Thirteen year old Jack Pike enjoyed a day afloat on his father Kevin Pikes boat a 21ft Orkney Day Angler he landed a fine spurdog of 15lb 2oz and a tope of 21lb 14oz. Cameron Atkinson also shared the days sport landing a smoothound of 14lb 6oz while Andrew Atkinson boated a fighting fit smoothound of 15lb 1oz.
Richard Budge won this years Putsborough Open competition organized by Combe Martin Sea Angling Club with a specimen smoothound scaling 10lb 5oz. Runner up in the event was David Brooke who landed a fine small-eyed ray weighing 10lb 1oz. Richard Budge secured the pool with his smoothound weighing 10lb 5oz and a small-eyed ray of 8lb 4oz that also secured third prize. Thirty eight anglers fished in the competition that was generously sponsored by Sakuma Tackle, Ammo Baits, Braunton Bait Box,chillcheaters and Veal’s Mail Order and Combe Martin SAC providing £150 prize money. Competitors enjoyed ideal conditions and landed a good number of small-eyed ray and dogfish with a few smoothound.
FULL PUTSBOROUGH RESULTS
1st – Richard Budge – smoothound 10lb 5oz
2nd – David Brooke -small eyed ray – 10lb 1oz
3rd – Richard Budge – small eyed ray – 8lb 4oz
4th – David Brooke – small eyed ray – 8lb 2oz
5th Robert Hancock – small eyed ray – 6lb 153/4oz
6th – Dan Dan Miles Redmore -small eyed ray -6lb 71/2oz
7th – David Brooke – small eyed ray 6lb 7oz
8th – Graham Snow – dogfish – 1lb 141/2oz
9th – Andrew Atkinson – small eyed ray – 6lb 5oz
10th – Graham Snow – dogfish 1lb 13oz
11th – Chris Slade – small eyed ray- 6lb 1oz
Stephen Jenkins – small eyed ray – 6lb 1oz
Pool – Richard Budge smoothound 10lb 5oz & small eyed ray 8lb 4oz
Junior prize – Jack Phillips – dogfish 1lb 8oz
Shore anglers are enjoying some fine sport with smoothound packs prowling their regular haunts all along the coast. CMSAC member Dan Spearman landed a personal best specimen of 13lb 6oz. Fellow member Matt Jeffery also landed a smoothound of 10lb 6oz.
Lee Watts won North Devon Leagues Champion of Champion match with a smoothound scaling 12lb 4oz. Steve Luxton was runner up with a hound of 11lb 4oz.
Thin Lipped grey mullet are now providing sport in the Taw and Torridge estuaries with baited spinners the tried and tested tactic. Recent seasons have seen specimens to over five pounds landed.
Mackerel are being caught off Ilfracombe but numbers are patchy at the moment with Pollock also being tempted on feathers. Garfish are also being tempted by anglers float fishing off the pier.
I fished a short LRF session with fellow Combe Martin SAC member Rob Sciones and whilst I failed to tempt any fish Rob tempted a fine bass of 6lb 3oz using a single king ragworm presented on a weighted jig head.
Dan Spearman landed a corkwing wrasse of 9oz. These brightly coloured wrasse are often caught by LRF anglers and do not grow to a large size the British Record standing at 360 grams. (Approx.12oz). The more commonly caught ballan wrasse seem to have declined in North Devon waters with large specimens seldom reported in recent years. Five pound plus fish were relatively common thirty years ago. The number of wrasse caught could be in part to a lack of anglers targeting the species as commercial fisheries do not generally target the species.
Dan Hawkins Charter Boat ‘Reel Deal” has moved to Ilfracombe for the summer season and has taken customers in search of porbeagle shark from marks West of Hartland Point. The early season big porbeagle proved challenging with several huge fish hooked but not brought to the side of the boat. Perseverance eventually brought its reward however when a huge porbeagle estimated at 450lb was successfully brought to the boat. The huge shark was carefully unhooked and returned to the sea where it swam strongly away. The fish was attracted to the boat using rubby-dubby supplied by Ammo baits. The shark took over 150yards of 50olb b.s line on its first run and was tamed by two anglers. Alex Steal hooking the fish and playing it until he passed the rod to his mate David Brooks who brought the battle to a successful conclusion. The fish was hooked less than a mile from the rocky shoreline and was tempted used a Pollock hook bait.
