..As far as squid are concerned as after today the weather looks like it is gonna truly crap up for at least a week so please keep an eye on the home page for any weather windows where we could possibly get the east open for a session.

Yesterday after bumping into Dave Grinham by the car park and having a catch up chat I rolled the troublesome quad onto the wall mid afternoon to find things a bit sluggish but news that things had been brighter earlier. now when I say sluggish it wasn’t dead as the wall was quite busy although sectioned off at 29. This was done mostly due too the big tides this week slopping water heavily up the “Vs” and soaking much of the wall and being as the algae is starting too take a grip on the wall the higher bays that get less footfall see a faster build up and it simply isnt worth the length of time and effort too jet wash at this time of year due too how many days we now lose through poor weather and blows.

Anyhoo, as I said the wall was quite busy mid afternoon with a few familiar faces along with the newer ones. For the 2nd week of November the weather yesterday was surprisingly warm and almost like an early spring day no doubt confusing the fek out of some peoples garden bulbs(im expecting too see early daffs and bluebells if it stays this mild! )

While I realise many of the new visitors take a while too find this site some do in dribs and drabs so for the family readers I would like too say how refreshing it is too see youngsters on the wall even this late in the year and indeed some of the younger visitors are the ones bringing their parents with them too try this new fishing malarkey out also! go figure 😂 Someone should tell them parents how contagious this “FISHING” thing can be.

Now I do realise at this point there are some waiting on the fishing report and if regulars they will be scanning the lines knowing I often type in key words that stand out and thus a quick identify and they skip all of my waffling and get too the bit they want too rad so no doubt the word fishing earlier in caps short cut em too that n then they groaned having realised im in a real blah blah flipping blah kind of mindset this morning as I type too the bands and trumpets of the cenotaph remembrance parade.
Yup Im an oldish fart and I watch the remembrance service as often as I can. There are many reasons too watch even if mankind often now goes through the motions of remembrance. A shame that many younger now think of it as an almost celebration of war dead rather than a reminder of the death that war will visit upon us.
It serves as a reminder that this sort of carnage should never happen again, sadly much of it is now thought of as old history best forgotten rather than something marking the sacrifices made during conflict not just the 2 world wars but the many many smaller conflicts that have taken lives no matter the side fought for or killed almost as a by-product of those conflicts, not just service personnel but the hidden numbers of civilians killed world wide in conflicts that should have been resolved long before military conflict began. I may be preaching here but I am also making a nod(though small) too all those lost people who served and died, some of whom were in now near forgotten conflicts.
Military bands can be stirring and uplifting but also mark the sadness, the loss and the sacrifice made by so so many. For those unaware, google the “Menin Gate” service aka the last post service or simply follow this link www.lastpost.be so yes I feel it is important that the world remembers the loss and price paid in blood for “peace”

My apology for the history lesson thrust upon you all I type too distractions around me and what my brain drifts over 🙂 Anyway, back too the EAST WALL yesterday. (yes eye scanners its coming🤣)

Rolling along the start of the wall the wet patches were visible again from the big tides and water quality was unusually still quite green, murky yes but definitely not the normal brown wash that is standard for November. Often this time of the year as many regulars know we have more closed days than open as the late Autumn onto wintery weather takes hold and the sea is churned into brown Windsor soup and so expectation of catches is much higher than usual for near mid November. By now most of the fishing is from beaches rather than the marina due too close downs and expected fare once the SQUID have beggared off is the dreaded ROCKLING pout and whiting with the occasional unicorn formerly known as COD or should I say for most …. CODLING or as one marina group regular puts it “fingerpuppets”

And yes I am now deliberately waffling just too miff the scanners looking for the catch report 😉And so yesterday a quick hello on bays one & two and clocking of the decent(for this time of year) I started too see what was about(or not) on an unusually mild November Saturday.

I shall start with bay 1 even though this bit was as I was leaving the wall, the dude had hooked into something that he felt was “large” and started too reel in with drag set (I could hear the fish taking some line). Closer & closer it came with Mark & I speculating some type of ray & I remarked it was in very shallow water bit in it came and I guess the drag or rod holder was just a little too much in its pull as the line pinged as the fish threw the hood much too a few groans from those that had gathered too watch. Absolutely gutting for the angler but I guess a lesson could be learnt on not playing the fish or perhaps needing stronger or larger hooks. I am convinced it was a ray simply because about 45mins later warden and regular John pulled in a small eyed ray further along the wall… coincidence ? I think not as a few rays of various type and size have been caught in the last couple of weeks.
look at that, lines n lines of waffle before I got to the first report that was actually a non catch ! didn’t I do well 😂🤣😂

bay 4 a quick chat and was told of 2 bass that the dude had earlier, one v small and the other he thought was about 35-40 cm but wasnt sure as he didnt have his measure with him😃bet ya cant guess what I sold him😃 I have acquired some nice clear roll up tape measures, waterproof and with velcro attached too keep them neat tidy, small and best of all… rolled up. Very handy for sticking in a pocket out of the way.

And so, up to bays 7 or 8ish and came across Chris H fishing much lower than usual due too the wall sectioned at 29.A quick chat revealed a tally of 7 species, though mostly small he did clock up , sole, pout, smoot hound, conger, wrasse bass and a blenny, not too shabby for November eh.

Bay 10 similar too Chris the ppl there had had a couple of small eels a pout and a flattie they thought was plaice but no confirm ID as it went back. A quick chat with a dad on bay 12 by the steps who had (using his words) been brought out fishing by his lad🤣good for him I say 😉
On too bay 14 I sold some bait too a group of late arrivals and their neighbours on the wall told me of a “fishy” sort of morning “but had slowed a bit now” and promptly pulled out a dogfish in front of me🤣 it was then it flashed across my mind something from a few weeks ago where as I moved along the wall fish were being caught for the first time in hours as I passed the anglers and the joke sorta started that the fish sometimes follow me up the wall. bye time I got too bays 19/20 one familiar face was reeling in “another dogfish” when he leaned back turned his head, said hi, and then remarked that he likes it when I come up the wall. like a berk I ask why to get the comment “coz the fish follow u” and indeed many of the times Ive seen him on the wall he had been reeling in something as I passed him & his mate !

My second too last stop going up that wall was around 26ish where I chatted with a couple of guys who had 2 lads with them, one it seemed used too fish the wall as a kid himself and was making a rare visit too the wall with the boys who were first timers and getting too grips with a rod and casting somewhat randomly in various directions. A quick check with the day that was ok I gave the lads a few pointers such as foot positioning and simple stuff like checking its clear behind them etc and the were soon getting the hang of things and casting a bit safer. Dad if you are reading this you have 2 polite and keen learners there and I enjoyed spending a few minutes with them and can see many more fishing tris ahead of you with them 🙂

lastly going up the wall I had a chat with the dude say by the partition fence who was a tad disappointed ant not being able too get too bay 74 but understood why the restriction and we chewed the fat for a while in the late afternoon sun.
Over all yesterday ID say anglers had a “Not a bad sort of day” kind of day on the wall with bass and congers being the mainstay of the morning and then scattered catches of strap congers and small silver eels(please return these as they are protected), schoolie bass(again) wrasse, pout, sole, plaice, blennies, the afternoon produced a stream of dogfish of varying sizes a few rays including the one I mentioned for John and plenty of mixed sized pouting. A steady tick over for the bait users. As I was leaving there was a group of Asian people who were having a go for squid on the bend. I dont know how they got on but I do know that more than a dozen or more squid were caught as the sun vanished over the horizon into the dark. The wall did stay open until 10pm last night being as a few had asked MARK for a sort of last chance fling at the squid.

We have some crappy weather moving in quite fast after todays session so please keep an eye either on the homepage here or on the facebook group if you are a member for days that we do manage too get the east wall open. The west will now stay shut until the spring maintenance schedule.

And with that I will sign off for the day and prepare too scream at the TV as Brighton fc take on Palace. thus until the next one I will bid you all ADIEU
F