockles were on the road, the car park filled up and the mark was swarmed under (maybe, never fished it before so wasn’t too sure how busy it gets).
Part one worked well, I was up almost when I planned, had a mostly clear run down, any slow idiots I encountered obligingly turned off fairly quickly and I was in the car park about 8.30am.
Should also add here that for once I woke up without any pain and everything seemed good.
Trudged up to the mark carrying a cool bag, rucksack, drop net, and a heavy bucket of hardback crabs I caught yesterday. Far far too many crabs, the bucket was half full ? and it’s a BIG bucket.
It had been drizzling thus far and upon arriving I discovered that even with spiked boots, Cornish slate is slippery when wet!
In fact, spiked boots possibly made the problem worse on the flat surfaces.
Very gingerly made my way down this lot, passing rods and bucket etc down to the next ledge and resorting to going down on my arse on more than one occasion.
Good news is the rain had stopped and things were already drying out, so the rest of the day wasn’t a problem.
Soon up and fishing...
It’s about 40 foot up there...
The drop net was intended more to lower fish back than try to land them, as the fall would probably kill them, although if needs be I’d have attempted it, but really a drop net is a two man operation so I’d resigned myself to swinging them up or handlining if I had to.
I had hardbacks, about 10 peeler and a pack of mackerel to try for garfish or macks later.
This mark just screamed wrasse, it was ridiculously deep, several seconds to hit bottom after casting, I could see the weedy drop off and even at low tide the bottom was nowhere to be seen in the clearly water.
To start with, I was getting pecks on the peeler and on the hardbacks - small wrasse pecking is par for the course, just ignore them and change the bait if you think it’s mullered.
Early on I had a half decent bite on the hardback, that I missed.
Then I waited. And waited. And waited....
Where the hell were the fish? The peeler baits weren’t huge and even a wrasse of a pound would scoff it easily.
I tried in close, over the side, at distance, or as much as I could with half full old multis with 30lb line, under the rock wall to my right, all over.
Just those odd pecks and a steady loss of leads and several rigs.
This was when I realised two things - I hadn’t packed nearly enough lead and had already lost half, plus I’d forgotten to pick up the packet of wide gape thick crab hooks ???
The hooks I’d just have to make do with what I had. A bit smaller than I’d have liked but it would have to do.
The leads... I got creative...
About as aerodynamic as a brick but would you believe, once I started using these I only lost one ???
I decided to set up the float rod now the tide was flooding and as I did so, a ratchet screamed off.
At last!
Unfortunately I bullied the fish quickly up in the water - you’ll see why I shouldn’t have - as I would normally do in the ‘relatively’ shallow North Devon waters.
An absolutely stunning fish, truly amazing colour. I didn’t weigh it but figured maybe 1lb 4.
Now the gutting bit
You’ll see its guts poking out there? I brought it up too quick and the pressure change was too much. I did actually slow down halfway through but the damage was done.
I lowered it back very carefully in the drop net, but it floated away belly up and stayed in view for an hour, haunting me ???
Really don’t like to see these fish die but I’d never fished for them in such deep water before and literally just didn’t realise until it happened. I mean, I’ve seen it on boats but didn’t even think about it from the shore.
Lesson learned.
Put one wrasse rod up (can only fish two rods during the competition and I stick to the rules even though no one would know what I did) and got the float rod out.
It soon became clear my lighter float just wouldn’t have the range to get out into the tide where there’s more chance of mackerel and garfish, so I retackled with a heavier float.
Unfortunately either I’d picked up the wrong weight or the wrong one was supplied with it, but either way, although it cast nicely, it was cocked that deep I could barely see the damn thing!
Gave it one drift before reeling in and towards the end of the drift, what float was visible in the foam disappeared.
It gave a decent account of itself and I saw it was a small pollack.
I forgot the 40 foot distance. Smallish, yes, but not THAT small and too heavy to winch up on light float gear.
A bit of careful handlining and I had a keeper pollack. Oh, and an audience, as I glanced up and saw about a dozen people up on the path watching me!
The pollack was very deep hooked, so kept it, turning my back to the crowd to quickly gut it so they weren’t treated to a gore show.
I would have happily put it back if it had been lip hooked.
But still no more wrasse. I think the fish gods were very angry at the loss of one.
I continued casting here and there, refreshing baits, swapping to the float occasionally, nothing at all.
I did wish I had some ragworm but there hadn’t been time to get any the day before, if I even could.
Did reel in this alien thing, that was hugging or possibly making love to my live crab. I tried to photograph that but it dropped off before I could set the angle up.
Another chap came down about mid afternoon and admitted he wasn’t too serious about it but popped down for mackerel occasionally.
He had one almost straight away, but as the accursed of the fish gods was stood next to him, it dropped off at eye level ?
He didn’t get any more ???
There was a hell of a swell down there too, quite glad I was up high...
Oh, and I think @Cfish or @Tow-rag might have been having sexy time down the coast somewhere (not together!)
Oh yes, the pain part. Well, I was fine up to about midday, then I started getting the usual abdominal and lower back aches. Not too bad, took some pills to head it off.
But I guess the constant motion up and down rocks didn’t help, it just got worse and worse.
I was actually enjoying the fishing and being out in the sun, but it becomes harder to enjoy as every motion causes more pain (I’m sure some of you can relate).
I stuck it out until just after high, then decided enough was enough and packed up before limping down the hill. A sit in the car and some water restored me somewhat and I headed home, again actually making quite good time.
So a good day in parts, but baffled at the lack of wrasse.
I like the mark and it’s relatively accessible, I would like to return.
But is it not really a great wrasse mark? Was I fishing in the wrong areas or was it just one of those days?
Last edited:
Especially one that was so pretty.
