The boat fishing continues to be excellent with light winds and warm weather helping everyone. The hard fighting smoothhounds are building in bigger packs as well as plenty of small to medium sized bass around to be caught. The mackerel shoals are still spasmodic but as we move into Summer they will provide great sport and bait for the angler.
Scott Walsh and Charlotte Davis launched from the Gunfleet Boat Club during the week in calm seas. They had bass, pouting, bass, dogfish and rays. Charlotte also caught her first ever thornback ray!
Chris Jaibahadur and Martin Smyth fished from Chris’s boat off the St Oysth coastline and landed upwards of 20 rays to 10lbs plus whiting, and Chris also landed a good size bass.
Chris Jaibahadur with a good size bass caught from his boat off the St Osyth coastline
Walton on the Naze is also producing fish, with Neil Marples fishing from his own boat Milore. He landed 5 bass to 3lbs on ragworm baits, plus as many dogfish as he could land.
St Osyth beach seems the place to head for, the thornback ray are feeding in force. Local angler John Moakes and Steve Wallings fished a night tide here and caught 12 thornback rays between them weighing up to 8lb 1oz. All their rays were caught on herring or squid baits.
Colchester Sea Angling Club headed for the Holland beaches for the second round of the Colchester Bait & Tackle evening league match. 15 hardy anglers fished a flood tide in very wet conditions, but plenty of fish were caught. Top angler on the night with a massive weight of 31lbs 14oz was Craig Buy, his catch included three thornback ray and numerous dogfish. Craig also landed the heaviest fish of the match in the form of a 7lb 14oz ray. Second place went to Neil Cocks with 13lb 2oz and third Gary Hambleton 11lb 7oz.
Winners of the latest Colchester Sea Angling Club’s latest Match. Winner Craig Buy (middle), 2nd Neil Cocks (right) and third Gary Hambleton (left)
Colchester Sea Angling Club’s next match is on Sunday at Sizewell.
The Holland beaches in general are quiet during the day, but evening tides and fishing after dark will greatly increase your chances of catching fish.
Clacton Pier continues to produce rays with some into double figures. School bass are being caught on ragworm baits or lures from around the pier piles, with dogfish being caught after dark.
Frinton beaches are seeing more school bass and the odd thornback ray, the first of the bigger soles should arrive here soon.
Walton Pier is a good venue to head for during the day with great sport to be had from garfish, school bass and wrasse on light tackle fishing around the pier piles. Thornback ray are showing from the top of the pier on some tides, once again to increase your chances of a ray fish into darkness.
The high tides for the weekend are Saturday 15.25 and Sunday 16.14.
