Category: Catch Reports 2025

June is definitely one of the top months for fishing in the Solent area. The summer species are abundant, and of course there are fresh mackerel around to provide a top bait. Bass are no longer a transient species, we catch them most months now but summer provides the best sport in numbers and weight.

There ae still plenty of bream around, and I have noticed that in recent years the bream that remain after the larger spawning specimens have departed are larger than they used to be.

There are plenty of mullet in the harbours and marinas, and having become more used to scraps of human food in the water, they are now more catchable.

Tope are target species for anyone that likes a tough fight.   Very fresh mackerel is a top bait and on some days you can catch so many it is literally exhausting, and you have to stop for a rest! I prefer fishing for smoothhound with lighter tackle – the fight is just as exhilarating but it’s kinder on my aging back.

Gilthead bream are now a common catch in the harbours, and if you know the best marks you can catch some sizeable specimens. The only problem with fishing in harbours, and inshore for that matter, is the abundant floating weed which means a line can’t stay down for long before it has to be cleared.

Other fish featured in this month’s gallery are stingray, turbot and a sunfish. The range of species we have here is truly remarkable.

May is Bream month although they stay around our section of coast for a lot longer than they once did. The larger fish come inshore to breed and there have been plenty of them caught right through the month. The SMAC Open Bream Competition  was won by a 3lb fish and all in the top 15 were 2lb plus.

Harbours and marinas are full of mullet. When they first appear they are very difficult to catch because they are feeding on small natural items like weed and micro organisms. As the season progresses their diet extends to scavenging from things we drop in the water and are much easier to catch on bread for example. Not that they are ever that easy to catch! SMAC Fish of the Month was a 5lb mullet caught by Ray Plomer.

Mackerel and garfish are around in reasonable numbers but still not as plentiful as they once were. You will often see birds working particularly in the evening and at first light, and although there are plenty of fish there, they can be difficult or impossible to catch. This is because fish can be very single-minded if they are feeding on very small fry that have just hatched. They are either focussed only on tiny baitfish or their stomachs are full!

The first smoothhounds have arrived and will be on the usual marks. There are also plenty of bass, particularly the smaller ones shoaling up like mackerel. There are also plenty of the usual species to keep anglers busy like the nice Thornback Ray above that was John Calton’s Personal Best. There’s always a chance of an unusual bonus like a turbot. It would be nice if we had more of those again.

Next month we expect to see more catches of tope as the larger fish arrive inshore to have their pups.

Thanks to everyone for sending in photos for the gallery!

We had some amazing weather with day after day of sun and low winds. Even when the wind picked up the sun was still shining. As a result there were a lot more fishing trips and plenty of catches to show off.

Bass are with us all year now, and with the two month Closed Season behind us bass were a target species again with some good fish caught. The last few small whiting were still around but they will be gone by the end of the month, probably returning in November.

Pollack are gathering over the wrecks and although it can be a bit of a hunt to find a wreck holding fish, those that persevered were successful.

The first mackerel arrived, attracted by the enormous shoals of baitfish that sometime fill our fish finder screens. I haven’t quite worked out the migration pattern of herrings but they were around in good numbers this April. Good for bait and even better fried in oatmeal.

Another summer visitor is the smoothhound and these hard fighters give great sport on the right tackle, particularly in shallow water. The first bream appeared and became more plentiful towards the end of the month. The larger breeding fish will probably depart after May but there will still be plenty of bream to catch all through summer.

There is always the chance of a bonus fish and Jim Atkins managed to find a turbot. Jim also scored the prize for biggest bass in the Sea Angling Classic Meet & Fish hosted by Premier Marinas Southsea and sponsored by Crewsaver (see Galley below).

All in all, a great start to the summer season and if the tope follow the mackerel as usual we should have a good May.

Boat angling catch reports are always a challenge in winter because the number of fishable days are limited by the weather and sometimes we can go for weeks without getting out at all. January was even more challenging this year because the cill (lock gate) at Southsea Marina was due for extensive maintenance, so most boats were locked into the marina for the last ten days of January.

Despite that, we got out for a few sessions and the results were fairly typical for January. Boats that went out to the reefs and wrecks found some good bass and pollack, with a bonus John Dory. Nearer home, the cod have all but disappeared, or were they even here? In the last two winters we have had much smaller whiting catches compared to previous years. On the other hand, conger are far more plentiful and bass that were once seasonal are around all year. We have already seen mullet back in the marina which is exceptionally early. Spurdog appear around this time for a few weeks, and these have been caught but not in great numbers. Catches have been boosted by the usual local species of rays, dogfish and pout.

I don’t expect much to change in February but anglers will be out looking for early plaice and if the seasonal changes carry on at the present pace we will probably see bream arriving too.