Windswept, moonlit Sligo Beach, 8th Feb. 2017

Wednesday was to be a bit milder so it seemed like a good day for a run out, the fly in the ointment being a strong wind but with a southerly direction it should be at my back. I arrived at the beach at the top of the tide and parked the car facing into the wind to get a bit of shelter while setting up. While doing so, a guy struck up a conversation with me during the course of which he suggested how I could persuade Herself to make me a few sandwiches; annoy her into coming at me wielding a kitchen knife, then give her a loaf and a pound of ham at which point her feminine instincts will kick in and she’ll make me a sandwich by reflex! Not sure I’ll try that strategy. There were a few surfers but they were well down the beach out of the way. This beach has a major snag at times depending on how the sand has been shifted by storms and at high tide I had to guess from memory where it was located. The usual setup of a grip lead rig at distance and a plain lead rig in close was employed and not a bite came to either rod for over three hours. The movement of the close-in plain lead indicated a fairly strong lateral tow. As the light faded a few geese flew by in the evening flight and I was hoping that perhaps the fish might start feeding. The almost full moon however compensated for the fading sunlight so I fished on in an eerie half-light without a bite. As the tide fell away I had to move further down the beach to keep close to the water’s edge and that meant I was losing the shelter of the dunes behind me, at one point the tackle box was blown over by a particularly strong gust. At last a few bites started, a 27cm flounder on the distance rod. Just as I was unhooking it, the knife, bread and ham guy re-appeared to admire the fish and asked me could he have it as his mother would love a bit of fresh fish. His request was accompanied by the extraction of folding stuff from his wallet, he must have thought I had caught a turbot! I gave him the flounder but to preserve my amateur status, declined the folding stuff. The flattie was followed by a double of small coalfish on the near rod. The distance rod then went slack as a nice 35cm coalfish took a strip of mackerel, next fish was another smaller flounder at 23cm on the close in rod. Another couple of small coalfish made up the numbers but as low tide was approaching the action died away with over an hour of inactivity. The receding water revealed the snag I referred to earlier; I was fishing just a few yards to the left of it, a lucky escape. There was a deep scour to the left of it; I suspect I may have been fishing in this earlier when a few fish turned up. The strong wind was by now starting to sap the heat from me so I packed up. On retrieving the distance rod I found there was a 27cm whiting hanging on, but having managed a couple of flounder, it was not enough to make me stay. While it was very windy on the beach, it was only when I reached the top of the shingle and stone bank at the top of the beach that I was exposed to the full force of the wind, it nearly blew me to a standstill. After a leisurely drive home during which a couple of foxes played chicken with me (and won), I arrived home in the wee small hours to see a badger disappearing through the back corner of the garden, good to see a live one after the two roadkill Brocks I passed on the way home. In the kitchen awaiting me was a “Ping” dinner and no sign whatever of the Kitchen Knife.

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Nice few fish, must get out for a cast soon

You're a brave man JW Nice to see someone out and at it!
Next time take the cash

Well played.