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After 3 years of fishing i finally landed a smoothound worth talking about last night. I know most of you will be thinking 'it's only a smoothie', but i have had great difficulty and a good bit of practice trying to catch a reasonable one. This is how it went.............
2008 - Only just back into sea fishing, went once down ferring chasing a report but was well and truely out of my depth, weeded out within an hour and was back home before i knew it. Also went to selsey with Mesito after buying a new rod (literally). No fish but a very harsh lesson learnt as i took my eye off my rod, and after an undoubted bite, which pulled the rod and rest over i had some eyes off my rod!!!!!
2009 - After learning a lot off you guys, plus fishing with some very informative anglers, i fancy me chances down at Pagham/Selsey. Go about a dozen times and don't catch one. Managed a small 4lber fishing off Shoreham arm, and completely miss out on the Ferring bonanza due to work.
2010 - Determined to succeed, much better angler and better at picking the so called good nights/tides to fish (although still limited through work). Back to Selsey a few times and also tried other locations to the west of worthing, but again to no avail. I was thinking "surely not again", but decided to give it one last crack last night at Selsey and FINALLY, FINALLY manged to catch a reasonable hound in some of the worst conditions i've fished for them. I only had 2 mind, so no amazing report.
Strarted the evening thinking it's gonna be one of those nights again, when on the first cast my swivel snapped on my pulley rig which nearly landed on top of me, very dangerous and with a brand new swivel, not good. Whilst re-rigging my friend Graham, who had turned around to get his headlamp out of his tackle box was soon doing a wonderful impression of usain bolt, chasing after his rod which was heading out to sea. He got there just in time and the fish was still on and a the first hound of the night was landed at 9lb. Then on my retaken first cast i got the bite i'd been waiting for all this time and shortly after a nice smoothie of 8lb was landed. Job done, and although not a monster i could have gone home then a happy man.
Graham then had a much better take which had him wandering off down the beach but not quite with as much pace as the last one, and in came a better hound which weighed 11lb. These three fish plus a few others around us had come virtually as it turned dark and about an hour after, but then it went dead. High tide approached and with no fish for at least an hour and with work very early the next morning we were thinking of calling it a night when i got a good bite and a slack linner. I reeled in the slack and struck into what felt like a better fish. A few minutes later i had my second pb of the night which came in at a very welcomed 14.5lbs. Well chuffed, but of course i forgot to take my camera as it's let me down sooooooo many times in the past, so only a couple of mobile pics which aren't that good i'm affraid, but hey ho. Graham managed a smaller hound before we pacjed up, approx 6lb and then we called it a night. :wiggle:
Graham's 11lber and my 14.5lber
2008 - Only just back into sea fishing, went once down ferring chasing a report but was well and truely out of my depth, weeded out within an hour and was back home before i knew it. Also went to selsey with Mesito after buying a new rod (literally). No fish but a very harsh lesson learnt as i took my eye off my rod, and after an undoubted bite, which pulled the rod and rest over i had some eyes off my rod!!!!!
2009 - After learning a lot off you guys, plus fishing with some very informative anglers, i fancy me chances down at Pagham/Selsey. Go about a dozen times and don't catch one. Managed a small 4lber fishing off Shoreham arm, and completely miss out on the Ferring bonanza due to work.
2010 - Determined to succeed, much better angler and better at picking the so called good nights/tides to fish (although still limited through work). Back to Selsey a few times and also tried other locations to the west of worthing, but again to no avail. I was thinking "surely not again", but decided to give it one last crack last night at Selsey and FINALLY, FINALLY manged to catch a reasonable hound in some of the worst conditions i've fished for them. I only had 2 mind, so no amazing report.
Strarted the evening thinking it's gonna be one of those nights again, when on the first cast my swivel snapped on my pulley rig which nearly landed on top of me, very dangerous and with a brand new swivel, not good. Whilst re-rigging my friend Graham, who had turned around to get his headlamp out of his tackle box was soon doing a wonderful impression of usain bolt, chasing after his rod which was heading out to sea. He got there just in time and the fish was still on and a the first hound of the night was landed at 9lb. Then on my retaken first cast i got the bite i'd been waiting for all this time and shortly after a nice smoothie of 8lb was landed. Job done, and although not a monster i could have gone home then a happy man.
Graham then had a much better take which had him wandering off down the beach but not quite with as much pace as the last one, and in came a better hound which weighed 11lb. These three fish plus a few others around us had come virtually as it turned dark and about an hour after, but then it went dead. High tide approached and with no fish for at least an hour and with work very early the next morning we were thinking of calling it a night when i got a good bite and a slack linner. I reeled in the slack and struck into what felt like a better fish. A few minutes later i had my second pb of the night which came in at a very welcomed 14.5lbs. Well chuffed, but of course i forgot to take my camera as it's let me down sooooooo many times in the past, so only a couple of mobile pics which aren't that good i'm affraid, but hey ho. Graham managed a smaller hound before we pacjed up, approx 6lb and then we called it a night. :wiggle:
Graham's 11lber and my 14.5lber
