Mr Fish
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2020
- Messages
- 19,168
- Reaction score
- 66,175
- Points
- 116
- Location
- North Devon
- Favourite Fishing
- Shore
The August 48 hour comp had come around again and I had a few ideas.
Originally I thought I might go out Friday night but was blowing a hoolie and peeing down - in the end I didn’t even go to the pub
So Saturday the thought was up channel for hounds and sole. Hounds more likely, but you never know.
Ragworm is killer up there and unfortunately I just couldn’t get any locally so had to leave early to pick some up the other end.
I had thought to head up even earlier and hit a low tide spot but in the end just didn’t really have the time.
It meant the other end would have a two hour plus wait but I figured I’d take my time and the sun was out so I could catch some rays.
Bait collected and as I drove out to the mark a heavy bank of cloud rolled in, stealing the sun. Sigh.
Oh well. Set up very slowly, drank coffee, chatted to two more chaps that turned up, waited for the water.
Eventually it arrived and baits went out onto the mud. I’d opted to use sole rigs and play the percentages, even though it meant needing to be quite careful if I hooked a hound.
The other thing about this mark is you don’t usually see much activity until the tide starts pulling back, which meant an even longer wait.
I had accepted this in advance but four hours of inactivity gets a bit tedious!
At high water, and dark, I baited up my spare rigs with peeler on one, ragworm on the others.
I figured give what was out there 20 minutes then refresh everything, but the fish had other ideas!
15 minutes after high: ZZzzzzzzzzzz…..!!!
I love the sound of a ratchet at dusk!
This felt quite a good fish and heavy. It came in relatively easy but started lunging in the shallows and I hastily reset my drag to let it take line, mindful of the size 2 hook
My headlight picked out the unmistakable shape of a hound and it was broad across the back - this was definitely a double!
Much coaxing and a couple of false attempts and I managed to beach it. I was thinking ‘15lb trace and size 2 worm hooks, I must be nuts!’
Always forget how much these things thrash. I did my best to hold it still while getting the scales set on the tripod and the hound in the weighing sling (we need to take a pic of it being weighed and the weight for the comp).
Then a pic of me with it (iPhone tripod and remote shutter switch). So much easier in daylight!
First attempt realised I’d left my bloody headlight on, idiot!
The whole time the fish kept trying to slap me in the face with its tail
In the end I just had to settle for a crouched shot holding it close.
13lb 15 and a half ounces.
Phew! Got something decent on the board at last!
Cast out again, put peeler out on the other rod, just trying to organise a bit when the same rod screamed off again!
This time I could see it was a smaller fish, maybe 8-9lb. Was literally just kneeling down to unhook it when the sole hook snapped and it slid back into the water.
That was okay, I hadn’t planned to detain it anyway.
Out goes the next trace. A short wait then…. Zzzzzzzzzzzz!!!!
This fish was clearly smaller, probably the smallest of the lot.
As I was dealing with it the peeler rod gave one fast short run then stopped, had to leave it, couldn’t be helped.
I thought I’d better weigh a second fish so at least I had two to submit for the comp. That went 8lb 4 and highly unlikely it would do anything but at least it was a back up.
Waited a bit, brought in mangled crab bait then recast, then it all went a bit quiet. Right in the middle of prime time too.
Just as I thought perhaps the hounds had been and gone, two lads up from me went down to land one, so I prepared as I expected I’d be next.
Sure enough…. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!!
I got the fish in but couldn’t quite beach it. A couple of attempts and it slipped back, then a bit more pressure and it was gone. I thought the line had snapped but the sole hook had bent out.
It wasn’t massive but I’m thinking around 10lb.
I was beginning to think the vanity of insisting on hound fishing with sole rigs in the hope of sole was a bit daft and decided I’d rethink next time.
But right in the midst of it, there wasn’t time to faff with rigs so I went with what I had.
Then it did go quiet, properly quiet. The tide was dropping too and I actually started packing up spare rigs, thinking that might be it.
I did have a more modest bite on one rod. Dare I hope it was a sole? More likely a strap or something.
Turned out it was a tope bath toy!
Just as I was literally about to pack up properly, I had an undramatic slack liner. Picked up and reeled. And reeled, and finally, hound on!
This one was having none of it, felt heavy too. Was I going to crack the 15lb barrier at last? We went up and down the shoreline a bit, me being careful not to cross the other line and mindful again of the size 2 hook ()
This one took a fair bit of line, though maybe I was being cautious but it felt like a very good fish.
Turns out it was good, but not THAT good, 12lb 6 in fact.
But it would. Not. Stop.
Slapping me with the tail, skin scrapes. Some people pay good money to be marked up like that
Even in the weighing sling when they tend to lie still, this one flapped around.
Got a very quick pic, not ideal but I just couldn’t keep it out the water any longer.
It didn’t look happy!
I decided that would do, it was just getting too shallow and sometimes it’s best to quit and be thankful for what you’ve had.
In fact, when I looked down the feisty hound had beached itself, so I waded some way out to knee height before shoving it towards Wales and it seemed to get the idea and swim off.
Well, two decent doubles, not a bad night. It sounded like the other chaps there had caught more hounds than me, but I didn’t really care. I’d hit a decent target and it’s not easy to land and weigh and photograph fish on your own, all takes a bit of time.
So the comp? I got second and third, not bad. Any other time a near 140% specimen hound would do the job easily, but my mate had an unexpected and absolutely cracking 8lb 2 gilthead bream that went over 200%, so no shame in being beaten by a fish like that!
Originally I thought I might go out Friday night but was blowing a hoolie and peeing down - in the end I didn’t even go to the pub
So Saturday the thought was up channel for hounds and sole. Hounds more likely, but you never know.
Ragworm is killer up there and unfortunately I just couldn’t get any locally so had to leave early to pick some up the other end.
I had thought to head up even earlier and hit a low tide spot but in the end just didn’t really have the time.
It meant the other end would have a two hour plus wait but I figured I’d take my time and the sun was out so I could catch some rays.
Bait collected and as I drove out to the mark a heavy bank of cloud rolled in, stealing the sun. Sigh.
Oh well. Set up very slowly, drank coffee, chatted to two more chaps that turned up, waited for the water.
Eventually it arrived and baits went out onto the mud. I’d opted to use sole rigs and play the percentages, even though it meant needing to be quite careful if I hooked a hound.
The other thing about this mark is you don’t usually see much activity until the tide starts pulling back, which meant an even longer wait.
I had accepted this in advance but four hours of inactivity gets a bit tedious!
At high water, and dark, I baited up my spare rigs with peeler on one, ragworm on the others.
I figured give what was out there 20 minutes then refresh everything, but the fish had other ideas!
15 minutes after high: ZZzzzzzzzzzz…..!!!
I love the sound of a ratchet at dusk!
This felt quite a good fish and heavy. It came in relatively easy but started lunging in the shallows and I hastily reset my drag to let it take line, mindful of the size 2 hook
My headlight picked out the unmistakable shape of a hound and it was broad across the back - this was definitely a double!
Much coaxing and a couple of false attempts and I managed to beach it. I was thinking ‘15lb trace and size 2 worm hooks, I must be nuts!’
Always forget how much these things thrash. I did my best to hold it still while getting the scales set on the tripod and the hound in the weighing sling (we need to take a pic of it being weighed and the weight for the comp).
Then a pic of me with it (iPhone tripod and remote shutter switch). So much easier in daylight!
First attempt realised I’d left my bloody headlight on, idiot!
The whole time the fish kept trying to slap me in the face with its tail
In the end I just had to settle for a crouched shot holding it close.
13lb 15 and a half ounces.
Phew! Got something decent on the board at last!
Cast out again, put peeler out on the other rod, just trying to organise a bit when the same rod screamed off again!
This time I could see it was a smaller fish, maybe 8-9lb. Was literally just kneeling down to unhook it when the sole hook snapped and it slid back into the water.
That was okay, I hadn’t planned to detain it anyway.
Out goes the next trace. A short wait then…. Zzzzzzzzzzzz!!!!
This fish was clearly smaller, probably the smallest of the lot.
As I was dealing with it the peeler rod gave one fast short run then stopped, had to leave it, couldn’t be helped.
I thought I’d better weigh a second fish so at least I had two to submit for the comp. That went 8lb 4 and highly unlikely it would do anything but at least it was a back up.
Waited a bit, brought in mangled crab bait then recast, then it all went a bit quiet. Right in the middle of prime time too.
Just as I thought perhaps the hounds had been and gone, two lads up from me went down to land one, so I prepared as I expected I’d be next.
Sure enough…. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!!
I got the fish in but couldn’t quite beach it. A couple of attempts and it slipped back, then a bit more pressure and it was gone. I thought the line had snapped but the sole hook had bent out.
It wasn’t massive but I’m thinking around 10lb.
I was beginning to think the vanity of insisting on hound fishing with sole rigs in the hope of sole was a bit daft and decided I’d rethink next time.
But right in the midst of it, there wasn’t time to faff with rigs so I went with what I had.
Then it did go quiet, properly quiet. The tide was dropping too and I actually started packing up spare rigs, thinking that might be it.
I did have a more modest bite on one rod. Dare I hope it was a sole? More likely a strap or something.
Turned out it was a tope bath toy!
Just as I was literally about to pack up properly, I had an undramatic slack liner. Picked up and reeled. And reeled, and finally, hound on!
This one was having none of it, felt heavy too. Was I going to crack the 15lb barrier at last? We went up and down the shoreline a bit, me being careful not to cross the other line and mindful again of the size 2 hook (
)This one took a fair bit of line, though maybe I was being cautious but it felt like a very good fish.
Turns out it was good, but not THAT good, 12lb 6 in fact.
But it would. Not. Stop.
Slapping me with the tail, skin scrapes. Some people pay good money to be marked up like that
Even in the weighing sling when they tend to lie still, this one flapped around.
Got a very quick pic, not ideal but I just couldn’t keep it out the water any longer.
It didn’t look happy!
I decided that would do, it was just getting too shallow and sometimes it’s best to quit and be thankful for what you’ve had.
In fact, when I looked down the feisty hound had beached itself, so I waded some way out to knee height before shoving it towards Wales and it seemed to get the idea and swim off.
Well, two decent doubles, not a bad night. It sounded like the other chaps there had caught more hounds than me, but I didn’t really care. I’d hit a decent target and it’s not easy to land and weigh and photograph fish on your own, all takes a bit of time.
So the comp? I got second and third, not bad. Any other time a near 140% specimen hound would do the job easily, but my mate had an unexpected and absolutely cracking 8lb 2 gilthead bream that went over 200%, so no shame in being beaten by a fish like that!
