Dab spelt backwards is Bad!

The weeks seem to be flying by and before I know it I'm back updating the blog, this weekends instalment was my first species failure but that is inevitable with a sport that contains so many variables. What I will say is this weekend has been totally entertaining and despite the challenge I must continue to enjoy my hobby in the good times and bad. The plan A had been a boat trip aboard Bluefin out of Ilfracombe chasing a Spurdog, think this was my third attempt at this trip and like the previous trips mother nature flexed her muscles and agitated the sea. So having learned from previous challenge weekends I had a plan B and C ready formulated and so plan B was instigated, shore fishing for Limanda Limanda better known as the Common Dab. The Dab is one of our smaller flatfish species and so small hooks and baits were in order, the location I chose was a north Devon beach where I have caught Dabs previously. We planned to fish over the low tide period and with the wind set to pick up and come from a North Westerly direction it could get a bit damp. Chris picked me up at 11.00 am and upon opening the door I could see that the tooth ache he had been moaning about had now manifested itself into a golf ball in the side of his mouth. I enquired into his wellbeing secretly concerned that if he became nauseas or dizzy while we were fishing I might have no one to take photos, fortunately he put my mind at rest by stating he was on anti-biotics and it was mainly cosmetic. He was right with the cosmetic bit and I was a little concerned in case we ran into any families with young children, he could have terrified them. It was a full ten minutes before we left as my Dental Nurse wife had to give a consultation on what Chris should be doing, the main one being to regularly rinse his mouth with salty water. Finally we arrived at the beach with the thick mist and warm drizzle there to meet us, I managed to pick my way through the tank trap sized boulders down to the waters edge, and drop the tackle without it disappearing into the crevices surrounding us. The tripod was erected as secure as possible and the rods cast, time for a coffee and to admire the view, its always a special moment when the rods are cast and you relax and for the first time appreciate the vista.

The drizzle and mist cleared and despite the freshening North Westerly it was a really pleasant afternoon, just needed to add a fish or two. Abscess Boy was off to my right and in the process of recasting while situated close to the water edge, crash! A huge wave smashed into the boulders adjacent to where the afflicted one stood, he took it full on, hilarious, I quickly pointed out that it was an extreme way of having a saltwater mouth wash!

My chuckling was interrupted by a rattle on the right hand rod and I struck to nothing as the little fish out smarted me, a quick re-bait of the tiny hooks and I launched the rod skyward with maximum effort to punch through the strong breeze. "Oh bugger" I may have used too much effort and not enough technique as a huge birds nest in the spool grew rapidly towards me like an expanding bowl of spaghetti. Suddenly it was Chris who's face broke into a growing smile clearly visible despite the deformity, " oh no what's happened mate" Chris asked sarcastically, my silence was deafening.

Twenty minutes of tugging, unwinding and cursing, two grown men qualified as engineers had that little tangle sorted and the rod was once again cast seaward. I must have put it on the right spot as the rod tip bounced straight away a quick strike and the first fish of the trip was landed, unfortunately not the species I was after but one I've already had the Whiting.

Chris was next to check his bait, the wind was getting up and bites were pretty hard to detect so it was best to check the bait every 20 minutes to ensure there was bait still on the hook. As soon as I saw the trace come out of the water I knew Chris had caught our target species a Dab as the little brown fish swung in like a large tree leaf. This was Chris's first ever Dab and therefore a personal best so I was chuffed for him but I was starting to think my challenge should have been I take pictures of my mates catching 52 species. It did prove that we were doing everything right so it was surely just a case of keep doing what we are doing.

The afternoon was more of the same for me with a collection of missed rattling bites and Whiting and I landed 8 of them with not a single Dab. To add to my woes my tripod blew over and the screw holding the rod rest disappeared down one of the crevices, teach me to take the cheap tripod out on a windy day. Once again our engineering skills sprung into action and I was able to strap the rod rest to the tripod using one of Lumpy's rod straps.

The tide soon came in and it was time to retreat to the safety and shelter of the pier, we set up and cast out commenting how nice it was out of the wind and spray, Crash! A huge wave smashed into the side of the pier causing a huge wave to break over the top of the wall and over a now dry chris, " still using the extreme mouth wash then mate"? Think I may have been close to getting a few lumps of my own at this point so decided to keep quiet when he was hit by another wave some 10 minutes later after moving further along the pier. It was about now that a couple of mates arrived Ian Hooper and Nick Job, both had been catching Dabs with impunity recently so I would pick their brains for some tips. Ian cast out and came over for a chat, he gave me some great advice but basically what we were doing was the way to go. He then went off to check his bait and low and behold what did he reel in!

Dab followed by another Dab, clearly Mr Hooper is a Dab whisperer so although I learned a lot about catching them for me on this trip I learned Dab spelt backwards is Bad like my results. I will be back at them in a few weeks and even the most obliging of our little fish can be elusive if your lucks not in. It was a really enjoyable session with great guys that I really look forward to fishing with again soon. I also bumped into an old fishing pal John who managed a p.b shore conger last night with a 12lber so well done. Thanks Chris for pushing through the pain caused by that great lump in your mouth, hopefully it will have gone down by next week or the children of Birmingham will think Halloween has come early. Minnows next week with a man who knows a thing or two about tiddlers, I cant wait for what will be a mad weekend filled with curry, beer and maybe a few species of fish.