Worst day ever at the wall 23rd Dec

People:George and me

Duration:2 hours before high till 1 1/2 after high

Tide:

Weather:fine

Bait:Crab, frozen prawn, black wraps and Razor

Rigs:clipped down pennel and clipped down single hooked

Results:big fat zero




Report:George had to take a friend some turf down so we took the rods with us, might as well have left them back in Kerry for all the good they or we did.

Every cast the hooks came back as clean as they had been before the bait was put on them, the crabs were cleaning them bare, every cast was the same. The only thrill I got was when a guy with two boys with him accidentally caught my line and I thought I had seen the elusive bite at last but it was not to be. The person who hooked my line said that he had had some very nice cod from there a few weeks ago and that he and the boys had been there from before low water and all he had for his troubles was one coalie, I got to say I admire his, and the two youngins fortitude in sticking at it for so long.

I have been going to the wall for the last 7 years now and that is the very first time I have blanked there and I hope it is the last time also. I know that there were good fish being caught up till Wen, but they were just not there yesterday. In all my years of fishing I have learn t when the crabs have the cheek to clean your hooks to the extent that they were doing yesterday then there are no fish about to eat them and therefore no fish worth bothering about.

Merry Christmas and a very happy and prosperous New Year to all Wez

Hard luck wez , happy christmas

Fished Cobh on the 22nd for two hours and had two cod, both about 46cm.

Hard luck wez , happy christmas

Cheers Sean hope things are better down your way. Happy Christmas to you, the wife and the kids Wez

Fished Cobh on the 22nd for two hours and had two cod, both about 46cm.

Well done Pat, two fine fish there mate. It is a very strange one OK, not a nibble at all for me yesterday. It would be no good if we caught all the time, so a little set back like yesterday does no harm, might dent the pride at the time, but looking back it stiffens the resolve to get back at them and have a better session next time.

Merry Christmas Pat to you and all yours Wez

Bad luck and bad news for me, couse I'll be there at 11:30 am sunday till dark.
I hope I'll be more lucky.
Merry christmas for everybody!!!

Hard luck my old friend from [wasp from tw]good to get out though.

here over an hour and two lost rigs and a load of weed Grrr

We were fishing below ye and had four whiting .They were all pretty small apart from one.we were the same been hounded by the crabs.We were back out Christmas day from the wall and we had 3 coddling.

one codling today. The currents were very strong even at low water and most baits came back untouched (peeler ) . I'd say the rain of late isn't helping

Hard luck my old friend from [wasp from tw]good to get out though.

Hi Billy mate good to hear from you mate, hope your fishing is much better than that which I had at the wall that day.

Hope you have a very nice new year and a good season too, was reading about those pricks in the loughs agency going to make the fishing in the Foyle area, catch and release only, because there were not enough fish through the counter at Sion Mills, but when they were asked why they had not closed the fishing sooner they said that it was not allowed when the counter at Sion Mills did not work properly, they can't have it both ways got to be one or the other, either the fish counter did not work right and in that case how can they close the fishery to only catch and release, if the figures they obtained were so far out, they are something else that lot.

Best wishes Wez

We were fishing below ye and had four whiting .They were all pretty small apart from one.we were the same been hounded by the crabs.We were back out Christmas day from the wall and we had 3 coddling.

Cheers for that I remember you there were two of you, one, the smaller, had a floatation suit on. Glad you got a few on Christmas day, I am still at a loss as to why there were no fish there that day.

Good luck for 2012 to you boys and all on here, Wez

one codling today. The currents were very strong even at low water and most baits came back untouched (peeler ) . I'd say the rain of late isn't helping

Well done on the fish you get anyway.

The rain has two bad affects on the fishing down there, firstly if there is too much fresh water coming down the cod will move out to the more salty water and secondly on the ebb it runs very fast and even at low water it is still running out like mad, there is no such thing as slack water when there is big water in the Lee. Just heard the forecast and it seems there is going to be a bit of a blow tomorrow, getting it worse up north, but should get a bit down this way also, there will be rain with it, but I should think that the beaches should fish well after the blow, with Youghal being the pick of them.

I have been reading a lot about the Beara Peninsula and seems there are good cod to be had there, we are considering giving it a go some time soon, should be good down some of the beaches after a blow there, would not bother with the rocks till the beaches stopped producing fish.

Good luck for 2012 Wez

was there 2 nights ago and only hand a dog and some sort of sea urchin (was a first for me lol) Another guy on the pier got a tiny codling just as we were packing up. I asked another lad along the wall and he got nothing either so i guess its just not fishing well recently. Is it because of the rain or the fact that its just not a cold winter do ye think ?

was there 2 nights ago and only hand a dog and some sort of sea urchin (was a first for me lol) Another guy on the pier got a tiny codling just as we were packing up. I asked another lad along the wall and he got nothing either so i guess its just not fishing well recently. Is it because of the rain or the fact that its just not a cold winter do ye think ?

Hi Darol I would not think that the cold, or lack of it, would be the problem, there were loads of good big cod about when the water would have been a lot warmer, the sea can be at it's warmest in November. I would reckon that the fresh water might have something to do with the bad results, though having said that, there were loads of codling being caught at Monkstown and Youghal when there has been more fresh water coming from both the Lee and the Blackwater, so we can't blame just the rain. I would expect some codling to be caught at Youghal after the latest blow and it is blowing quite hard here in Kerry as I write.

I think what you might have caught would have been a sea anemone, rather than an urchin, but I might be wrong. If it had spines and was hard to the touch then it might well be an urchin. An anemone is soft almost like jelly and slimy to the touch. I have had numerous anemone there at the wall, they seem to grab the bait as it sweeps past them and suck it into their stomach, they are anchored to stones and are a dead weight reeling them in, I hate them for that reason.

Best wishes and good luck for the new year to all on here Wez

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ya it was an anemone alright. Soft to touch and was stuck onto a rock, had to give it a fair pull to get the bait out of him aswel
thanks man best of luck to you aswel !

The lack of codling is due to the trawler activity back in Oct. The harbour was fairly hammered by half-deckers. The last few seasons there were huge amounts of codling but most were sub 40cm and not commercially viable. This year the cod were in the 4lb bracket which made them a perfect size for the commercials, and as a result of the trawling activity there is less of them. Mind you, most sessions I have had off Cobh this year has resulted in at least two fish, but they have decent...above 50cm in most cases. Similar sessions last year would have resulted in anything between 20 and 40 fish, but most would have been small enough.

was on wall before christmas,5 codling one small,2 around 3lb,2 around 4lb,was yesterday with friend just for an hour me 2 small codling,my friend 1 codling around 5lb,so nt so bad,peeler worked best...

The lack of codling is due to the trawler activity back in Oct. The harbour was fairly hammered by half-deckers. The last few seasons there were huge amounts of codling but most were sub 40cm and not commercially viable. This year the cod were in the 4lb bracket which made them a perfect size for the commercials, and as a result of the trawling activity there is less of them. Mind you, most sessions I have had off Cobh this year has resulted in at least two fish, but they have decent...above 50cm in most cases. Similar sessions last year would have resulted in anything between 20 and 40 fish, but most would have been small enough.

I would well believe it Pat, have seen them there over the years, they are cheeky into the bargain, a few years ago they were doing it during the day. I would have thought that they would have been banned from there, but when has that ever stopped them doing anything.

I see a lot of the Killybegs boats have left their moorings and are heading out into the Atlantic, I reckon they are out to start the mackerel fishing come the new year, it is the only reason they would be heading straight out. Of late they have been up round the Shetland Islands fishing, but if they were going there they would have changer their heading by now but they are on a heading of round the 280 mark, the Western Endeavour is on a heading of 288 and steaming at 9 Knots, the Veronica which was the first to leave is well ahead of the others and she seems to be towing as she is only steaming at 6 Knots on a heading of 309 and the Paula is on a heading of 285 and steaming at 9.1 knots, her and the Endeavour are still close to the shore, the Veronica is well out and as I said seems to be towing.

Best wishes and good luck for the new year Wez

Hard luck my old friend from [wasp from tw]good to get out though.

Hi Billy mate good to hear from you mate, hope your fishing is much better than that which I had at the wall that day.

Hope you have a very nice new year and a good season too, was reading about those pricks in the loughs agency going to make the fishing in the Foyle area, catch and release only, because there were not enough fish through the counter at Sion Mills, but when they were asked why they had not closed the fishing sooner they said that it was not allowed when the counter at Sion Mills did not work properly, they can't have it both ways got to be one or the other, either the fish counter did not work right and in that case how can they close the fishery to only catch and release, if the figures they obtained were so far out, they are something else that lot.

Best wishes Wez

I meant to tie up with ya Wez when i was down at dingle 1st week in september, stayed in annascaul. I remembered when i got there, but no contact number. Could have done with your help mate , doggies ,pollack and the odd flattie was our catch. The weed was a big problem on a few of the marks. Happy new year to you and yours, see ya next time.