Mullet Fishing 2019: Fishing Days

Latest:  05/11/19:  5/14 - after seeing a fish taking bread in a very narrow gap between a boat and a pontoon, I decided to persist well past the optimal tide time. It was almost impossible to cast or drift into the space, and soon, it all went a bit too quiet. Reverting to plan A, I continued to feed, and stared at the unmoving float, which suddenly wasn't there any more. After some capital 'V' 'Very nasty moments', there was a pretty darn good mullet in the net. Shiny.

02/10/19:  3/14, 2/02 - fished out into a channel with a bit of flow in it, partly tidal plus the effects of a light wind. After several missed bites, hooked a strong fish which really gave it some in the shallow water. After a relocation, persistence was rewarded with a second fish, later in the day.

30/09/19:  1/14, 2/08, 3/10 - a bit of location hopping, and the day gave up three of its finest, even though maybe not its largest. Chuffed.

18/09/19:  4/02 - an uncomfortable round of 'pontoon roulette' with Mr/Ms 'quite large and grumpy' (with a clown's-shoe tail). A superb fighter that had me reaching for the Kalms - respect.

16/09/19:  5/00 - another 'chunky chicken' that almost certainly gave much better than it got, despite ultimately finishing up in the net. Swam off belligerently, probably to find some pies to chew on.

27/08/19:  1/06, 6/11, 6/02 - after a very slow start, I was pretty pleased to have the first fish in the net, despite its diminutive size. It was getting far too hot, so I made my way back to the car park, stopping on the way to see what was happening in the margins of a marina. A largely unremarkable fish was feeding in a four-foot gap between a boat and a pontoon, in only two feet of water, so I thought, what the heck, have a go... After a short time, the rod was pretzeled and some serious negotiations were in full swing, although the fish clearly wasn't offering any concessions at all. Heaving prevailed, the hook stayed in, and there was a 'tank' on the bank; not at all what had appeared to be a much smaller fish at the outset.

Now feeling more than a bit pleased, I almost sprinted off towards the car (...almost), pausing to look at one last spot... Anyway, that was a mistake, as I managed to get a few fish feeding alongside a row of boats arranged perpendicular to the bank. Knowing that a hookup and a left turn would be fatal, I planned my 'exit strategy', visualising the measures that would be necessary in the first few seconds of the inevitable drama, There was the crash of a large tail, and no float, and then it all went exactly as I had planned... did it heck. More massive heaving, putting the brakes on really hard to avoid the direct intervention of any boats or woodwork, and eventually, the net was looking quite full, again.

25/08/19:  4/14 - another cracking mullet, cracking fight, cracking day; almost cracked a smile?

21/08/19:  5/00, 3/09 - the best fish so far, for this venue, plus a second mullet to pile on the joy. Excellent.

19/08/19:  1/05

12/08/19:  5/04 - hooked something angry, and the rain poured down, and the thunder started... This one bullied its way a good distance downstream, towards some rotten posts, and took some real effort to dissuade from properly stuffing me up. Played it at range, gaining small amounts of line and then losing large ones... Electrocution not forthcoming, was very relieved to coax it back towards me and finally get it netted.

04/08/19:  4/06 - another lengthy walk punctuated by the very welcome arrival of a sizeable mullet. Thankfully, no premature departure, and a very dodgy squelch in the mud got the net under it.

29/07/19:  3/06

23/07/19:  2/15, 0/09 - after the end of a very long hot day, punctuated by teenagers falling from the sky into an earlier swim, Phil and I arrived at the Last Gasp Saloon, the final location of the Devon trip for 2019. In went the groundbait, and Phil's float soon shot away, only to reappear very quickly as it rocketed skyward. He was still uttering the 'magic words' when my float disappeared three seconds later, and the strike was met with some instant fireworks. Not a monster, but a very good end to a great few days' fishing.

22/07/19:  1/06, 2/05 - another '2/05' from the same location as the previous one of that weight, one of two mullet for me, for the day.

21/07/19:  0/13, 0/10, 1/05, 2/01 - a few small mullet to get things going, then a move. While failing miserably to get anything resembling proper bite in a large open pool, I noticed some fish hammering the stray bread floating into the fast water downstream. Appropriate adjustments made, there was a take on the second or third cast, and a spirited fight ensued, the fish using the fast flow to bring some additional stress to the proceedings.

20/07/19:  2/05, 1/03 - the first fish clearly hadn't read the memo, neither being '1/03' nor a multiple thereof... Another enjoyable session.

19/07/19:  1/03, 1/03 - first day in Devon, with PhilW, and the weather was biblically abysmal. Wind and horizontal rain notwithstanding, it turned into an enjoyable start, as we each managed to put a few small mullet in the net, when it all looked more than a bit unlikely.

17/07/19:  5/06, 4/15 - undecided whether to fit in one last trip before the impending visit to Devon, and clearly made the right choice, with two hefty and very hard-fighting fish on the bank.

11/07/19:  1/03, 3/12

11/07/19:  4/08, plus a small thinlip - a long walk to get to the bankside, rewarded by an eventful fight with a strong and determined fish in shallow water, just after the low tide had passed.

08/07/19:  2/06

02/07/19:  4/11

26/06/19:  3/12

23/06/19:  2/04, 4/10

03/06/19:  3/15

31/05/19:  3/11, 2/11 - the first was way beyond 'hook and hold', somewhere in the ballpark of hook, dig hole with free hand, plant 'stop' sign, apply handbrake with extreme prejudice, and hope for the best. This was a heck of a fight, partly due to circumstances, and the relief with the 'fish in net' outcome was enormous. Boris came and had a closer look, but didn't seem overly impressed - probably realised it was just something he couldn't eat... I wasn't expecting any more bites after that drama had concluded, so the second mullet was a more than welcome addition - chubby little fellow.

29/05/19:  1/04, 4/08 - the larger fish was unusually slender, although not at all unhealthy, and in beautiful condition; with its powerful tail, it was nothing short of an absolute missile.

24/05/19:  4/11

22/05/19:  4/00 - hard work; lots of pigging out and not much biting, but eventually, a mistake was made and we were 'game on' (no thrones were damaged during the execution of this capture). The fight was pretty much a rerun of the 18th, although thankfully, I didn't have to crane this obstinate blighter out from under a large boat. Chuffedness abounds.

18/05/19:  4/14, 1/15 - first thicklips of the year, and a very good one to start on. Struck into what felt like a good fish, which thrashed angrily on the surface, then tore off towards the nearest pontoons. After some uncomfortable heaving, got it to the shore, and it went again... this time, right under a boat. Repeated the heaving bit, and then there were some very nasty moments close to the tideline before it was in the net. Unbelievable relief followed.

Buoyed by success, gave a second venue a good amount of time, and eventually got stuck into a second one. Smaller this time, but twisted and turned like a mad thing. For a time, I thought it was foul-hooked, but thankfully, that wasn't the case.

14/05/19:  - a highly enjoyable trio of thinlips;  1/13,  2/05 and  2/00

12/05/19:  2/05 thinlip - on yet another day when thicklips were conspicuous by their absence, this mullet provided a more than welcome diversion

23/04/19:  1/09 thinlip - while still waiting for the thicklips to appear, out of the blue, a thinlip on bread - who would have put money on that? Really good to be up and running for 2019