Well considering things have escalated slightly on the wall I could have posted yesterday morning but didn’t so I figure I have too make up a new reason why that I havn’t used so I will blame it on stress caused by the
DEPT of the SS AKA the old DSS now forever known as the bods at Universal credit.
These wonderful people have been asking me for a doctors sick note aka a “fit to work” note. Now, considering I have been on full levels of PIP for a few years and jumped through all the hoops they get you doing as well as so called medical checks and exams by their “cough cough” professionals the ppl involved with UC have invited me down for an appointment. WHY< because they want too explain too me why they want a sick note from my GP.
Now I wouldnt mind but I do have a list of conditions ranging from annoying too fekin painful that is longer than most peoples arms, I got fed up of asking for an appointment over the last 5 months so I decided to very precisely update my list of conditions on their online form for “changes” being as no one there would explain why after being on full PIP so long they wanted a GP letter rather than all the info supplied to the health deparmnets and PIP people(UC have full access too my PIP forms and GP access too as them). Anyhoo I started listing my conditions , 1 in each box provided , and on the 20th on I realised I had run out o spaces. So in the notes I explained I couldnt put them all in !
Guess what, they sent me an appointment too “sort it out” ffs
So , the excuse for no blog yesterday …. stress. The reality…. I forgot !

And so we come too the fishing, after a fashion anyhow being as thb it has been very poor and I will repeat that has been a similar story at most south coast venues.
Saturday, on arrival onto the wall I had a chat with the night dude who told me it had fished well with plenty of squid bream and plaice coming out on the first opening of the west this year.

YES the west is open, yes its open 24/7 BUT it hasnt been jet washed so any rain or excess water from waves splashing up etc will see the wall closed again. We will keep it open for as long as possible

Once on the EAST on Saturday It was a very v familiar feel too things with may muttering about so few Mackerel about and its now feeling and seeming like the arse has fallen out of the stock and mackerel are truly on the verge of being a memory ICES who monitor fish stocks last year listed mackerel as “AT RISK” this year the recruiting drive by the Angling Trust is trumpeting save our mackerel, sadly I suspect they are over a year too late too the party and the bottom has fallen away,

could mackerel be an extinct species by next year ? very very possible. Shocking as it seems it now maybe already too late. Over fishing is rapidly collapsing food chains in the see and massive change is needed perhaps starting with the ships capable of catching processing and sending too shore without docking for months on end such as the monster factory ships. Too many species and fish stocks are being decimated by modern fishing methods, growing populations and over fishing is like a cancer on the planet bleeding its resources dry and rapid changes are needed before the ability too fish from our own shores is lost.

Right, thats the doom and gloom mostly out of the way. Saturday was again a tough day on the mackerel with a few coming up here n there but hardly any “strings” of 4-5 fish. There was a ray of light though as squid were now being caught on & off throughout the day and the garfish were getting better in sizes so a fair mix of decent gar in with the needles. 74 on Saturday was likely the best producer and although I only had a quick look they had some quite nice plaice up there but seemed a bit reluctant too talk with me so I moved back down the wall chatting and selling frozen bait and fresh black that I had.
There were a few plaice being caught some of which were decent keepers and “that bay” didnt disappoint as Bernard was caught once more.

Overall considering the conditions of flat calm and dull skies things on the east were a bit naff and I had expected better. The EAST swapped back to 7.30 closing as the WEST wall was reopened at 5pm for night fishing followed by a continuous opening until the conditions force us too close it down again.
Unsurprisingly at 5pm there was a queue already waiting on mark too open the wall and I know quite a few who were on the east were packed up by 4.30pm and headed over there early for its opening up.

I got onto the west wall about 5.30 and checked with most people I they needed anything slowly working my way up the wall towards the toilet block so that I could stick the quad on charge ready for my run home up manor hill mountain and while chatting too a few regulars had a eww people come over and buy bits n bobs toping their gear up and also bait.
With the shop shutting most days on or about 4pm I tend now too get onto the EAST about 4pm and will then take the quad over too the WEST for anyone needing stuf and take the chance too charge the bloody iffy scooter back up. SAT night on the west as soon as the wall opened the fish and squid were being caught with decent plaice and bream being caught and then squid arrived just before sunset. Just before I left I saw a decent conger come out at bay 24 and gather there were quite a few caught that night. There were feathers out but I cant say I saw any mackerel caught but I guess that there were some had.

Sunday saw me roll onto the wall in chillier conditions than most of the week and by time I got on there the tide was dropping and many had departed, either for the west or home so getting a decent feel for what was going on was harder but the warden John did say things were very quiet and bar a few early squid he hadnt seen much of anything caught. There was a similar tale all along the wall from the ew that were there until I got to about bay 29 were a group o 3-4 lads were suddenly into a ew mackerel. One or two people moved down too the bend too take advantage of the flurry of fish but things were seriously quiet as I went up the wall too meet John H who was packing up, after a brief chat he said he may stop on the bend & see if he could pick up a few prior too heading home.
I turned the quad around and trundled back down the wall too see the lads were still getting some fish here n there. And with that I was off over too the WEST.

On the west while checking , most people had what they needed and I parked the scooter up, sold a few more bits and decided too have a dabble with the rod half heartedly mostly too kill a bit of time while the scooter continued too charge back up before running it up mount manor hill. There were a number o squid coming out as the light dropped and I gather again bream and plaice were being caught. Strangely I didn’t hear of any mackerel (should have guessed I wouldnt) but also this weekend with the WEST open I haven’t heard of any horse mackerel catches, they may well be there but I simply haven’t been told of them. and that was it for the night.

Now comes the bad news as literally as I type this up….
Mark has just informed my that the
WEST WALL IS NOW CLOSED
the builders have returned , it seems they now have more work too do over there and the work hadn’t been signed off and so Im afraid too say the WEST is SHUT until further notice. No further info available atm

No report tomorrow as I wont be on the wall today. !
and with that I will sign off until the next one and bid you all ADIEU

a,k,a, The Saga of The WEST…………..

WEST wall info only, scroll down too red highlighted section

Well it is I guess happy Saturday tho yesterday was mixed blessings (bet u want too know about the west!) well for regular readers here they already know whats happening, for the new visitors because of the west ya gonna have too just wade through the waffling bullshine that I type🤣🤣 because my typing doesnt quite read like normal peoples. Yup you get my weird brain process that literally works as I type. Ramblin’ Rose aint got nothing on me (one for the oldies like me.)
Anyhooo Friday started with a phone call from Mark as a few have done this week saying that the workmen had finished and been told too leave all the fencing up on the west due too the bloody awful condition on it and that he was going too have a serious chat with “DER MANAG-MENT”(if u know u know), more on that call in a few waffles time, although I did get a second call not too long later that I shall for now like yesterday mostly keep too myself for now.

And thus I got the quad ready too roll down onto the east with some frozen bait and other bits and rolled the quad out (bloody troublesome thing) and down Manor hill towards the west oops the EAST wall as per usual. As we get deeper into the Autumn I am and will continue too roll out a bit earlier and look too get onto the wall after the shop has shut somewhen close to 4pm ish with frozen baits and Black if I can get it plus a few other bits.
If anyone wants anything while on the wall the wardens do have my number so please ask them too let me know what you need as I can put a bit extra on the quad and bring down at the usual time but
PLEASE NOTE
I dont run a delivery service as such and nor will I do drops when the shop is open. I see it as a way for anglers too get what they need when the shop is closed without having too travel out of the marina and usually I do the one run in the late afternoon. (more on how & when later).

And so having been pre informed that one angler had “had it away” with squid on the morning tide I was met by the cafe by their 2 crazy dogs and I suspect they will be stuck in my head known as in the older kids cartoon “TWO STUPID DOGS” while not stupid they do go a bit potty when they clock sight of me due too the dog biscuits I keep in my pocket. At this point I will (waffle a bit more) say, if you carry treats for any other dogs that are not yours, please, please always ask the owner if it is ok too give them some nibbles ( I carry dog biscuits rather than treats)as you never know if the dog is on a special diet and importantly for you, IS the dog friendly !

Thus, 2 stupid dogs spoilt I rolled onto the wall . The 1st lad & his dad I met were squid hunting and the lad informed me he had not long arrived and literally just dropped a squid, decent news as the tide was fast dropping. by bays 11/12 another regular whose name I should remember but cant(my brain can b frustrating) was pulling out his 2nd or 3rd squid as I stopped for a gab and gave him the news I had regarding the west wall. YES I’m teasing you, more re the wall in a bit (not long now folks honest)

Following on to bay 14 ish I saw the best garfish i’d seen this year with a very healthy length and body size folded over in a bucket and perhaps 20 inches in length. Further on into the bend properly it was clear that things were slow (were are all the mackerel?)although there were garfish scattered all along the wall many were small and one or two ppl I had a chat with and reminding them that gar have a min size of 38cm which is almost the length of 2 mackerel! Catches were few and far between although by time I reached the steps at 29 Id seen a ew gar, perhaps 5-6 mackerel and 5-6squid, 4 of which were landed as I was passing so very good signs for the comp on the 18th,yes next Saturday.

Now, as I trundled upto bay 29 Mark caught me up on his turbo bike and gave me an upto date on what was going on with the WEST WALL so I will now take a rewind too that 1st phone call yesterday morning.(major wale but also info follows)
I was already aware of the state of the WEST. Heavy algae on the entire lower level, some fixable pot holes on the upper and loads of sand(i guess left spills from the workmen over the weeks) As too holes on the lower well the worst was at 16 and less a hole more a bloody great crack. Its a shame tbh as the work crews fixes some damages but left others, maybe not wanting too venture too much on the lower levels as when damp they can be like ice rings…. bloody slippery.
In the toilet block debris from junkies had too be cleared (yep fences constantly cut on the west during work) and the wall linings in the toilet had much o it peeling away. Part vandalism and part due too the toilet side has no main door leaving the place fully open too the elements.
For those that remember the toilet block has 2 steps too enter and the lower step has now gone, perhaps deliberately removed by work crews for a wider access onto the extension for cranes. Im please too say the wall overlooking the extension had been rebuilt as it was also removed so a ramp could be build for cranes onto the extension. Unfortunately we have no safe access onto the extension as the steps down are smashed. Remember the “CAGE” that separated the toilet block from the wall ? well that was removed again for access and somewhen during one of the storm the actual gate was lost over the side so we have had too hence that off.

So, that 1st call was from as said Mark too inform me that the workmen who were finishing off had been told by marina management ( yes “DER-MANAGEMENT” hale & pace) too leave all the fences in place. Mark wasnt happy as had need of the wall open if at all possible and i fenced off had no way too prepare it. Hence I had been awaiting the 2nd call from Mark for any outcome of him discussing plans with (yup) “DER-MANAGEMENT”
And thus we get too the 2nd call after Marks “meet” the outcome of wich was Mark had indeed got access too the west and was with help working furiously on the west wall too try and get it into some sort of shape and too try if possible

OPEN the WEST wall in some manner.

So started some amazing work cleaning up the toilet block for use fencing off areas and putting up barriers and finally that was when Mark arrived on the EAST too tell me that he would indeed
OPEN THE WEST for night fishing last night.
TODAY the WEST will again OPEN at 6pm allowing further work on the west to continue.

IMPORTANT, once OPEN the WEST will remain open 24/7 while the decent weather holds. Needless too say any wet weather/ frost or excess water getting onto the WEST WILL CLOSE it straight away as it has not been jetwashed. Users are advised that the wall when wet WILL be slippery so please keep the buckets off water as few spills as you can or you will be ice skating rather than fishing.
While the west may look like its been hit by an earthquake and tsunami MARK ROBINSON has done a bloody amazing job first getting access and then getting it in some level of condition too open.
Anglers are reminded that night lights on the west should be blue headlamps , small white lights may be used on the back too access tackle kits etc, and lights in the water should also be blue. The wardens do have gear too cover lights if ppl dont have so please ask duty wardens too sort for you.

Back over too the east and bay 29 upwards a vary familiar story for this year continued. Conditions were dull & overcast with the sea flat calm. OH and I forgot too mention, below 29 that once or twice bay catch of Gurnard, well, Im gonna call it Bernard, but yup, another Bernard the Gurnard was again caught on the same bay as the previous 5 days …. spooky.
Trundling up towards the rocks I was stopped by Vellen and his mate who wanted a couple of squid jigs and a #2 or #4 1up 1down rig which was dully supplied and on I ventured towards 55-60 which had a few familiar Faces and regular squider James. They between them had managed 4-5 squid fairly close too my time of arrival and I believe one of the squid was picked up by accident as a bottom rig was retrieved ! go figure, weird things happening on the wall.

Bay 60 were the last bods on the wall so I turned the quad around and started heading for the café and off over too the west too try & get the lipping thing charged being as it looses charge so fast.

Part way down I was stopped by Vellen with a simple comment of, “that rig you sorted me with” and me thinking oh no wt happened as Vellen then pointed and said, “I just caught that”. Now to say my ghast was flabbered may just be an understatement and while yes the fish pic was taken by what I call “sussex arms” (yes there a copy over there) it defo was quite a surprise. (pic at bottom of page) I had only been away from their bay 15 mins so I was very plesantly surprised . News spread fast of the cod and quite a few were asking too see the pic that was posted too the marina group. and lower down here.

And thus I trundled of the east and headed too the WEST too see i Mark wanted a hand with anything and importantly recharge the scooter which is it seems wearing out fast. and so onto the west and set the scooter up too charge and realised I had no extension lead with me (Sht nooo) then remembered there was one in the lock up store went hunting only too find the bloody thing busted with broken pins . Almost as if a lorry had run over it. Bee-locks!
Pub it would have too be so rolled around too the Mariners who are happy for me too plug in while I have a beer. I couldnt stay too long as someone was going too be dropping some worm off at my place somewhen abouts 7pm!.
Stayed for one and got ready too head home. BIG bloody mistake, I shoulda stayed for 2 as the quad needed a longer charge and by time I got past asda and then up & out of the marina I realised I had cocked up and th charge would most likely not get me and my fat arse home especially up manor hill ! FOOOOK
Well yep the motor was struggling on low charge and over heating kills a lot of its OOMPFHHH so sat at the bottom of the hill for a few mins too cool it down a bit & attempted the hill, I got a third o the way, turned it of again and phoned the wife for help. She is lighter than me & if I carried the bait box we should get the bloody wheels up the hill. The walking nr killed me ! but did finally get it home and into the shed on charge as I collapsed knackered.

At about 7.30 my m8 phoned saying he was on his way but heavy traffic as had been an accident but he had managed to get me 300 very very nice fresh yesterday dug black. So as per I will be on the wall later with frozen squid, mackerel and some fresh juicy black.
Today I can at least spend a bit of time on the west parked up charging so I can actually get home without a knackering walk up hill.

WEST WALL opens at 5pm tonight
Blue lights in force as before and underwater lights need too be blue also, if you are there by 6ish I will see you later.
And with that, the
SAGA OF THE WEST
comes too an end and I will as usual sign off until the next one I will as per bid you all ADIEU
F

P.S.
That piccy … aka unicorn

Yes, I admit it I like the old tv advert. For those feeling like WTF does that mean, google is your friend. “google” what is crunchie day 🤣
Anyhoo, no further advance on news of the west as it seems the builders have been asked too leave the fencing in place as they finish up thus preventing anyone getting up there too even do running repairs (which is bloody disappointing ) BUTTTTTTT let it not be said there isnt or wasnt a plan. Mark has had a chat with marina management and a plan is being put together..so…

THERE COULD be some good news fairly quickly with perhaps an
ANNOUNCEMENT sometime between now and monday/ I would say watch this space but depending on time and day the announcement is likely too go onto facebook first then then perhaps the homepage b4 posting here but

MARK is working very hard on getting the WEST in shape for opening to allow night fishing asap



Yes the damage isnt great and there are issues with the toilet block having been open too the elements but I suspect a chunk of it could be papered over so to speak and get us a temp fisk so Mark will be making enquiries as the day & weekend continues.

On the fishing ront, the EAST will again be open until 10pm tonight, the decision re when it will open late is being made day too day simply because now we are firmly into the Autumn conditions sometimes can change rapidly so better too make a day by day call. A hint as too will it be open depend on
Trade, if a low tide between 9pm & midnight will ppl want too fish and Autumn low tide and
weather, is it dry and frost free, we do have an algae build slowly on the wall so any dampness means reducing the open section of the wall and constant monitoring (harder too do i dark).

There ya go, the 2 main factors for Mark too consider opening.

On the fishy front we have had a couple of quite disappointing days especially after Tuesdays promising day of mackerel being caught(all be it slowly) through most of the day. Yes there were mackerel but so ew you would hardly have noticed them being caught. While there yesterday there were perhaps 20 mackies caught along the entire wall. The better number were caught below bay 30 and above 30 most of the catches were flat fish, mostly plaice but I swear I saw a flounder high on the wall also.
Weirdly I suspect we have a serial biting Gurnard as the same bay has seen one caught every day of the week so far! I wonder if its the same fish that has got a taste for peoples bait! v creepy. Another gurnard was caught higher, nothing special ppl may say but it is always nice too see these fish with their bright colours showing. Mixed catches for the regulars fishing up on the 55-60 bays and a few mentioning plans too sat and have a go for squid later as the light would fade.
I don’t know i any or how many were caught last night but id be surprised if they didnt come out too play as the light went as they have been doing so all week . Also from one of the posts this morning on the east I see that quite a few squid had been caught this morning with one angler posting a piccy of 20 squid caught this morning.
Thats it for today, keep an eye out and an ear for news of the west as it may happened this weekend !
Thats it, so until the next one I will bid you all ADIEU
F

Well not quite but I can confirm that Dave Grinham was on the east wall yesterday and actually had a rod in his hand that wasnt the end of a jet washer ! almost as shocking was that he wasn’t fishing for bass(unless he has changed methods) and actually had feather on the end of his line ! not that it did him any good.
Much too most peoples dismay the mackies decided yet again too have a flippin day off. On a serious note though, I must admit it is always good too see him on the wall fishing or not 🤣

Now, while I painted a fairly gloomy picture yesterday regarding the WEST WALL, Mark & Dave plan too have a proper looksee tomorrow over there and asses what can or cant possibly done to get perhaps some of the wall open. As with anything of this nature promises cant be made even though we all want the wall open and available too use we are always limited by safety and insurance protocols but….. as Mrs Connery once put it too her then husband and spawning the title of a bond film… Never say Never ..again 👀

Now I bet there are now some out there reading this thinking “offs he’s off on one of his bloody rambles again” go on admit it🤣🤣

If the truth be known you just about already had it if you read back a bit but I will now add some detail before you all change channel and listen too the BBC and no it don’t stand for Big B**** erm male chicken 😉

And so ladies and gentlemen and members of the coe-miteeeeeeeee I have a story for you all.
Yesterday I again got the quad out of the shed, this time a tad earlier being as jnr had had a dabble on the wall yesterday morning & told me Dave was down there (he had told me he would be the day b4) For a change I had some music playing on the phone too, just too annoy people a little. Had a chat with the cafe dude and rolled onto the wall as said a bit earlier than usual too find the first few bays empty upto bay 12!
This was unexpected as Id figured there would be more down there due too the mackerel reports most of the day on Tuesday, but nope it was fairly quiet low down considering id posted that most of the fish that day were below 17, go figure.
Anyhoo as I got near the bend a few rods started too be visible and also a few of this years familiar faces(im starting too recognise a few that are new too me) and plenty of rods on the wall bend proper. I rapidly got told there were almost no mackerel about and only a couple caught, a bit strange as there were quite a few needle thin garfish coming out and a quick plug for the website size regs page, regarding small fish.
go on, click the link 😉 https://thetackleboxbrighton.com/size-regs/
Folks, please, if a fish doesnt look big enough too make a meal and you plan too keep it please check the size regs first, many of the gars and plaice currently being caught are undersized and should be returned.
Minimum size for Garfish is 38cm, almost double that of mackerel and plaice is 27cm
lastly on this if they are too small please return them as carefully as you can. lets face it no one likes being told by a warden that their catch is too small and if we are asking you to return it , yup, others notice “you got told” so please make the wardens job just a little easier and if it isn’t big enough too make a meal, why keep it ?, take a pic pop it back please.

and so, back 🎼 up around the bend🎼 on the wall and the many rods the catch reports so far went, a few tiny Garfish, 2-3 mackerel, a few plaice about the size of my hands aaaannnndddddd another gurnard. Not sure why I seem too being Gurnards every day but I will admit that I think they are a great fish too look at when in full colour and even better when they are large enough, they make fantastic eating.
Up and past to 29/30 and there were quite a few very familiar faces and regulars with Miraj so I stopped and had a decent chat and another look at the drop nets he has in development one a triangular drop net that unclips too fold into a tubular bag looks the business and hopefully he can get them into production after a bit more testing. More on that one when I get the info for it.

By bay 40 the bulk of catches on the straight section from 20-40 were mostly small plaice, a couple of mackerel and im told by Nick Hunter that 3 decent shad were also caught then released. beyond 40 there were only a few and 3 lads informed me they had had up until then 5 species of hound pup, Gurnard(again!) garfish, and if my memory serves me right (apologies lads if i forgot) plaice and whiting.
Just leaving also was Angus and Richard who were able too confirm the cracking red mullet (a.k.a. goat fish) that weighed 1lb 9oz, I will when some spare time sort some pics from FB for the galleries but it may be a few day away.

If anyone missed the update on the home page, the east will again be open until 10pm and quite possibly tomorrow also but wont add it until mark has confirmed.
Finally being as the wall stayed open yesterday until 10pm , I can also confirm that some squid were had on the east last night.

Thats it folks, well until the next one, and other than a quick nod to the dude that spoke with me about how he enjoys the blogs and that they are quite varied with other info thrown in, Im v sorry but despite you having a name I didnt expect (and mentioned it) I am sorry but true too form I have forgotten your name. 🤦‍♂️And with that I am away from the KB, and so, until the next one I will bid you all ADIEU
F

Well, Mark managed too get a look at the WEST WALL this morning and it is not good news I am afraid too say.
The extension steps down are in need of repair and the extension itself is heavy with algae, probably more than expected considering the work that has been going on up there and likely too be out of use for some time.
The toilet block is in a sorry state due too probable combination of the elements, junkies and vandals with all of the special covering peeling away from the walls and internal damage. protective fencing that had been put up too stop people getting onto the wall while work was ongoing had been constantly cut by arseholes getting up too the toilet including some twats that have been getting up there fishing while it has been closed.
As too the main part of the wall.
While some repairs have been done and expected broken wires will be repaired there are chunks that are in need of sorting including a large cracked section at bay 16 and lots of “pot holes” along the wall on upper and lower levels. Both level will need jet washing too bring them up to safety standards with the lower level worse than the upper walkways.
And just too cap it all off (for fun) there will be the inevitable question of who foots the bill for what repairs so the WEST WON’T be opening anytime soon and unlikely this year.

On the fishy front. Yesterday when I got down onto the wall I was pleasantly surprised by the water state considering there was still a westerly breeze it was definitely UNDER the forecasted wind speed and the water colour was clearing very quickly and no doubt I will find it much clearer today when I get down there.

As mark posted yesterday on the FB group, there were mackerel being caught from mid morning and the numbers did increase over the high tide, something quite rare tbh this year! Now while I say the catches increased you couldnt see any shoals breaking the surface as in past years and although caught numbers were decent most that caught did do quite well.
The best bit o news though I guess is that for the few fishing yesterday the mackerel stayed and were still being caught at half 6 in the evening when I left.
In amongst the mackerel are loads of baby Gar with the occasional larger one. So please folks dont keep these little gars, unhook em and put them back (unless you intend too use one as bait /live bait straight away you are not allowed too keep a couple claiming they are for live baits, rules say you can retain one at a time for live baiting on any species not protected.

As well as mackerel & gar there were some congers and again Gurnards being caught, I didnt see or hear of any bass but then the few there fishing were mostly chucking the feathers out and being as mackerel have been like rocking horse poo this year I decided I would stop up by Chris who was fishing @ bay 27 and chuck out some feathers also and have a chat at the same time.

It became clear quite quickly that the mackerel were by 5pm mostly clustered below or on the bend and so I took the quad and rod down a dozen bays and set up on 17 for a fling. It soon became clear that I was still too high and the dude too my right has only caught a half dozen in the hour or so I had been actually on the wall but I figured I may as well stay put and not be “THAT DUDE” that keeps swapping bays while chasing shoals up & down the wall.
One thing I rapidly learnt was that my body is no longer suited too fishing for mackerel and my rib cage rapidly was telling me how much it hates sideways movement such as needed with mackereling but I persevered a while longer. Needless too say of me sticking with bay 17 I realised quickly that 1/ I should have moved down the wall and 2/ my body doesnt like the movement that I was doing with the rod! I did catch a couple o fish that were added too the one that Chris gave me but I quickly reached the point that I had too stop what I was doing as I doubt any level of pain meds would solve the level of rib pain I was getting so the rod was stowed on the scooter and I trundled of the wall about 6.30pm with mackerel still being caught on the lower 15 bays as the tide hit a very low point!

And with that I will close todays blog off and for those chasing the fish…. now is the time too do it while the fine weather holds for a week or so at least. so with a final comment of yes there are squid about and mark is opening until 10pm tonight I will sign off and until the next one I will bid you all ADIEU
F

Well, didnt pay too close an attention too weather forecast as had looked a couple of days back and saw things were settling. I guess I should have looked a tad closer as there was quite a sharp westerly cross wind yesterday keeping the water quite churned up.
With things lumping up quite a lot along the front section of the wall it had been fenced off at 29/30. Yes it can be opened up if dry but as we get deep into autumn there is some level of Algae build up around the “Vs” so in closing part of the upper of we keep to the H&S requirements (no one wants too fall on wet surfaces) and in a way increase or at least condense the foot fall on the lower section and that allows us to maintain and keep the lower section o the wall open longer as winter sets in.
While on the subject of wall conditions, Mark has been informed by marina bosses that the work on the west should be finished this week.

Great news in itself although we all know what word is next because there is always one… Yep, there is a BUT, because there always has to be a BUT.
The “BUT” in this case is that this year only the east wall was jet washed.
During the ongoing work on the west Mark has been unable too get onto the west too asses its condition. In an ideal world Summer has done its job and the sea air/sand mix may, just may have “sanded” or naturally jet washed the west but that is unlikely.
Thus is it viable this year too get the west in any shape too open this year compared too simply keeping it shut and focusing on the east. A tough call that we wont have answers too until the weekend so please folks , save your energy and dont go trotting over too the WEST this weekend unless a proper announcement is made here and on the marina FB group.

Back on the east and my quite brief visit yesterday, as said, conditions were quite lumpy but not too unpleasant in the sunshine providing you had a dry bay or were able too “water spout” dodge.
As things turned out for the numbers there (quite few) it fished quite well with one dude on the bend having 4 or 5 decent plaice and a good sized pouting. there were eels, gurnards, sole and I believe a bass or two.
The wind direction today remains more on the westerly to SW today so I doubt conditions will clear too much but with big 7m tides for most o the week things should rapidly improve, and as I type at nr 11am I just had a msg from Chris H that he has caught a mackerel in Shoreham which tbh is 2 days earlier than I expected! go figure.

Now in the time its taken me too type this I have been racking my tired old brain for the name of the chap I spoke too on the wall and his name has literally just popped into my head. I was gonna blag it and supply an answer for him too something we chatted about yesterday. Namely Sea Trout and Licence requirements etc.
.
AL, a quick google this morning produced the following answer too,
DO you need a licence and if so where too get one for sea trout and salmon ?

There ya go AL, as promised an answer and amazingly I did manage too wrench your name out of my foggy memory o which these days is genuinely quite uncommon !
And on that final response I will sign off again and thus, until the next one I will bid you all ADIEU
F

No post was done over the weekend , mostly coz sometimes Im a lazy git and CBA disease sets it but anyhoo, did anything happen on Thursday other than confirming that Fri & Sat would indeed be closed but on the upside Mark would open the east on Sunday .
So, did anything happen Thursday? I hear from the back . Well yes & no. Conditions were not the best due too a somewhat early leader wind wise for the predicted storm and when I got down there there were only a few actually fishing.
From the little I learnt, i could or can confirm, Bream, squid, sole, and even mackerel with some pouting and garfish mixed in although or many of those who ventured out things were very quite.

Friday and Saturday the walls , as said were closed as the blow pushed through but the drop in expected wind speeds did allow Mark too get the EAST open Sunday Morning and true too form the higher bays again in the stirred up waters produced some decent conger eels.
And so it panned out that the best of things were indeed Sunday morning with a bit of a conger fest and yes I just about managed too avoid the 🎼do, doo doooo, c’mon🎼arrgh nooooo, be gone…

Locally on the beaches Dez posted a pic of a nice Bass he has on the marina B page and that report wise was about it as things got a bit more ‘blustery’ driving many off the wall as I was actually arriving down there yesterday and after a decent chat with Ali Im fairly sure the wall had emptied about 6pm yesterday evening.

Finally Im hearing a whisper that now the heavy vehicles are off the wall the work there has entered the finish off & tidy things up phase meaning repairing the back wall by the toilet block that was removed too put in a temp ramp too allow the diggers onto the extension so Mark may even get too asses conditions up there somewhen next week.

There is no guarantee that the west will open this year as there a high chance of it needing extensive jet washing. No it wasn’t done in the spring as was no point with the work expected too start sooner than it actually did !.
its possible that if the wall needs a lot of jet washing and us by then getting into October it may be a case o cost vs potential or even lack of customers as well as having too contend with Autumn storms and such.

ironic that we wait all summer too get at the west wall and it is possible that we wont be able too have it ready for any use this year BUT, its all guess work until Mark can get a decent look at the wall and what state it is in. Clearly we and most other anglers want the wall open, especially as the squid seem too be coming out too play and it would be a real bonus too have the wall back open for night fishing .

So, fingers crossed for an early October look at the wall and hope we can indeed get the bugger open eh!

And on that final note,

I will see ya all either on the wall or when ever the next post goes up from lazy arse here 😂😂😂
Until then, yup, I will bid you all ASDIEU
F

Initial date we are looking at for this year is SATURDAY October 18th providing the weather and squid play nice.
BOOKING IN FRI 18th OCT by the cafe benches
Bays drawn randomly
Mark has allowed us too use from bay 25 upwards
Bays will be chalked from bay 25 as comp bay 1
At check in all will randomly draw a number, 1st bay number drawn will fish left side, number returned too pot. thus 2nd time its drawn it will be for right side of bay.
pairs available if you want them, let us know please if you are drawing for 2 ppl

Booking in will be from 5pm til start at 6pm til 9pm and will sort the winners out by the cafe benches
1 rod only to be used.
2 hooks , jigs or lures can be used, treble hooks can be used and count as 1hook. Lures must only have one type of hook on it(ive seen many lures with 2 hooks)
squid and cuttle fish accepted and must be independently verified and measured from mantle tip too tail tip.
The winner will be the person with the highest total length measured of all the squid/cuttle that 1 person catches.
2nd prize is for the longest individual squid caught
In the event of a dead heat for either prize the money will be equally split for that prize

Blue lights on all headlamps but small white lights can be used too access tackle boxes and gear

ENTRY COST
£5 for rod fee across the board
£5 entry too comp
total cost per entry £10

2 main cash prizes
100% split cash taken 2 parts to winner , 1 part to 2nd place. prize value depends on how many enter
1st prize longest total combined length of squid/cuttle
2nd Prize longest single squid

Being as the entry price is the same for all entries, all entrants are eligible for the 2 cash prizes, yes a jnr could feasibly win the cash prizes
I will sort something for a Junior prize on top of the above most likely some squid jigs will see what interest there is

Well, Jnr Sunday evening suggested we go fishing & said If we get there about 12 we can fish till the high tide (assuming my body holds up) & so the plan was set in motion for us both to also meet his m8 down there. So when Monday comes Im up and sorted on time, blog and other catch ups done n dusted & JNR trundle’s out of bed at a time that meant no way was going too make the wall by mid day.
Anyhoo as it happens we did get there nearer 1pm than mid day too hear that there had indeed been a morning run of mackerel. Conditions though were quite different from the Sunday which was a bit choppy and overcast.
yesterday was flat calm and felt like a summer day in the sunshine. mackerel ran the wall at opening/first light and then things died right off in the sunshine. When we got there as per I had a chat with most we past and it seemed like sunday that there were as posted on FB garfish running with the morning mackerel although many of the gar were juveniles and quite small. It was reckoned that it had been dead since 10am and bar the occasional tiddlers down the side there was very little going on.
Jnr & I set up on bay 50 wanting too avoid any crush on the bend as we wanted too use mostly baits in the water and far enough away from the “crazies” if the mackerel returned. And so the three of us (Jnr’s m8 Howard) set up 2 rods each with a mix of Black, squid and mackerel in various combos and various distances.

There was tons of whitebait down the side of the wall and I wish we had a mesh net or a kiddys prawn net or similar as the whitebait was mostly on the surface and visibility was good ! we fished from 1ish too about 4.30pm, would have stayed longer but my body was playing up with constant head spins making me somewhat unstable. The end result for our efforts were a handful of small bites , I had one that was quite a thump but nothing came of it (perhaps a squid). Howard avoided a blank while we were there with a small weaver fish that was carefully unhooked and sent back too the deep.
On leaving on dude had been float fishing @ bay 35 and managed too catch 5+ mackerel and 2-3 gar fish but as we came down the wall it was a case o shaking heads and glum faces. There were a couple of wrasse had up on bay 60 but other than that heard near nothing of fish. no doubt the bright sun put the fish of.
So, Monday eve produced a decent amount o fish and most anglers were off the wall by closing time at 7.30pm Yesterdays high tide at 4pm produced very little BUT, like Monday evening the fishing did pick up again about 90 mins after the high tide as the heat of the day had dropped with plenty of mackerel arriving about 5.30ish on the lower light levels along with some squid.

I dont have an accurate picture of the squid hitting the wall but I do know not far off the marina Robin Howard is doing nicely with his squid trips so id say the numbers are building and MARK will have the east wall open til 10pm for those wishing too have a go for squid as the light drops and we get into darkness.
Am still hoping too hold a squid come fairly soon if the squid numbers pick up too a level too make it worth it possibly the week starting Mon 13th October and probably either the thurs or fri eve with details too b confirmed.

And on that final note I will sign off until the next one, I will bid you all ADIEU
F

wed 1st oct one day only
EAST WALL OPEN TIL 10pm for squidders