The night session I'd planned with Steve for last Friday never materialised due to a lack of bait, probably something to do with half term but nobody had any, we didn't miss anything according to the reports. Pete sent a text today saying he might force himself off the couch and out tonight, I replied saying he must be daft. I got a text about an hour later, he'd had a change of heart and might fish the Sam Hooks match tomorrow night, see I was right!

Reports from the Floaters Open today weren't too bad given the crappy conditions and half the match suffering heavy weed. I think 5lb 9oz won it with all the decent weights coming from the Britannia pier end. Steve Smith managed a section win and the heaviest round with a codling a half ounce under 2lb, well done Smiffy. The honourable Abbott fished it too but got called away with an hour or so of the match left, thankfully he only had a few just sizeable whiting and wasn't going to trouble the eventual winners.

Poor forecast for this coming week has all but sapped my enthusiasm and I really can't be bothered to try and fit something around work, I'll earn some brownie points I think and do some more work on the new web site, be nice to have it up and running for my November posts.  

I'd promised a friend that I'd take her boy Jed, he's a good lad and about the right age to start fishing. Aidan just isn't interested yet, though he's got plenty of time. Anyway we fished down at Bacton early this morning, and here's how we did..

I'd been reading on an Irish sea fishing site about this guy who does all his fishing based around the phase of the moon. He'd collated loads of data and his catches have been impressive, I wanted to test his theories on the east coast of England to see if there was much difference between here and the southwest tip of Ireland. Taking our friends son would give me the excuse to test some of the theory.

Today down at Bacton high water was at around 06:00, moon set was at 06:34 and sunrise at 07:38. This probably means more to Mystic Meg than any of us, but this Irish guy reckons they are feeding triggers, and the closer they are together (along with moon rise and sunset) then the better the chances of a few fish feeding. It's all very high level, hypothetical stuff but there is some common sense in there and they are just more variables for us to weigh up when we're planning a session. The sea looked OK, the wind had been ENE for a day or two and it had scruffied it up a bit, but as day broke it was obvious there wasn't much colour in it, still in it to win it and all that.

Looks ok doesn't it, next to no colour in it though.

Me and Jed met Steve and his daughter Megan down at Bacton a little after 6 to fish the ebb until 10ish which would be long enough to prove if there was any weight to the theory when applied locally. I set Jed up with my flatty rod coupled with a shimano fixed spool loaded with braid, I fished with my standard beach kit.

I hate fishing with braid, well not really hate it but it can be so frustrating. Rod wrenching bites can often turn out to be pouts or whiting and if you're fishing at distance with braid it doesn't take much pressure on the line to dislodge the lead. Anyway we both watched the braid rod bouncing around in the rest as every mortal thing in the sea took a nibble, my kit stayed motionless. After missing every bite registered on the braid rod, I wound in my motionless kit to find a kamikaze whiting hung on the end. Jed wanted a photo, so before the whiting went back I duly obliged.

His first fish out of the sea, glad it was a whiting and not a 10lb cod, where do you go after a 10lb cod?

To say it was slow is understating the fact, I never expect to do too well when there's a lot of east on but I thought we'd get a few bits, especially given the mystic meg predictions. I finally had a bite I could see and a school bass around 12oz is heading back after I'd shown Jed the spikes. I felt a bit for Jed, all he wanted was a fish of some description on his rod, we'd seen bite after bite but couldn't connect. I think a lot of the time they are small fish ragging the bait out and the properties of the braid make you feel like you're missing monsters. It had to happen eventually, another rod thumping bite, Jed didn't want to reel it in as he didn't want to miss it, so I picked up the rod, waited to make sure i could feel the fish then wound in a flounder around 8oz.

At last! Jed was over the moon with this flounder, what it's all about really.

Another photo of a very happy boy and we use the bait up without troubling the fish stocks anymore. Steve and Megan had struggled with frozen blacks, to be fair if it's going to be a struggle with fresh worm you're on a hiding to nothing with frozen.

I enjoyed the short session this morning and I'm hoping to go with Steve on tomorrow nights tide, maybe somewhere different, as for Jed I reckon he's hooked. I'd certainly take him again, he's keen to learn and takes in what you're saying. I was very impressed with his knowledge of birds (feathered you Muppets), I think he's 10 and pointed out a Curlew and a Wheatear, good old boy. As for the feed triggers, I don't think today was a fair trial, in my experience not much can compete with a horrible easterly, I'll keep trying though.  

At my mothers this weekend I noticed how this drivel didn't display properly unless it was viewed with Internet Explorer 7. That's my fault because I'm not a computer geek, but if anybody has trouble or the side bar piece keeps dropping down below the main body of the text, update your copy of Internet Explorer here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=9ae91ebe-3385-447c-8a30-081805b2f90b&displaylang=en

Over the next few months I'm planning to change the look and feel of things here too. I'm hoping to get rid of the fixed template and do some more "fancy" bits, like I said I'm not a geek so my big plans might not get off the ground, but changes are a coming!

Porntash had some worms left over from the Holbeach club match at Pakefield on the weekend, be rude not to take up the offer of free bait so I rang Nobby and asked if he fancied soaking them at Bacton..

I dropped Aidan off at school and was back home, kit loaded and on the beach for 10:00. Nobby got down there a little later and spent 5 minutes looking at a flat calm sea with next to no colour, still better than cutting the grass and I suppose we were both fishing by 10:30. There was a little bit of weed on the flood that was a pain but that soon disappeared on the ebb.

I fished smaller, multi hook rigs on one rod and a pennel on the other, both rigs were clipped. Nobby used his standard cod type rigs and big baits. I had a few "bits" over the top and the first hour or so of the ebb, Nobby had a few bites but didn't connect with any. I would guess that the middle two hours of the ebb were pretty much dead save for a couple of pouts and poor cod, then as the bait was running out the tide picked up and a few fish with it.

It wasn't much of a session but given a flat clear sea and mizzly, drizzly rain I think we did ok to manage a few. Nice to see a couple of dabs which were bigger than those poor grey things Morrisons have on their fish counter (shame on them) and a nice flounder around 12oz. Aside from the flatties it was all undersize stuff bar a few skinny but sizeable whiting, no pictures because some doughnut left his camera at home.

I was fishing away when I got a text from Bri "the nest" Heritage, I've reproduced it below. It doesn't take much to tickle me and here's the proof:

A woman wants to buy a parrot so she goes into the pet shop and they have 3, 1 at £200, 1 at £100 and 1 at £15. She asks why that ones so cheap and the shopkeeper tells her it used to live in a brothel and its got a foul mouth. She thinks the family might find that amusing so she parts with her £15 and takes the yobbish parrot home. As soon as she uncovers him he pipes up "Fecking hell a new brothel", the woman sniggers. Shortly after her two daughters get home, the parrot pipes up "Fecking hell, two nice new working girls". By now the woman and her daughters are in fits as her husband walks through the door the parrot pipes up "Fecking hell, now then Pete, haven't seen you in weeks".

Lovely.

I won't be out until next week now, unless someone can talk me into it, though I notice most of my mates are heavily into the brownie points and overtime at the minute. There's only two types of people that work overtime, the needy and the greedy, which just about sums us all up!  

I had a rather disturbing text this afternoon, apparently he's back. I'd avoid the Kessingland and Benacre areas for the next week or so as he's bound to be about down there, he loves those beaches.

Joking aside, Actionboy has finished his Afghanistan tour of duty and is back on home soil, safe and sound. Thank god he kept his head down for the duration and here's looking forward to a few sessions over the coming weeks with the nutter. Welcome home mate.

It comes to something when your mother phones you up because "Me and your dad were worried, we hadn't heard from you this last week and you haven't updated your blog since the 8th". Sweet baby Jesus and all the little orphans, mum just ring anytime! Unfortunately I have to fit work in around my family and fishing life, if I didn't make my state contribution PENSIONERS would be potless. Dad's been in for a minor operation and is recovering well. Mum was right though, I haven't been out and about enough and she should take up her concerns with her daughter in-law. Me and Pete did manage to sneak a little session in last night though..

Andy Funnell sent me an email, he planned to fish Cromer pier hoping for a late season monster. If I hadn't made arrangements with Pete I may have joined him, the pier does hold some super fish during the summer, I just can't get my head round fishing it unless the seas coming up through the slats of the pier deck and I can't get on a beach! Not my favourite venue despite the big fish that reside there.

I picked the bait up on my way to Pete's. Lee at Northrepps provides me and most of my mates (as well as half of Norfolk) with top quality bait. The price is very reasonable too and has been £13/100 for ages, the price goes up from Monday the 15th October to £15/100, still a bargain given the back breaking work that goes into getting them. Our original plan had been to fish Trimingham, getting their at last light, fishing the last of the flood and as much of the ebb as we could take. Trouble was I'd heard there'd been a lot of weed at Mundesley the night before, not a good sign. If it was at Mundesley it'd be at Trimingham with these big tides.

I mentioned it to Pete, I think he was secretly pleased he didn't fancy the walk at Trimingham, so the venue was changed to his backyard. I always enjoy fishing with Pete, despite getting duffed up most times and losing kit where ever he takes me, at least there shouldn't be any weed. Pete's been about the local and national match scene for years and tells some cracking stories about the "old days", I reckon I have enough on some of the "old hands" to write a book or extort some money at the very least.

In my experience the shingle bank always fishes best on the ebb, and sure enough we hadn't had a bite on the last of the flood. Pete planned to fish a big lump of squid or a side of mackerel in the edge on one rod, hoping for a big bass, and worm or crab on the other. I opted for worm on both with occasional mackerel sausages one in one out.

Crabs. No its not a story about local angling legends during the Isle of Man festival, the little blighters were everywhere. The sea had some swell but not a lot of colour and it wasn't rough enough to put the crabs down. It was sad, I reeled in a little pout that can't have been on for more than a few minutes and the vermin had all but eaten it, happened twice through the night and we both reeled in small edibles and some huge velvets.

Bites picked up through the ebb with a smattering of undersize pouts and flatties and a few sizeable, but skinny, whiting. The most enjoyable thing for me was the number of schoolies around. We caught around ten I reckon, I know I had seven and Pete a few too. Fish from 6oz to 1.5lb but every single one was a solid and fit, scale perfect silver bar. Pete had the best around 1.5lb though most were around 1lb, and even though we never had anything huge it was good fun and all the fish, except the crab eaten pouts, went back alive. Pete did miss a rod wrenching bite on his whole squid, it could've been a schoolie or it could've been a double, that's the beauty of this time of the year, you just never know.

There really isn't a prettier fish in our seas.

A good session for me, I did the duffing up basically because I fished worm nearly all night. I did have my best whiting on mackerel sausage and I only lost one set of kit, a result. I dropped Pete off then made my way home. I stopped at Cromer for a kebab and thought I'd look in and see if Andy was still on the pier. I got my small doner and drove down the pier slip just as the lights went off on the pier. I sat on the prom eating reconstituted lamb for ten minutes but couldn't see anybody fishing, so made my way home.

I'm looking forward to a few beers and a sporting overload today. England v Estonia at 3pm and England v France in the rugby world cup this evening, can't wait. I can't see what all the fuss is about that Chabal dude, most of my mates are 6' plus hairy brutes. The French are playing some fantastic rugby but with them you always think they have a bad game in them too. If England's forwards play anything like they have a great chance of snuffing the french threat out, caveman or no caveman, REMEMBER AGINCOURT!

Caveman? He looks like a bit that's dropped off Nobby!

I might have a go one night this week, as the tides start dropping off any weed should too, I might just earn a few brownie points unless conditions change and liven things up a bit, we'll see.  

I'm trying to scheme a session this coming Friday but I'm getting no help from the weather. There's a little bit of northerly forecast for Wednesday, unfortunately I have to work then. Tides are quite good building towards the weekend and high water in darkness. I'm going to have a go somewhere I just don't know where. I reckon this month is the last chance for a decent bass off a local beach, for this year at least, and I'll be going with silver bars in mind.

I'll try and talk some of the boys into a go too, but to be honest with light, variable winds and high pressure dominating, I can't see any of them getting enthusiastic about what's likely to be a scratching session. I've got to go, if I don't I'll go mad. A very wise man once said to me that it was important to exercise your mind to stave off depression, Alzheimer's etc. He had an IQ of 150 when he died of a coronary at 45.

There was a report on one of the forums of an 11lb 8oz bass at Aldeburgh this last week, the big fish are definitely on the move to their winter grounds. What pleased me most about the report is the guys enjoyed the sport and returned all the fish they caught and cleared up some rubbish! Deep respect to those lads, not enough is ever said about the positive aspects of our sport, the problems caused by the mindless minority dominate most debates, fair play to those lads and they deserved the sport they had. As for the feckwits that leave litter and line all over the beach, and fill bag after bag with hardly sizeable fish, I hope your next shit's a hedgehog. The report and pictures can be found here:

http://www.worldseafishing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85020

The ICCM sign up is going quite well, 70 odd anglers are signed up to fish and the prize list is growing weekly. Good to see anglers from other forums supporting this worthwhile cause, keep it up lads! Apologies for posting the link again, but it'd be great if we could make it a 100+ match, been a while since I saw one of those.

http://www.leader-lines.com/