The Famous Tacklebox Brighton

….. Again! Sometimes I wonder where the days vanish too. This time last week I was half asleep having had my very annoying and painful Gall Bladder removed. How do I feel, tons better, you cant believe the little moments that are now pain free. granted my gut is sore post surgery but boy its a worth it swap. Anyway, less of that,I’m sat here again wondering where these days are going missing too. It sorta feels like the last week has days missing as one day blurs into the next and I find myself ticking of whole weeks rather than days.

So whats happening on the marina.? Yesterday due to the joys of an unknown cause I found myself with a bout of insomnia much to JNRs shock as I was wide awake as he staggered into the house at 4am ish and asked to be woken at 8am as he had a footy match 😂😂😂, oh yes, he suffered for it but that, as they say is another story. By 7am I had already been down, made a coffee, gone back to bed and then finally gave up the attempt and got dressed resulting in yesterdays 1/2 a book instalment of this thing we … or I am claiming is a marina blog, (na its my messed up minds form of joke on everyone:))

The result of being up n about so early meant what do I do now that Im up? the result after the longish blog was my mind turned too my tide table and thought, hmmm lets go drown a worm or two so at an unusual time for me these days the quad was loaded with a couple of rods a tacklebox that It turned out I never opened while down there (almost normal these days) walking stick (just in case) 1L bottle of drinkable and rolled onto the marina as I mentally flipped a coin of high or low, the high won.

Its a good job its called fishing because long story short… I blanked..again. Granted I had a few bites too make it interesting and I did for a short while have a dabble with the squid lure(s) but too no knocks. I did see a decent bass (see below)come out above me that was posted too the marina group and yes that has reminded me that I promised too post it too the gallery ( I will honest) no doubt with a couple of others that I have neglected too post up also (yes i sorted them mid typing) see the extra pics on the various galleries.
Also confirmed on the higher bays while I was there were a few bream, plaice and some micro’s but for me and many the morning was like many days recently very hard going.

As I left ending my 1st visit of the day … and week ! many were already packing an hour after the high having shook their heads when asked “did ya catch” its becoming a feared phrase ! . just below the steps at 46 I was told of a couple of Bream, wrasse and a gurnard that was much discussed re its taste. but those few fish did seem to have been the highlight of the front section of the wall above 22.

Lower down towards the bend I’d like to say things were better and had expected to at least hear of a few bream but again was met by heads being shaken… Jeez wtf is going on with this years fishing !

Now at this point usually I am signing off for the day but, I did hint earlier and after sticking the quad back on charge and grabbing a sarnie or two I reloaded the quad and erm , headed back down to the wall for a late afternoon/early eve mooch. Too be fair many when I got there had left so any accurate report wasnt available for so few people left on the wall. I did manage to grab a chat with one regular who was mid wall with his family and his MUM fishing also, Im fairly sure he reads here so he will immediately know im talking about him as his lads had a couple of lures and no doubt they will be back for more sometime soon.

Estimates from the builders on the west wall still remains “somewhen in September” so cant add any further info on that becoming open Final bit of news is that the “SQUID” gallery has been updated with a piccy from last week sent in by JOE VIRGO confirming the first few squid caught this Autumn season, he fished the ledge on the west side and kindly sent in a pic.
Thats it until the next post, dont forget most of the galleries have a few new piccys posted so all thats left is to post up the promised bass from yesterday caught by Kenny and sign off , so until the next one..
… I will bid you all ADIEU
F

♪♪♪Hello ♪♪♪….
Ok so its been a couple of days since the last post and oddly enough had a couple of people contact me with various titbits off info regarding possible events and condition reasons around the marina.
First of with regards to the seeming lack of spider crabs of which the numbers drop does seem to have helped many other crab species up their usual numbers !

it seems that the UK or at least the South coast along with above normal sea temps have by virtue of that raised water temp, attracted a very large influx and number explosion of Octopus, Octopuses , octopi offs this could go on for ever , is octopus plural and singular ?… na, who cares.. Octopods

It seems that the common Octowhatever it is (octopus vulgaris) has had an explosion in the South West of the country and no doubt further along the channel also. Commercial nets and pots instead of finding the usual fare are finding these Octopus in large numbers, & when they dont the remains of them feeding has been found. It seems one of the Octo’s fav meals may just well be the pestilent (not so locally this year) spider crab.
LINK—>>> https://thefishingdaily.com/uk-fishing-industry-news-news/study-launched-into-unprecedented-south-west-octopus-bloom

I did put feelers out too find if this was a common happening and much of Sussex and Hampshire and Kent have seen dramatic falls in sider populations, as too if the Octopus is the sole cause or there are also other factors such as changed water parameters I don’t know but it does seem that various investigations have been urgently launched in the Devon & Cornwall fishing waters.

Second big queery of the season beside the lack of crabs from many has been how crap the fishing has been in general all along the Sussex coast and in particularly “is there a reason for it being “a bit pants on the marina this year”? and I suspect one convo I had Thursday very shortly after arriving home from HH hospital may have provided part of the answer and if its not the reason it does actually make an awful lot of likely sense too me.

As per Mondays blog I have another addition that may well be food for thought for a few people and I am posting this as I heard it prior too having a chat with some of the more knowledgeable heads I know are out there.
On Monday shortly before close we had a very regular angler on the wall who is very well known although I shan’t post the name.
While flicking out lures from their chosen bay they “heard a couple of large sounding plops in the water just out of eye line.” naturally thoughts went to Dolphins or porpoise were in close as has often happened on the marina. Bugger all unusual there but great too see but crap usually for the fishing.
This set me too thinking that the same day every now & then Id see something break the surface on the edges of my vision when coming down from the 40s but couldn’t quite get an ID on the gentle breach as there was so little too see.

Now said persons senses were alert and they were scanning the water fairly close too them while still trying too focus on the lure flicks…. And here comes what some will write off as a fishy tale or a bit of bollocks but they are no mug at fish ID and you can hardly mistake a decent breach when its something in the size region of what he expected as more dolphins stuffing themselves on all the fish daring too get close too the walls….

Now most of you know how I type, a clue here n there and a bit of draw it out for the effect but I trust this persons judgement and know when they exaggerate stuff into a fishy tail.
The were full on telling me that there were TUNA breaching the surface less than 30 foot from where he was stood. I’m not going too confirm what bay they stood nor who they was because Ive no doubt there would be piss takers and non believers.
The claim was 4-5 clear surface breaches not full body out of the water but plenty enough too tell it was fish and not mammal breaking the surface.
Yes this person reported the sightings too someone and they merely laughed & told em to fek orf BUT, I defo believe the source, There have been plenty of Tuna sightings all along the coast as well as boats within Brighton Marina licenced to target TUNA. so why would they not be in close ? its not like the water alongside the east wall is not deep enough and on a quick check Mondays high tide was 7.30pm
When most people think Tuna their brain see’s these huge fish jumping out of the sea often on the end of hook & line, 99.9% of their life must be spent under the surface unseen so could the marina be attracting in close numbers of TUNA. Its one I will be asking a few more experienced anglers about.

Sort of finally on the fishing front, although not a catch report I can confirm a few decent shore caught squid reports of which no doubt the likes of Robin Howard can also confirm so it looks like squid season is rapidly incoming. I can confirm that Joe V had a decent evening with perhaps a dozen squid for his efforts and Robins blog mentions some caught also…. time to check your squid jig stocks I guess.

Well thats it on the report front for today. I havn’t ventured down the marina as yet as the body is still recovering from having my gall bladder removed . While still very sore I am so glad the bloody thing has gone and I don’t have too clench my jaw in pain every time I use loo paper… Im sure ya can all work that one out… Yes a pain free use of the loo is feeling like a luxury atm !

Thats it, until the next one at least 🙂 , and until that one I will as per, bid you all ADIEU
F

day, another week and just like that Monday slaps you in the face before it has even got light. It’s so rare I’m up this early on any day that I’d damn near forgotten what it feels like any more !…
And thus we get straight into it being as I’m a bit pushed for time this morning what with the Surgeon dude wanting me at H Heath at some gawd awful time of day, “be on the ward for 7.30am ” he says.. wtf its not like I have been invited for breakfast even though they want me to starve myself prior too gracing their doorstep(as such). Mind U I will be glad too be rid of this painful Gall Bladder.

Best make the most of this report (not that there is much to put) as not sure what day I will be down on the marina next (Thurs possibly). So wtf has been happening ? And it is at this moment I have not had much chance too look back over the last 3 days nor did I actually get chance to talk too Ali yesterday so a quick pause too see if I can jog my slack memory.
Ok that break was little help, Fri… visit too anaesthetist, sat, Watched BTNs opening draw Vs Fulham(less said about that one the better) Sun, Oh yea, that was yesterday so fish, wtf are the fish. Now I know Sussex is a bit of a fish desert during the day da but I can’t believe that no one posted anything from the wall in almost 2 day especially at the weekend.

I do know Friday the bulk of catches were quite early and mark reported mackerel and bass in the morning when opening up. How many mackerel ? from what info I can glean there were not many and they were fairly much in & out again within the first hour and made people work for them with a string here and there. bream and wrasse were also had with the better numbers from the Bream. Again were reported some red mullet aka goat fish. At this point I could put a large chunk of post all about romans Exporting the fish all over the empire in the days when there were decent fish stocks but instead will keep it short.

Plaice … yep them flatties are seemingly making their return somewhat a little earlier (by my reckoning) than the usual Autumn time and catches of plaice do seem up although if I am honest the fishing sorta sounds great as you read it in your head but it truly is quite pants for many and its not just the Sussex part of the coast. On talking too various bods that travel for their fishing things are tough inshore from Dover to Chesil and beyond.
Mackerel are very intermittent with no real shoals on the move locally ( still suspect the 2 weekends either side of the 20th for them to show in any numbers and judging by squid reports along the coast at Chesil and Portsmouth regions I suspect we will start to see a rise in numbers of squid somewhen in the next 2 weeks possibly following the mackerel that everyone are lingering for.

Saturdays fishing ? if im being fully honest I dont know. As most of the last bunch of posts have shown things are tough out there for everyone and there is no real way of making it look good.
Sunday on the wall when I got there was a similar story from most of this last week. Granted I didn’t see the morning tide, nor did I meet more than three people who had been there all day.

When I did arrive on the marina Sunday afternoon there was a cross wind from the EAST that was cutting things up and rapidly clearing the lower portions of the wall by chucking up water spouts from the second “V” on the wall fairly much every V from bay 2 had large wet patches and sea spray drifting on the wind.

As a result of the wind as said many were leaving and those who were ganging on for a fish and as one put it ” Im hanging on for an hour, I only want one fish and I have been here all day!” much of the front section of the wall (24-55) was reporting “NO FISH” or responding to my ask of “do you need anything” the same reply was there no fish was ringing in my lug holes all along the wall until……
Oh shit we got an until and it wasnt from John H who did have a good session but he was hidden on 74.

That until? well it was on bay 54 where a dude when I asked how he was doing said ATM crap but earlier (mid dayish) seemingly hit into a shoal of mullet. Some were returned and 2-3 were kept and yes they looked a decent size so there went the cliché about them foreigners that took everything because he had in his back as said, 2 or 3 decent keeper mullet and a Bream or two, vague numbers but I only took a quick glance and yea I can mix up Bream & mullet if decent sizes and a very token glance, so not only did he keep “in size” fish but he also confessed to returning quite a few…. bloody shocking behaviour eh 😂😂

Anyhoo I must add at this point he wasnt the only one too catch a fish as “A” seemed order of the day for most, there were one or two bream caught mostly above 35 and a couple of small returned plaice. And that was as such it, or as much info from the wall that I could get other than rolling the quad too the end of the lower bays at 74 where John was fishing with his lad (maybe nephew, brain fails me) in the corner as I tend too call it on bay 74.

Now before the world charges up too bay 74 too catch all these fish to follow I should point out that John collects his own worms and mighty fine they are indeed, for those that have had some from him they can vouch for the quality. John is also an experienced and damn good angler and knows how too fish tricky marks such as that corner. Scores on the doors for John and the lad yesterday was,
Sole, 10+ plaice, 4 red mullet and a strap eel in afternoon conditions that put most off and had them heading home earlier than they thought.
Needless too say with the constant wind churning the lower bays , the water quality in close wasn’t very good and had churned into that pale milky looking yellow/green as the debris from the shore line churned against the east wall.

Looking at the next few days things look dry all week, light to med (14 mph to 20/25) Monday and similar Tues, then Wed to Sun are looking good too fish and that water should clean up quickly.
Website & blog wont be updated for a few day while the knife jockey’s bugger about with my internals but things should be back too normal in a few days.

Well thats it from me today, anyone wanting bait when the shop is shut can contact my Lad Michael while im not available. Other than that all thats left is for me to sign off today and bid you all ADIEU
F

Almost the weekend, or is for those that now seem to regard Friday as now part of the weekend ! So, whats happening on the marina ?. In all honesty much like the rest of Sussex, “not a lot” Fishing this year is starting to feel like an utter and total bust. So many of us keep saying it’s gonna get better but so far it doesn’t look that way. Yes there are signs of recovery from when the trawlers would double team the coast line but its not just those that have added to what seems like a pass time that is sliding into decline. The quality of fishing seems yearly to get worse.
Yes I have high hopes for the wind farm to generate a recovery but I doubt that the wind farm on its own will be enough. Mass fishing by commercial vessels that need not come too shore are putting dents into various fish stocks that seem unable to recover as the rate of carnage at sea continues, I just hope it isnt too late too stop the slide. Its a global problem that is driven by greed rather than conservation and change is needed fast. Anyway, enough of the conservation bit, whats going on on the marina… oh yea, not a lot.

I gather the day or morning started off quite busy but by time I trundled down there things were slow and people were heading for home (as is often the way that late in the afternoon.) As always I do try and have a chat with most down there even if the cynic would say I do it to flog a few things but thats not strictly true as I actually do enjoy the chats and is often the way a catch up with a few older or familiar faces as well as the new.

Its quite refreshing also to see new youngsters getting into fishing, at one time I was starting to wonder (a few years ago) if we were seeing a decline in youth joining the ranks of anglers on the marina. About 15 years back it felt like I had watched one generation grow up fishing there, many of who still do occasionally who were of a similar age to my eldest 2 (now not so much kids) children and there seemed a gap where hardly any new kids were visiting the walls and it felt like the new kids were missing. In an age of fast growing digital and online interest fishing had become or at least felt had become a thing for oldies. Perhaps I was feeling my age perhaps it was just part of the natural cycle of change but then my youngest often felt like the youngest i’d see fishing the wall.
And then suddenly jnr hit 14/15 & old enough to fish on his own and hit a cycle of beach going with mates and taking an interest in females and for a little while it was all change as I watched him on the beach from a distance wondering when he would join in with the yoikes that loved jumping from the walls into the sea.
That was when I realised I was getting old and had almost forgotten what it was like as a kid jumping from structures and rocks into the sea in the summer.! I guess its one of those things that only kids that grew up close to water can explain and understand. I remember the almost permanent rope swings over the brook in Haywards heath between Oathall school and Lindfield Even as far as where the Brook as we knew it, The Scrase stream/river as its properly called went on to join with the River Ouze.

I’m pleased too say that JNR while he did from time too time jump of the west wall when he thought he wasn’t being observed generally did his best to discourage marina wall jumping. Part I guess was from me being down there so often, part because many of the security team and wardens knew exactly who he was so wouldnt get away with it if caught but also part because he was very aware of the risks jumping from the marina walls was. Thankfully the beach visit element of his life wasn’t as strong as his love of fishing and still is a regular face down there.
Forgive the ramble around part of the near distant past but it was such thoughts ticking over in my head this week as events carried on rolling around my family and I seemingly stuck on our own personal Island but it had reminded myself of my own age and that my kids we from two different generations and my youngest has in the past been mistaken & asked if I was his grandfather ! yup I am that old.
And yes the ramble is about younger generations fishing on the wall and its quite refreshing to again see new numbers of children fishing the walls and not only children of already established anglers. perhaps it has again become trendy or perhaps cool to be out of the house and catching fish, It makes me wonder if climbing trees is still a thing in this seemingly technical age :).😊

By now most will realise Im rambling due to not having much to say about catches on the wall, mostly as I earlier said things do seem to be a bit of a struggle for having fish too report on. On the up side I did hear of 3 more decent bass caught Sun & Monday and one dude even sent me a pic of a double had that I will, as soon as I get around to sorting will get it up on the gallery as well as a bream pic I took 2 days ago that I forgot to post at the time too fb and here. Yes there were bream yesterday, numbers down on the averages for them but they are still scattered along the wall even out over the sand. There were also a few mackerel had but I fear that when they show up they are gone just as fast it seem. Gurnard catches also seem too be more noticeable as the summer rolls on and the low few bays are still popular with the bass anglers and those looking for bream and wrasse.
The high bays are slowly picking up also with more plaice being had, many at distance, mullet, bream, wrasse bass and congers are also common catches although when I visited the upper bays were unusually lacking in people. On the straight bit, as said there are still bream being caught although plaice do seem somewhat thin on the ground and often quite small so please keep an eye on the take sizes.
Crabs are still very evident in their lack of numbers and as yet the hoards of spider crabs so common over the last few years are very evident in their absence. Ive no explanation for it other than perhaps like the bream the buggers are all hiding on the west wall and laughing at us and how flipping clever they are this year.

You will be pleased to hear that for today i have almost run out of things to waffle about so for those that look to my visits to the wall I wont likely be down there today or tomorrow. Today I have to check in with the HHeath anaesthetist to make sure he is happy with my health levels and assuming all is good I will then get my gall bladder removed on Monday which means for the following few days I wont be on the wall Today as said, Tomorrow is BHAFC’s first home home of the season so I will be at the AmEx annoying anyone in ear shot of my air horn. I will be on the wall on Sunday and then Mon I will be in hosp and expected out somewhen on Wednesday. Thus bar this Sun im not overly sure when I will be on the wall but may be depending how I feel next weekend, time will tell eh.
And thus we come to the end of todays sermon 🤣🤣honest 😉 and, until the next one, I will bid you all ADIEU
F

So nearly typed in Turdsday but thought better off it, anyhoo, what to write ? In all honesty I’d almost forgotten anything of yesterday and what happened etc so had to sit n think for a while. And thus started the backtrack, takeaway tea, son playing football, fished or dabbled more like for 30 mins or so aaannndddd….. jeez my memory is struggling today !

Was told there were a few mackerel earlier, not sure what a few meant in this case but not that many I suspect and tbh its been a similar story all along the Sussex coast atm, will it happen around the 20th I wonder. In general I was somewhat hard pressed to get much of a fishing report yesterday other than from the lower third of the wall that had done ok and ticked over with bream, gurnard wrasse and a fair amount from the micro list but as I type my brain is struggling to think of much in the way of any sort of report and for a change am not going to pad things out and spend 20 minutes having a waffle. Its too hot, or my body is , one of the two so quite simply put, lack the energy to do much of anything other than hang up the keyboard for the day and flop on the sofa. Yup, I got up today feeling right bloody knackered. Oh the joys of modern life.

And with that Im gonna sign off , and so, until next time I will bid you all ADIEU
F

Why the title … tbh Ive no Idea but it seemed different so there it is, the origin of the day Wednesday just for shhhh & giggles.
So what to say & where to start as I suspect my head is a bit fried from various issues yesterday that were fully out of my control. They tbh left me in no mood to do much of anything regarding the use of my brain! Between trying to sort stuff with Motability, the ppl that supply my mob scooter, Hospital appointments that have been dropped on me all of a sudden and having to now to sort some level of transport up to Haywards Heath & back on Friday to see an Anaesthetist who it seem I must see or my surgery on Monday gets delayed ! ( ffs really).
Thus the head was already starting to fry with a FU mentality to the world when the real bomb got dropped on us at home with the news that my wife’s mum had died in hospital in Manchester!
Yes it was expected, yes she had been rushed in and Wife & jnr had gone up to Manchester last week on a flying visit knowing it would likely be a last an a good bye visit but knowing its coming doesn’t ease any pain it just gives you a few days more tortured knowing its coming and you find yourself simply dreading the news as you wait for the bomb that changes lives and often your world.

Mawkish maybe, grim sounding yes and some would say it doesnt really belong on a blog, perhaps they are right but as I sit here typing as the wife sleeps I find myself trying to put my thoughts into place or at least trying to find some order to things and my strongest thoughts and feelings so far are the FU mentality kind of defence to the world. Yes life goes on, and yes we all move forwards but sometimes real life has a way of kicking you to remind that there is life out there going on alongside social media and all the gubbins that come with all things “internet”
Im not putting this here for sympathy, nor the attention (although it could seem so) perhaps its a “head up” sorta thing for those that know me one way or another that when you see me next I may seem a bit off or even distracted or “switched off” but I will be on the wall through the weekend although Im prob elsewhere (HHeath) on Friday as I gotta do the Anaesthetist thing prior to the surgeon carving up my gall bladder on Monday !(nope, wont be down Mon or Tues for sure as they locking me in ;)) Ironically the one person who this hits hardest is the one I don’t mention much , here or in gen & thats the wife who needless t say has my focus while we deal with all the change.

I guess I should have put the fish report 1st but typing the above sorta puts my head in a “typing mode” so the report is here rather than before 🙂
With that I finally come to what, why, who, (sounds like a flippin OWL!) oh well lets do it …..
TwitT’woo T’uesday…. afternoon. State the obvious time, the day started off (as per yesterdays blog) flippin hot hot hot. Loads of stressy phone calls & given orders by SWMBO to do the run on the wall, plus wifey wanted some alone time & a scented candle bath( here I suspect the females out there will understand it more than bloke do) so very reluctantly and feeling somewhat guilty about leaving the house I packed the cool box & loaded up the “quad” and took GRUMPY1 down the marina.

Now, this is the point I get a little dig in :), it seems the cafe are selling some tackle bits on the wall, probably for the same reason I do it , IE because sometimes the shop isnt open and people do need tackle n stuff so where to get if the shop is shut. Anyhoo as most know I try to be on the wall somewhen close to 5 when the shop is v close to shutting or already shut & gone. I don’t have an issue with the cafe , he saw a gap in a market & used his noddle:) BUT, heres the but coz there is always one somewhere, BUT… you his stuff isnt that much off a bargain based on the prices he is displaying . (my stuff is more affordable than the cafe) so if ya dont mind waiting til im down you can top up your weights & gear at a lower price than the cafe 🙂
While Im on my fav subject of “ME” all of the wardens have my mobile & I am easily contacted via facebook messenger. If you need bait & tackle check in with the wardens, if its viable I can be on the wall usually within 20 mins.

So, who is getting fed up with me waffling and not saying a thing about catches on the wall on Monday ? everyone ? awwwwwwww hands up all that are waiting for me to use the “M” word ?
hmmmm my guess is half of u lot have your imaginary hands up, fess up, admit it, Im waffling and all ya wanna hear is the “M” word 😉
OK THEN, MMMMMMMMmbop oops , wierd music memory I did mean to say MMMMMMBass(honest guv) Yup Im jumping briefly 2/3rd of the way up the wall rather than starting on bay one. WHY ? coz I can anddddddd it relates to Sundays catch report. No I cant be arsed to edit the report as most dont look for post updates although I have edited yesterdays post (bet some now gone looking ?)

Right, lets get sensible, that Bass report. As said , jumping to bay 40something I met a couple of regulars who i know read here and no doubt expecting me too name drop so I will…. erm not coz I cant remember your names😂😂 (oops) So, after a decent chat and a mention of the young lads that caught on Monday(see blog) I was then told of a bass that somehow rumour/gossip had not reached me and thus I got to hear of what sounds like an 8lb bass caught right at the death of Monday nights closing time (i dont think many were there to see it but I trust the source as it was her BIRTHDAY🌹🎁🌹(yes I found a new toy)and it seems that the dude managed to land it using a method not recommended but was successful so if u are that dude with that fish on Sunday at close, please send me a piccy I can use 🙂

And now back to Tuesday, I rolled onto the wall and surprise surprise, regular visitors father & son(sorry guys I am naff with names) were in what I think is fast becoming their fav bay to fish and again reported some fish (not as good as day b4 but ok) including Bream & Wrasse plus smaller stuff down the side. I know someone told me of a dropped bass but cant quite recall where on the wall but suspect it was just beyond the bend nr 22.
Rolling along the first 12 bays I heard that there had been MACKEREL(there it is, done it now aint I…. I hear the trumpets) on the earlier tide and the bulk caught had been on the bend of the wall. yes there were two or three at least also caught later in the afternoon but were random singles mostly on baited hooks. Bits n bobs is the best way to describe other catches until about bay 20 tbh, mostly the likes of gobys & scorps. Another long time regular was @22 who was getting bite and one decent hit that didnt hook up but he seemed quite cheerful that he was actually getting bites as things on the wall had been quiet for him for the last week.

And so I rolled up & past the steps at 28/29 and headed towards the forties hearing that it was very quiet for those still there. Again quite a few no doubt sun baked people had called it a day and were heading for the hills in the hope of not getting jammed in traffic. At this point I will mention a friend and regular who I refer to as “old Colin” (basically because he is older than me🤣) Well Old Colin is a smart colin as other than reading here, when he comes on the wall he stays deliberately after 6pm often til 7ish too not only avoid traffic in Brighton but its also then much quieter in London where he lives.

Bays 22 to into the 40’s had mostly emptied but the few sat there were reporting how things were quiet on the days dropping tide. As mentioned earlier I reached 40 summat and the 2 who were fishing there, and being as they are quite chatty (in a good way) hence finding out from them both about Sundays bass and they young ladys birthday was at the weekend just gone. Anyhoo they were having a dabble with some soft lures and me not being one to miss a trick I pulled my box off the scooter N showed them some nice sparkly toys to cast out (no not feathers) Im hoping next time I see them they will be able to tell me if they had any joy with them, that or they r gonna say they a pile of poo or summat ugly 😂😂 A bit of a longer chat than most saw me roll on to see if there was anyone tucked around the corner and somewhat surprisingly that part of the wall was empty, quite rare these days as 55-60 are usually filled most of the day. There had been Bream, plaice and the usual bits n bobs down the side but I didnt get wind of anything larger but just like Sundays bass decent catches can take a few days sometimes to filter through.

With regards to the mackerel on the bend, I can confirm from 2 people that someone had a dozen and another 9+. beyond those two I had some conflicting info, one source said “lots” of em in the morning another said “mackerel on the wall” a third said “it was ok” so I cant say for sure if there were loads of mackerel caught but I do know they arrived in a short spell and mostly on the bend from bay 12 to 24 and were gone fairly quickly.

Today is a bit muggy with dull cloud cover expected to last most of the day and I suspect this afternoon we will, like yesterday have some sea fog roll in for a couple of hours this afternoon.

If you are planning a visit to the wall, please remember we are trying to eliminate all glass on the walls. We have no issue with anyone that wants a tipple while they fish but please, bring cans with you rather than beer bottle. If your taste is for something stronger thats fine also but again please transfer you wine/spirits into a plastic bottle .

Well thats it for today, GRUMPY1 will be on the wall later this afternoon and Thursday, Hosp appointment on Thurs so unlikely down and I will then be down Fri & the weekend for sure.
If ya see me down there please say hi, I don’t bite honest 😉
And so we come to the end of todays ramble, and with that final word I will bid you all, until next time ADIEU
F

Up at stupid o’clock this morning for some weird reason only my body knows but lummy its already warm and the shower I had has left me feeling like erm, I need another shower to get over the 1st one. Summat tells me its gonna be an arse burner out there on the wall especially if yesterdays pink to red bodies I saw on the wall is owt to go by. please pack sun cream and plenty of sensible fluids, that sun is unforgiving.
SO what has been going on since , well , since yesterday!

Well with regards up to day wall info a quick catch up on the first bay allowed me to get a report from Sunday morning and the first few bays that did actually have fish caught with the bays doing well Im told Sunday morning and YUP, yesterday morning for the same people with said bay Sunday doing well for bream, wrasse, blennies and some other various micro species for the family, well DAD and lad that fished there both days so Sunday turned into a top and bottom job for seemingly the only catch info I could gather at the time. There may have been other stuff but if I dont meet the people catching I cant really confirm catches on a he said she said basis.
*edit* I forgot to add here that there was a bass caught on the lower bays by two young lads fishing bay 3, unfortunately the only details I got of it was it was decent and kept.!
A perfect example of that was yesterday when I was told that some dude, now forever known as Mr X, when leaving and walking along the upper level told a regular that a couple of mullet and some plaice were caught on the higher bays. They may well have been BUT the report sounds very much like what ROY A caught up there on Sunday so can only tag it as potentially caught but not confirmed.

Yesterdays story was very much though a repeat of Sundays pattern on the wall. Very hot, very exposed in the bright sunshine and very few people (when I was there) having any fish to report. I did confirm that a mackerel was caught just after lunch but again suspect it likely was the only one caught & I still suspect we will see mackerel arriving around the 20th of the month. It’s only an estimate and not a Nostradamus prediction so If I am wrong please don’t gloat as I don’t come equipped with a fish finer weather type indicator stuck up my Jaxi 🙂

Also similar to Sundays report now that I have been made aware of the lower bay catches on Sunday were more bream, Wrasse, and plaice again caught on the higher bays making the 2 days a tale of top N bottom as far as catches go with very little reported in between.

As a final comment from the last couple of days there seems to have been an alarming increase of “dumped” fishing line on the walls. Sun & Mon I managed to fill more than one of my jacket pockets each day with discarded line and I don’t mean just a bit of trimmed line I mean yards of the stuff carelessly left in the fishing bays. A bit here and there I can understand and often is sort of expected but the sheer amounts being carelessly left is unnecessary especially as people usually take their rubbish with or tie into a bag on the wall.

We have line bins on both walls (when open)the line gets recycled and is collected from beaches and venues all over the country and also a few abroad. If you wish to know more please check out the website -> https://www.anglers-nlrs.co.uk/
Waste line on the walls can be dangerous for wildlife and not just the seabirds that can easily get tangled and in some cases hooked up from poorly discarded line and rigs, on the beaches it has become common for dogs to end up with hooks embedded in mouths and paws and all sorts of animal life is put at risk from discards of line, rigs and hooks so please, a bit more care when packing up, check your area before you leave and if there are any line discards, put them in a line recycle bin please. On the east the bin is straight across from the cafe fixed to the wall on the left as you leave via the white gate TY.

And with that I will sign off until the next one and bid you all ADIEU
F

Ok so where to start ? How about at the English obsession 🙂
The Weather !
Well Sunday was what I call a bum burner, hot dry and almost zero wind out there. Sea state was not too bad looking at the water but, OMFG the weed, gert big long hippy type hair strands up to 2 foot long and the flipping stuff was everywhere like some loon had gone mad with a play dough type of machine making the stuff.
And the worst bit of the above ? that was about as good as it got for many on the wall.

By the time I got down there many were leaving, the high had been and gone and for so so many there was not a fish in sight. I thought it would be tough going, It always is when the water is fairly clear and the sun is up at full heat, defo a bum burner if I ever saw one. I recon by time I reached the bend about half had already left although it was still fairly busy and some were planning to stick it out.
By time I reached bay 46 I still hadn’t heard of anyone catching anything more than a blenny here n there. It wasnt until I hit the 50’s that someone mentioned that they had done quite well between him & his lads (yes a regular to the wall who had been MIA for a couple of months fishing elsewhere !. Half a dozen plaice, some bream a dropped conger and a couple of other things I had forgotten by time I left! DUH!

Roy had been and gone by time I reached his fav bay and I was told he had landed another couple of nice Mullet and in that small batch of bays I heard there were more plaice & bream plus a bass! One small patch of the wall had out fished everything over the weekend. No doubt after reading this there may be a charge up the wall to reach them next few days but I wonder sometimes if those on the lower bays are chucking baits out on huge hooks or simply too far because if there are fish up there surely they are also lower down … what is the secret I wonder that is different in methods of those yesterday higher up to those further down … perhaps a chunk of it may be the amount of people only feathering but surely that cant be it, I meet people with bait all the time that are very competent anglers. Its quite a mystery on wat is different… could it simply be the amount of lead plopping all over the plaice ? naaa surely not that …. its defo a conundrum.

the conditions of heavy weed a dropping tide and the sheer heat of the day had many giving it up, either fed up, bored, too hot, lack of decent fluids probably all added up to the wall emptying quite fast so as I rolled back down the wall there were huge open gaps, by time I got past the bend it was virtually empty and that included one lad who had taken the time earlier to stop and chat (as I often ask people here).
He was keen to say hi and how he read the blog & its always good to hear and seen new faces that do read here.
Anyhoo Vikram (yes I remembered even if its not perhaps spelt correctly 😉 ) was full of questions, many of which regarded Bass fishing, set ups, times of day and where to target various fish. Chatting with the various juniors can be quite refreshing and it is good to see so many juniors getting into fishing locally. Angling sometimes gets tagged and an old blokes thing but I feel that perception is slowly changing. On the wall we are seeing more and more various ages fishing and its not just the bloke, there does also seem (to me anyhow )to be more women/females etc getting into fishing from the walls and hopefully elsewhere. Its good to see more variety out there having a go.

While chatting to Vikram I noticed he was missing a top eye and just by chance I had my fix it box on the scooter so sorted out that top eye as well, ya never know, it may have just added a bit more life span to the rod.
Well thats just about it today, yesterday was a tough brutal day on the wall for many, hopefully when I get down there today things may be a bit better although Mondays are often one of the quiet days re numbers on the wall so no doubt finding some catch reports may be few n far today.

And with that I will sign off until next time and bid you all as per , ADIEU
F

Bet ya cant guess where I got todays blog title from ?, yup am guilty of playing a CD (the Highwaymen)on the pc this morning and as I type this out it just happened to fall on the Christofferson written tune and thus don’t have to think of an apt title….. especially as I actually thought it was Monday !.. Brain mush today I guess.

So, lets start with the obvious in that there was no blog yesterday being as Fridays visit too the wall was somewhat uneventful at the time of my visit so fairly much had to rely on later reports being posted up by some that actually caught something other than the perhaps 3-4 mackies in the morning. Yes, I’m gonna pad this out just for sh1t n giggles 😉
Friday was more of a micro species day than anything else. There were a couple of eels had as the water was still a bit coloured due to the sunny then blowy then sunny sort of sequences last week. As well as the sea slugs a couple of pup hounds were spotted one on the bend another mid wall. I am aware of a couple of schoolie bass being returned but overall it was a day of scratching for most with blennys, pout, gobys and scorpion fish racking up the hits more than the Bream that had been a fairly stable catch for many. Add in a wrasse here n there and the report makes Friday look quite awesome in a weird sort of day but dont be fooled. The high tide on the wall was quite busy re anglers and the catches were very scattered throughout the day making things seem very quiet and when I got there most were shaking their heads with pained looks and many were on their ways home.

Yesterday it was a very similar story, an early morning couple of mackerel and a decent Mulley for Roy was fairly much the rule of the day with by lunchtime a cross wind from the west that was starting to cause problems by 1pm. When I got onto the wall there were quite a fe people on the bend (mostly staring at rods and that wind could clearly be felt by time I got to bay 15. the night before’ s forecast had me thinking it may be worth a dabble but the tele rod stayed firmly in its slot on the scooter.
On creeping towards 24 it was clear that most had packed up or were in the process of doing so as the wind was causing some very big water spouts all along the front section of the wall. Like a berk I stopped to have a chat with a group of 3 on 24 not checking where I had actually stopped especially as the bay had wet ground for 2 thirds of it and I was straight into the firing line. Before I could hit reverse a large plume spouted up and landed square on my face & chest … ffs & b’locks were heard, shook it off & decided have a look at 26 & then if hefty turn about…. yep 2nd mistake of the day…
No one was by this time above 24 other than myself and on dude walking towards me. Unable to fully do a U turn (due to said dude walking towards me) I heard that very familiar double thump of water down the “V” with scooter wheels firmly against the lowest step and pointless reversing (into the wave) I just sat there with a fleeting hope of being far enough over in the bay…. nope, a full on thump of water on my neck and back.
Now, it is very rare for me to be hit by a wave in any amount and yesterday It got me twice full on front an back! Thankfully the wind and sunshine stayed and I was able to trundle around the marina blow drying. As to the catches while I was there, well there wern’t any and by time Id turned around and reached the side gate there were 7 people left on the wall and 3 of those were also packing it up.

Now as I type I notice that some mackies have been caught this morning on the wall c/o a piccy from Mark. Also posted have been another couple of mullet and a decent Guilt head Bream high up.
Weather looks good today and yay no cross wind to deal with and by the looks of things some decent temps to go along with some actual summery days. reports of squid at Chesil so no doubt they are headed this way also, perhaps earlier than usual !
Thats it for today, Im going back to the highwaymen for a while and see some on the wall later today. Gimme a should N say hi if ya see me, as the old BT advert used to say…. “its good to talk” 🙂
And with that final word I will bid you all ADIEU
F

Turdsday, why Turdsday ? well tbh that is what the fishing was yesterday up until close of play. On arrival I was told the shop was shut, but then things on the wall and locally have been a bit pants lately and dispite the overall reduction in weed issues on the east wall a fair amount of beaches locally are still dealing with weed issues so that may be a factor in the shop being quiet… either that or anglers are simply going to other shops.

Added to the shop issue the fishing quite simply was crap hence the report is all about Turds-day !. On arrival there was one person on the lower level and most there were simply tucked a little out of sight beyond bay 12.
Me: any fish ?
them ? that sort of glassy stare of boredom in return and a shake of the head and so I rolled the quad upto and beyond bay 12 without the wheels thumping at least one red post as I lined them up to the gap, quite an achievement and saves inflicting shit on my fragile spine. As it turned out I managed the full up and down again this time without hitting anything so at least my spine was happy 🙂 there were one or two regulars who seemed happy too see me often with a grin on their faces (where else would a grin be but on a face ! eh) Should also have said yesterday It was nice to catch up with Miraj who was fishing with family members I think he said over from Canada , boy is that a damned long way too go fishing in Brighton! at least they have decent weather for the week here.
Familiar faces by the half way up point, 5 fishes 0 ! as I continued up the story was the same familiar faces, 5, 6, 7, 8, catches ? yup zero . Now while this sounds crap, many were feathering and not so many had bait in the water so bait rods in were not many although as I trundled along more were arriving for the early evening session to, erm , have a go. Ive no idea how many fished the morning’s high tide and am not sure who was on duty from opening until Ali arrived so all I had was a few shaking heads on what was a dropping quite small tide.
On reaching 55- to 60 the days fun began with a resident collaring me with concerns for a Gull that had some netting wrapped around a leg and what also appeared to be some fishing line protruding a couple of inches behind its tail feathers so I suspect it may also have the ends of a fishing trace also stuck in its body.
All attempts to chatch/resue it were in vain, is could fly with little to no issues and tbh didnt look that hungry so wasn’t having any attempt to capture it despite quite an assortment of food including small sprats. I did learn after a while (from bird rescue people) that the bird had been seen on the black rock site the day before and may have been tangled for a few days so eventually all attempts to catch it were stopped.

And so the wheels were pointed back down the wall and after a fair bit of gossiping I wound up on bay 7 for a dabble with a light rod & a 2 hook flapper flicked out with black & tips of squid not expecting much tbh.
By this time a few more bods had arrived and the lower bays did have quite a few people on them as well as the standard arrival of those seeking the “M” word. And so the day wound down towards 8.15 when I put the rod away and headed up the wall reminding peeps of the time and when we close the wall. Scores on the doors were, a shad caught on the bend of which a quick explain that the fish was a protected species thus should be retuned and the dude got a quick piccy and I returned the fish as carefully as I could. There were 2 decent conger got to a net on bay 47, witnessed and lost of which one they estimated of about 20lb. The guy was gutted as he had been using fairly light line and lost both due to line breaks under pressure and was still muttering about using heavier gear so next time ……. 🙂
I suspect the 2 congers were the days highlights for those that saw them as there was little joy on the rest of the wall along the straight section clocking up a mere couple of pout . Lower bays basically produced pout and micro’s such as blennys and a crab or two. For myself I racked up a huge hall of 2 blenny’s and 4 pout of which one was a double shot which at least made it partially interesting.

Im happy too say that the wall cleared quickly although one family had thought we had a 9.30 close. Its not the first time some have thought this and im not too sur why some are arriving and thinking 9.30 is the close time so Im guessing that there is a notice on a website somewhere with the wrong info as this year shut is defo 9pm until make changes it to probably 8.30pm.
And with that my final words are (if you are on the wall) that I will see you later on the wall today and for now I will bid you all ADIEU
F