Posts Tagged ‘codling’

Deep Sea Fishing off Kinsale, Cod and Bonny Haddock from a Rolling Sea

Monday, January 21st, 2013

Picturesque, historic, beautiful Kinsale, situated on the Bandon river estuary eighteen miles south of Cork city, more noted today for gastronomic excellence, has a tourism sea angling tradition which predates its modern culinary fame. Back in 1964 after returning from working in the USA and Canada, native Irishman Gary Culhane decided to create a tourist sea angling centre modeled on the hunting and fishing lodges he had experienced while on his travels. A visionary, Gary not only earmarked good fishing as a requirement, but also extra curricular activities and amenities suitable not just for all male angling parties but families too. The peaceful coastal haven of Kinsale giving access to both the incredibly fish rich and diverse Ling Rocks grounds and the wreck of the Lusitania lying eleven miles south west of the Old Head of Kinsale fitted the bill admirably.

A grand reef ling for Rob Porter caught on Sundance Kid out of Kinsale, Co. Cork, Ireland.

Gary had two boats commissioned and built for offshore work and also hired dinghies and outboards for those customers who preferred to go it alone and fish the inner harbour and estuary. He constructed a wooden chalet and also provided space for caravans on the site which is now the Trident Hotel. Working in conjunction with Des Brennan of the Inland Fisheries Trust he invited journalists such as Clive Gammon to sample and write about what Kinsale had to offer tourist sea anglers, with the result that they came in their droves, in particular from Holland and the UK.

Back then common skate could be caught in the outer harbour and also turbot which swam and fed in the race off the Old Head. The Ling Rocks gave access to superb mixed fishing for a vast range of species to include big cod, pollack, whiting, coalfish, ling, gurnard, conger, and blue shark. Presently they still hold the rod and line record for thornback ray of thirty seven pounds, caught by M.J Fitzgerald on the 28/05/1961, a weight which will probably never be beaten. Traveling on out to the Lusitania initial forays produced big catches of specimen ling. This incredible marine diversity linked in with Kinsale and the surrounding hinterlands natural beauty, charm, and ambiance became the catalyst for a sea angling tourist product that at its height maintained a fleet of six deep sea charter boats.

Butch Roberts, skipper of Sundance Kid, displays a specimen red gurnard.

Unfortunately today, like many sea angling centers around the Irish coastline, Kinsale trades on its past. As a teenager in the seventies I was drawn to the town, initially on a youth hosteling trip with the school, then captivated by its location, how it resembled a Cornish fishing village, and of course its famous pubs such as The Spaniard, Bullman, and Hole in the Wall, on most bank holidays from then until the early 1980′s yours truly would be found resident. Camping around Charles Fort, a wonderful star shaped 17th century structure now preserved by the OPW, fishing other than for mackerel was secondary to girls, drink, and craic. That said, if one took a late afternoon stroll up to the Trident Hotel of an August bank holiday a regular sight would be large blue sharks strung up on a gantry. A sad legacy to ignorance, but it has to be said, we didn’t know any better then.

So full circle and a call last week to Mike Hennessy, Inland Fisheries Ireland’s sea angling maestro. In conversation Mike told me about the fabulous haddock fishing he experienced the previous weekend out with skipper Butch Roberts off Kinsale. Letting Mike know that I had never fished out of the venue, “in fifty two years a major personal oversight“, he said “leave it with me”, hung up and two minutes later rang back saying a party was heading out with Butch next Saturday and I was welcome to join them. Three days later at 08.30am on a cold, grey, dismal morning I hopped aboard Butch Roberts 38 foot Aquastar named Sundance Kid and made my introductions to both him and the anglers present.

A brace of codling for sea angler John Young aboard Sundance Kid out of Kinsale, Co. Cork, Ireland.

A mixed party, immediately I felt welcome, there was Dubliner Nick Ward, two knowledgeable anglers from the Cork City based Carrigaline Sea Angling Club Rob Porter and John Dennehy, and John “forever” Young, a Scotsman who sailed his yacht into Kinsale over a dozen years ago and never left. Preparing tackle as Butch guided Sundance Kid clear of the Castle Park Marina before steaming up the estuary past the twin bastions of Charles and James forts, our skipper then set a south easterly course out into the open ocean to a mark where hopefully the haddock would still be present.

Six miles south east of the Old Head of Kinsale charter boat Sundance Kid pitched and rolled under a dirty grey sky. The sea, still heaving after Thursdays gale, had thankfully settled enough for the 38 foot Aquastar to leave harbour, force eight south easterlies being replaced by a steady north east breeze pushing occasional wintry squalls ahead of it. Blowing at a slight angle off the land its effect was to flatten the sea somewhat, although in reality a short chop now became superimposed on a heavy swell, safe but uncomfortable. Baiting up with frozen razor clam and slivers of mackerel we lowered our rigs 100 feet towards a clean bottom of shale.

Nick Ward displays a nice haddock.

Instantly John Dennehy’s rod signaled bites which resulted in a brace of plump whiting, a false dawn as things went quite after that. Skipper Butch instructed lines up and we motored to another mark close by where he dropped anchor just as the tide was beginning to push west. To the north east I could make out Roche’s Point, while to the north west obscured by a sleety squall one could just make out the Old Head of Kinsale. Every so often we would dip into a trough and land would disappear, that’s the kind of day it was. Butch, Captain Ahab like with his beard, oozing sea going experience from South Africa, his native land, to Australia, was a constant source of reassurance. He’s been fishing these waters since he first came to Kinsale in 1984. What attracted him, “a woman of course”.

For an hour as the tidal flow increased bites came slowly but steadily, haddock made an appearance with Nick landing a grand four pound fish while John Young boated a brace of nice codling. Top rod for the day was Rob Porter, employing a two up one down rig laced with beads he regularly contacted haddock and large whiting, with his fish of the day being a ling in the eight to ten pound bracket. Best fish of the trip turned out to be a specimen red gurnard of 2.2 lbs caught by a rightly chuffed John Young, and I was delighted to see a number of big whiting landed, Kinsale at one stage home to the Irish record.

Rob Porter plays a good ling aboard charter boat Sundance Kid out of Kinsale, Co. Cork, Ireland.

At days end motoring back in conversation with John Dennehy about the quality of sea fishing off the Cork coast, what he described gave hope. Yes, based on historic catches sea fishing has diminished with species overall smaller in size and less common. That said he and his friends fishing regularly throughout the year catch not only a range of species but fish to a good weight also. What I witnessed aboard Sundance Kid at the tail end of the season on a rough, cold day, backed up John’s narrative. Not a lot of fish were boated, that most definitely being down to the conditions, however codling to four pounds, whiting close to if not over two pounds, haddock averaging a pound and a half, a couple of good ling and a specimen gurnard in this day and age represents quality fishing. What might be achieved in the high season with good weather I intend to find out, roll on next summer.

John Dennehy with a nice plump winter whiting.

Fact file: Charter boat, Sundance Kid. Skipper, Butch Roberts. Telephone: +353 (0)21 4778054. Email: info@anglingkinsale.com. Website: www.anglingkinsale.com

Ashley’s Mad About Fish Too, But Where Are They?

Saturday, November 17th, 2012

Leaving the house at 08.00 am on a beautiful frosty Sunday morning with a view to catching a few flounder and latterly codling, yours truly spent twenty euro on bait, at least twenty five euro on petrol, ten euro on a bowl of chowder and a pint of stout, ingested loads of healthy fresh air, absorbed plenty of sunshine, and conducted a reasonable amount of sociable interaction over a twelve hour period, all of which resulted in one two pound school bass. Sea angling is a great pass time however, when four competent anglers fishing two rods each more or less blank on what are excellent tides while fishing normally productive venues, one can only deduce that somethings not right.

Sea fishing in Ireland for estuary flounder.

Initially fishing an estuary location known to deliver specimen size flounder, fresh lugworm and peeler crab baits were cast into the channel just as the tide was making, based on form a perfect time. Three hours later, not a nibble, with bait being reeled in untouched, extraordinary for that mark. Later casting into a lovely sea as dusk fell the twin surf poles should have been hopping, instead what transpired was a repeat of the mornings exercise, saved only by a late smash and grab schoolie.

Evening surf casting in south Wexford, Ireland.

Having returned to regular sea fishing in the late summer of 2007 I can categorically state that shore fishing within counties Wicklow and Wexford  has deteriorated year on year to date, with 2011/2012 being particularly bad. Yes there was a run of codling last winter, the result of a good year class in 2008 or 2009. Not surprisingly our illustrious fisheries Minister Coveney caved in to industry pressure and increased the Celtic Sea cod quota by 77% on what was a barely recovering stock, result bye bye codling.

To rub salt in the wound RTE broadcast their Nationwide programme, Friday 16th November (see RTE player), within which they extolled the virtues of buying fresh fish from a market stall in Galway city and the success of innovative value added fish products recently launched by a significant south east fish wholesaler. Now this writer loves eating fish and both recognises and values the commercial fishing sector. A major gripe though is that our national broadcaster constantly airs programmes such as the one mentioned above and also the popular Martin’ s Mad About Fish which give the impression of a rich bountiful ocean, unfortunately a far cry from the modern reality as witnessed last Sunday. A bit of balance RTE please……….

Sea Fishing in Ireland, Mini Marathon

Sunday, October 21st, 2012

Sea angling sessions dominated by juvenile fish catches are a sign of the times, oh for the pull of a decent cod or flattie. A steady southerly wind creates a lovely surf along the south Wexford beaches but equally in the summer and autumn has the habit of throwing up piles of weed, couple this with a big four meter spring tide and fishing becomes nigh impossible. Digging the requisite five dozen lug a decision was made to avoid the weed and target early codling, dabs, and flounder within the confines of the Waterford estuary.

Sea fishing in Ireland, double shot of codling and dab.

Again, just like a fortnight ago immature codling made hay, attacking the baits with gusto, every other cast producing a double shot. Small dabs and flounder made up the numbers, most casts producing fish right through the rising tide. At peak run fishing became difficult, a result of floating weed, casting into the margins during this period helped to avoid the worst of it. Tired of tiddler bashing I hit the road on high tide around 21.30pm – 22.00pm. Five minutes into the drive it was nice to receive a call from Gerry Mitchell, his son Robert had just landed a 7.lb 6.oz bass off an east facing Wexford strand, you make your own bed as they say…….

Down on the Jetty

Sunday, October 7th, 2012

Pier angling is much maligned, associated with casual summer mackerel fishers and youngsters learning how to cast a line, both true. However man made structures such as harbour walls, pontoons, and jetties provide a haven for species such as conger, protection for juvenile fish, peaceful sub habitats within harbour confines of which mullet and flounder take a particular liking, and by deflecting tidal currents create conditions which attract and channel within season bass, codling, whiting, and coalfish.

A cracking pier caught flounder landed by Martin O'Leary, Co. Wexford, Ireland.

Having experienced some cracking codling sessions through last winter fishing a couple of harbour marks within close proximity of each other, I decided to test the water a little earlier this season. Retracing a well worn routine of digging five dozen black lug followed by homemade cheese burger, salad, and chunky, very crispy chips, washed down with a pint of Arthur’s best, “you just have to look after yourself “, I drove around to my chosen fishing mark. A rising neap tide and flat calm sea limited proceedings, “a bit of a stir always proving better in terms of fish landed”, That said, the pleasant conditions made for a nice evening and from the get go fish were biting.

Digging lugworm on a sheltered strand, Co. Wexford, Ireland.

Juvenile 25 – 30 centimeter codling were present in abundance, what I would term a “positive” nuisance, a good sign for the future but I wish something bigger would happen along. Double’s to both rods being the order of the day, practically every cast, with an occasional dab thrown in for good measure. Sharing the venue with Martin O’Leary, his young son, and nephew Darren (an up and coming Kilmore SAC member), using crab they tempted some nice flounder and an odd coalfish to up the species count.

Pier fishing on a crisp, frosty, October evening, Co. Wexford, Ireland.

Using 2/0 round bends limited gut hooking with most fish returned to the water safe and sound. No big ones this evening although Martin landed a fine flounder, on the other hand, rods continuously nodded and many of the codling landed will be 1.5 – 2.0 pound weight this time next year, so prospects are good. The session was enjoyable, chatting, and sharing information with the lads. Most importantly though the two boys present caught fish in good numbers from a safe location. XBox or fishing? Fella’s you made the right choice……..

Further Information, click on: Estuary Codling.

Sea Fishing in Ireland, Hey Joey

Saturday, September 1st, 2012

Wild Swan rolled one mile south west of the Hook light house on a sea created by a stiff west south west wind pushing against a making tide, sea legs were the order of the day as we worked our hokais and feathers across mixed ground for pollack, coalfish, wrasse, and occasional codling.

A nice red rock codling from fishing grounds off the Hook lighthouse, Co. Wexford.

A trip arranged at short notice found myself and a group of Hungarian visitors sharing an afternoon charter aboard Wild Swan skippered by Jim Foley, thank you very much John Enright for letting us join your party. Leaving Ballyhack Quay at 12.30 pm we motored up the Waterford estuary past Arthurstown and Duncannon Fort before commencing an initial drift inside the Hook. Immediately we hit joey mackerel in good numbers, a plus and a minus it must be said, the fact that we caught so many is living proof of how the north east Atlantic mackerel fishery is being decimated at the present time, large numbers of juvenile fish a clear signal that the mature adults have been removed.

A colourful cuckoo wrasse boated off Hook Head.

Catching enough mackerel for bait and tea we motored out into a rolling sea beyond the brown water which flowed out of the estuary. Gannets, guillemots, and herring gulls followed the boat dipping into the water to retrieve tossed over fish carcasses shorn of their fillets for use as bait. Further cut into strips we baited our hokais and dropped them to the sea bed, which appeared to be mixed sand and rock. Mackerel hit regularly on both descent and retrieve but for the first hour ground fish proved elusive. A couple of moves eventually put us over productive ground with my rod bending over to a good red codling followed by a colourful cuckoo wrasse.

A brace of pollack.

Fish arrived intermittently over the next two hours, mainly smallish pollack with a smattering of coalfish, wrasse, cuckoo wrasse, codling, and dogfish. On another day we could have traveled further with ling and larger pollack in mind, but due to the conditions safety was paramount. At lines up though our group had boated seven species which under the circumstances was not bad, and we headed for shelter within the Waterford estuary a happy bunch.

Ballyhack, Co. Wexford based angling charter vessel "Wild Swan".

Skippered by Jim Foley, Wild Swan is a clean spacious vessel suitable for groups of up to 10 anglers. 2012 charter prices are €400.00 per day and €15.00 tackle hire. Why not give Jim a ring on 087 678 1245 for an end of season trip, Indian summers and calm seas almost a certainty at this time of year.

Further reading, Click on: Wild Swan off the Hook.

Kayak Fishing in Ireland, “I Think I Need a Bigger Boat”

Sunday, July 29th, 2012

Gary Robinson is an angler who puts a lot of time, thought, and effort into his fishing. Set up now with a state of the art kayak rig Gary has spent the early summer putting her through its paces. The weather recently has been kind with light winds, calm seas, and blue skies, enabling a trip out off Dunlaoghaire which resulted in a nice codling.

A plump codling for kayak fisher Gary Robinson.

Taking advantage of the settled conditions Gary paddled out a few days later after the big stuff off the north Wicklow coastline. His efforts produced a superb tope, which judging from the images Gary sent me is well over the specimen forty pound mark and could easily top fifty. Handling a fish like that in a boat is difficult enough, but from a kayak takes some skill. Well done Gary on a cracking fish caught and released.

Specimen Wicklow tope for Kayak angler Gary Robinson.

For the record Gary’s tope was tempted by ledgered whole mackerel and played on an old faithful ABU 7000 reel.

See also: Kayak Fishing for Tope.

See also: Screaming Reels.

Mixed Bag from the Waterford Estuary.

Monday, January 23rd, 2012

Codling have been ever present this winter and of a good stamp, most fish that I have encountered in the 35 – 40 cm bracket or bigger. With a four meter high tide at 18.00pm I headed for the Waterford estuary to fish a new mark that held promise. After digging bait at Duncannon and a much needed pit stop in the Strand Bar, nothing beats a toastie and a pint of plain, it was off to the venue for a 14.00pm start.

Pier fishing on the Waterford estuary, Ireland.

On arrival the flood had been pushing for two hours, a scarf of tide about 80 meters out marked the line of the shipping channel. A local fisherman tending to his nets informed me that I would be casting into 4/5 fathoms of water and that my baits would be landing on a mussel bed. Happy days, depth and feed, would fish be in residence. Casting two hook flappers baited with fresh black lug into the channel, no sooner had the grips settled in then the tips started nodding.

Waterford estuary codling.

Breaking out was difficult I assume due to the mussel bank, but an even pressure released the grips and I could feel the fish. First cast a double header, codling and dab, followed by a codling, big whiting, then a flounder/codling double. What a start fish every cast, and that is how it went for the first two hours. I copped that my rig was settling down the side of the channel (where the fish were), but my main line was resting on the lip. This had the effect of masking bites and also was probably responsible for the difficulty in breaking out. That said, I wasn’t complaining and over the course of the session only lost two rigs.

Large Waterford estuary whiting.

Bites diminished as full tide approached however they did not stop. Normally I let a cast fish for 10 minutes before reeling in to re bait, invariably a fish would signal its presence within that time span. I lost count of the fish landed and the time just flew. Calling it a day at six bells there is no doubt, “it was a belter of a session“. Six species, codling, whiting, pouting, dab, flounder, and eel, all of a good size. The estuary has been good to me this year, and it seems that every time I head down I meet somebody new. “Hi Jim O’Brien, we had a good chat, hope you enjoy those codling“.

See also: Estuary Codling.

See also: Christmas Coalies.

Seafood and Eat It. Creamy Fish Pie.

Monday, January 23rd, 2012

Having a supply of fresh codling available this winter has created a nice problem in the kitchen, what will we have for dinner today? How about a creamy fish pie, easy to prepare and real comfort food on these cold grey January evenings.

Creamy fish pie made with codling fillets and cooked shrimp.

Ingredients:

Codling fillets (boneless), Cooked and peeled shrimp, Potatoes (enough for four people), Leek, Celery (2 sticks), Spring onion x 4, Cherry tomatoes x 8, Milk (200ml), Cream (200ml), White wine (glass), Fish stock or vegetable bouillon, Vegetable oil, Butter , Cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese, Flour (dessertspoon), Salt, Pepper.

Preparation:

Wash and peel potatoes, place in salted water and boil for twenty minutes. Drain, season with salt and pepper and mash incorporating butter, milk, and cream until consistency is smooth enough to pipe.

Slice celery into small chunks, quarter leek along its length and dice, dice spring onion. Heat oil and melt a knob of butter in large pot, throw in veg, season with salt and pepper then sweat off. Add wine and bring to boil, reduce down so removing alcohol. Add flour and cook out, then stir in milk and cream. Cook away stirring occasionally until mix thickens to a white sauce consistency, add in cooked shrimp, halved cherry tomatoes, and bouillon. Stir then pour mix into an oven proof baking dish.

Skin and remove any rib or pin bones from codling fillets, season with salt and pepper then place on top of mix in oven proof dish.

Spoon potato mash into piping bag and pipe a three quarter inch layer over the pie filling. Place in pre heated oven (180 degrees Celsius) for fifteen minutes. Remove using a dry towel or oven glove, grate mature cheddar and Parmesan cheese over the top and return to oven for twenty minutes or until cheese is nicely gratinated (golden brown colour).

Remove from oven and leave to rest for five minutes. Spoon and serve on warm plates with peas or broccoli as an accompaniment and a glass of chilled white wine. YUMMY!

Click on article: Seafood and eat it.

New Year Codling.

Tuesday, January 10th, 2012

Saturday the 7th of January 2012 dawned dull and mild. With winds to pick up from the south west by late evening I had planned the first trip of the year to coincide with a dusk high tide. Arranging to meet Frank Flanagan from the Menapia SAC on the beach at 16.00pm, I headed off initially to dig some lug. With six dozen yellow tail in the bucket and time to spare I decided to hit an estuary mark for a couple of hours in search of flounder.

Waiting for a knock, estuary flounder fishing, Co. Wexford, Ireland.

Today they were not forth coming, two heavy leans gave an indication that fish were present but unfortunately no hook ups. At 15.30 pm I upped sticks and headed to meet Frank. The location we planned to fish had produced some fine codling over Christmas so hopes were high. A full tide mark, form showed that if fish were present they would take from high water to 1.5 hours down, and be very close in following the line of a gully. The venue had been good to Frank over Christmas delivering codling up to five pounds in weight.

Frank Flanagan of the Menapia SAC, Wexford, with a nice plump beach caught codling.

Casting two hook flappers out thirty meters as light faded, immediately rapid fire bites signaled coalfish which ranged in size from half to one and a half pounds. Good fun, they kept us busy but their barbuled chinned cousins were noticeable by their absence, just the night that was in it. Further up the coast at a venue not four miles away a couple of friends beached two codling amongst the coalfish, the best going five pounds. Now that’s fishing….

 


Christmas Coalies.

Sunday, December 11th, 2011

Substantiated reports of decent sized codling being caught off beaches close to Courtown in North Wexford highlight the excellent shore fishing south east Ireland has been witnessing in recent weeks. Southerly gales over the last few days pushed anglers onto east facing venues and they delivered. Swimming alongside the codling and very prevalent on some locations are coalfish. Considered a nuisance by some, they can make for an interesting and lively session when other fish are marked absent.

Enniscorthy based angler John Goff with a catch of Waterford estuary coalfish.

Saturday dawned crisp and white, a hard frost having fallen during the night. Taking it handy I drove towards a half eleven bait digging appointment, quality black lugworm being the target. Unlike my last outing the tell tale signs of blow hole and cast were very evident, and it was not long before I had six dozen fat juicy worms in my bucket. Dug individually using a fork, the lugworm even allowing for the frost were no more than a spit and a half down. That task accomplished, a quick bite to eat and it was off to the venue which delivered so well last time out.

Pier fishing in the Waterford estuary, south east Ireland.

Commencing fishing two and a half hours into the flood, a big four meter was pushing a lot of water up the narrow estuary. Casting out two identical paternoster rigs utilising long snoods and 2/0 kamazan hooks, it wasn’t long before a tap tap bite resulted in a nice flounder. Action was slow after that with just an odd small codling showing interest. As dusk closed in around five pm, an hour before high water, proceedings changed noticeably. Jagging quick fire bites signaled coalfish, known to play with a bait they dart in and out smash and grab like, very hard to hook with long snoods. Seeking codling and playing the percentages, or maybe just lazy I didn’t shorten my snoods so reducing my catch. Even so amidst all the frustrating missed bites I still landed my fair share of coalfish.

Sporty coalfish tempted by lugworm from a local pier.

Reasonably sized they put up a decent fight on being hooked especially when rising through the water close to the pier. Their lightning fast turns of direction and dives combined with the current putting a decent curve in the rod, it was like boat fishing albeit on dry land. Bites were steady right up to seven pm when my bait ran out, numerous coalies were landed along with small codling by the double, flounder, and rockling. Two Enniscorthy based anglers fishing beside me, John Goff and his friend Pat, were having a productive time also. The larger codling didn’t show but no matter, their bottle green backed cousins provided more than enough entertainment. Another productive session in south County Wexford.

To visit a related post click on: Estuary codling.