South Devon 2013

[scrumpy]

hit the water just after 3am this morning, took a while to find the bass but came away with 5. Out of the water by 5.30 and home for breakfast.
Biggest bass on the nose at 5lb thought it was going to be slightly heavier, swimming in about 10 feet of water, dived and positioned myself under old sewage pipe and bang he was on. As I shot a shoal of about a dozen bass swam by, luckly none bigger than the one on the stringer.

 

[mirror]

Bloody hell Scrumpy ,( Spearolee the 2nd ) the nocturnal ninja ! thats a good haul this week , will you need/bother to go again soon ? lol . I have been to 2 good locations recently , fabulous scenery, great weather , superb vis and calm seas , acres of Kelp, Stringweed , Gullies, sand patches , boulders ... perfect .... but absolutely no fish at all !!! not even those dippy little pollack that normally surround you when you dive ! Not sure why there is no fish, but it is a bit like the Doldrums , incredibly still and silent , seagulls are motionless and silent , no boats around ,or people, no bait fish , jelly fish , no swell or choppiness or current ( small tides ) beautiful and enjoyable conditions , just no fish what so ever !!! Any one in South Devon caught much recently ?? Terry ....

 

[scottwilson]

Had a 6lb lobster the other day whilst looking for trigger fish Terry a few flatties and a bass. Seen plenty mullet but im fed up with them now as I cant get past that taste.......

 

[kentpaul]

Had a 6lb lobster the other day whilst looking for trigger fish Terry a few flatties and a bass. Seen plenty mullet but im fed up with them now as I cant get past that taste.......

antifoul from marinas?

:yack

 

[bobandsausage]

Had a 6lb lobster the other day whilst looking for trigger fish Terry a few flatties and a bass. Seen plenty mullet but im fed up with them now as I cant get past that taste.......

Thai green curry!

 

[scottwilson]

Tried it bob but I still get the mullet taste come through which is a shame as they plentyfull where I dive.

 

[scrumpy]

I got fed up travelling down to the south hams and arriving home with nothing. Purchased a national trust membership for the parking but only parked late at night, not a good investment but didn't know then I'd been doing lots of night dives. I find night dives don't disturb the family to much and if I don't return home, they know where I will be washed up!!!
Seriously though night dives are producing bass which as I've said before have fed the family and friends well this summer.

 

[scottwilson]

Scumps youve had some good hauls recently mate good effort. Do come across any triggers at night?

 

[mirror]

I got fed up travelling down to the south hams and arriving home with nothing.

I know EXACTLY how you feel , ( see my earlier thread ) Those lanes are a right pain to drive in as well !! Terry ...

 

[scrumpy]

Scott I haven't seen much apart from the bass, odd red mullet, donkey mullet and the odd lobster, trout and flattie. Have tried a few night dives staying close to the shoreline where you have dived on a low tide on your way back to polly steps, but the viz is so iffy. Last week left the car at teignmouth and got dropped off 3 miles away only to find zero viz after 10 minutes and a long 3 mile swim at night not fun. Finding bass mainly between rocky outcrops and shingle/sand.

 

[Spadeyo]

Interesting reading your posts Scrumpy, am tempted to try a bit of night diving to see how it goes. Have only got an old UK D4 dive light (non led) so might not see anything. Do you tend to sit and wait at night or swim around? Also are you waving the torch around to attract/spot fish or do you just wait for them to swim into the beam? Any advice would be appreciated

Cheers

 

[scrumpy]

Spadeyo

Sent you a PM buddy

Lee

 

[scrumpy]

antifoul from marinas? Post by kentpaul

I only take mullet from clean open water, never around marinas. Took one couple years ago and it tasted off, keep in the water straight into a cool box and eaten on my return home. We both looked at each other and said ' never again' but I find mullet from open water totally different. Our favourite at the mo is mullet in beer batter, stays firm kids love it.

 

[Broseidon]

I'm a MASSIVE mullet fan. In my opinion, it's absolutely essential to remove the skin and blood line - that's where any bad taste will be.

I find cooking over fast, hot heat is best - frying or BBQ is best. Slow roasting or simmering can make it a little tough. A good marinade goes a long way - tandori spices with oil and coriander are amazing or even just a good dose or garlic and lemon before the BBQ.

I've given guests bass and mullet and not told them which is which, often people have preferred the mullet.

I only take mullet from clean, open water though. Not from marinas or estuaries.

 

[scrumpy]

Bros some good tips there mate, never gave the skin much thought but makes sense. Good 1

 

[LENDERYOU]

Hey guys I'm local to the Cornish coast and looking at coming back down this weekend for a tip out but the weather isn't lookin promising. Will the rain affect the vid greatly and would you recommend getting in early morning for the best chance of fish?
Any advice appreciated. X

 

[mattbarlow]

I'm a MASSIVE mullet fan. In my opinion, it's absolutely essential to remove the skin and blood line - that's where any bad taste will be.

I find cooking over fast, hot heat is best - frying or BBQ is best. Slow roasting or simmering can make it a little tough. A good marinade goes a long way - tandori spices with oil and coriander are amazing or even just a good dose or garlic and lemon before the BBQ.

I've given guests bass and mullet and not told them which is which, often people have preferred the mullet.

I only take mullet from clean, open water though. Not from marinas or estuaries.

I had this conversation at the weekend as I don't take mullet, even when they are about 8 pounds and right in front of me (as they were on Sunday). They seem to have a real strange metallic taste even when caught in the open sea, but a friend told me that if you overcook the skin, that's why they taste strange.

 

[Broseidon]

I had this conversation at the weekend as I don't take mullet, even when they are about 8 pounds and right in front of me (as they were on Sunday). They seem to have a real strange metallic taste even when caught in the open sea, but a friend told me that if you overcook the skin, that's why they taste strange.

Mullet skin is filthy, filthy stuff! Whip is straight off with a good filleting knife, if you're not sure how, there are loads of tutorials on YouTube.

Once you've done that, cut out all of the dark red flash as this also contains loads of strong flavour. You should be left with two, pure white fillets, skinless fillets.

Try marinading it for 15 minutes in some olive oil, lemon juice, salt and a good dose of garlic powder then get it on the BBQ! It such a solid flesh, it holds together like chicken. If you don't love it then there's something wrong with you I fed 10 mates at a stag do last week and they thought it was great :friday

 

[Dai ASBO]

I can't lie to you gents, I do love a mullet - just as long as we are talking about the fish and not the haircut.

 

[googlyfloogly]

My wife, (who is a bit of a fish head scoffer) says I'm fussy with my fish, and she's probably right. I've enjoyed every mouthful of mullet I've ever eaten, skin, dark meat, the lot. That said, one of my favourite ways to cook them is to smear a little bit of Thai red curry paste over a fillet and pan fry it. The other day I bbq'd a fillet out of the freezer and that was lovely too. If a mullet comes near me it gets shot at. The fact that they're not endangered, and their faces are ugly make them an even hotter target.