Latest Fishing Reports: Sea Urchin IIl
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03/06/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
3 Jun 2023 by Andy Savage
I’ve done three trips since I last did a report and there is a good reason for that……The fishing has been far from brilliant for us and the fish we have been getting have been on the small side, with only a couple of fish over 5lb.
We’ve currently got Northerly winds coming at us, but they haven’t been massive, so we’ve got a few trips in. The actual fishing conditions haven’t been perfect, with the anglers having to combat lines streaming a bit at certain points of the day.
We’ve fished wrecks and rough ground, catching fish from both, but not in the numbers and size I hoped for. There are plenty of bites to be had on the rough ground from small Codling, Haddock and Ling but the better size fish just don’t seem to have arrived yet. A few “Scout” Mackerel also came off the 5 Mile ground.
All methods are catching as the water clears out. Hokkai’s baited with Squid have dominated the rough ground and bait traces with Squid on the wrecks. Shads are catching plenty for the anglers who choose to use them from ground and wrecks.
With the lack of decent fish, it’s a bit of a non-report, but I like to let everyone know what’s going on. As Del Trotter says..…..it’s not all Champagne and Skittles!! Tomorrow is another day and we always hope for a few decent fish.
Thanks to all the anglers who have joined me for a day out, your support is greatly appreciated. -
29/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
29 May 2023 by Andy Savage
A lovely day out today with a fantastic group of anglers. Top day in the office for me….
Simon Ullyot and five friends had the boat for their first trip of 2023. With the tiny tide and light winds it was always going to be a day on the wrecks.
We ran south a few miles to our first wreck and pleasingly it gave us some solid sport for a couple of hours. We took 2-4 Codling every drift and Norman Taylor was clumping them every run through. Nothing massive, but a lovely clean fish between 3-5lb.
We proceeded to wreck hop for the rest of the day. In total we fished seven wrecks and just two were unproductive. It was great to finally get a bit of consistent sport.
It was inevitable, but Annie Helliwell stole the show today. On her first boat trip, having never fished wrecks or caught a Cod, she took plenty of fish and also the biggest Codling of the day. She took on board the advice offered and it was great to see her improve as the day went on.
The majority of the fish came to muppet bait traces with a whole squid mounted on them. But, when tried, the Shads were also working, Whites and Rhubarb & Custard being best. A sure sign that it is clearing out nicely.
Everyone had plenty to take home today. A fantastic day spent in great company. -
26/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
26 May 2023 by Andy Savage
Today we had a day out on the offshore wrecks……and pleasingly it wasn’t too bad. Not brilliant, but definitely an improvement with the falling tides.
We ran out to some wrecks in the 20 mile stream in an attempt to find a better stamp of fish.
The first wreck definitely had a few fish on, but the lines were just streaming a little and the drift speed was a touch too fast for ideal fishing conditions. We took one or two fish a drift, which were mainly Codling, then Krzysztof Siwiec hooked a decent fish on a Squid baited Muppet trace. It turned out to be a nice 8lb 8oz Ling. We kept at it for a couple of hours then moved on as we were losing a bit of gear, and not getting so many fish.
On the next wreck we were greeted by a Seal and having taken a few quick fish (including a nice 9lb 4 oz Ling for Don Wang) we moved on as it seemed the fishing had been affected. The next wreck saved the day, with 2-4 fish a drift with mainly a nice stamp of Codling in the 3-4lb bracket.
Sea Urchin “stalwart” Ian Kellock was aboard today and fished brilliantly taking a great bag of fish on Shads and was “Top Rod” by a comfortable margin.
It was fantastic to see a few better sized fish making an appearance, but will be even better when we don’t have to run out so far to find them.
A massive thanks to everyone for an enjoyable day out. -
25/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
25 May 2023 by Andy Savage
We’ve kept plugging away the last three days. To be honest, it’s been great to finally string a few days together, with anglers who I’ve had to cancel for bad weather on countless occasions recently.
Unfortunately, nothing much has changed in terms of the fishing. We’ve continued with plenty of bites from small Codling, Haddock, Whiting and Ling on the rough ground.
We tried a few inshore wrecks today, with an odd fish from each one, but they’re definitely not ripe for the picking yet. The anglers have been fantastic company and very patient as we’ve kept on the move looking to find a better fish here and there.
To summarise, we’ve had a couple of better size fish each day, but they were definitely the exception and not the rule. The biggest going 7lb 8oz from a wreck we tried this morning.
There have been a couple of “Scout” Mackerel caught on other boats, so the clock is ticking…..a huge thanks to the lads this week. The banter has been great. -
14/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
14 May 2023 by Andy Savage
We were back at it again today, but we changed the plan from the previous two days. Instead of running out to the 20 mile stream wrecks, the lads were keen to try a couple of the inshore ones and get more fishing time.
We tried a small wreck first, just five miles from the pier ends. After three drifts, we had only three Codling and a couple of Pouting, so we moved on a couple of miles to a larger wreck. Pleasingly, over the next two hours we had some solid fishing, catching consistently and for the first time this year, slack water was also equally productive. Steve Martin, Neil Fell-Edwards and Keith McCance all took Codling over 5lb and we had a decent stamp overall.
All the fish today came to the usual muppet bait traces with a whole squid mounted on the pennel hooks. Once the Flood Tide came through the rigs were getting stuck a bit more frequently, so we reluctantly moved on.
We fished another three wrecks, but took only a handful of fish from them. Keith helped himself to the biggest fish of the day when the last wreck we fished produced a nice 9lb 8oz Ling. It wasn’t a “Red Letter” day by any stretch, but there are definite signs that the inshore waters are starting to clear out a bit.
Can’t wait for some inshore “wreck hopping” once it clears out properly. Thanks to everyone today for some great company and solid fishing. -
13/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
13 May 2023 by Andy Savage
Today I had the pleasure of The Keel Inn Sea Angling Club from Barnsley on board. After cancelling all their trips last year for bad weather, it was good to finally get them out.
The Northerly wind was a little fresh to start with, but we steamed off to some wrecks in the 20 mile steam again, so it had already started to ease when we arrived at the first wreck of the day. First drop with the tide flooding nicely, saw half a dozen fish come up….encouraging signs. We took 2-4 fish a drift for the next ninety minutes. Mainly Codling in the 3-5lb bracket and a few strap Ling, plus the obligatory small Haddock.
We moved on as the bites slowed right down. The next wreck gave us another decent hour, with Paul “Tog” Edwards taking the biggest Codling of the day at 7lb 8oz.
Quite a few of the lads opted to use Hokkai/Daylight traces today, baited with either Squid, Shrimp or Mackerel, which is a bit different from the “norm” when wrecking at Whitby. After the bites dried up on the second wreck, we moved on to try one more. We took a fish or two each drift, but it never really got going. The fishing overall today wasn’t too bad, with everyone having a few fish to take home.
I don’t particularly like running out 20 miles as it reduces the amount of time we spend fishing, but if I think it’s the best option to get a better stamp of fish, that’s what we have to do.
The lads on board were all great company and I’m looking forward to their next trip when hopefully the wrecks inside will have sparked back into life. -
11/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
11 May 2023 by Andy Savage
Today it was finally time to break out the Factor 50!! We have had barely a breath of wind and fantastic sunshine all day.
With settled weather this week, Tuesday and Wednesday saw us spend most of the days drifting rough ground and a wreck or two at slack water with the Spring 5m tides. The fishing wasn’t exceptional by any standards, with mainly small fish landed, but plenty of bites to the baited Hokkai’s. There are lots of Haddock being caught at the moment, we caught more Haddock on Wednesday, than I had the entire year, last year.
Today we were back into the 4m tide range, so we ran off to some wrecks in the 20 mile stream. First wreck saw some solid fishing for three hours. Most drifts we took 3-5 fish mainly Codling with an odd Ling. They were lovely clean fish mostly in the 3-5lb bracket. Shaun Marchington taking the biggest Codling at just over 7lb. Shads did a few bites initially, but Muppet Bait Traces, baited with a whole squid were really doing the business.
Once the tide fell away towards slack water, we moved on as the bites dried up. The next wreck marked really well on the echo sounder, but we got nothing but small Haddock and a few Codling.
After an hour and with the Ebb Tide away properly, we moved on.
The last wreck we fished wasn’t bad considering the drift speed was 1.2 knots. Some beautiful clean Codling to 5lb for everyone to finish the day.
The weather was fantastic today and the company on board were the same. It’s the most enjoyable day out I’ve had for a while. Plenty of fish caught in fantastic company. Well done everyone. -
02/05/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
2 May 2023 by Andy Savage
Nick Massingham and the boys had the boat booked for the day today. It was a decent wrecking tide and they all love fishing the wrecks, so that was how we spent the day.
With the water still not clear on the inshore wrecks, we had to run off to get to the clear water. The first thing I noticed was that it was much clearer than I’d seen it all year, when we got out there. The first wreck we stopped at, gave us a couple of hours of steady fishing. We took 2-4 fish every drift and most were in the 3-5lb bracket. Everyone got themselves a few in the box, with the exception of trip organiser Nick! For some reason, he had a very slow start, but little did we know what the “Cod Gods” had in store for him!!
We decided to move on a few miles and arrived at our next wreck about 90 minutes before slack water. A pod of dolphins greeted us and kept swimming round the boat as we set up the first drift. It was brilliant to see them swimming close around us. First drift and nobody had a bite, so I thought it might have been a wrong move. After setting up the second drift, it all went a bit mental. There were fish coming up left right and centre. Almost all were good sized quality Codling. Most were 4lb+ and we had half a dozen most runs through.
It was wind against tide so we tiptoed very slowly through the wreck, which was a massive help. Nick Massingham had by now joined the party and was clumping them every run through. Then I saw him lift into what looked like the wreck, but it bounced back……fish on! Fishing with a two muppet bait trace, Nick thought he might have a double shot as he really struggled to winch up his prize. As it turned out, he was wrong, as I slipped the net under a new PB Cod of 15lb 8oz! Credit to Nick, a fish of that size isn’t going to be the best to eat, so after the pictures, it was slipped back for another angler to catch another day.
Squid baited, muppet bait traces, did the damage today. No shock there!
We fished away for the remainder of the day and by the end, the lads were throwing them all back as they were more than happy with what was already in the boxes.
Thanks for a brilliant day out lads, you were all excellent company. -
29/04/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
29 Apr 2023 by Andy Savage
Today was the first day out on Sea Urchin for almost a fortnight, after yet another spell of pants weather….
Today saw a mixed group of anglers ready to have a go. With it being a weekend, we de-conflicted with the other boats, as to where we were all going and we ran out to a wreck at 12 miles to start the day. First drift through saw Stan Matthews’ rod go over and he winched up a nice double shot of Codling. We wrongly (as it turned out) thought we might fill up with a few fish, considering the early positive signs.
We persevered with the wreck through slack and waited for the flood to come. We picked off another few fish, but reluctantly called it a day and moved on as the bites never increased on the change of tide.
We tried another two wrecks for one small Haddock and a couple of Pouting. After that, we ran into the nine mile ground and spent the remainder of the day drifting the rough ground. We caught a few fish each drift for the remainder of the flood tide (Codling, Ling, Haddock, Whiting, Pouting), nothing to set the world on fire, but the action stopped once we lost the Flood tide.
We ended what was for me, yet another disappointing day, on a wreck; but pleasingly, Gaz Townend managed to pull up a couple of Codling to end the day.
I won’t try and and “dress up” another well below par day on Sea Urchin. I’m very grateful to the anglers who keep me going out to sea. I really hope the fishing improves soon and I can get on some fish. -
14/04/2023
Fishing Report by Andy Savage
14 Apr 2023 by Andy Savage
It was great to get a day out with some of my regular anglers after a week off with poor weather.
The inshore grounds and wrecks were pretty quiet for us last week, so today the weather conditions allowed us to get out to some wrecks in the 20 mile stream. I say wrecks…..but in the end we actually stayed on the same one all day!
Having experienced anglers on board was a great help, as it allows me to make better decisions on whether to move on or not. With the group on board today, if there were fish to be had, they would get them.
We arrived just as the Flood tide got away and with the wind holding us up on the drift, we tiptoed across, which was perfect for this “chewy” wreck.
Four Codling on the first run was a great relief and we then proceeded to take 4-6 fish a drift for the remainder of the tide. Tony Barrett could do no wrong today and at dinnertime he’d had only one drift when he didn’t pick up a fish or two. The stamp of fish was pretty decent with Tony having three over 6lb, the biggest being 6lb 15oz.
Everyone got fish today; the dominant tactic was muppet bait traces, but Dave Makin took Codling to 6lb 4oz on Shads, which was good to see. As the tide eased into slack a few Pouting and Ling came up and unfortunately Dave Sharp and Ian Steadman both had good fish make it back into the scrap which was a shame. The ones that got away…….
The day flew by for me with loads of chat and mickey taking going on amongst the lads. We headed back to Whitby just before the Ebb tide got going.
Thanks for a brilliant day out lads. I thoroughly enjoyed your company.
