Catch Report - Ilfracombe - 26th August 2020 (1)

Date From: 26/08/2020 17:30:00

Date To: 26/08/2020 23:30:00

Time of day: Afternoon - evening

Location: Ilfracombe

Mark: The Pier

Low Tide:

Moon Phase:

Weather: Variable wind from behind with some fairly strong gusts.

Sunrise/Sunset:

Sea: Fairly murky and choppy with a swell of up to 3 feet

Method: Ledger (shop bought up and over rig) | Ledger (shop bought up and over rig) | Float | Ledger (Running Ledger with rotten bottom)

Bait: Whole Frozen Large Sandeel | Whold Frozen loligo squid | Frozen Mackerel head | Frozen Mackerel strips

Caught:

The Session:

I returned to my local pier to try several methods and meet up with a friend who was on holiday in the area. I set up four rods, two ledger for fishing at distance, one float and a running ledger for fishing close in for Conger Eels.

Due to the number of boats around I could not really give the distance ledger rods a proper go until later on so I just tried to pick out some fish on the float while I dropped the ledger for conger just a few feet from the edge of the pier.

It was very slow going and as I caught just one small Pollock after a couple of hours all I saw caught by other anglers looked like a single dogfish. My friend arrived a bit later and I gave him the float rod to fish with which he did into dark. At one point he called me and I walked over to him to see he had reeled up a fairly big Pollock but due to his inexperience didn't get it on to the pier quick enough and as I tried to get him to do so the fish flipped and fell off. He dropped the float down the edge again because there was still some Mackerel on it and I went to get another strip to add to the hook. Once I'd gave him that I recast my ledger rods after checking the bait and seeing they had been taken by crabs.

It wasn't long afterwards while we were talking that he had a bite but he missed it and then a bit later he called me again and this time he had another, this time already on the Pier. It wasn't as big as the first but still a nice fish. I think he was beginning to see how fishing was about always wanting that next fish and I was glad he was doing better than me!

Eventually he was getting no more bites though and after sitting down to chat for a bit he went and I packed up. I checked the Conger rod and the Mackerel head was mostly untouched, but the baits on my distance ledgers were again almost completely taken by crabs.

A rather poor session but at least my friend had something to keep his interest for his next visit.

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