Latest Fishing Reports: Sea Urchin IIl
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10/11/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
10 Nov 2021 by Andy Savage
With a settled day showing on the weather forecast, Mr Tran and four of his mates from Birmingham had booked the boat for the day. It was their first time out fishing from Whitby and needless to say, they were keen to get cracking.
We chose to have a run off to a group of wrecks at 20 miles. It took a while for the lads to get used to fishing in 70m of water (they usually fish in less than half that depth). They chose to use the strong bait traces provided on board, which are tied on 100lb mono, consisting of a pennel arrangement topped with a muppet.
Squid was the order of the day on the bait front and the fish seemed to come in bursts. The run into slack water on the flood tide produced Codling up to 6lb 8oz, which was good to see. We only managed one solitary Ling on slack; although Pete Rose (former Sea Urchin Skipper) hooked a very powerful fish which he couldn’t keep out of the wreck. We picked a few more fish off as the ebb tide got away before heading back for home.
The banter flowed all day and everyone got themselves some fish to take home, which is what it’s all about. See you next time lads. -
02/11/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
2 Nov 2021 by Andy Savage
It’s certainly been a while since we’ve been able to do a catch report. The weather has kept us in the harbour for most of the last six weeks, resulting in lots of cancelled trips. We did manage to get a run out yesterday which was great after the long lay off. We had a good bunch of lads on, who were great company.
With no mackerel left to find, we started the day off on a wreck at 9 miles. Fishing with either bait traces consisting of a muppet and pennel arrangement, or Hokkai’s baited with squid saw a couple of fish each drift. Mainly small Codling around the 2lb mark. Ken Wood pinched a better one around 5lb, as did Steve Cooper.
Alan Knaggs had a go with a red and black jellyworm and pinched a Pollock well up off the bottom. Ian Kellock took the biggest fish of the day (#standard), a Ling of around 6lb.
Once the flood tide got away we moved onto rough ground for the remainder of the day and found odd pockets of fish. It was far from easy fishing and good angling was definitely rewarded.
Everyone got something to take home for tea, which is always the aim on the trickier days. Hopefully we’ll get a few more breaks in the weather to get back out there again. -
16/10/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
16 Oct 2021 by Andy Savage
Plenty of laughs and fish aboard Sea Urchin yesterday. We had a brilliant group of lads on and the banter was flowing freely, all day. We opted to have a run off to a couple of wrecks a bit further out in what we hoped would be clearer water.
First stop was a wreck 12 miles out, where we had a couple of drifts for some Mackerel (we caught two of them), but a load of Coalie’s and a couple of Pollock ambushed the feathers anyway, so everyone got off the mark quickly. A switch over to bait traces or Hokkai’s saw the lads start to pick off a few strap Ling and Codling mainly in the 3-5lb range. Gary Townend managed to find one around the 8lb mark, which fell to Hokkai’s baited with squid and king prawn.
As we started to lose the Ebb tide, the wind speed increased and things slowed down, so we had a move out to a wreck at 20 miles. Gary was straight at it again, taking a couple of fish a drift on the Hokkai’s.
Just as the flood tide started to get away, a flurry of decent Codling came aboard, with Ian Kellock taking the biggest fish of the day around the 9lb mark.
We continued to pick away for the remainder of the day and everyone had a good few fillets to take home. Thanks everyone for a really enjoyable day out. -
13/10/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
13 Oct 2021 by Andy Savage
Unfortunately we’ve been getting some rubbish weather recently. In the last three weeks, despite being fully booked every day, we’ve only managed to get out for three trips. I hate cancelling, but I’m not prepared to take anglers out just for the sake of it, to take their money. We managed a run out today with a brilliant bunch of lads, but I must apologise for the lack of pictures (it’s been so long, I forgot what to do!!), as in the end, we had a fair few fish to take home.
We started off looking for a few Mackerel, but it looks like that particular boat has now sailed, as we managed the sum total of 1 single Mackerel. A quick stop on a wreck which was marking fish on the sounder was absolutely heaving with Coalie’s so we had a bit of fun with them for half an hour, before moving on for a bit of Cod and Ling action (we hoped).
Next stop was a group of wrecks 12 miles to the south, with the flood tide pushing us down nicely. It was a bit of a struggle, with a couple of strap Ling and a handful of Codling making an appearance. After speaking with one of the other skippers fishing inside us, who was having similar results, we decided to push out a bit further to a wreck at 17 miles.
Thankfully, as the tide slackened and the Ebb got away, things came together nicely, with 3-5 fish a drift. We had nothing exceptional, with most fish were in the 3-4lb category. But it was nice to get the string pulled again and know that there are still a few fish on the wrecks. Thanks for a great day out boys….very entertaining and enjoyable. -
25/09/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
25 Sep 2021 by Andy Savage
We’ve had some rubbish tides and weather recently, so Saturday was our only day out last week. We had a great group of anglers on board, so a run off to a couple of wrecks around 20 miles out was in order.
The first wreck we visited has a reputation for throwing up quality, not quantity; so arriving 30 minutes before slack water, we optimistically hoped a bigger fish would poke its head out of the wreck. After 90 minutes torturing it, with around twenty Ling and Cod to show for our efforts (and alot of lost gear) we moved on.
The next wreck was much more cooperative, with 3-5 fish a drift. It turned into a bit of a species hunt as we landed Ling, Cod, Pollock, Coalie’s, Whiting and Pouting. With Cod to 8lb 8oz and Ling to 9lb it was a nice steady day.
Top rod of the day went to Jan Hill, who had bites almost every single drift (if she didn’t catch the wreck!!); including a double up of Cod and Coalie’s. Black Hokkai’s baited with fresh Mackerel did the most bites for Jan, although the muppet bait traces still took their fair share.
It was a fantastic day out, but the weather window was short lived, as the next few days look terrible again. Hopefully the weather geezers have got it wrong…..it wouldn’t be the first time, would it!! -
20/09/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
20 Sep 2021 by Andy Savage
The big tides weren’t a complete write off…..but the fishing wasn’t a push over.
A group of mixed angling abilities on board saw us tackling a big tide, with no help whatsoever from the weather. Wind against tide in the morning saw things get a bit chewy, but everyone still got stuck in. Once they could keep the lead tapping, we started to pick off a few fish.
With the 5 mile ground only producing four strap Ling on baited Hokkai’s; a move out to 9 miles proved to be much more productive. We lost a bit of speed in the drift and started taking a picking off the rough ground.
Mainly Ling in the 3-4lb category kept everyone entertained, but once the tide slackened a bit, we moved onto a wreck, which heralded better results. Some nice Codling and two double figure Ling were very welcome.
Not blowing our own trumpet (ok I am), the two lads who had never boat fished before picked up the two doubles on our muppet bait traces. Steve and Wal picked everything up we taught them and had a great day overall. They filled a fish box between them which was brilliant.
After cancelling his last five trips for bad weather; catch of the day came to Neil from the “Ship Inn” in Whitby, when he landed a cracking double, with a decent Ling and Cod.
Well done everyone. Great day out. -
18/09/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
18 Sep 2021 by Andy Savage
The bigger tides have returned again, but there is a silver lining to every cloud…
The first of the 5m tides started yesterday, so we decided to split the day between drifting the rough ground when the tide moved fast and then jumping on a few wrecks at slack water.
The rough ground hasn’t fished particularly well of late, but we got a reasonable picking of mainly Ling yesterday, which was encouraging. The Ebb tide fished better than the flood, and everyone went with either bait traces or Hokkai’s.
Pick of the fish were a 12lb 8oz Ling for James Lister and Stephanie helped herself to a 10lb 8oz Ling.
Everyone picked off a few fish to take home, which is always the aspiration on Sea Urchin. -
16/09/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
16 Sep 2021 by Andy Savage
Another beautiful day on the inshore wrecks today.
A smaller tide, light winds and plenty of sunshine was just the tonic. It meant the drift speed of the boat was perfect and we got a lovely tan at the same time!
The quality Codling we found yesterday, were a little elusive today and we mainly picked up Ling and a couple of stray Pollock. The first wreck on slack water produced a dozen strap Ling to 4lb, so we moved on in the hope of something better. The second wreck gave us a nice picking of 2-3 fish a drift for a couple of hours, including two Ling, just over 10lb.
We dropped onto one last wreck before heading for home and the first drift saw six anglers in at once, which was brilliant. It was one of the classic; wish we’d come here a bit earlier moments. Squid and Mackerel did the business as usual, but I did see a couple come up on Razor Clams. The shads stayed in the bags as we were hoping for a big old fish, which usually come to the bait traces.
Talking of bait traces: we’ve had a number of potential big fish lost by people fishing with 50-60lb trace line. We recommend (and provide) bait traces tied on doubled-up 100lb mono. A big Ling will make short work of thinner mono with its abrasive teeth.
All in all, another thoroughly enjoyable day with some great lads. -
15/09/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
15 Sep 2021 by Andy Savage
Stormin’ Norman smashes em’ up……
As hoped for; the action on the smaller tides continued. We had Simon Ullyot and his friends on board today, and a nicer group of gents you’d be hard pressed to find.
We decided to stay on the inshore wrecks again, which proved to be a little tricky at times with a stiff breeze and tide together making a quicker drift than anticipated throughout the morning. We fished three wrecks during the day, with some great results. The first wreck gave a good start, with all but one angler putting a fish or two over the rails. Ling up to 7lb with a couple of smaller Codling had us looking for something a little bit better after an hour or so.
The second wreck was a complete fail, but we moved on quickly, to a large wreck which perfectly matched our drift line. Things then moved to another level. We picked away nicely for the next three hours with anything from 2-5 fish per drift. Norman Taylor was the star of the show, landing some quality fish most drifts. His 11lb Codling was an absolute cracker.
With the friendly banter flowing all day, we ended up having a couple of Ling around the 11-12lb mark, but the dury was out as to who had the biggest. Simon Ullyot pinched it by 1oz from Den Fitzgerald with an 11lb 12oz Ling.
A lovely day out with a great group of lads. See you next year boys…. -
14/09/2021
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
14 Sep 2021 by Andy Savage
Today was a day for ducks, or people with webbed feet, as it rained cats and dogs for much of it!
The weather didn’t deter the mixed group of lads on today, who ranged from highly experienced to complete novice. After the morning #mackerelfest we stayed on some of the inshore wrecks, as the tide had finally dropped back below 5m; allowing us to drift at a more moderate speed. The first wreck was surprisingly unproductive, with nothing coming up in three drifts.
A short move saw things improve significantly, and we picked away nicely for most of the remainder of the day. Ling up to 9lb and Codling to 6lb, with 2-3 fish a drift on average. Squid and Mackerel cocktails on pennel rigs and muppets were the most productive, with everyone having a good few fish to take home….except my good friend Pete “Got no Sea Legs” Chambers who was badly as a dog all day and never even dropped a rig down after the mackerel bash!! Don’t give up Pete.
With small tides for the next few days hopefully the good fishing will continue.
