With all the chat about the Solent being the place to go for cod, I thought it would be like a car park over the usual marks (it was), so I headed to New Grounds to a mark that had produced cod for me last year. Despite the calm weather (or because of – ENE and high pressure), fishing was slow. Dogfish kept the rod tips nodding but eventually I caught a small scad and a huge mackerel.

Big Mac

The scad went back down BBQ style and within minutes was taken by what turned out to be a 14lb undulate ray. I retrieved the mangled scad, added a squid for company and dropped it down again. This time it wasn’t a ray, after a brief but very vigorous fight the line was bitten through above the hook so it was probably a conger. Then it all went quiet, although I was desperately trying to catch more small scad! In the end I packed up early and headed back, intending to drift a bank on the way home with my new Fiiish Black Minnow lures. The gulls were working the bank again and I could see bass on the surface, but the lures I had were too heavy and were dropping below the fish. While lining up for the next drift I noticed on the fishfinder the bottom was alive with fish so I bumped the Black Minnow along the bottom. That was the right thing to to – a total of six bass in a single drift, all at about 30cm long so just undersized but plenty big enough to put up a good fight on light tackle. I was using the 25gm 120 FBM and that can be tied direct to the line, increasing sensitivity and fun.

Fiiish on