Email to a friend
Print versionSeasonal Affective Disorder
I hate this time of year! I know we all moan about how bad the weather is during our summers now but at least it’s warm! When that October wind blows, the rains come, and the temperature plummets, I turn into a misery guts waiting for Christmas to pass and it’s usually not until January, when the winter pollacking, estuary fishing and freshwater pike fishing kicks in, that I start to feel that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.
I think the name for my mood swings is Seasonal Affective Disorder - I call it just a good excuse to only fish when and where there is sun! With a lucky break in the weather, I have just grabbed my last day fishing here this year and it’s now time to pack my bags and head off to the Florida Keys until Christmas – fishing in the sun - I can’t wait!
If there was an award for the UK’s top Bass Skipper, Weymouth’s Josh Simmonds and his boat ‘Revolution’ would get my vote. I have known and fished with Josh since before he became a charter skipper and over that time he’s gone from being one of my favourite anglers to fish with, to one of my favourite charter skippers I fish with – despite the fact that he makes the worst cup of tea on the south coast!
So why would Josh get my vote? Well any skipper can catch a bass, but to be a consistent bass skipper is an ability of athletic standards in fishing terms. To stay on the fish and produce catches for your customers, day in, day out, is a frustrating and painful life, but this is what makes a true bass skipper tick. And, out of all the bass skippers I know, Josh is by far the most consistent.
Before I racked up my rods until Christmas, I managed to grab my last days sport with Josh and after a tough morning, we hit the bass big time in the afternoon. To finish the day off in true style, we slipped back into the Shambles bank for the last hour of the day and managed a handful of nice turbot and brill. A few fish, a few cups of Josh’s crap tea, throw in a touch of Josh’s mad humour and what a great day, with a great skipper, to end my UK fishing for 2009. If you’ve never caught a bass, or for that matter a decent bass, you won’t go far wrong by booking a day from Weymouth, with Josh, aboard the Revolution.
It’s been a manic year for me this year, juggling writing commitments and fishing trips, and in between, I’ve been head down, writing books. The first of these is out on the bookshop shelves with the best yet to come.
The first three books are a series of waterproof, step-by-step, pocket guides for the RYA (Royal Yachting Association) on Knots, Rigs and Baits. These are back-to-basics, no nonsense, step-by-step sequence books designed for novice or experienced anglers as, being waterproof, they are great to keep in a tackle box for on the spot reference. What surprised me as I wrote them is that they made a great refresher course for me too!
Any second now, the all new, and I have to say seriously funky “Concise Encyclopaedia of Fishing” for Igloo books, will be out in the bookshops. This was a huge, joint project and it was an honour to complete it with such good anglers. The coarse fishing section was completed by legend John Bailey; the fly section by top fly guide Nick Hart; the sea section obviously by me, and to put the icing on the cake most of this book’s photography is by UK sea angling’s own Henry Gilbey. I’ve seen the PDF but I can’t wait to get my hands on the paper copy – its fresh, modern and it looks awesome.
On the subject of writing, the next issue of Total Sea Fishing features the first in a new series I have just started, on Modern Specimen Angling. It’s been nearly five years since I’ve contributed regularly to TSF and I’m looking forward to it. Whish UK Sea fishing magazine is the best is an argument between advertising volumes; realistic content and picture quality and I have to say TSF gets my vote. In this new series, I’m covering some of the best specimen sea angling the UK has to offer including big conger from the shore, monster mid-channel pollack fishing, tope from the beach and massive mid-winter mullet. I can’t wait!
In the last few weeks, I’ve only just found the time to update my Fishing in Florida website with some of the awesome pictures I had taken out there this spring. On the new website are next year’s prices and some great special offers/last minute deals for our Keys based holidays targeting Tarpon, Bonefish, Permit and big Sharks. I’m pleased with the website’s new look – any feedback is always appreciated. Have a look - it’s a flash website so you’ll need flash player www.fishinginflorida.co.uk
With the huge volume of writing I have been doing over the past two years, rarely these days do I use my PC for pleasure – at times there’s been a high chance I’d use it as an anchor – but due to pressure from friends, family and fellow anglers, I have succumbed to demand and I’m now on Facebook. Feel free to pop by to see what I’ve been up to or write on my wall. Also feel free to post any angling questions you may have on my wall and I’d be only too happy to try and answer them. When I’m home and when I’m away, I shall be posting fishy news on my wall regularly – feel free to join me at www.facebook.com/JimbosWorld
After watching the film “End of the Line” the other evening, I can’t but feel I’m very lucky that I have feet in two camps – one here and one in the superbly conservation protected Florida Keys.
On this next trip to the Keys, there will be no massive Tarpon as they run through spring and summer, but the mixed species fishing in the Keys at this time of year should be at its peak. Hopefully they’ll be some schoolie Tarpon around the bridges, along with some good Jack Crevalle. On the Atlantic side flats, there should be some nice bonefish. Just a few miles into the Gulf there should be ample sharks, some good grouper and some excellent sea trout and Spanish mackerel fishing. Offshore there will be sailfish, Dorado and Amberjacks and that’s along with thousands of other smaller, just as beautiful, species to keep me busy. I can’t wait!
Whist I’m away I shall be putting photos up on my facebook as often as I can – hopefully daily between fishing trips - and each week I shall also be providing a full report of my adventures here on WSF.
I hope you all have a great start to the coming cod season.
del.icio.us
Digg
Technorati
 Fishing Rods Fishing Reels Rod Rests Fishing Hooks Rig Components Accessories DVice & Leads |
Plugs, Lures Lines & Leaders Shore Fishing Rigs Feathers & Lure Rigs Luggage Clothing & Hats Deals |
BERKLEY FRENZIED POPPER £3.91 Each TIDEWATER LURE RIGS 83p Each 7" WSF Jelly Worms Get ready for the new Plugging Season, Buy 3 get one of them for free, Blue Pilchard Divers WSF NOW STOCKS SAKUMA HOOKS
SALTWATER FLIES FROM FULLING MILL FROM £1.25 BACK IN STOCK PENN CAPTIVA CV2 REELS BACK IN STOCK SALT / CAPTIVA SPINNING COMBO DEAL BACK IN STOCK ABU CARDINAL 304FD PRICE: £37.18 |
