St Mary's - West Bay

[Persues]

I fished there the other night and caught my best two fish this year - after 3 hours of absolutely bugger all trying rag, lug, and mussel, I got a clonking bite which resulted in a 4lb 10oz cod. Within 10 minutes I landed a slightly bigger one, which I slipped straight back without even getting it out of the water, both on Mackerel belly strip.

Another two hours after those fish without so much as a nudge.

The trip was spoiled when I got back to the car park and had a bit of bother with a bunch of kids out for trouble in their mam's Corsa

What's going on ?

Are the fish just not there ?

I remember a session would typically involve a lot of bites, more often than not missed, and fish were regularly landed.

I went back to West Bay this afternoon and fished there for several hours over the high tide without so much as a bite. I packed in when Tilly, my wayward labrador, decided she would eat the remaining mackerel bait strips

It seems to me that things have quietened down a lot since I was last into sea fishing.

Are things generally poor for everyone or am I just doing it all wrong ?

[Blanked again]

I'm gonna try there tomorrow over low water with the spinners. Not expecting much but it's better than being in the house watching re-runs of eastenders.

Good luck.
Davy

[g.ordon]

I fished there the other night and caught my best two fish this year - after 3 hours of absolutely bugger all trying rag, lug, and mussel, I got a clonking bite which resulted in a 4lb 10oz cod. Within 10 minutes I landed a slightly bigger one, which I slipped straight back without even getting it out of the water, both on Mackerel belly strip.

Another two hours after those fish without so much as a nudge.

The trip was spoiled when I got back to the car park and had a bit of bother with a bunch of kids out for trouble in their mam's Corsa

What's going on ?

Are the fish just not there ?

I remember a session would typically involve a lot of bites, more often than not missed, and fish were regularly landed.

I went back to West Bay this afternoon and fished there for several hours over the high tide without so much as a bite. I packed in when Tilly, my wayward labrador, decided she would eat the remaining mackerel bait strips

It seems to me that things have quietened down a lot since I was last into sea fishing.

Are things generally poor for everyone or am I just doing it all wrong ?

Errm! I think a 4 10 coddy and then an even bigger one just after ain't that bad mate, in fact I would say cracking sesh and well done. it's the usual pattern, like a half hour activity in a long sesh. Any pics?

[Persues]

I may have worded my opening post badly.

I'm chuffed to bits with the cod - let me check my work phone on Monday and see if the pictures of the smaller fish came out. Didn't snap the bigger one - I'd already killed the first one and didn't expect to catch anything else, never mind a bigger one, so I just unhooked it still in the water and off it went. I discovered a hole just above the knee in my left wader during the release

What I'm getting at is that I've noticed sessions in general are a lot quieter than I remember them being, and bites that do come tend to be mainly smaller fish.

Speaking with others on the piers and beaches there seem to be comparatively few fish caught and fewer still of decent size. Or perhaps they are catching bag loads and don't want me to know about it...



There was a guy on Blyth pier a few weeks ago brought a clonking cod in on squid bait - he was fishing near the end casting south to the bay. Must have been around 7 - 8lb, but that's the only good fish (other than mine) that I've seen or heard tell of from the anglers I've met and spoken with, which obviously doesn't include the reports posted on this and other forums.

[g.ordon]

Personally I think it's been a canny season, loads of good bags reported on here with some real lunkers amongst them, hope it's the same next season but for now roll on the summer with some bumper plaice hopefully and all the other usual suspects.
Gordon

[Sea_Troot]

I may have worded my opening post badly.

I'm chuffed to bits with the cod - let me check my work phone on Monday and see if the pictures of the smaller fish came out. Didn't snap the bigger one - I'd already killed the first one and didn't expect to catch anything else, never mind a bigger one, so I just unhooked it still in the water and off it went. I discovered a hole just above the knee in my left wader during the release

What I'm getting at is that I've noticed sessions in general are a lot quieter than I remember them being, and bites that do come tend to be mainly smaller fish.

Speaking with others on the piers and beaches there seem to be comparatively few fish caught and fewer still of decent size. Or perhaps they are catching bag loads and don't want me to know about it...



There was a guy on Blyth pier a few weeks ago brought a clonking cod in on squid bait - he was fishing near the end casting south to the bay. Must have been around 7 - 8lb, but that's the only good fish (other than mine) that I've seen or heard tell of from the anglers I've met and spoken with, which obviously doesn't include the reports posted on this and other forums.

Persues this is my first season fishing and from what i have read on here there have been some good bags taken from blyth beach etc when seas have been decent. its just the usual right place right time. from going off nesa alone there have been some cracking fish (cod) taken this season with a good few doubles pulled in.

[g-force]

I got back into the fishing lark about 4 1/2 years ago after a break of nearly 25 years when I was living away and must say the differences were considerable. Not only in terms of tackle & stuff, but the way that many marks had changed - some no longer producing the way they used to, others such as the colliery beaches etc. were virtually un-recognisable. Other things that had changed included an almost complete lack of sea-life evident in all the rock pools along Whitley beach & the St Mary's area where I had grown up as a kid - the water may be a lot cleaner but there seemed to be a damn sight less living in it.

I'd say it took me a couple of winter seasons to really get to grips with how things had changed; which marks weren't really worth bothering with any more, when to hit others etc etc...and as I've begun to get a handle on things the last couple of winters have generally been pretty good for me. This time of year has always been poor for codling (spawning season) so to get a couple from the open shore for about 10lb is pretty good going! Years ago I'd be fishing the Tyne for spring-run codling, but these days it doesn't seem to happen the way it used to. Instead I'll make do with catching poddlers on lighter gear (although I managed to mix in a few nice codling from the river last year as well) and soon I'll be out looking for plaice, which is not something I ever really used to do. There's an old cliche that you can only catch what's in front of you, so I guess the lesson to be learned was what to fish for where and when....

So all in all I reckon the fish may not be there in the numbers that they used to be, but with a bit of knowledge & a bit of luck you can still have a pretty good time. I remember the local opens at Whitley & Tynemouth getting turnouts of almost a thousand anglers, all fishing between Tynemouth and Blyth - virtually every rock edge you could see would have rods on it! These days clubs struggle to get over 200 anglers out and that's often fishing all the way up to Seahouses. So I guess you might also have to travel a bit more to find those fish - not something I particularly want to do in the winter (I still favour my old stomping grounds!) but I do enjoy weekends up the coast in the summer for the reddies, at the likes of Beadnell, Newton & Craster. And most importantly we all keep on learning!!

Gary