Home | Blogs and Opinion | Mike's Diary Archive 2003 | Sea Fishing Licence, Beach Reading Tactics

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Sea Fishing Licence, Beach Reading Tactics

Mike Thrussell 19 May, 2003 12:15:00

LICENCES: LOGIC OR LUNACY?
I've had a few e-mails from readers asking where I stand on the sea fishing licence issue? Would it be good or bad?

Some argue that funds raised by such a licence could benefit the sport. How? Unlike our freshwater br /others who can physically protect both bank and river to some extent, and buy fish to restock rivers, we salty dogs are reliant on nature and must fish under the black cloud of commercial over fishing. Sure, if some of that revenue raised could be guaranteed to protect and increase our fish stocks, then I'd buy one tomorrow. The realism is that any funds would struggle to cover the administration costs alone. It seems ridiculous to ask an angler to stump up money for what at present is a declining fishery. The product needs improving before a charge can be vindicated.

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Fishing licences, good or bad?
I see policing being a major problem. How on earth do you check if anglers have licences in remote parts of Wales, Scotland and even the more accessible beaches of Devon and Cornwall? Even if you could, who's going to pay for these personnel?

Any licence would need to exclude under 18's. We need to encourage young anglers. But is it just the youngsters we need to protect? Money is one of the most emotive subjects. The price of fuel has started to restrict the number of times some anglers can get away to fish each month. Tackle, bait, clothing etc all goes up accordingly as fuel does. Where is the br /eak off point when some anglers say enough is enough and give up fishing altogether? I don't know the answer to that, but I do know that the tackle industry isn't exactly bulging at the seams with incoming cash and needs every punter it can get.

I think you can talk about sea licences in the same context as the survival of the sport, but not necessarily in the way many think. With some many anti factions trying to discredit the sport, then we need every rod swinger we can get. Ask any army general worth his br /ass and he'll tell you there's safety in numbers. Start a licensing system and I fear numbers participating may well fall. Remember the quality of the product on offer again before you criticise that thought.

If we were licensed, then could that not also be used against us politically? If it turns out that we're not as strong as we think we are, then maybe we'd be seen as an even easier target when the hunters are finally laid to rest and those that ran the hunters to ground cast around for another scent to follow.

I'm not anti licence, just careful to consider that it is not the answer to all our problems. It br /ings it's own with it, some of which might be worse than those we endure now.

TIPS AND TRICKS
If you're fishing small chunks of peeler crab and keep getting obvious bites but can't connect with the fish, then drop down to size 6 or 8 hooks and use just the peeled legs of the crab in small bunches leaving some to trail below the hook. These bites tend to be from smaller flounders and eels, but can make a weight or points in matches and spare the freelancer the blushes of a blank.

If the spigot joint between the butt and tip section of your rod is getting worn and "knocks" when flexed there are two cures. You can coat the male endwith candle wax, which will take up the slack, but does gather dirt and grit. Coarse anglers use graphite sprays to rebuild the pole section joints and this works just as well on sea rod spigots. Spray lightly and build up several thin coats. Let it dry fully and check for fit after each application.

BEACH READING TACTICS

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Reading a beach
Beaches don't necessarily produce fish across their whole length. You need to take the trouble to locate the hotspots where fish expect to find food.

The best places to start are the ends of the beach. Beaches usually end up phasing in to rocky areas or meet with cliffs. Rocks hold food and will attract the fish. The same applies to any rocky areas or weed beds in the mid beach area. Fish alongside these and you'll give yourself a much greater chance of success.

It pays to study beaches at low water on the biggest spring tides of the year. Look for gullies that run parallel with the shore and mark off their distance. Also map out areas where there are depressions and hollows where food will wash in to. These are the places to put your bait as the tide advances.

Note small streams that flow across the beach. Such areas are good for flounders, turbot, eels and bass, but not when in flood as this water can be acidic and force fish away. Also good are areas where clean sand changes to mud, grit or shingle. On deep beaches fishing at the junction of the sand and shingle bank can produce a variety of fish including flatties, bass, cod and dogfish.

Check out the ends of wooden groynes. You'll often see that these have been scoured out to leave deep holes. Flatfish especially love to sit in these and feed on what the tide brings them as it flows past the ends of the groynes.

Walk the high tide line and you'll see that certain areas have more washed up flotsam and jetsam than elsewhere. This is indicative of a tidal current that hits the beach at that exact spot. That tide current will also carry food and fish with it.

The chain anchors on mooring buoys will have seed mussel attached and can hold shoals of sandeel over high water. Casting close to these can produce plaice, flounders and bass.

In a nutshell, look for anything different that will deflect the tide or areas out of the tide current where food might drop, or specific features where food such as crabs will live. It's the easiest way to instantly catch more fish.