The Dawn of New Species
Its another weekend into the challenge and the target for this week was to be the Plaice, this fishes arrival generally signifies the start of Spring. The wonderful tasty Plaice is extremely popular with anglers and Social Media quickly comes alive with reports of the red spotted beauty's appearing from the east coast to the west. For me I think the Plaice can be a stunning looking fish with the leathery brown skin sporting vibrant red spots like an attractive case of the measles. The location was to be Dartmouth, fishing aboard African Queen with the lads from the Holsworthy Sea Anglers, last year, the same trip produced some cracking plaice. Of course it couldn't be that simple and by Friday the trip was cancelled due to strong winds, in addition, despite Saturday and Sunday looking perfect, the water would be too coloured to target plaice so that plan was scuppered. Saturday Chris and I spent the day working out at the lakes but of course we did manage a couple of hours fishing for fun and landed 4 Carp on floating breadcrust, with a couple of real stunning previously uncaught fish .
Luckily there were no accidents this Saturday but Chris was still coughing like a Donkey and had added to his list of ailments by coughing so much he fainted, fell of the couch and received carpet burns to the face! It sounded like one of those ridiculous stories made up to cover the real reason, Chris however is sticking with his story.
So it was late Saturday afternoon and the frustration of the cancelled trip was still needling me, it was certainly looking like it would be a no score weekend, I then spotted a post from Anglo Dawn skipper, Andy Howell. He had put a post on social media stating he may run a half day trip on Sunday and would probably be anchoring up, I fired off a message straight away, as a plan now rattled around the vacuum created by my ever reducing brain. Andy replied soon after and knowing the charity challenge I am undertaking asked if i fancy trying for a Red Band Fish and Cuckoo Wrasse? Well that was like offering a particularly tasty chunk of cheese to a unusually skinny Mouse, the result was inevitable, cheese filled Mouse. It was now a case of running around to sort out all the light tackle for a species hunt and as the trip was to be for the morning I thought we could have a crack at the crafty Grey Mullet in the harbour during the afternoon. Luckily my wonderfully supportive wife gave me the green light, this was good as I don't think either of us want to test the no permission scenario. I arranged a doctors certificate for Sick boy and just hoped that his sore head, burned face and constant coughing wouldn't effect the photographs. Due to the nature of his condition and he's recent bouts of fainting at the site of a rough carpet, I decided to drive, it would be slightly safer. I checked the phone alarm and sure enough the 05.15 was still there, and so it was set, no need to worry about snow and ice it was going to be a cracking day, well according to the weather men!
So it wasn't quite tropical in the morning and the car was frozen up but the weekend before, it had been snowing so beggars cant be choosers, I still managed to pick Chris up by 6am for the journey down to Falmouth. We arrived at the marina where the charter boat Anglo Dawn is berthed, great location with free parking is always a bonus for us anglers, it does mean the costs are more expensive for the skipper. We quickly suited up and walked over to the security gate leading to the boat pontoons, we sat and supped an early coffee as the morning mist slowly dissipated.
While we discussed the coming days fishing, friend and inspirational angler John Locker arrived with a trolley just in time to load all our stuff on it. John had just returned from his Oil Rig work abroad and was keen to wet a line, we spend a lot of time bouncing ideas of each other and fish as part of a 4 man team in the Conger festival. We managed to sneak through the gate behind a poor sighted Uncle Albert type hobby sailor, and made our way through the maze of boats towards Anglo Dawn, we paused several times to admire the shoals of cruising mullet, seemingly oblivious to our presence. Andy was already aboard the boat prepping her for our departure and shortly the rest of the crew arrived, Sharking Simon, lucky Vicky and bait supplier Smithy, the magnificent seven!
As we negotiated the mooring and headed out of the River Fal ,we were met by the child like cry of the gulls, the gurgle of the turbulent water as the props spun at slow speed and finally the choking rasping of sick boy Chris echoing across the bay. Once we arrived at the first mark a couple miles out of the river mouth, we all excitedly dropped the tiny strings of Sabikis (small sets of sparkling lures ) to the sea bed in the hope of attracting any number of species. I was going straight after one of my favourite of sea fish the Red Band Fish, skipper Andy had told me that he had caught Red Bands here before. The Red Band fish is a stunning small eel like fish, part of the ribbon fish family, they live in mud burrows with just their heads sticking out grabbing any small fish or shrimp swimming past. I had managed to catch my first ever ones with Andy the previous year and knew that the tiny lures worked right on the bottom offered the best chance. "Fish on" was shouted by Smithy and sure enough a gorgeous Red Band fish was brought aboard, its undulating body similar to that of a sound wave. Now being re-acquainted with one of these stunning little fish I was even more determined to get one and fished hard on the bottom with only the smallest of twitches. Simon, Vicky and Fish Locker all managed to pull in Herrings, what was going on, all around me species were coming in as Vicky brought in a pair of Mackerel. It was then I noticed Andy and John laughing, " what's going on" I enquired, " they replied "what's that you got in your seatbox""? I immediately glanced to my box and there like a neon beacon sat a BANANA! There are many anglers, boatmen and skippers that believe that the presence of a banana on-board a boat is bad luck and in this case bad luck for the angler whose box the ferocious fruit sits in!
Needless to say the offending fruit was removed and returned to the culprit, John the fish Locker , he would then be destined to suffer the curse of the Banana! With the curse lifted I continued my quest for the Red Band and within minutes I felt the rod judder as a fish was fooled by the imitation shrimps. I knew by the way the fish was fighting it wasn't the Red Band but whatever it was, would surely be a new one off the list. Sure enough the shimmer of a circling Mackerel rose to the surface and was carefully swung aboard, species 29!
With the first fish in the bag I dropped down again just as the boat drifted off the edge of the muddy ground onto sand, once again the rod tip rattled and my trap had been sprung. The fish definitely felt different and was in the mini species category, the serpent like shape of large sandeel broke the surface better known as a Launce, species 30.
This was more like it two species in quick succession, and all since Banana-gate had been exposed and how was the conspirator doing, well all I will say is you reap what you sow! Right no more messing about I needed my Red Band fish, only one had been boated thus far and we were off the spot they called home, it was time for a re-position of the boat. Andy positioned Anglo Dawn back in Red Band central and informed me it was the last chance before we moved inshore and try some rough ground. I dropped the line of lures and bounced them in such away that no Red Band could resit, all the time using my mind to will the fish out of its muddy burrow in the name of charity. Tap tap on the rod and I just knew it was the target, I lifted the rod and sure enough I could feel tiny shakes through the braid and I proceeded to slowly and calmly bring the fish to the boat. I found myself trying to see down through the water, to identify the fish but I was still so sure, so sure I made the brave decision to call for the net, I didn't want the ruby red prize falling off at the side of the boat. Then a glimmer of pink as a Red Band Fish writhed onto the waters surface, the skipper retrieved the prize and the quest was done, species 31 and one of my favourites and as a bonus, a new personal best for that species.
Cant believe the teeth on these guys
The skipper shouted " okay bring them up everyone he's got the fish lets have a move" Andy then told me he knew a small spot I could get a Poor Cod, another on my list. This was turning out to be a great day for the challenge and with such a great bunch of anglers it would also be day of good banter. Chris was still struggling with the chest infection and although no seasickness effected him the constant cough clearly was, I knew we would shortly be targeting Wrasse one of his favourites, hopefully it would perk him up. Within 10 minutes we were over the little rock that sheltered a population of Pouting and Poor Cod, back down with the Sabiki's and straight away the lures attracted a bite, unfortunately this turned out to be a Pouting followed by a few others. Chris was finally into a fish although he probably wouldn't want to brag about it being a very small Poor Cod.
The next drop was successful for me with species 32 spinning its way up to the surface, sick boy had found his mojo and added another Poor Cod to his own tally so a brace shot was in order.
With another species secured it was time to go and catch a few Wrasse from a section of reef only 10 minutes steam, hooks were baited with fresh Ragworm and this time I needed a Cuckoo Wrasse and a male would be even better with there striking colours. Within seconds of dropping the lines we were all getting bites with a few small Ballan Wrasse getting to the baits first.
Vicky brought in the first Cuckoo Wrasse and it was a lovely looking Male exactly what was on my list, and at least I knew they were down there, not that I doubted the skippers word of course. Chris who was now in full Wrasse mode was getting a few fish and then landed a bright orange female Cuckoo Wrasse, where as I could still not get past the Ballan's.
John with the curse of the banana hanging over him had decided to go big or go home and fish a live launce for a huge Ballan or Pollack, he did get a take but it dropped the bait. Finally following a quick re-position of the boat I hooked the male Cuckoo Wrasse I was after, incredible when these fish appear on the surface its like the Las Vegas strip in a fish form. What a fantastic looking creature to make species 33, Neptune was certainly sending me the jewels' of the sea on this trip.
Typical with fish species you struggle to get one then two come along at once and that was the case with the Cuckoo Wrasse as the very next drop down resulted in another incredibly marked cuckoo although a little smaller, they do have some crazy teeth though!
With everybody having there fill ,of some hectic sport with the Wrasse it was time to try an area with a large mud bank in the hope of a Sole or Ray. I changed to a three hook boomed rig with weights at either end to pin everything to the bottom, again live ragworm was the bait of choice. Straight away the rod tip bounced and the first fish from the new bit of ground was about to appear, another male cuckoo wrasse! I was being haunted by them now, had they followed me to this new spot? You can never tire of seeing them but when your chasing species you want something else to appear. John the fish Locker had put out two large baits in the hope of a large Thornback Ray and the use of the bait dropper had encouraged some interest as both of his rods signalled a bite simultaneously. The Demon of the banana decided to punish him further and after missing several good takes offered him only a lesser spotted dogfish as penance. Chris seeing the dogfish appear quickly switched to small fish baits and promptly caught one claiming it was not what he was after, he has a dogfish fetish I'm sure. The free mackerel chunks attracted the dogfish in and I soon had one on my nice little Sole rig , roughing up the traces and blunting the hooks. Chris had a final highlight of the trip when he hooked and landed his first ever and now p.b Starfish, although he felt cheated when we explained that just because there's a fish in the name it dosent mean its actually a fish.
Time to head in and what a mornings fishing, the weather had been like a summers day, the company excellent, the skippering top drawer and the species sublime. Although I didn't want to push my luck I did feel that Neptune had definitely supported my challenge today so maybe I could squeeze one more species out of him. We arrived back at the marina and said our farewells, we had a special treat as Johns family met us at the gate wife Hannah and inspirational little lad James. I had heard so much about this little lad from proud dad and Banana smuggler John, it was great to finally meet him. Fairly soon it was just Chris and I, plus crowds of people, a Swanage of Swans, a flottila of boats and a rapidly dropping tide, not the best conditions for stalking Grey Mullet with bread. We swapped the tackle over and took off a few layers as by now it was roasting, we setup our stall over in the corner of the carpark as fishing from the marina isn't permitted. Chris set about making a concoction of mashed bread, sardines and rancid mackerel, this was then chucked in the water to create a impressive cloud of particles. The stinking gunk seemed to attract every swan from the river Fal and also had the effect of pushing any cruising mullet away to the safety of the pontoons, we tried in vain for around 40 minutes. The mullet that did cruise past seemed to swim around the bread reef Chris had created and even the Swans got fed up and left, it did seem that this was where my luck ran out.
We decided to knock it on the head and I picked up my stuff and as I started to walk back to the car, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a Mullet come out from the shelter of the pontoon, swim out to an area of open water and suck in a single piece of bread that had drifted down through the gauntlet of swans. I quickly unhitched the float and hook and moulded on a small chunk of bread flake around the size 14 hook, a quick flick and the float landed 6 foot from the mullet in his direction of travel. The un-weighted line allowed the bread flake to sink slowly through the water into the Mullets line of site, to my disbelief the Mullet sped up and took the flake on the move. For a second I didn't know whether to strike or not but opted to just hit it, crash the Mullet clearly caught out threw itself out of the water, before diving for the safety of the pontoons. Chris was still packing up when I shouted " I've only bloody gone and hooked one ", I played the fish gingerly on the 4lb mono and it fought all the way to the margin. The tide had receded considerably and directly below us there was no longer any water, just large clumps of seaweed and mud. The wall we were perched on was probably 12 foot high and our landing net was 6 foot, what a dilemma, well not really, Chris needed to take one for the team and get down in that mud with the net. Chris clearly not keen on this idea and with a recent track record of nasty accidents suggested we hand line the fish up the wall, I explained to him that Mullet are not like a Wrasse there mouths are soft and the hook was tiny. He eventually conceded it was the only option, and like the star he is, he went down in the quagmire to retrieve this lovely grey mullet. I would, and have done, the same for him on many occasions and also have been there to net many of his personal bests, that's part of fishing together, and its what makes fishing such a team venture. The Grey Mullet is not something I have set out to fish for before this challenge, and although I have caught one before by mistake it wasn't as big as the fish in the net, so double bubble species 34 and another p.b.
The Grey Mullet is a crafty fish with its unusual mouth coupled with an incredible ability to sense line and hooks, it can be a testing species to catch, this particular day the Mullet were not interested in feeding, and positively shy'd away from any free offerings'. For this solitary fish to decide to take the bait in the manner it did, and just as we were about to leave, signifies more than a slice of luck, something I'm sure I wouldn't have been blessed with, if that bloody Banana had remained undetected. It has been a fantastic weekend, 6 species including 2 personal bests ,thanks in no small measure to the hard work of Chris, Andy Howell, John Locker and the rest of the boat crew. When I informed Mrs D of the good news that I had achieved 6 species she immediately responded with " so that's 6 weeks you can stay at home now then" has she learnt nothing in the last 30 years, it never ends, if its not for the challenge its for fun!
As a footnote when i pulled up at Chris's to drop him and his gear off he once again had one of his moments, he had got out of the car and as he went around the back i heard a crash. I got out and upon reaching the rear of the car, there he was on his back covered in gravel, " what you doing down there" i asked, " another fainting spell was his reply. I don't think he will be going Ray fishing later this week, cant have him fainting 100 yards out in the surf.
