Report: Was due to head out for Blue Shark on Sunday but the gales hitting tonight and staying around all day Sunday put paid to that. So in need of a fishing fix arranged to meet up with Nige. We set up animal gear for congers and started ledgering for minis in close. I was first in with a small pollack followed by Nige with a Gold Sinny Wrasse... then i'd a couple of Tompot Blennies another species of the list and Nige had another Gold Sinny while i got a Ballan... Nige and myself picked up a few small pollack. Nige then had a rattle on the conger gear but lost the fish on the way up... I dropped a conger too... Nige then tried a sandeel out further and when he went to check his bait hit got hit my a mackerel on the retrieve. With us in need of some fresh bait we both clipped on feathers.... i've never seen such activity with mackerel jumping clear of the water all around us sprat and sandeel every where it was complete madness we caught 95 mackerel in under an hour the weight of the catch was 45lbs. So with bait sorted for the foreseeable future it was back to ledgering another few pollack later the rachet on my conger rod went picked it up and struck fish on Nige grabbed the drop net and we both looked down waiting to see the conger appear.... next it was "what in the name of Jaysus is that??" an otter hooked in the mouth and up out of the water dangling on the end of my line.... stood there in a state of shock wondering how am i going to unhook this thing.... he thankfully shook himself free and dropped back into the water.... thank God for that i said then to our amazment he came back out of the water and started climbing up the rocks to try and grab what was left of the mackerel head cheeky or what.... earlier red had a post up wondering what was nicking his fish and i said it's sounds like otters and that we had them in the Bay but they've never bother us before today... I lost another good conger after that felt like a double with the rain and wind getting heavier we called it a day.
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Shore Species 2011 (31) Ballan Wrasse, Bass, Bullhuss, Coalfish, Cod, Conger, Corkwing Wrasse, Cuckoo Ray, Dab, Dogfish, Five Bearded Rockling, Flounder, Goldsinny Wrasse, Long Spined Sea Scorpion, Mackerel, Plaice, Pollack, Poor Cod, Pouting, Rock Goby, Shanny, Shore Rockling, Short Spined Sea Scorpion, Thornback Ray, Three Bearded Rockling, Tompot Blenny, Tope, Tub Gurnard, Turbot, Undulate Ray, Whiting
Shore Species 2010 (26) - Bass, Black Goby, Bull Huss, Coalfish, Cod, Dab, Dogfish, Five Bearded Rockling, Flounder, Grey Gurnard, Lesser Weaver, Mackerel, Mullet, Plaice, Pollack, Poor cod, Pouting, Rock Goby, Shore Rockling, Silver eel, Starry Smooth Hound, Thornback Ray, Tope, Tub Gurnard, Turbot, Whiting
thank god the little critter got away safe they are beautiful creatures and lets face it better fishermen than all of us still i,d say you had fun with all them macs and will save a few bob in the tackle shop this year shame about your sharkin bet your skipper was drunk too
im delighted about that otter but glad he got away unscathed, at least i know im not goin mad. only yesterday you said ye had plenty up there but they never took fish . ive asked a few people down here about them and they said they would see them occasionaly but also never had them take a fish. wonder what made it take it??
Sounds like a great session Conor, plenty of variety and a few new species , then you get to fill up the freezer with mack,, and to top it off you get a rare glimpse of one of our rarest mammals at close hand, dont you just love fishing . Had a run in meself with some wildlife over the weekend, but these were drinking cans of cider and effing and blinding
Species '20 (14) 5 Beard Rockling, Shore Rockling, Codling, Whiting, Pollock, Coalfish, Pouting, Corkwing Wrasse ,Ballan Wrasse, Poor Cod, Dab ,Smoothhound,Flounder, Thornback Ray
For the rich, there is therapy. For the rest of us, there is FISHING! --
good nights fishing never seen as many mack about. hopefully the fishing might pick up from now on. As for the otter thankfully he fell off. Would not have being nice trying to unhook him.
jesus connor,is an otter a new species? ye are rubbing it in now!!when i saw the weather this morning was glad we did not go out hope the mackerel are in for good now.
species 2012.........(12)seatrout,bass,turbot,flounder,brill,lsd,coalie,shore rockling,pollock,pout,poor cod,gray gurnard
well done lads great bit of fishing,often seen the otters and heard them in the night around spiddal pier but i am lucky i never hooked one,will have to head down that way to stock up on bait
lifetime species fishing and rock pool
1 dogfish,2 whiting,3 flounder,4 two spot goby,5 mackerel,6 pollack,7 common blenny,8 European eel,9 butterfish,10 Deep-snouted pipefish,11 rock goby,12 poor cod,13 corkwing wrasse,14 coalfish,15 turbot,16 tompot blenny,17 dab,18 dragonet,19 shorerockling,20 thornback ray,21 three bearded rockling,22 sandeel,23 grey gurnard,24 sea scorpion,25 scad,26 plaice,27 ballen wrasse,28 bullhuss,29 conger eel,30 blue shark,31 blonde ray,32 cod,33 pouting,34 topknot,35 Fifteen-spine Stickleback,36 mullet,37 Sand Goby,38 Montagu's Blenny,39 Three-spined Stickleback,40 goldshinny wrasse,41 painted goby,42 five bearded rockling,43 Sand-Smelt,44 Small-headed Clingfish ,45 sole
I heard something similar happened during the daiwa pairs a few years ago. A Dublin lad was fishing for conger during the specimen day and got a run, struck it and when it was on top of the water he asked his mate what it was, a classic reply - "it's a fcukin beaver man"
I witnessed some horific conger fishing at that wrasse mark in North Clare, Six large conger ( looked between 10-15 lb) all gaffed and put in bags. The auld fellas that fish for them in the competitions were nearly in tears.
The Truth is often stumbled upon by men, most of whom pick themselves up and hurry along as if nothing ever happened. https://baitdigger.wordpress.com
Cheers lads... i'd say the Otters were in a bit of a frenzy with all the mackerel, sandeel and sprat activity. Hopefully there won't be a reoccurance definatley wouldn't fancy tackling an otter!!
baitdigger wrote:Connor
I witnessed some horific conger fishing at that wrasse mark in North Clare, Six large conger ( looked between 10-15 lb) all gaffed and put in bags. The auld fellas that fish for them in the competitions were nearly in tears.
That place is being destroyed seems to be getting worse each year juvenille pollack & coalies nothing is safe was it the same lads as before?
Shore Species 2011 (31) Ballan Wrasse, Bass, Bullhuss, Coalfish, Cod, Conger, Corkwing Wrasse, Cuckoo Ray, Dab, Dogfish, Five Bearded Rockling, Flounder, Goldsinny Wrasse, Long Spined Sea Scorpion, Mackerel, Plaice, Pollack, Poor Cod, Pouting, Rock Goby, Shanny, Shore Rockling, Short Spined Sea Scorpion, Thornback Ray, Three Bearded Rockling, Tompot Blenny, Tope, Tub Gurnard, Turbot, Undulate Ray, Whiting
Shore Species 2010 (26) - Bass, Black Goby, Bull Huss, Coalfish, Cod, Dab, Dogfish, Five Bearded Rockling, Flounder, Grey Gurnard, Lesser Weaver, Mackerel, Mullet, Plaice, Pollack, Poor cod, Pouting, Rock Goby, Shore Rockling, Silver eel, Starry Smooth Hound, Thornback Ray, Tope, Tub Gurnard, Turbot, Whiting
just one question conor------------if you had landed and dehooked the otter, would it have been classed as a new species hi conor great report and fishing mate, well done. you must have got some shock to see that thing on the end of your line
as ole rab c said " see me' see the sea' i love the sea me"
right i'am off for a swally!!!!!!! so were's the F***'n purse!!!!!!!
saltydog wrote: That place is being destroyed seems to be getting worse each year juvenille pollack & coalies nothing is safe was it the same lads as before?
I have to stop fishing North Clare for a while as there are two groups of them who have become my shadows. Wherever I stop in my van, even the obscure marks it, wont be long before the scout comes down then he is on the phone and the rest of the posse turn up.
They have learned to fish rotten bottom and fair play to them I was only there for about two hours on the mackerel and they had that many eels in that time using whole mackerel flapper. I think they have had the wrasse aswell Ive done a few sessions there and not managed anything bigger than a pound. The good pollack have gone the same way.
The Truth is often stumbled upon by men, most of whom pick themselves up and hurry along as if nothing ever happened. https://baitdigger.wordpress.com
nice one on the tompot conor . otters can be fearsome wee critters when stressed,,, it would have been some task to unhook the wee chap and retain all 8 fingers and 2 thumbs