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Dorset Spearing 2009

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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Gents, I wont be down on Saturday night as my 9 year old lad has been diagnosed with swine flu and a chest infection, but as long as I’m given the go ahead from Mrs Rogers then I still hope to be there for a quick dive on Sunday morning with Bryn.
Sorry it’s a bit short notice but not much I can do about it.
Good luck if anybody is out on a night dive on Saturday, and Happy Christmas to all that I miss on Sunday.
 
Hope your boy gets better in time for Christmas Podge. If it's any consolation, I don't think you will be missing much tomorrow.

If anyone is thinking of heading down to the Weymouth area this weekend, based on my report from yesterday, I'd give it a second thought if I were you.

I got up this morning, checked windguru to make sure the wind and swell were still travelling in the right direction, put my wetsuit on in the shower, then jumped in my car and made the 45 minute journey down to the spot I was at last night, fully expecting a decent day in the water.

What I should have done was check the Weymouth webcam, because there was a swell rolling in at my spot, from the south east, that I could have surfed on!

Because that was a non-starter I went on a bit of a drive around to see what else was happening. To cut a long story short, today there has been a wind blowing in from the north east, and a swell rolling in from the south east which have both been strong enough to wipe out the viz where they have been landing.

From Bowleaze Cove all the way round to Newton's Cove has been wiped out by swell, and the same is true all the way down the eastern side of Portland. Although there's not much wind or swell getting down the western side of the island, the viz there is less than a meter too, and that continues along Chesil beach to the point where the swell is actually getting in.

When I had a look around the harbour yesterday it didn't look too clever, and it didn't look much improved today either - no more than a meter of viz flowing into the Fleet under the Ferrybridge.

You might find pockets of viz in the harbour, if you know where to look (up in the northern corner maybe, if you are actually allowed to hunt there?), but I wouldn't bank on it. And it's a dropping/low tide for most of tomorrow too, I think, so unless you are in a boat you will probably be splashing around in fairly shallow water there.

Of course, things might be better elsewhere along the Purbecks, and things might change by tomorrow (although I doubt it on both counts)

Sorry to put a dampener on it, but hopefully this report will prove useful and help some people make up their mind about travelling down or not (might be better to leave it to the locals, for Saturday anyway - at least, if they have a wasted journey, they haven't got far to go to get back home).

I might have another look tomorrow, and will post a report if I do.

All the best,

Gaz
 
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Reactions: podge
Gaz its the same here in Plymouth, blowing Northerly with a southerly swell. The 2 spots I checked today were both chocolate brown, zero viz
 
Gaz its the same here in Plymouth, blowing Northerly with a southerly swell. The 2 spots I checked today were both chocolate brown, zero viz


I wouldn't have minded, but both the wind and swell arrows were pointing south on windguru - if I'd known the reality on the ground I would have gone somewhere else with a surfboard.

B****y windguru!

Still, lesson learned I guess (Again! No doubt to be forgotten, again!)
 
Gaz you need to man up, putting your wetsuit on in the shower? you bloody woos!
 
Hi Gaz,

Good vis reports mate, thanks for the heads up - as for the changing in the shower don't blame you if I lived any closer to the water I would do the same too! And then subsequently be warm getting out of it too in the shower.

I think they should build purpose huts for spearo's at the popular spots....
 
Gaz you need to man up, putting your wetsuit on in the shower? you bloody woos!



Can't argue with that.


Mind you, I did put my suit on in situ the previous night, and it wasn't just my speargun I couldn't locate afterwards . . . my b*****ks were missing too!
 
Reactions: badlander
Did you find them?



Apparently they left early. When I got back they were sitting at home, in front of the fire, watching telly - for the first time in my life they were the sensible part of my operation.


The water looks settled on the Weymouth webcam; might drive over later and see if it's worth getting in (now my b***s are giving me a dirty look!)
 
A wetsuit turned up yesterday, so was all ready for a test but...it wasn't mine. Luckily my uncle had ordered pretty much the same suit and had waited 6 weeks for his, after a phone call from dave from spearo we came to the decision that the wetsuit was actually for my uncle. he had ordered extra padding on the knees but on the suit he ordered they couldn't do it but they didn't let him know this. luckily we are related so i can just return his suit to him but otherwise we would have been none the wiser. so still waiting for mine, probably won't be here till mid jan.
 
Got in at Osmington today, around 3pm, in a bit of a rush before the light failed, and swam east. Viz was a surprisingly good 3 - 4m (although a bit milky), and at one point I could make out a pot line on the bottom, 5m below me.

I was feeling and acting a bit clumsy with all the extra neoprene and weight, and wasn't producing bottom times much beyond 30 seconds, so decided to head for the shallows and hunt there. I hadn't seen a single sign of life for 45 minutes and was beginning to daydream and lose concentration a bit, when I suddenly swam up behind the biggest bass I've seen all season, 2 meters away from me, in 2 meters of water. Like a true amateur, I did the instinctive thing and swung my gun towards him - he bolted, and all I saw after that was a couple of 4 inch pollack.

I got out in the dark and then drove down to Bowleaze for a quick night dive, but when I got down there I waded out to find that there was only about half a meter of viz in the water, so I packed up and went home (still gutted about the bass, because he hadn't seen me until I made the sudden move with the gun).

So although there wasn't a lot of fish about, there was definately evidence of solitary big bass - which I find is often the way with that area anyway, even in mid-season.

I wouldn't like to speculate on what the conditions are going to be like tomorrow (you'll have to do your own maths on that) but it was certainly quite do-able where I got in today (if a little devoid of fish)

Hope this has been helpful to someone.

Gaz.
 
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Its bloody cold out there. Productive though. Viz around the island is workable.



Agreed, it was quite nippy today. Think the D4 was reading 7 degrees C in the water (and 2 deg out of it), but more importantly I had an ice cream face for the first five minutes, and it didn't take long until my feet started complaining like f**k!
 
so dived with flyflicker and almostafish, cold, but collected my starters for Christmas lunch ;o) nice.... good to see you guys!
 
Reactions: podge
Great report Gaz and a very well done for getting in.

John, Clive and Bryn sorry I couldn’t make it but sometimes that’s just the way it is.:head
Glad you all had a few and that Christmas dinner starters are well covered.

Bryn please give my apologies to yer mrs’s for letting her down on the B+B and again sorry I’m not there for a little drinky tonight. I’ll make it up to you both in the New Year.:friday
 
I was going to give you a cheeky comment on rep gaz but apparently i need to share the love with "rep"
 
I was going to give you a cheeky comment on rep gaz but apparently i need to share the love with "rep"



Oh well, maybe next time.

Jumped in at Buckshore this evening, for the last hour before dark (other than Poole harbour, it was the only place I could find any viz). Viz about 2.5m, saw very little other than a big dead wrasse.
 
Seasons greetings to all on DB.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my mates on DB :inlove.

Dave.
 
Merry Christmas
and
Happy New Year
to all db


:friday:friday:friday:friday:friday:friday:friday:friday
 
Hi All,

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Hope you all have a great day and get all of the spearfishing kit that you had on your wishlists...

Cheers

Ryan
 
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