Cornwall 2010

[badlander]

Got up well early today to try a new spot. Got there at low tide and it looked like the vis was poor but decided to go in anyway. Terrain was alright but not as good as expected. Saw only one bass initially which i somehow managed to miss. Gave it an hour or so more and decided to head back to the car and maybe give this spot a miss. Back at the beach the tide had come in a bit and was washing over some rocks on the other side so i thought i'd have a quick mooch before i got out. Found quite a few bass and mullet here in amongst the rocks and seaweed but due to the shallow depth and suspended algae, spotting them was difficult until the last minute which resulted in only one mullet being shot. I started to notice the odd flounder at this point and shifted my attention to them. Once i got started they seemed to be everywhere, i scared a fair few away before i finally got a few on the stringer and called it day.
So maybe not a great new bass spot but one i'll bare in mind next time i fancy some flounder. Got sweet talked by a trio of ladies who were painting on the beach and they took the mullet for their lunch much to their very apparent delight. Kind of made my morning!

 

[diver9]

Got up well early today to try a new spot. Got there at low tide and it looked like the vis was poor but decided to go in anyway. Terrain was alright but not as good as expected. Saw only one bass initially which i somehow managed to miss. Gave it an hour or so more and decided to head back to the car and maybe give this spot a miss. Back at the beach the tide had come in a bit and was washing over some rocks on the other side so i thought i'd have a quick mooch before i got out. Found quite a few bass and mullet here in amongst the rocks and seaweed but due to the shallow depth and suspended algae, spotting them was difficult until the last minute which resulted in only one mullet being shot. I started to notice the odd flounder at this point and shifted my attention to them. Once i got started they seemed to be everywhere, i scared a fair few away before i finally got a few on the stringer and called it day.
So maybe not a great new bass spot but one i'll bare in mind next time i fancy some flounder. Got sweet talked by a trio of ladies who were painting on the beach and they took the mullet for their lunch much to their very apparent delight. Kind of made my morning!

Nice catch - sweet talked.....must have been good lookers!

Good to see someone able to fish in the conditions.

Well done

Diver

 

[sj257]

Thinking of heading for an after work session, but a bit worried the conditions might not be any good.

Was thinking of going to an easy south coast spot that I haven't tried for a few weeks, but it isn't the best for visibility. Do I need to pick my best vis spot? Aiming to catch low water.

sj

 

[badlander]

There was a small amount of wave movement today and lots of suspended material probably due to yesterdays strong southwesterlies. The vis was actually pretty good out in the deeper water. It'll be well worth a shot later i'm sure.

 

[sj257]

Got out for a couple of hours after work yesterday. Went for an easy location as I didn't have a heap of time. Vis was very poor as i feared. It seems Fowey round to Chapel doesn't get the best vis from my daily check ups on dive genie. Swam a bit further West than i have done before and found some string weed beds, but nothing resting in them.


Did manage to pick up a decent Spider Crab for a friend, by way of a thank you for him taking me out on his boat on my way back.

As I got to a submerged rock point towards the end of my dive a shoal of Bass swam past. None of them big, but I manage to pick out what looked like the biggest and get a quick shot off before they were gone. Turned out to be minimum size as I'd anticipated, and tasted fantastic when eaten less than 2 hours later. So I'm pleased I've bagged my first bass, just need to find some bigger ones now.

sj

 

[sj257]

I also noticed that my old Mares fins are looking like they might be showing their age. Any recommendations on fins, at the cheaper end? My current fins are older shorter fins, so thinking of retireing them for holiday use (they fit in a case easily) and getting some long fins, but funds are limited. Ideally I'd like something I can get locally.

sj

 

[badlander]

Can't go too far wrong with some Seatec Vela's.

Dave stocks them at spearo.co.uk. I had these for my first long fin and they're very robust.

 

[tonyiannu]

I also noticed that my old Mares fins are looking like they might be showing their age. Any recommendations on fins, at the cheaper end? My current fins are older shorter fins, so thinking of retireing them for holiday use (they fit in a case easily) and getting some long fins, but funds are limited. Ideally I'd like something I can get locally.

sj

Hi SJ,I would racommend www.fins4u.co.uk great service great fins and very good prices you couldn't find any better around.

 

[Gaz D]

I also noticed that my old Mares fins are looking like they might be showing their age. Any recommendations on fins, at the cheaper end? My current fins are older shorter fins, so thinking of retireing them for holiday use (they fit in a case easily) and getting some long fins, but funds are limited. Ideally I'd like something I can get locally.

sj

Or try here for a pair of Picasso Team Blacks - very robust, great footpockets, and cheap!

Fins - Picasso Underwater Sports Spearfishing Diving


.

 

[Padaxes]

I went for a Night dive a couple of days ago, I knew the conditions would be dodgy and that they were 1-2m visibility , absolutely useless. I finned around for an hour as shoals of tiny fish bounced off me constantly which was quite funny. I watched the stars and the phosphorescence as I swam back into the shallows with my torch off and swam right into a bass line! , luckily not the hooks!

Conditions were blown out yesterday in my neck of the woods, going to have a look this evening hoping it might be a bit better.

Ive just ordered a Go Pro HD after some consideration. The underwater footage looks ok despite the lens issue, and I'm guessing soon they will release a new case for it, or I can adapt my old case to fix the issue.

 

[sj257]

Thanks for the fin recomendations. I couldn't find the team blacks. The Spearo ones look about the right price though.

I got in on Tuesday evening at low tide in amungst some weed and can now see that that is a different type of fishing. I can also see the benefit of camo gear. I didn't get anything but did bump in to one or two good size bass in the thick weed. We only saw each other when we were a few feet away, and oddly enough he didn't hang around.

The learning continues.

sj

 

[Old Man Dave]

That's the sort of fishing I love (amongst others). Secret is to develope your stalking technique until you're able to sneak up on the fish without them knowing it. That's never easy with any wild creature but it is possible. Often the range from speartip to fish will be less than a foot.

Good hunting.

Dave.

 

[andycornish]

has, anyone been in on the south coast recently? hoping to get in this evening, so wondered if anyone knows what the vis is like. Also if the jellies have come back again, after they dissapeared last week

 

[sj257]

That's the sort of fishing I love (amongst others). Secret is to develope your stalking technique until you're able to sneak up on the fish without them knowing it. That's never easy with any wild creature but it is possible. Often the range from speartip to fish will be less than a foot.

Good hunting.

Dave.

I was being pretty sneaky, but both times the fish was swimming towards me, coming in from the side, so no time to turn to it, not to mention all the weed that would stop the turn. Just unlucky that time. If I get out more I'll get a chance I'm sure.

I have noticed that I'm getting a lot of head colds since I started getting spearing. Is this common? I've noticed that my mouth and throat get very dry from prolonged periods breathing through the snorkel. Anything I can do about this, as it's keeping me out of the water?

sj

 

[sj257]

has, anyone been in on the south coast recently? hoping to get in this evening, so wondered if anyone knows what the vis is like. Also if the jellies have come back again, after they dissapeared last week

I was in on the south coast on Tuesday. Vis was patchy but generally pretty good. I notice dive genie shows it getting bad for tomorrow though.

sj

 

[sj257]

Meant to mention that I saw my first place and flounder on Tuesday. Too small to shoot, but please to spot them.

sj

 

[tribs]

That's the sort of fishing I love (amongst others). Secret is to develope your stalking technique until you're able to sneak up on the fish without them knowing it. That's never easy with any wild creature but it is possible. Often the range from speartip to fish will be less than a foot.

Good hunting.

Dave.

Its my favourite hunt too! Until recently my ears have been so bad 4m was the absolute max for me which forced me toward the shallows. On the upside, this made me find the fish in the weed and hone my skills there. It feels like tigers in the jungle stuff - turn the corner and anything of any size could be there. Went the other day and saw flats hiding, baby mullet, pollack, a red mullet, weaverfish, blennies, a cuttle fish and finally bagged a bass on my way out. All this seen in 50sq ft of sea bed. I love it and 10ft depth max!

My 2p worth

Tribs
out

 

[TomH]

Hi all, it's been a while since I posted anything, i've been in Greece for a few weeks so it's not all bad!

I had my first dip here since Easter which was great! Headed to the south coast and found 5m ish viz. Saw my first ever John Dory on the swim out as well, even if it was only a baby one! I had a great time following a shoal of pollack around, before taking one home for dinner. It is good to be back in Cornish waters, even if they are a bit cold and murky compared to the Med!

 

[andycornish]

Hi all, it's been a while since I posted anything, i've been in Greece for a few weeks so it's not all bad!

Alright for some people that get to spend over a month in the med ! On the other hand first good fish of the year with the aforementioned lucky person.

Saw a decent sized spider crab, and a pipefish on the way out, but chickened out of taking the spider crab as had nowhere to stash it for the rest of the dive. Took two pollack home for dinner, annoyingly the 3 biggest i saw were always just out of range. :head

Not sure if it was just that it was high tide, but on the way back in when it was starting to get dark the fish seemed a lot more confident ?

 

[googlyfloogly]

Hi all, it's been a while since I posted anything, i've been in Greece for a few weeks so it's not all bad!

Did you get any spearing in?
I'm off there in a couple of weeks and am hoping to manage one or 2 dives.