Scotch_Egg2012
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Posts posted by Scotch_Egg2012
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10 hours ago, mike farrants said:
nice couple of rays and a good sized tope - the one in my profile pic was around 40lb, and was a right struggle to get in - we went for the rope round the tail method but in a 6knot tide that wasn't easy - pushing the rope up-tide around the tail was near impossible - it took us 20mins from the side of the boat to get it in the boat!
We faffed for a similar amount of time, tried the net. Did think rope but we were in 4kts of tide so scrapped that idea. I think the dog grabber type tool is likely the way I'll go if I want to boat them.
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6 hours ago, Odyssey said:
Best to T Bar off in the water, it’s safer for you and the fish…
If you’ve got a water level door or swim platform you can drag onto that but an angry tope can cause a surprising amount of damage…
We only try to weigh the bigger ones as they're likely to be a PB or boat record, anything below 35 estimated gets T barred off.
I was trying to land exactly like that onto the swim platform and then through the stern door, the rig must of had a nick or been rubbed as I got it out up to it pectorals before the 80lb rig body parted just off from the wire. I hate leaving tackle in fish so wasn't best pleased with that.
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10 hours ago, suzook12 said:
We generally tail them over with a rope
That's the route I'm looking at
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47 minutes ago, Saintly Fish said:
Nice going Scott. 👍🏻
Shame about the tope however!!That's the 3rd bigger one we've lost boat side going to find a different way of landing them
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Headed back out to last week's mark to see if we could bag some more Spurdogs.
We had a small weather window and around 10am it was almost a spring like day 12 degrees on the thermometer and the see totally flat.
Spurs didn't read the script and didn't show but we had a nice by catch of Blonde rays, Smoothound and a very nice 40lb+ Tope which we managed to loose whilst trying to get it on board, weren't prepared for it so had to improvise the landing on rigs that weren't up to the task the end result was very predictably challenging and not entirely unexpected. The big ones are always a pain to land.
- mick, Josh, thejollysinker and 2 others
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On 1/26/2022 at 10:28 AM, Andy135 said:
When I head out past the Isle of Wight I often find myself wondering how many marks and fish I'm passing over on my way, and when I think about how kayakers must clearly catch good fish close inshore, assuming they probably wouldn't keep fishing from their yaks if they blank, I wonder whether boat anglers are missing a trick by heading to the horizon.
Thoughts or experience one way or another? Are we guilty of thinking that all the good fish are over the horizon when in fact they could be on our doorstep?
I think it depends on your chosen quarry, some species are lovers of deeper marks other not so much. I go searching for a particular feature that will likely produce my quarry rather than go for depth. Blonde rays being a good example, I have caught them on shallower grounds but also deeper ones, the key I look for is a series of sandbanks with a good run of tide.
A tactic I use which has come with me from shore fishing is to research the most consistent marks for your chosen quarry, one that produces them year after year. Then put the time in to learn whether they fish better on the Ebb or Flood, Big or Small tides. Yes fish can turn up anywhere but you cut your chances on a mark with little history of producing what you want.
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11 hours ago, GPSguru said:
Was that with a circle hook ?
I normally find circles work a whole lot better on hit & run fish. Very unlucky to get a circle deep hooked.
No just standard J hooks, we found the Spurs didn't hit hard and fast, very gentle tugs and a few pull downs but didn't break the lead out, maybe different with a bit of tide run though
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50 minutes ago, Saintly Fish said:
Nice one Scott. Sounds like a great day out. So spurs are a pack hunter that hit and run. I'd love to tick them off the list!
Very much pack hunters & fast moving so once you hit the first one time is of the essence before they move on
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35 minutes ago, suzook12 said:
Where's his spur?
On the front of each dorsal fin
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Headed out with Ray today prospecting a mark for Spurdogs.
Stopped off of the Camswan wreck on the way out to try and obtain some pout & whiting for bait and to burn up some time so we could hit the mark at St Catherine's in a fishable state.
We picked up a few pout for bait and moved out to scout the area for likely looking banks that we suspected should hold Spurdogs.
Settled on a good looking spot and dropped the pick, which we struggled with in the tide, we aimed to fish the last hour of the flood, slack and then the start of the ebb.
I was fishing 1 uptide and 1 downtider, Ray decided on 3 uptiders and a downtider. We actually managed to get the uptiders dug in in the 3kts of tide and 115ft foot depth with 8ozs. Out went the first of our baits and very quickly the bites commenced, we landed 3 Blonde rays in fairly quick succession, 2 for Ray 1 for me, followed by an Eel a piece in the 35lb range. It was nice to be able to really lean into a fish that put up a real battle in the tide.
As the tide dropped slack the bites changed and we boated 4 Spurdogs one after the other 3 on Rays uptiders at the same time and one on mine. As quickly as they came they went and we hit into a run of smaller strap eels.
Only managed the 1 picture of the biggest Spur of the day 15.75lbs, mine had taken the hook down and was bleeding so I quickly unhooked and returned and didn't bother with a picture, weighed somewhere in the 13lb range.
Better tides next weekend so weather permitting we will head back
A good day on the fish just a shame the weather was not as forecast
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21 minutes ago, Andy135 said:
Nice work. Throw up a report when you get a chance 👍
I would but I'm rubbish at remembering to take photos, I didn't take any today and don't normally like to report without some photo's
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Glad you managed some fish on the numbers, we headed there today in hope of a Spurdog or 2, sounds like a rinse and repeat. We stopped counting the Eels after passing the 40 mark. Also had a Thornie, pout, whiting and either a very late or very early Smoothound. Eels were hitting the uptiders as soon as the bait hit the bottom not giving any thing else a chance to home in
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5 hours ago, LostPiker said:
Yes please
As a very general tip for Nab end, on the big tides stay on the marks inside of the Nab tower excluding Pullar as that runs hard on springs, small tides the outer marks come into play, so Utopia, Spoils, Kelp beds etc there is a lot more to the marks than that but that will generally see you able to fish on any tides without heading out and then finding out you need 5lb to hold bottom
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I've got a mark on the inner Nab that has been an absolute whiting fest recently with a few in the 2.5lb range, the odd conger and Ray and always a chance of a Cod. I can PM the numbers if you want, it's 9 miles from Pompey Harbour entrance so shorter from Langston or Chichester
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2 hours ago, JonC said:
What sort of ground are you looking for in your area for spurdog?
More important is depth, we look for the marks over 70ft and then we're looking for the banks in those depths, we have quite a few.
The Overfalls, Cuba plus Utopia (which is a long gulley known for Hounds and Tope) all of those produce Spurs, the problem this time of year is getting the small tides you need coupled with a weather window calm enough to get on them, I've been trying since end of October but it hasn't happened yet.
Ray got out Boxing day near Cuba and had 2 very good takes on his Cod baits resulting in 2 clean bite offs, typically I couldn't get out with him else I'd have been on a wire biting trace
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22 hours ago, Andy135 said:
Anyone else eyeing up the settled spell coming through? Back half of next week looks mint on the south coast 🤞
Yep, Spurdogs will be the target, been itching to get out since xmas
- Saintly Fish and Andy135
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Haha, put the reel in free spool as if casting. Hold the spool in thumb and forefinger and move the spool sideways. There should be a very small amount of side to side play, if there is none the reel can be snatchy and cause birds-nests when casting
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So those numbers are for setting the end float on the spool. Allow a little bit of sideways play on the spool and she will run fine
Groundbaiting
in Boat angling techniques, baits and tackle
Posted
It is a failsafe release I've never not had it deploy the contents.
Made a huge difference when Bream fishing last year