Monday, February 05, 2007

Fishing Hawsker Bottoms 27th Jan 2007

After a run of extreme bad luck for me (crashed the car whilst going fishing, snapped the tip of my rod, lost my bag off the cliff, lost my tiga headlight etc etc) things finally came right last Sunday night whilst fishing a mark near Hawsker bottoms at Whitby.

Our match started at 6pm and I fished a little gulley at the foot of the cliffs. After an hour with no bites I decided the mark was either empty or the strong crosswind was stopping me from fishing it properly as my gear was fast up on every cast. I pondered for a moment as to head into the gullies to my left (nearer the car - quicker to get away later in the evening) or to my right (one hell of a place to get back from at high tide and the tide was now rushing in). Remembering a fantastic catch by a fellow angler several years earlier in the same conditions I decided to go right. After 20 mins without seeing the rod twitch I thought "nothing here as well" When I started to wind in, just to confound my misery I was stuck fast), A couple of good pulls and my rotten bottom broke out but the rod was still bent over but I was retrieving line. Thinking it was weed I thought well what else can go wrong, then the weed kicked waking me up to the fact it was a fish that must have been laid on. I got it to the rocks below and picked it out, it was a nice fish of 6 pounds 8 ounces. Brilliant after going almost a full month without much to shout about I had one and a good one at that. Just makes you wonder how a 6 pounder can lay there and not move - bizarre but I have had 9 pounders do the same.
I cast straight back in with a bait I had prepared whilst watching the rod on the last cast. This time I had put different bait on the hook. After 20 mins nothing. I wound in dissapointed thinking there was only 1 fish there. Just to make sure I had a third cast with the same bait as the first cast - half a green peeler, 2 mussels and about a dozen small lugworm wrapped around a 6 o hook. Within minutes the rod lurched over and I was into another nice fish this time about 3-4 pounds. I unhooked it and wrapped a few more worms around the hook and cast straight back in. same thing happened again and with 5 mins I had another fish of about 5 pounds. Next cast same again but the fish came off half way in. Was the bait getting too big on the hook ?? bait up another and cast back in got 2 more fish to make a total of five. Next cast I lost another off half way in - again about 5 pounds. It was now getting late and it was nearly time to go. Just one more cast I thought hoping to get that 6th fish. After 15 mins the rod went right over again. I hit the bite but missed it so left it out for another 5 mins. Now I'm getting worried about missing the weigh in beacuse I've stayed longer than I should do. Just as I was going to wind in the rod goes again, but again I missed it. This time I had to go so wound in and set off back to the car. 45 mins later and after traversing rocks the size of houses I arrived back at the car then went onto the weigh in. I was absolutely kackered when I got back but glad my luck had finally returned, and somehow pleased I didn't get those extra fish - the bag was very heavy as it was when I climb up the 300 foot cliffs.

All in all not a bad night. Five fish for a weight of 23 pounds.

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