@DJDBazzer messaged our group to say worms booked for Friday! Where you off l replied. He said it was looking prime for Saturday at Durdle Door or Worbarrow Bay. If its Worbs are you up for it? I did not need to be asked twice . Its always an adventure there. Especially if its an all nighter.
I tried to pack light, but as usual failed miserably. I have my converted electric golf trolley to help getting from the car park, to the cliff path. So trundled down the path about a mile and a bit to where I could leave the trolley hid behind what looks like a big old steel half mine or marker buoy. The first view on the way down the path, by an interesting derelict old stone building, gives a taste for what is to come.
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Tackle box on my back and rods and tripod carried across me. Off I go down the cliff path. Its mud and rocks and stone, but not slippy. Just set off and the full beauty of the bay is revealed. It really is a stunning place.
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At the bottom of the path down there is a water run off to cross, but it does have a wooden bridge to cross it. I have been there when the water coming down the steep run off was well over the bridge. You can also cross it on the beach, but you need to stay on hard ground for as long as possible. The beach itself is like walking on a hard mattress covered in round stones. It really saps your strength. I recently walked from Ferrybridge, past the bird sanctuary posts and that is hard work, but for me Worbarrow is far, far, worse in a much, much, shorter distance. It seems to be layers of weed and stones to give this effect.
I was greeted by Bazzer, who was excited with what was to come and had already had a black bream and a tub gurnard. I was happy that I had not burst any of the veins now prominent on my temples! Started getting set up and had my first photo call for Bazzer with another nice black bream for him.
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First cast with my first rod got me one as well, so the blank was quickly despatched with the dread of the first cast curse looming!
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Around 45 mins later I could see Bazzer battling a ray through the dump and clear of the surf. A nice sized small eye of around specimen size, but not weighed.
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I am getting a steady stream of pout that Bazzer was taking for bait, until he was getting them or had enough. Bazzer was trying to land another ray and could see it was a spotted ray, but it was not to be and was away in the surf. Not too much of a problem as he landed another one later on.
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I was baiting up one rod and glanced over my shoulder at the rods, one of which was bent right over. Picked it up and started the retrieval. It went to ground, but the shingle ledge I was on gave me some height to keep the pressure on, to lift it off the bottom and the battle proper began. I can tell this is a different stamp of fish and shouted Bazzer, who had already seen the bend in my rod and was on his way at speed, he is half my age! He went down the beach a bit and was telling me to watch the dump. I was making on the fish and it went to ground again on the ledge underwater. I stopped and held a steady tension on it and got it moving again. We can now see it and I was trying to surf it in with the waves as Bazzer is shouting at me to do the same. Bazzer is lower down getting ready to help land it, and from my position I can see a bigger wave coming in and warn him its on its way. The wave got us the last bit and Bazzer grabbed it and brought it up the beach. A family had been watching this, and gave a little cheer. Its a biggie and by far my best ever sized fish. We put it in my sling and it weighed just under 16lb. Time for a photo. Sorry about the gloves, but I am having problem with my thumbs, so don't have much grip and could not actually pick it up!
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I lost a very strong conger in the surf as it went ballistic in the frothy bit of the tide. Bazzer was again closer ready to grab it and he could see it was a good one. Saved unhooking it I suppose!
The sunset was good and as darkness fell the pout and strap congers increased. I had an undersized bass and a bit later had a very different bite. The rod was dancing away and the fish felt very different to anything else caught that day/night. Very spirited as it came through the surf I can see a pout on the top hook which was a bit of a disappointment, but the lower hook had this.
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The biggest red mullet I have seen. I have had a few there before, but nothing like this one. It weighed 2.38 pounds so double the specimen size. An added bonus was it was also another species for my hunt, so equalling my personal best count. When I sat down after, it then struck me that the undie was also a specimen fish and had smashed me through my first ever double figure fish as well, so it was was a bit like catching it again. I was really happy.
Bazzer decided to have a kip and to be fair it was almost the right thing to do, until I noticed I had a slack line. I was expecting a decent bass and picked up the rod and lifted, still slack, wound and still slack, must be a bass, wound some more and wondered if the line had parted. Then it went tight and there is some weight there. Not much of a struggle and a nice codling comes up the beach. I had my first ever this year at Chesil, then one a week later at Hurst and this is number 3. About the same stamp as the others at around 3lb do you reckon? It went back as I already had the mullet and did not want to be carrying any more.
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Following that, the sun rose and nothing much doing except more pout and straps.
Time to leave and I was whining to Bazzer that I did not want to walk back on the beach and up the cliff path in a girlie voice and I really didn't, but l had to. I emptied the dregs of my flask in an attempt to make it easier. It didn't work. I had 4 stops on the beach and 3 on the cliff path. Once l loaded my trolley it was a straight forward up and down mile and a bit walk back to the van, that is considering I had been awake for 24 hours.
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The gates are locked at 6 in the evening and don't open again till 9 am. You are not really supposed to fish overnight (made worse by the tent brigade, same as Abbotsbury), but if you put a clear sign on your vehicle saying you are fishing overnight, the guys don't worry about having to come back to let you out (not that they should or would as it is clearly signed) and they might even ask how you got on and say thanks for putting a sign up in the morning.
Stunning place, cracking session, knackering, great adventure, good company.
Amazing fishing well done sir
