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ALDERNEY - 2005 |
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Monday 25 July We all met up at 7.30 am outside The Sailors Return Pub where six of the group had stayed overnight and after loading our fishing tackle, suitcases, loading up with ice (for storing the daily catches of fish) and sand-eels we were on our way at 8.30 am. The weather was calmer than forecasted with light southwest wind and a slight sea (all the other Charter Boats had cancelled their day trips due to this forecast) The passage across the English Channel from Weymouth to Alderney is the shortest crossing possible. Alderney is only 56 nautical miles from Weymouth. During the crossing, skipper Paul Whittal visited several of the many wrecks along the way where we caught some decent sized Pollack, Cod and Bass to 6lb. We hopped from wreck to wreck and the type of fishing was dictated by what the tide was doing at the time. Unfortunately Peter, Tom, Pom and Andy were feeling under the weather from the night before and repeatedly were ‘ground baiting’ during the crossing. By late morning the sun had broken through and we enjoyed a warm sunny crossing. After negotiating our passage between the numerous supertankers and large ships in the Channel we saw our first sight of Alderney at 1.30 pm in the distance, with the Cherbourg Peninsular approx 20 miles off to the Southeast. We sailed along the east side of Alderney, about 1 mile offshore and began fishing in the tide races for Bass, we were immediately rewarded with medium sized fish to 5lb. We then moved to the northeast banks and enjoyed an hour or so of Bream fishing, again with good catches being landed. In what seemed like no time at all, and lots of cups of coffee and tea later, Offshore Rebel slipped into Braye Harbour at 7.00 pm.
Tuesday 26 July After a good nights sleep at the L’Haras Guesthouse and a relaxing night at the local watering holes and eating places we were off to sea by 8.30 am. Unfortunately the weather had turned to the worse with a force 3-4 blowing from the southwest with rain and sea mist. This however didn’t dampen our spirits as we headed to the west side of the island, passing the small island of Burhou famous for its large colony of breeding Gannets which cover the entire island in a mass of white. We started by drifting in the tide and using ‘feathers’ to catch a stock of live sand-eels to be used for the Bass fishing. We also caught some Mackerel to be used for bait during the week. We got into some serious Bream fishing using a Portland Rig with squid and Mackerel strip as bait. This lasted for about two hours until the tide slackened and it was time to move along the island to pick up the tide on the Bass grounds, the marks were well defined by the water/tide pattern and with the boat drifting at between 2 and 3 knots we knew exactly when to expect a take. After several drifts at three locations and with over 30 Bass and 25 Bream on board we headed back to Braye Harbour, all a bit disappointed at the weather conditions but pleased with the fishing.
Wednesday 27 July As we left the harbour the sea was flat calm and the sun was shining brightly in a clear blue sky and we could see the Cherbourg Peninsular very clearly off to the east. Today was the day for the Species Competition with points being awarded for the most number of fish caught in each group of species i.e. (5 points for ‘Flatfish’, 3 points for Bass, 2 points for Bream and 1 point for anything else except Mackerel). We were to be fishing along the east side of Alderney and we started off by targeting flatfish. These banks to the South and East of the island are a haven for the much sought after species of Turbot and Brill. Several decent sized brill and one turbot were unexpectedly caught as a trawler with nets out had just gone through the bank before we arrived. My success was a 4lb 7oz Brill. The Competition continued with spells of Bass and Bream fishing along the east and north sides of the island. The Competition was quite close with four anglers changing the leaders position, but eventually it was between Wayne and myself and at the end I ended up 10 points clear (see photo of scorecard).
Thursday 28 July Another clear sunny day welcomed us as we left the harbour for a spell at Tope fishing. The wind had freshened to a force 3 to 4 and the sea was quite ‘lumpy’ as we headed east. We fished an area just northwest of the Nannels known as Speedy rock. We set the anchor and all dropped our lines into the quite choppy sea, hoping that the anchor would hold in the strong tide and wind. The Tope fishing here was a revelation, with all anglers saying it was the most exciting Tope fishing they had ever experienced Wayne landed a nice 45 pounder, I had a 35lb, Tom 15lb, Chris 20lb and Andy a 12lb Bull Huss. Eventually after about three hours it became too rough to stay at anchor so Paul decided to move into the lee of the island, along the north corner of the island. We enjoyed several hours of Bream fishing, but unfortunately the Bass were not to be found.
Friday 29 July Another warm sunny morning greeted us as we loaded our suitcases back on board and having spent four nights on the island it was time to make our way back to Weymouth. We repeated our trip over by stopping off at several the wrecks in mid-Channel and catching some Pollack to 8lb and a solitary Cod of 4 lb. We enjoyed the sight of two basking sharks over 12 feet long swimming alongside the boat just below the surface. When the tide changed and began to pick up it was time to head north and try for some Bass on wrecks nearer our destination. At six o'clock Offshore Rebel pulled into Weymouth to clear the Customs formalities and to sort out the fish that we had filleted and iced down. It was a very enjoyable trip with over 50 Bass to 7lb, 60 Bream, 3 Brill, 1 Turbot, 1 Bull Huss and numerous minor species
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