UK season is on..or is it?

[Old Man Dave]

Congrats Dave that's your longest and most detailed report yet. It was almost interesting. :hmm How deep is this wreck? Do you get bream all year, we only get a few later on (or was the vis so bad they were pout?). Keep up the good work and don't catch too many.
Other Dave :

 

[SurfnSpear]

Hi there, report for Newquay Tues. 31 May. Sorry about the smallish Bass but they were my first UK and good enough for my pan. Was getting very tired of Pollack and skinned Wrasse!
Incoming tide/full tide, mostly overcast with about 6m vis.
There were plenty of biggish Wrasse (4-6lb approx) which I hope to ignore now I have opened my bass career. Also, a good few pollack that seemed to prefer the site of me at distance this time. Plenty of Spider crab too.
Someone mentioned that shoaling bass were an amazing sight and I experienced this yesterday with about 250 of very differering sizes. I only wish I had a belt stringer or had the presence of mind to kill them and use my net bag, as I missed the opportunity for more. However, I'm happy and looking forward to more Cornish summer!

 

[old dave]

Watch out for size limits of bass .Fishery officers are very strict in Cornwall .(every where for that matter)

Good Hunting

 

[Old Man Dave]

Ahem - 36 cms? :naughty

 

[glowworm]

Yep be carefull with those size limits we've already had an incident in dorset with fisheries.

 

[SurfnSpear]

Ooops....thanks for the guidance. I was under misguided thoughts (limits)!
Just measured them and they are 35cm and 29cm respectively. Well, it takes a forum to assist with the knowledge. Having dealt with the Natal Parks Board in SA for years, I can respect the 36cm going forward! I'll do some limits homework.
I'm about to sear them and serve up with with a little fresh vegetables and sage mash so you'll excuse me walking off to the kitchen with my tail between my legs.. :waterwork

 

[glowworm]

More good news on the fish front in dorset.Local fisherman caught severn skake to 13 lbs off chesil beach during the day!Good hauls of smooth hound also reported along with the mackerel.All this seems to be the direct result of a local trawler being scraped a few months ago.Well all is good with the bass showing up in numbers too just hope the resident seal doesn,t eat them all. :waterwork

 

[Buster Lung]

Well all is good with the bass showing up in numbers too just hope the resident seal doesn,t eat them all. :waterwork

I've been called few things but never a 'resident seal'! :t

 

[old dave]

might be 38cm for Bass, local byelaw for cornwall ???
Good Hunting

 

[glowworm]

The rate you do shoot bass Buster Lung maybe you should have a name change to seal.There seems to be enough fish for everyone at the moment but if it changes maybe the rest of us spearo's will have to go clubbing!!! :duh rofl rofl rofl

 

[dave]

minimum landing size for bass in the Cornwall Sea Fisheries area is 37.5cm, most of the rest of the country is 36cm. There are moves to increase this to 42cm, which would be more sensible. Minimum size in BSA competitions is 45cm.
cheers
dave
www.spearo.co.uk

 

[fatboyjim]

the fisheries guys told us that they get a call every time we are out on the reef (west cornwall) now from local fishermen or the dive centre. They often come alongside at weekends and ask to see what we have caught. If you had undersized fish I reckon they would throw the book at you.

It all went pear shaped a couple of years ago when some guys from porstmouth or somewhere were filling their boat with bass then selling it to local resturants for £2 a pound

I think things are going to change very soon regarding spearfishing bass here at least they are talking of increased size limits and a bag limit....
hope that applies to anglers too

anyone else get fisherman or fisheries hassle?

 

[samdive]

mmmmm.... do you think Howard has a license for his "catch it and kill it!" course or whatever it is he's promoting!!!

 

[flattybasher]

Cornwall 37.5cm

 

[portinfer]

I'd enjoy seeing the HMS Leopardess navigate through some of the spots we go to over here (west coast 2 foot marks) !
Still - an artificial reef might be a better use for it ?! I have never seen it over here although Dave has some interesting stories to do with shot guns threats and thrown knives.... seems to be only if you are in a boat yourself though - so far shore based divers have been left alone (mind you - the minimum size is adhered to here - might be cause for a maximum size too especially during the breeding months...)
Ed

 

[Pekka]

when fishing though it is difficult to tell exactly the size of the fish, from my own experience I can tell that some of the fishes that I have shot seemed much bigger at the time of pulling the trigger than when I gutted them on the beach..
I guess it is a learning process to estimate the size of ones catch.. how do you guys make up your mind to shoot or to let live?
I just get the biggest one from the selection and hope it is legal size..

Pekka

 

[portinfer]

I find it is the other way around - they look smaller and then you get them out of the water and they seem to grow.

Anyway for me I think it is a proportion thing - with aspetto you can see how big they are and have quite alot of time to pick one out or not. The distance of the fins too - how fat the body is... little ones look erm.. little !

Size of the gill plate too...

Guess it comes with time.

Ed

 

[Silent Assassin]

Well if we all get to much hassle from the fisheries we could all give up spearo, club together and by some pair trawlers, then at least the fisheries/anti hunting/fun police/uninformed would have something to moan about.

 

[portinfer]

They seem to encourage that here .... worrying ... Mind you I guess that there around 10 or 15 people who spearfish regularly here ? I never see any except for August when you see a few 'sunshine spearos' back from uni etc

 

[flattybasher]

The art of spearfishing is to learn to be relaxed in the environment your in, and be relaxed in what you are pursuing, you will always struggle to catch the bigger shoaling fish if you shoot the first naive juvenile fish which always come in to play first.