Rock Marks Fishing - Catch Report - Ilfracombe

Date: 11-05-2018

Time of day: Evening - night

Location: Ilfracombe

Mark: The pier

Low Tide: 09:39(2.48m) 22:06(2.40m)

High Tide: 03:30(7.33m) 15:59(7.44m)

Time fished from: 18:50

Time fished to: 01:15

Weather: Cloudy with sunshine and a little wind, but feeling cold as darkness fell.

Sea: Clear but fairly calm with a swell of around 3 feet.

Method: Ledger (homemade pulley rig) | Ledger (homemade 2 hook flapper) | float | Ledger (fixed ledger)

Bait: Frozen whole loligo squid, frozen small sandeel | frozen black lugworm, live ragworm | live ragworm | frozen pollock head

Caught (weight): 2 Pollock (0lbs 6oz, Guessed), 1 Pollock (0lbs 8oz, Guessed), 1 Pollock (0lbs 14oz, Guessed), 1 Dab (0lbs 4oz, Guessed), 5 Dogfish (1lbs 0oz, Guessed), 4 Dogfish (1lbs 8oz, Guessed), 1 Dogfish (2lbs 5oz, Guessed)

The Session: I began on the lower part of the pier as it was clear of water and I first set up the float rod to see if I could tempt a pollock as I set up my ledger rods. I had a couple of bites but I never managed to get to the rod quick enough so that idea failed this time.

My two ledger rods were my usual pulley rig and 2 hook flapper. I cast the pulley rig baited with a squid as far as I could manage, only the mainline snapped, and as I checked my rod and line over I discovered a long length of line that was damaged, probably from a previous trip. It is line I haven't used much before and I have mad a decision to go back to my usual line just in case. After setting the rod up again I cast it around 70 yards and then the flapper rig baited with a ragworm and lugworm, around 40 yards.

It was soon after casting these rods that I hooked a pollock on the float rod but then I had no more bites for around half an hour. The flapper rod showed a bite that was typical of a pouting and I left it for a few minutes as the rod tip gently shook. When I reeled in there was a dab, typical of the size of the few I've caught before on the hook that had been baited with lugworm.

I recast and then had to wait almost an hour before the float went under again, this time much faster and it disappeared from sight completely before I managed to grab the rod. It was another pollock of similar size to the first. Things then remained pretty much quiet for a while and I set up a rod to try to get a bigger fish like a conger eel on and just dropped the bait a yard or two from the edge of the pier.

Then bites began to show on both of my main ledger rods, the flapper rod indicating they were whiting, or pouting but the pulley rod showing bites typical of dogfish. I missed the first few but then managed to hook one on the flapper rod and instead of seeing a pouting I lifted a dogfish out of the water. It had taken the ragworm.

Darkness had fallen by then and I also decided to put out a prawn trap with some old bait in. I thought that this might also attract some pollock to my float.

No sooner had I done this than another bite showed on the flapper rod and another dogfish came in, again on the ragworm. Once this was released the float then went under again and I had another pollock. I then began missing bites on both ledger rods before getting another pollock on the float rod and then a lift of the prawn trap resulted in a few prawns.

The rest of the night was pretty much a long series of bites on both rods and me missing or losing the fish on the retrieve most of the time but occasionally landing one. All these other fish were dogfish of similar size except one which looked almost as big as a 3 pound fish I caught recently. More lifts of the prawn trap resulted in more prawns and a few crabs. I checked the ledger rod with the big bait a couple of times but nothing, not even crabs had touched it. I packed up at around my intended time with a little bait left and my arms rather tired from all the reeling in and casting.

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

Set up 1: Rod: Daiwa seahunter Z 13ft 2 piece MFS (£42.99) [ > 0 years 5 months ]

Reel: Shakespeare Agility Surf 70FD Fixed Spool (£39.99) [ > 4 years 0 months ]

Line: Daiwa Hyper Sensor 20lb (£12.95) 635m

Hooks: Sakuma Manta 2/0 (£5.78) 30

Shockleader: Gardner Slinky 60lb (£6.99) 100M

Hooklength: Sunset Amnesia 40lb (£4.50) 100m

Set up 2: Rod: Daiwa Crosscast 13ft 3 piece Fixed Spool (£60.00) [ > 0 years 6 months ]

Reel: Shakespeare Agility Surf 70FD Fixed Spool (£39.99) [ > 4 years 0 months ]

Line: Maxima Hi-Viz 20lb (£15.42) 550m

Hooks: Sakuma Stinger 2 (£15.00) 100

Shockleader: Gardner Slinky 60lb (£6.99) 100M