Berry Head 02/06

[Pross]

Went to Brixham last Thursday to try and get my 7 year old daughter her first mackerel. Tried for about an hour float fishing off the breakwater with no success but refused to resort to feathers. I then moved on by myself to Berry Head and arrived at about 7.30pm. Met a family coming back who had been there an hour and had hit a shoal which netted them a total of about 30 fish (most returned). I set up with float fished mackeral on my carp road with squid/rag on my other rods fishing from the raised area to the right of the lower platform so about 20 feet above the water. For about the first hour or so I had nothing, I could then see that people fishing on the rocks to my right had switched from float to spinner and they eventually started catching. I copied their lead and chucked on a silver Toby spinner. First cast I felt a slight pull but missed the fish. I cast again and felt a tug as soon as I started my retrieve and after a decent scrap on my light rod I pulled a mackie 15 inches long up the wall. After dispatching the mackie (the first fish I've taken for the pot) I noticed one of my bottom rods twitching and pulled in a small ballan wrasse of about 8 inches which is my first wrasse. This was taken on rag tipped with a small piece of squid. Having rebaited and cast my rod back out I started spinning again. By this stage the water was a lovely red colour as the sun set over the Bay and things were going mad. The next 10 casts resulted in a fish as soon as I started turning the reel handle, I could hear the water being disturbed all around me as fish broke the surface. In total I landed 10 mackie in around half an hour and another fell off half way up the wall. All fish were a good size of at least 12 inches with the exception of one which I foul hooked which was a couple of inches shorter and, with the exception of the first, all were returned to fatten up the bass (unfortunately one jumped out of my hands and hit the rocks though). As the light faded the fishing died off but it was great fun while it lasted. Would have had about 40 fish with feathers I reckon but far less fun. As I left, I spoke to a guy fishing the lower platform who'd been camped out there for 3 days with his young son trying for bass but hadn't seen one yet. I think I may have moved to a different mark if I was him!

One other thing, just after arriving there was something in the water about 20 yards out which was sending up bubbles at regular intervals and moving slowly through the water. I thought it might be a diver but there wasn't a boat anywhere nearby. Has anyone seen this there before or know what it was likely to have been?

[devondave]

i think......Re the diver... i think there is a guy who actually walks/drives down to berry head and does dive that area one of the local guys to berry head would be able to tell you more than me though im sure

[pingu]

nice report mark well done

[poplo]

There is a bloke who goes diveing down there he goes all on his own and he goes around looking for sinners weights etc on the sea bed.
POPLO

[Pross]

Well, he nearly didn't have to look very far as he almost got a spinner and a 6 oz lead land on him. He must be mad to dive alone with no-one to warn passing boats that he's there!

[Norfolkboy]

Nice report Pross. And a lovely way too spend an evening

[Rob M]

Great report Pross, thank god for the makkie sometimes

Rob

[Plod]

I've been fishing down at Broadsands off the rocks most evenings this week, and have been joined by 3 seals. As usual, the first time they surfaced they scared the Cr@p out of me, but by the end of the evening, it was nice to have someone to talk to Between the intervals when they were on the surface, they were patrolling slowly back and forth and sending up a steady stream of bubbles. This could have been the cause of the disturbance for you a little further round the bay. One of the things had a head the size of a horse and was well over 8' in length!
As soon as they appeared I thought that was the end of my session, but it wasn't the case, and mackerel were a plenty, although not a lot else. Is it me or have the mackerel been in much greater numbers this year already?

Darren

[sanctuary]

Hope you leave some for us we are coming down for a fortnights holiday from the 18th june I am hoping to break my duck and catch my first bass I have only been trying for the last 51 yrs

[fishingbonsai]

Very nice report Pross. Pound for pound mackerel are great fun and put up a great fight.