Latest Fishing Reports: Sea Urchin IIl
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14/01/2025
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
14 Jan 2025 by Andy Savage
It’s been awesome to get the last three days out at sea, at what can be a “dodgy” time weather wise. With building tides of 5m plus, I was hopeful that after the last stir up, we’d have some decent results.
On Saturday, we ran North to try and use the last of the Ebb Tide. Unfortunately the NNW wind didn’t let the boat settle properly so we swung around and caught very little for the first hour. Moving further North to catch the flood tide Simon England started to pick off a fish or two on Crab Cart, Squid, or Black Lug. He’s a vastly experienced angler and had plenty of good bait at his disposal, no surprise he was top rod for the day.
Simon West is a good angler (who I watch to make my tactical decisions) but hadn’t had much success at all during the morning, but on the Flood tide his Black Lug which he pumps himself started to yield results along with Squid and Crab Cart. Overall, the fish didn’t feed well and from what I saw, it was the anglers with the best bait, changed regularly, fished properly, that came out on top.
Sunday saw a similar day. It was hard going again, but Jason Shields still managed to find a few fish. Once again, he is experienced at Uptiding and brought plenty of good bait…..a pattern emerges!!
Today I made sure to let everyone know that having a good quantity and quality of bait would help secure success. Everyone took it on board and we had a much better day. The Ebb wasn’t brilliant, but the boys still managed a few Codling to 4lb or so. The turn of tide brought more consistency and Ian Purdom and Joe Clough maximised it by taking fish regularly, ending with a dozen or so fish each; with a couple over 4lb, but nothing huge. Everyone has been fantastic company and it was good to see a few old friends I’ve cancelled countless times last year.
The message is quite clear….bring plenty of bait (I’ll happily advise), changed it regularly and don’t defrost it in Harbour Water and wash out all the scent. The scent trail is critical to success when Uptiding. -
27/12/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
27 Dec 2024 by Andy Savage
It was great to work off a bit of excess Turkey and Christmas Pud today with an offshore wrecking trip, with a great bunch of lads.
With the weather conditions looking settled, we chose to run off to try a couple of wrecks around the 20 mile stream. At this time of year, the inshore wrecks seem to yield very little, so it’s sometimes beneficial to run out a bit further where the water is perhaps a bit clearer. Using the Ebb Tide, we headed north for a couple of hours to fish a wreck which had been left alone for a couple of months, arriving with an hour or so to go before slack water. The lads went over with mainly Squid baited muppet traces or Hokkai’s and 12oz leads.
First drift over we managed three Codling, so thankfully there were a few at home. The lads fished steady away taking fish every drift right up through slack water and into the flood tide. Codling were the main species landed with a couple of fish around 7lb being the biggest, but not a bad average stamp overall. We also had a trio of Ling, a stray Pollock and a handful of Haddock, Whiting and Pouting.
Once the Flood tide got going and a seal arrived, sport slowed up, so we moved on to the next wreck. Disappointingly, this wreck didn’t have the same volume of feeding fish on it, with just one or two fish a drift of a much smaller stamp. With an hours fishing time left, I made the decision to try one more wreck on the way back to Whitby. This wreck was situated much closer to land at around nine miles, so I was unsure what we would find. As it turned out, we found practically nothing and would have been better off not moving. One Codling around 4lb and a couple of Pouting made it a bit of a damp squib to finish the day, but the boys aboard made it a very enjoyable one.
Mike Griffiths had booked on with three of his mates and my highlight of the day was seeing all four of them into fish at the same time. They fished well today and all had a fair few to take home. A couple of the other boys didn’t fare quite so well, but that’s fishing for you.
Thanks for coming today lads, you were all fantastic company. -
13/12/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
13 Dec 2024 by Andy Savage
What a lovely day out we had today.......nice calm flat sea conditions, light winds, good tide and fantastic company. Considering the weather we had with "Storm Darragh" over the last weekend, I couldn't have asked for much better for the "Sea Urchin - Biggest Bag Competition" which we held today. The eight anglers aboard were fishing for the most fish that they could catch. Every fish was measured and then allocated a certain number of points according to species and how long it was. I kept a running tally all day and the two anglers with the highest points total at the end of the day would win the £100 and £50 cash prizes which I happily donate.
We got away just as day was breaking, running North to Sandsend to get as much of the remaining Ebb Tide in as possible. No sooner than I got the anchor down, the fish started to appear. Rods were consistently nodding around the boat and a succession of mainly Codling came up for the next couple of hours. Gordon Blyth had a brilliant. start, catching steadily and also taking the best Codling at just over 5lb. The sport lasted right up to slack water, when we pulled the anchor and ran further North to meet the Flood Tide.
Unfortunately, this move didn't work out well. The tide was running when we arrived, but after 20 minutes with very few bites and no fish aboard, I sacked it off and ran back South. Next stop, we were back in business. We had a reasonable couple of hours, with everyone getting a few fish. Amongst the Codling, Ian Kellock and Rich Winship both managed to find a nice Pollock apiece which was good to see.
We had one last move, to drop onto a nice shelf which I'd fished the previous day.
Thankfully, it didn't fish too badly and kept us entertained for the remainder of the day. Mark Botterill had been catching steadily throughout, but he had a golden hour and gradually clawed back the points deficit that Gordon had established; including catching the biggest Codling of the day at 66cm which weighed in at a smidge over 7lb. I am forever "banging on" about how important good bait is for Uptiding. The fish can see very little in the murky water and come primarily to the scent trail from the baits cast in. Today's top three point scoring anglers were all from Easington Sea Angling Club and all fish from the shore and boats throughout the year. They all had a good supply of fresh and frozen bait, which they changed every cast. Squid, Crab Cart, Peeler Crab, Live Yellow Tails, Mussel, Prawns, Black Lug. I'm 100% convinced that it made the difference.
With an hour to go, Gordon had a 100 point lead, but Mark managed to find a couple more fish and with only 30 minutes to go, took the lead! It could have gone either way, but Mark held on for the win with 1717 points and Gordon finishing just behind (bridesmaid again after finishing runner up last year) with 1641 points.
I'm not normally a "fish counter", but as we measured each fish, I do have some accurate stats today!
72 Cod up to 66cm (7lb 4oz)
12 Haddock (None Weighed)
2 Pollock both 60cm
8 Pouting none weighed
1 Whiting not weighed
5 Lobsters all safely returned
It was a thoroughly enjoyable day for me, which absolutely flew by. Thanks very much to all the lads who were fantastic company. -
06/12/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
6 Dec 2024 by Andy Savage
It's been a few weeks since I've been able to produce a catch report. We've suffered with the usual rubbish weather for the time of year. I've been keeping busy doing small jobs on the boat that I haven't had the chance to do through the Summer. I've also been down to Plymouth on a Tuna fishing/handling course with Kev Lavis who Skippers on Crusader Charters, which was really interesting and informative.
On Wednesday and Thursday this week we finally got the chance to have a couple of days at sea. I had been asked once again to participate in a two day Uptiding Competition for the Police, Armed Forces and Civil Service. I was more than happy to join in having done the competition last year and had a brilliant time.
Four of the WCSA Association boats had been chartered, so along with Shy Torque, Alliance and Trot-On we would be spending a couple of days Uptiding. The weather was pretty rough on the run-in to Wednesday, but thankfully, we managed to get out for both days in the end. I had a group of eight lads aboard who were very keen to get started and I could tell they took their fishing seriously, as they were all very well kitted out and organised with good bait.
The format for the competition was that all the species of fish caught would be measured, then points were allocated according to species and size, off the chart which the Skippers were given by the organiser. So even a 25cm Pouting or 45cm Dogfish contributed points towards the overall total along with the preferred Codling etc. It's a really great way to fish, with every fish counting. Prizes would be awarded to the top three point scoring anglers over the combined two days. Also a prize was awarded for the biggest Codling (on the measure, not by weight).
We ran south towards Robin Hoods Bay on Wednesday and we had a fairly reasonable day. The winds were light and with a 5.2m tide, we caught fairly consistently throughout the day and there were flushes of fish moving through so we only moved a couple of time to reposition the boat. There were plenty of Codling caught up to 55cm, along with Pouting, Whiting & Dogfish and a solo Haddock. The lads were using Squid and Black Lugworm baits in the main and fishing with running leads and flowing 3-4ft traces with a pennel arangement of hooks on; or scratching type rigs with smaller bits of bait on short hook snoods. Switching between the two different rigs allowed the lads to keep the bites coming and the scoreboard ticking over.
Thursday gave slightly more breeze to contend with, but the sea conditions weren't bad at all, so we ran south again. For whatever reason, we caught probably half the quantity of fish we had the previous day. The most noticeable thing we found was that in the places we stopped at there weren't many flushes of fish running. We would initially catch the fish that were in the vicinity of the boat then it just died off. Consequently, we moved a few more times on Thursday to try and fish the fish.
Overall it was two really enjoyable days at sea for me. With the additional measuring, netting and recording of all the fish caught, the days just flew by as I was always busy. The chat and banter amongst the lads was excellent and brutal in equal measure! We all convened at The Middle Earth Pub for Pie & Peas with a couple of pints to do the presentations to round off a great competition.
Unfortunately I didn't get much chance to take any fish pictures, so I've just stuck with the sunrise on Wednesday morning. Thanks to everyone who took part. It was certainly a highlight of the year for me. Looking forward to 2025 already. -
08/11/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
8 Nov 2024 by Andy Savage
There’s no getting away from it…….today’s fishing conditions were challenging for the lads aboard Sea Urchin.
We left the harbour with the Flood tide running and a SSE wind blowing. This gave us a wind against tide situation, which held the boat up on the drift. I optimistically thought we’d try a wreck to begin with, but after three drifts with the lines running away and only a strap Ling to show for our efforts (as well as some lost tackle), I sacked the idea off. I now knew that unless the winds dropped away (which they were forecast to do in the afternoon, but didn’t), that we would be drifting the rough ground for the remainder of the day. As it turned out, that’s exactly what happened.
We had two or three drifts on the three mile ground, but there was a fleet of pots running through the most productive area I’d found, so after half a dozen clean Codling, but more lost gear, we moved out another couple of miles. Slack water, was around 1100hrs today, but with the breeze we had, I doubt many people would have known! Gradually the drift line of the boat changed and we now had wind and tide together.
The drift speed of the boat increased, so we spent the rest of the day on the seven and nine mile ground. We never got above a drift speed of 1.2 knots, but some of the anglers were really struggling to control their tackle.
Sea Urchin regulars Ian Kellock and Dave Sharp had it nailed on. A 16oz lead and a single muppet trace to catch less tide. This has the effect of minimising drag and keeping your bait on the bottom for longer, allowing the fish more time to find it. These small changes make a big difference!
Once the Ebb Tide was running, we found a nice ridge that held some decent stamp Cod. We had a few drifts where we put up some nice bright fish between 7-9lb which was great to see. Squid and/or Mackerel were the main baits today on the Muppet Traces. Ian Kellock was top rod with his best Cod going 9lb and Dave Sharp chipped in with the biggest Ling just into double figures. Fran Schaap also had a good day, taking Cod to 8lb and Ling of a similar size.
Great bunch of lads aboard today -
06/11/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
6 Nov 2024 by Andy Savage
Fantastic weather today and a lovely day out again……
With very light winds and falling tides, we had a nice day out with great fishing conditions. I had a mixed group of anglers aboard, a couple whom I’d never met before, and some who I’ve not had on for a while. Plenty to talk about all day; it was set to be an enjoyable one.
We started the day off with a couple of wrecks. Unfortunately the first one had a fleet of Crab �� pots running off it, so we couldn’t get a drift in. The second one we tried was free of gear, so we got stuck in on the run into slack water. First drift we took a couple of plump Codling on Squid baited traces, which told us there were a few fish at home. As we began to lose the Flood Tide, the next few drifts saw two or three nice fish each run through. Mainly Codling around 3-4lb with an odd Ling.
Unfortunately, as soon as we got to slack water and even waited for the Ebb to push through, sport just tailed off. As the tide was now away, we headed for the seven mile ground and spent an hour or so on the drift. With the light breeze we had, the drift wasn’t perfect and instead of running along the usually productive ridges, we were crossing over them. This reduced the amount of time in the target area, which reduced the number of bites.
We took small Codling, Haddock, Pouting and Ling every drift when we were on the ridges, but very little from the softer areas.
After an hour or so, I thought we’d be better off on the nine mile ground, so that’s where we spent the rest of the day. A few fruitless drifts at the north end of the ground had me thinking I’d cocked up!Heading further south, thankfully we found a few fish again to spend the last couple of hours.
One area in particular gave us a few good drifts, with Keith Pickering taking his first double figure Ling at 10lb 8oz and Harry Bateman taking the biggest Cod of the day at 8lb 4oz. Everyone had a few fish to take away today and after three overcast days, the sun finally burst through to end a really enjoyable day for me. Thanks lads, you were brilliant company. -
05/11/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
5 Nov 2024 by Andy Savage
It’s been a few days since I’ve managed to find the time to get a catch report together.
The incredibly settled weather (for the time of year) has continued on, so thankfully we’ve been out at sea every day. It was Spring Tides over the weekend, so, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday saw us Uptiding.
After a couple of promising signs earlier in October, it looks like the colour is dropping out of the water again with the settled weather.
A similar pattern emerged over the four Uptiding days. Leaving the harbour with the Ebb Tide running, it wasn’t particularly prolific on any of the days. We caught fish, but sport was patchy. Resident Codling, Pouting, Whiting, Haddock, Dog Fish, Wrasse and Lobsters came our way, but nothing worthy of getting camera out.
Sport improved each day with the Flood Tide and it coincided with us catching the few fresh run fish that we landed. All the fish came on the usual baits of Squid, Black Lug, and Crab Cart.
Tony Firman took the biggest Cod we had over that period with a fish of 5lb. Like I said, there were plenty of bites (apart from Monday, which was very quiet), but the average stamp is currently quite small.
With the tides now falling away and yesterday being poor fishing at anchor, today we were back drifting the rough ground and a couple of wrecks. With it being a 5m tide, we started the day off around slack water on a couple of wrecks in the five mile stream which yielded very little. Once the Ebb came through we started working the ground marks. Five mile produced only a handful of fish; seven mile wasn’t a great deal better, but we took two or three fish a drift of mainly Ling and Haddock.
A run out to the nine mile ground gave better results and we found a few more Codling and a better stamp of Ling. The five day period hasn’t seen any amazing fishing, but the anglers I’ve had aboard have been brilliant and have kept at it all day. I’ve had a go with a Shad today and still took an odd fish or two, so there’s still good clarity in the water for those coming over the next few days.
Thanks to everyone for the continued support. I really appreciate it.
Tight Lines
Andy -
30/10/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
30 Oct 2024 by Andy Savage
Lovely group of lads aboard Sea Urchin today.
We broke the 5.0m tide barrier, so I knew that we’d be drifting a bit quicker on the ground; but with light winds forecast, I fancied us to find a fish or two. We followed a similar path as the previous two days. Starting off on the five mile ground, we had a couple of drifts for only a handful of small Codling, then moved further south on the same stretch of ground, but this time found a few fish.
As has been the norm, we caught mainly Ling on this mark, with an odd Codling or Haddock. We didn’t get anything huge, but Pete Allard who was using my hire gear for his first trip, got straight in on the action. On only his third drift, I saw the rod go over and with a bit of a tussle he landed an 11lb 8oz Ling. Not bad for your first sea fish ever!! A couple of drifts later he also had a 9lb Ling to join its mate in the fish box. When your lucks in, it’s in!!
Once it quietened off, we pushed out a couple of miles, but the three drifts we did didn’t yield much. The wind wasn’t giving us the right drift line for that spot, so I took us out to the nine mile ground. We had one rough ground drift for a couple of Ling and Haddock, but I noticed the lines were now a bit more vertical, so I took us to a nearby wreck. On arrival, we were greeted by a big old seal, and first drift saw us get nothing……..bugger!!
As the tide eased, next drift we were in business. It didn’t last long, but 3-5 fish a run during slack was most welcome. Neil Swallow took the biggest fish with a Ling just into double figures. We spent the remainder of the day on the seven and nine mile ground picking up fish on the muppet bait traces or Hokkai’s, baited with Squid or Mackerel.
My son has been crewing with me for the last few trips during half term. Today was a fishing day for him and he showed me that he’d been listening to the advice I offered. I was so proud to see him get two new PB Ling from out of the wreck on his own. They were 6lb & 7lb but he had no help from me at all. Very proud Dad. Well done Will ����
Thanks lads, a really enjoyable day once again, spent in fantastic company. -
29/10/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
29 Oct 2024 by Andy Savage
Three day catch report aboard Sea Urchin......Apologies for the lack of reporting ( and lengthy report), but I've struggled to find time to put one together, with quite a lot of background stuff going on.
For once, October has given us a bit of reasonable weather, where we have managed to string a few days together. This report covers Saturday 26th, Monday, 28th and Tuesday 29th October.
Instead of giving a blow by blow report, day by day (as is usual), I thought it would be useful to go through a few patterns which emerged over the three days, so hopefully anyone coming in the next few days can hopefully use the information to their benefit.
We have been drifting rough ground and a couple of wrecks for the last three days (no Uptiding). The tides have been steadily building, from 4.3m on Saturday to 5.0m today.
Each day has seen groups of mixed experience anglers aboard. At Whitby we have rough ground available to us from three miles to nine miles, so it gives us lots of options. Basically, the further from land we go, the less tide we get and that is how I shaped my days, to give the best fishing drifts I can.
Having tried the three mile ground twice; it only produced a few small fish in half a dozen drifts, so I didn't visit it today. The five mile ground has been the best starting point for us recently, with a 17lb Ling at the end of last week and again today Robert Warsap took a 13lb 8oz Ling. It's a case of being in the right place, at the right time.
Best Rigs; usual stuff. Muppet bait traces or Hokkai's baited with Squid, Mackerel, or Pouting. Andy Cooper took a 17lb Ling on Pouting, then one of my regular anglers who was struggling, tried Pouting yesterday and got a few quick fish, when he hadn't caught much at all. It might be worth keeping an odd Pouting as a change bait instead of chucking them straight back. The Ling on the wrecks must eat them every day.
A few of the more experienced lads tried fishing with Shads, as the water clarity looks as good as I've seen it all year when you get beyond five miles. We got a couple of fish, but for the amount of effort, bait is definitely the way to go at present.
We've been going out each morning on the Ebb Tide and I've noticed that the fishing hasn't been brilliant throughout that period. We've kept on the move, consistently trying different areas, but there wasn't a golden key. We found odd pockets of fish, but there wasn't any great consistency.The run into slack water and the Flood Tide in the afternoon appear to have been the trigger to get the fish feeding (they aren't machines, despite what some people think). The last couple of days have seen us put plenty of fish up for the last couple of hours. The average size hasn't been amazing, but keeping the bites coming, keeps everyone motivated.
It would be fair to say, there were more Ling than Codling, but plenty of other species. We've caught Codling, Ling, Pollock, Haddock, Pollock, Pouting, Poor Cod, Octopus, Gurnard and Whiting.
If I was going out tomorrow, I think a Muppet Bait Trace with Squid or Mackerel will "do the do". When you fish with the Hokkai's or Daylights, the small fish strip the bait off in no time all if they're feeding. 16oz leads being crucial in the bigger tides.
It's great to see that there are still a good number of fish out on the rough ground, with an odd one or two decent ones amongst them. Everyone has had a few fish the last three trips, but it would be remiss of me not to mention Mike Lee who fished on Monday.Mike has been out with me on numerous occasions, but on Monday, he had "one of those sessions" where he could do no wrong. For those who have been aboard Sea Urchin, they will know the fish boxes are quite roomy. Mike caught most drifts and by the end of the day I was having to try and shuffle his fish in as he had filled it right up! Well done mate, you did fish brilliantly.
Hopefully, the weather stays calm and the sport continues. I really appreciate the support and a massive thank you to everyone who has fished hard every day.
Tight Lines
Andy -
23/10/2024
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
23 Oct 2024 by Andy Savage
After an enjoyable day yesterday, we hit repeat for today’s anglers……. With a crew of mixed angling experience aboard, from brand new to old sweat, it would be great to try and get everyone a few fish.
No two days are ever the same, but today we faced similar conditions, albeit with a stronger breeze, but a smaller tide and less swell, which kind of equalised the two days fishing conditions wise.
Having worked the rough ground yesterday and finding a reasonable number of fish, I aimed to do something similar today. We headed out at first light destined for the five mile ground again.
Today I started in the productive area of the previous day and there were still fish willing to feed. For around ninety minutes we drifted the various ridges and ledges taking mainly strap Ling, small Codling and Haddock, with a few Pouting thrown in. Andy Cooper was aboard today and he likes to use the Pouting as bait. As we covered a nice drop off, one his Pouting baited Hokkai’s was grabbed by something a bit better.
I could tell by the violent head shakes that it was going to be a decent fish. As he was fishing with his line running under the boat, the lads on the other side saw a sizeable Ling coming up before Andy did. With a bit of effort (as it was also tangled in another line) we managed to net the fish which on the scales went 17lb 8oz. Great angling Andy!
We pushed out to the nine mile ground for slack water and drifted along a nice ledge. On the run into slack it fished ok with mainly Ling taking the Squid baits, but slack itself wasn’t great (just like the day before). The first signs of the Ebb saw things pick up again with a good few drifts. By this stage, everyone had a got in on the action and had a few in the box. The average size wasn’t anything to write home about, but there are certainly plenty of fish knocking about. Once the Ebb Tide got up to speed, the sport pretty much dried up.
The wind made it harder than usual today, but with 16oz leads it wasn’t too hard to control the tackle. The lads proved this by consistently taking fish.
Massive thanks to everyone for coming today. Well done.
