My buddy Jeff Smith knows his stuff. When he calls to ask if I fancy joining him for a day on his boat....then I try and move heaven and earth to make space in my work schedule and join him.
He knows the ground off the port of Littlehampton like the back of his hand and his boat handling skills are exceptional. Not only that, he's a talented angler and top man to spend a day at sea with. There's never a dull moment!
This trip was all about searching for Bream on the shallow reef marks a few miles offshore. With fine weather and good water conditions, it was all looking good as we made our way out of the River Arun into open water in the morning.
To keep it fun with the Bream we were armed with 12lb class boat rods and small multiplier reels loaded with braid. Bait for the day was a couple of boxes of squid and some frozen mackerel. Jeff likes to anchor uptide of the reefs and fish the baits back over the rough ground.
At the business, end we use a simple running ledger, a trace of 3 or 4 feet of light fluorocarbon finished off with a floating bead or two and a size 2 short shank aberdeen hook. The trick is to use as little lead as possible and to trot the tackle back down over the reef in the tide to the fish. The floating bead(s) and long-ish trace help to give movement and life to the bait which the bream seem to like.
It's simple, fun fishing at it's best....which is how it should be. Also, trotting the baits down the tide keeps you active which I really enjoy. It's preferable to static, 'bait and wait' tactics in my opinion. The hard fighting qualities, good looks and gourmet table-fare of the bream complete the package. There's no need to fill the boat, but I do like to take a fish home for my wife and I to enjoy after a days bream fishing (within size of course!). It's a great perk of this wonderful branch of angling.
The fishing wasn't on fire but the bites were steady with a nice procession of fish to keep us interested. As is often the way at this time of year, there were a couple of smoothounds thrown in for good measure. A great scrap on the light tackle and always welcome......and a few dogfish of course. It wouldn't be UK sea angling without a couple of these!
A great day out in fine company with some excellent fishing thrown in for good measure...Whats not to like?
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