Thin pickings around the Nab

[Lookfar]

Hi folks,
I've been promising the Missus a run in the boat for ages, so Friday
was the last chance before school term started and she was too busy
again. I agreed to the inevitable conditions - no-one else aboard, toilet
facilities (bucket), yes I'd talk to her, yes we could come in any time
if she got bored, not too much fishing etc etc. Forecast was good and everything rosy until a visitor on Thursday morning arrived for a 2 hour meeting at 10am and left at 5.30pm!! I rang the other skipper to say we'd now not be able to make it and he talked me into going anyway. Flew round packing the boat and at 6am on Friday I was up loading the last of the spare clothes, five pairs of shoes, dog basket, babywipes and who knows what else that apparently we'd need
Got into Eastney just fifteen minute later than promised, which deserves serious credit.
I'd been told the slip was freshly cleared, but you could have
fooled me. There was a big bank of soft sand and gravel just above the
water (almost high tide) and even with just the trailer I had troubles
getting the Subaru back out. Took three attempts and in the end I ploughed through with all four wheels spinning. No way we were getting the boat out again unaided, that was clear. We joined Moby over near the Hayling slip to
chase the mackerel shoals that were harrying fry on the surface. No joy,
so the guys lobbed us a couple of mackerel for bait and we got away. It was
gloriously still, one of those oily days with no wind ripple at all, just a small swell pushing through. It was also heavily overcast and stuffy, not like August at all. Went out to the Dean Tail wreck at a very smooth and steady 20 knots but even so, the dog hated every minute and retired onto Sue's lap. We managed three mackerel from there in maybe 20 minutes, with Sue's first one being held up for the camera. I noticed Moby's crew were so unimpressed, they had stopped for a tea break, so we decided to quit
wasting any more time trying for a scad and headed out to the east of
Nab.
It was quiet as the grave out there. I had six rods out between
us and all we got in 2 hours or so was a dog and a mackerel. Worse
still, the slight swell was on our quarter and the boat was doing a very
gentle, uneasy corkscrew that had Sue grimly hanging on to her
breakfast. No complaints or grief about it though A move was called for, so we had a quick mooch around the Nab Tower. There was good fish signal in the back eddy behind it but we found nothing and it wasn't all that safe a place to hang around. The back eddy pushes you into the concrete very fast.
Settled into Nab West over a small gully, while Moby went on down to Culver. Sue had been OK travelling, but at anchor she started to suffer again so since we'd only had a few bites and no fish, we were on the move again to join Moby. We picked up some mackerel on the drift at Culver then put the anchor in. I put us just uptide of the reef so that we could fish back into the
broken water rather than actually sit in it. I thought it'd be easier on the stomach but although there were bites the tide was screaming through and it was hard to hold bottom. My poor crew had now gone VERY quiet, so I hauled the pick up yet again and took her in to Whitecliff Bay. Dropped her ashore, with some interesting moments in the light surf, then spent half an hour trying vainly for rays in a slight gully offshore. Went back in to
collect Sue, and the dog, to find I'd marooned them on a dog-free beach.
Ah well.
Headed in to join Moby in the Dean Tail hole and finally we found the fish. It was Dogfish Central. I was whupped 6-2, then her rod went over into something more substantial. It was a tail-wrapped male thornback of dead-on 7lb, which definitely rescued the day. Small bream were about too, polishing the big squid baits and rattling the baited feathers I put down, but ironically the only one hooked was on a 4/0 pennel.
Home-time was greeted with deep joy by the crew, who'd started
to feel decidedly icky again. It is the motion at anchor she can't cope with. We had put her ashore on the Hayling side first for a loo break, then across to the slip (or at any rate the area of gravel where the slip should be). The soft sandbank had been packed down a bit through the day but we erred on the side of caution and John used his Pajero to recover SeaMouse for me, a much appreciated gesture.

So that was it, a typically grim august day fish-wise and not a
very comfortable experience for the FPO. From my more selfish perspective though, it was nice to be afloat again after two months off.

Steve

[John Marshall]

Great report, Sue must love you very much to put up with "mal de mar" all day.

[pingu]

wow a tough day there it seems
well done on getting fish onboard

dave

[Fishing Forum Admin]

great read and hard going !

[Lookfar]

Originally Posted by John Marshall

Great report, Sue must love you very much to put up with "mal de mar" all day.

Not anymore she doesn't!

Apparently, I now have to spend an equivalent amount of time shopping

Where do all the fish go in August? It is like this every year, just a flat calm, sunny desert. My youngest got back from South America last night and reminded me I'd promised her a trip out before Uni and I'm seriously scratching my head over where to take her that'll be worth the effort.

Steve

[TerryW]

Solent area has been rubbish since the winds started a month ago (or was it longer).

Did the Bass ever actually arrive this year?

Whilst I am here does anyone use the small-boat communication channel in the Solent area (channel 7)? I've never heard a call on it so far? It use to be quite well used in the Harwich area where I used to fish a bit.

Terry

[Gremlin]

We had the LANGSTONE JUNIORS BOATFEST last Friday (E of the Nab and Bullocks) with reasonable results for the kids (U-17s) from Torbay Belle and Starfish .....

Perhaps you're the wrong sex as three of the top four prizes were young ladies .......









Loadsa money fer Amy ......

[Greenheart]

Great report Steve. I think i'd have rather been on the boat with Gremlin though. I've never fish a comp before where three out of the first four prizes were young ladies.....

[Lookfar]

Originally Posted by TerryW

Solent area has been rubbish since the winds started a month ago (or was it longer).

Did the Bass ever actually arrive this year?

Whilst I am here does anyone use the small-boat communication channel in the Solent area (channel 7)? I've never heard a call on it so far? It use to be quite well used in the Harwich area where I used to fish a bit.

Terry

The bass have been very good around the forts, apparently. Local channel useage is mainly 8 and 10.

Steve