Catch Report - Brixham - 7th June 2020 (24)

Date From: 07/06/2020 11:30:00

Date To: 07/06/2020 21:00:00

Time of day: Morning - evening

Location: Brixham

Mark: The Breakwater

Low Tide:

Moon Phase:

Weather: Very sunny and warm with gentle wind from various directions

Sunrise/Sunset:

Sea: Very clear and mostly flat with a swell of up to 2 feet

Method: Ledger (shop bought 2 hook flapper with rotten bottom) | Float | Lure (Feathers)

Bait: Live king Ragworm | Live King Ragworm | 5 Hook Purple Hokkai, 6 hook multi-coloured feathers

Caught:

The Session:

I travelled down to Brixham to catch some Wrasse. Hoping to improve on my catches from previous sessions last year. I don't know any mark local to me that can produce many fish in a single session and it is an opportunity to fish elsewhere anyway. Bob had agreed to meet me later on and I hoped I'd have a good catch to tell him about by the time he arrived.

The tackle shop had been selling bait on a 'phone and collect' basis due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic and as I was also on holiday from work for the week I ordered 2lb of ragworm and 1/2lb of blow lugworm to ensure I had enough to last me.

So, arriving at just before 11:00am I parked at the Breakwater car park, paid £8.50 for 24hr parking, walked around and collected my bait, bought a sandwich from the breakwater cafe (because there was a queue outside the Co-Op in town) and walked up to the part of the Breakwater I had fished a few times before since they put the large boulders along the top section.

Out first went the flapper rig. There were pots very close in so I had set up just to the side of one and hoped the marker buoy wouldn't become too much of a nuisance as the tow changed with the sea level. I don't know why the owners of these pots don't give anglers a bit of space to fish from and put them in the areas that are unfishable. I guess it's the selfish times we live in. Well, there was even a yellow speed limit buoy not much further away which I couldn't see was much help to anyone.

The first cast went around 60 yards. I wanted to minimize tackle losses despite bringing at least 10 weights with me. And I had brought mostly pyramid ones too which immediately held the bottom enough to put a slight bend in the rod when it was in the rest. I waited for the first bite. I have had them within a minute of casting and so I kept my hand ready to strike for the first few minutes. But there was no sign of a fish and so I set up the other rod.

I cast this a similar distance and also with ragworm for bait. I gave it a while before setting up the float rod because the tide was going out and the risk of snagging was too great for me.

Other anglers walked past and up to the lighthouse and some came back as I sat fishless for a good few hours. None of them had done very well with just a couple of mackerel and pollock reported on feathers. I set up a rod with feathers and had a few casts but didn't catch anything. Each time I checked my ledger rods the ragworm had been eaten by something. I never had any snipped off so I had no reason to believe any big crabs were around. At some point the tip of one rod showed a quick shake and a bit later as I recast one bait and put the rod in the rest the tip of the other one bent round hard and jolted the whole rod rest but then went back to being straight before I could react. When I checked the bait a few minutes later it looked untouched.

Bob turned up in the afternoon and I was glad of the company. It was typical that he gave feathering a go first and actually had a mackerel within a few casts. It prompted me to give feathering a go again and I soon began catching a few. Whether coincidece or not, the hokkai heads produced single, larger fish closer in and the 6 hook feathers I used took fish even on the first drop, but they were smaller with some so small I put them back. During the feathering I checked my ledger rods a few times and one had a small Dragonet on the end but other than that I was getting no noticable bites. We both tried the float aswell and I think Bob had a Corkwing Wrasse but my memory might be playing tricks on me.

Later in the Evening, Bob packed up and I did too not long after. I was so glad of the company and may have even packed up earlier if I was on my own and missed out on a few fish. A few other anglers walked past and reported only catching the odd fish so I began to feel lucky I had so many Mackerel in the end. The quantity, if bought would have been more than the cost of fuel so that helped justify the session. I had already planned to return the next day so I hoped I would catch a Wrasse then.

Tackle used (price) [ time since first used ]: