Welcome to our newest bloggers, who longline for fish off the coast of Suffolk

Welcome to our newest bloggers, brothers Steve and Chirs Wightman, who longline for fish off the coast of Suffolk. To contact Steve and Chris, email them at handliners@seafish.co.uk.

Friday 29 January 2010

Hi Folks
 
Very sorry for the long break in blogging!

Thank you for those that have got in touch, here I am back again.
 
What a busy time for the fishing industry at the moment. I am being kept very busy with consultations for Natural England's Natura 2000 MPZ's and Net Gain have also popped up wanting more conservation areas, also the ever growing encroachment of wind farms and dredging areas. Without proper representation fishermen can soon find that their grounds are just not there anymore, no where to go and catch the pathetic quota issued to us.

To be honest it does look very scary for any fisherman who doesn't quickly adapt to this fast changing climate. Not only struggling to survive on tiny insufficient quotas, but changing to more sustainable methods and making sure we still have access to grounds and important stocks.

We look set to loose around 80% of our inshore fleet here on the east coast as they simply cannot function on their quota share. Many fishermen are approaching retirement age and the few younger men are being drawn into wind farm work. It's very sad to see and a big worry. I hope we can soon make the necessary change within the industry to protect the few fishing jobs that are left and attract young blood to keep things going for the future.
 
It really does not need to be this bleak. The sea looks in very good condition with good stocks of fish of all species and bares little relation to all the doom we hear in the media and from green groups - I really wish they would just jump on a fishing boat and see the truth for themselves.
 
We have been fishing quite well over the last few months, and even though it costs us dear to rent our quota, stocks and prices have been good enough to get a small living.

However we have found it necessary to try and add more value to our catch and are going to have our own shop in the near future, selling our own fish and trying to source from other Responsible Fishing Scheme boats. Please get in touch if you would like your fish in our little shop.
 
I also try and help our local fisherman's mission, Tim Jenkins from the Lowestoft mission does a great job and last year managed to help find funds and benefit entitlements for those in need to the sum of more than 150k in our area - great work Tim, keep it up.
 
I have also had questions from Albert in Holland who wants more information on sole nets.

Well on our boat sometimes in the summer we will work drifting trammels, these are shot on clear patches of ground and in such a way that they move with the tide, a lead line trickling over the bottom held up by a float line, depending on the size of clear ground we can put in fleets of up to 500m, working up to 8 or more fleets per tide. Stronger tides are needed and we often have fleets stop as they catch something on the bottom.

Normally we let the nets drift for an hour or a mile and quickly haul any that come fast on the bottom. It's an interesting method of fishing that won't work every where, but if you have lots of clear spots of sand shingle or non sticky mud it's possible to get a small living during the summer and early autumn.
 
Well that's it for now, please get in touch if I can help and I wish you good health and good fishing. Chris.

Friday 04 September 2009

Hi Folks

It has been a very busy few months and I haven't had time to blog, sorry.
 
We are living in a time of huge change in the fishing industry. There is more and more reason for fishermen to stand up and be counted. Wind farms are set to take huge areas of ground - normally with little consultation with fishermen. The same problem is coming from aggregate companies who want to strip mine our inshore grounds, leaving only mud and lifeless muck (but at least they are extending our grounds - as the cliffs crumble to fill the gaps on the eroding shoreline the beach will slowly move inland).

And also we have the marine bill and future marine reserves just around the corner. Natural England have the task of sorting out this one and at the moment they don't know much about our seas past the low water mark. They have just 2 years to try and come up with some sensible recommendations for these coastal zones. In future there will be 3 types of areas in the seas around the UK, areas that are tidal and repair/replenish themselves quickly will be considered sustainable for all types of fishing and other interests. Areas of sensitive marine growth that are considered vulnerable to damage may be open only to static gear such as lines, nets and pots/fish traps etc. Then there are areas of such scientific or natural importance that will be total no take zones, no fishing or other interests at all will be allowed.

However, any interested party or stakeholder can apply to have one of these areas enforced. This makes it all the more important that fishermen get their voice heard. Ignoring the problem will not make it go away, and there are not enough fishermen left to just sit back and hope that someone else will talk for you. Marine parks are coming and the common fisheries policy is up for review, so now is the time for all fishermen to voice how they would like the future to be. All things considered it could be a great chance to right the many wrongs that our industry has suffered for many years. Everybody wants a sustainable and prosperous fishing industry and the future is very much in our hands, one of the greatest problems that faces the world is not climate change or depleting oil reserves but providing enough food to sustain the population. Fishing needs to be seen as vital for our country's future as we try and source our food more and more locally.
 
Wind farms look set to play a large part in our future too, although there are doubts as to how reliable they are as an energy source. We look set to have hundreds popping up all over our fishing grounds, all totally ignoring the huge amount of potential in the water around their feet. Tidal energy is much more reliable and predictable, but also there is a chance for these wasted waters to provide food and bio fuels too.

If wind farms also become fish farms not only do they become more economically viable but provide work for fishermen and processors ashore. This can be taken one step further and fish offal, that normally gets dumped, can be converted into bio-fuels to run the local fleet needed to maintain wind-farms and the fishing fleet whose waste can also make fuel. Just to cap it all the residue left over from fuel production can be used to make pellets to feed fish. The potential is there to make true green energy and a greener sustainable fishing industry. And the technology already exists, its just will and cooperation that's lacking.

As I mentioned these ideas to the Airtricity manager for the greater gabbard wind-farm his eyes glazed over and his mind shutdown. We must make sure that as fishermen our minds never close to new ideas, keep talking and keep putting pressure on the men in suits. Nobody else knows your local grounds as well as you do, so never let anyone silence the industry's views. We may be few in number but our work feeds thousands and our value to the country is more important than energy or aggregate needs. A full stomach always takes priority over anything else!

Thursday 28 May 2009

Hi folks
 
I have been writing this blog for Seafish for over a year now and it has certainly gone by quick. And to be honest fishing has been quite good for the past year - the sea is looking more healthy now than I have seen during the 18 years that I have been fishing.
 
That is something that surprises people ashore when I tell them. The media have for many years now been producing one negative story after another about the fishing industry. Good news doesn't make headlines (often the only good thing to be put in a newspaper is fish and chips). Nobody knows about the good work fishermen are doing to try to make the job more sustainable, we only see that cod is close to extinction and fishermen are environmental vandals - we have proved this to be wrong on both counts.
 
Slowly the science is catching up with what fishermen have been telling them for a while now and positive moves are on the horizon. Although we still get told that there are far too many fishing vessels and that numbers need to be cut, I can't see where all these boats are meant to be. The fleet looks pretty lean to me. In fact fishermen should take pride in the fact that even though we are few in number we are considered such great hunters, that a hand full of men can instill such fear, it takes more people to enforce rules and to tie us up in red tape than there are men who put to sea.
 
The Common Fisheries policy has been shown to be over complex, over restrictive, unworkable, unenforceable and often incomprehensible. The quota system is unfair and leads to terrible wastes from discards, and also wastes good men's jobs as they find it impossible to make ends meet with allocations that would hardly keep a seagull fed for a month let alone pay for the running of a ship and men's wages.
 
The E.U. has made a commitment to change the CFP before 2012, and we wait to see the details. Let's hope we can hold on long enough for constructive change and common sense policy to take hold.
 
Last week we went to London for the 2009 Seafood Awards. Maximus was in the running for the Catching for the Market award, however it was won by another Wightman. Ian Wightman. Maybe a Scottish cousin? It would be interesting to delve into the past and find out if he is part of our small clan. We shared common ground in our passion for fishing and developing a sustainable future. If not family, I'm sure we will remain good friends. He is a deserving winner and it was good to drink together afterwards.
 
The awards evening was a grand affair and Seafish put on a good show. It was well attended by the great and the good from all parts of the industry. The only fly in the ointment for me was the food. Seafish is the Authority on seafood and I sat down excitedly expecting some of the best that Britain has to offer. I got quite offended however to be served prawns from Thailand and cod from Iceland (well presented but small in quota). As everyone was attending to celebrate the best seafood in the UK it seemed a poor taste joke not to have British product on the menu, especially as the Responsible Fishing Scheme has over 300 boats to choose from. How can the industry stand a chance when even the authority set up to promote us and paid by our Levy's buys in cheaper foreign muck for its flagship evening.
 
Despite this glaring oversight and my rumbling belly, it was a enjoyable evening and nice to see so many turn out to show support and enthusiasm for the seafood industry. It gives me hope that even as mistakes are made and times can be hard, we can all pull together and make a bright future for seafood in this country. Britain can be proud of its hard working fishing industry. And as Seafish themselves are working hard to educate and bring a more viable greener future I can forgive mistakes, it goes to show that everyone makes them. It's just more British of me to moan about the few things that go wrong instead of applauding the good things. Maybe, like our media, I find it too easy to write about bad news and moan about the minor failings of our industry, when the vast majority work hard to produce a fantastic fishy product of consistently high standards, handled every step of the way by experts that care and who are passionate about our fish. If we can get the media to show this side too, then maybe we can attract like minded young people to join us. If so the future could be bright after all. All it takes is a positive outlook and the drive to keep going. Fishermen have shown this quality for years, so I have no doubt that when I'm too old to be rolling around at sea I will still be able to eat good British fish. And that will be rewarding enough.

Monday 16 March 2009

Hi folks

At last spring is here, the days are getting longer and warmer and life is buzzing around us. It appears that mother nature doesn't know about the credit crunch because she is investing a huge

amount of energy in the year to come. Bulbs still flower and trees still break out into new fresh green leaves and the sea is also teeming with life. In fact there are more fish of all kinds than we have seen for many years. We are catching good healthy cod of all sizes and ages, from huge meaty monster cod that erupt out of the water and spit out almost a bucket of sprats as they come over the rail, down to little baby codling that are only on the hook by greed and will power, these we unhook and watch swim off.

This scene is repeated all over the north sea. From the Thames all the way up to Iceland, cod are in great numbers. Good news eh! And yet fishermen are still going out of business at an alarming rate. With seas full of fish of all species how can fishermen still be forced to look for other jobs?

Well due to high catch rates and a credit crunch fish prices are at an all time low and expenses are still high,, so more fish are needed to meet the costs. The big fly in the ointment however is lack of quota. Fishermen simply are not allowed to catch enough to be viable. Normally any fishermen who finds himself short of quota can try and rent some from somewhere else but as the price of fish is so low it does not warrant the cost of renting quota.

Even small day boats (that should be the best example of sustainable fishing, bringing in high quality fish hours all with minimal environmental impact) are struggling with monthly quotas that really don't meet their needs. Surely environmental sustainability has to be matched by economic viability for fishing to have a future in this country? Investment needs to be made so fishermen can add value to their product. Direct sales or better informed marketing can help, bringing fish to those willing to pay for it. But also we need to plan for a future of high fuel costs, and ultimately ... no fossil fuels at all. How will we power our boats and still keep fish on the menu?

One answer comes from a report by Tony Piccolo for FAO Globefish, called 'Aquatic Bio Fuels as an Alternative'. Here he explains how it's possible to produce fuel from fish waste, technology already being used in Honduras and Vietnam, which involves mixing fish waste with methanol and other products to remove the oil. He says 1 kilo of fish guts can produce an amazing 12 litre of bio fuel and the remaining waste can be made into pellets for fish farming. Maybe by using technology such as this small fishing communities could produce their own fuel from waste that merchants normally have to pay to have dumped. This would certainly help keep costs down and help lessen environmental impact at the same time.

With thought and care we can all work together towards making Britain's fishing industry an example for the world to follow for a sustainable future. But we must move quickly and protect the most valuable asset of all, the good men who work at sea. Without a strong young bunch of men willing to face life at sea we can only look forward to a future of importing fish from countries that care about their fishermen. Do we really want 2nd hand fish when our island is surrounded by some of the most fertile waters in the world? Britain used to rule the waves at one point, now we must stand on the shore and watch. 
 

Friday 13 February 2009

Hi Folks

Just a quick note, remember in December I said we did some filming for Euro news? Well the story on sharks has been aired. If you missed it like me here is a link so you can watch it now http://www.tvlink.org/vnr.cfm?vidID=311. 

I tried to get across the fact that smaller boats like ourselves don't do much damage to shark and ray stocks, however most of our conversation ended up on the cutting room floor.

All the best for now, I'm off out to a cold north sea. Fishing has improved a little as cod are returning from their party and have empty stomachs. Better go get some breakfast ready for them...

Friday 30 January 2009

Hi Folks

First of all I would like to wish a fond farewell to my fellow blogger Jimmy. I have enjoyed reading his comments and views with all things surrounding the fishing industry. He has done a good job bringing people's attention to the trials and tribulations that fishermen face, giving an idea of the work we do and how decisions from Westminster and Brussels effect us on the front line. Now he could join them in the shark infested waters of political life.

I hope he will be able to get his voice heard and bring some empathy for the hardworking people in this country, hopefully leading to better policy and regulations that make common sense when brought into practise. All the best Jimmy.

It's now getting close to February, and this is a rubbish time for fishing on the East Coast of England - at least it is for us as a longliner. Cod are breeding now and so are not taking our hooks, the one time of the year that their minds stop worrying about food and sex is their main concern. All good for future stocks, but as skate have moved to deeper offshore grounds for the winter, we have little to catch for a few weeks.

As the credit crunch bites harder all over the world, I thought I would let you know how it is affecting us at the moment. To be honest, as part of the food industry, fishing takes a while to feel the effects, people must eat after all... However, as the public cut back and save their money, it starts to filter down to us as producers too! First to feel the crunch is the prime fish, as people are looking for cheaper meals, turbot, seabass, Dover sole etc become less popular and the market price falls.

Also, nobody goes out to restaurants opting for cheaper nights in, meaning it becomes hard to find any chefs to buy fish. Some good news is that cheaper kinds of fish like herring, for example, should start to find a market during these crunch times. Fish and chip shops are doing quite well as takeaways bring people in instead of going out for a meal.

But we have not seen a price increase for our cod and skate, as countries such as Iceland and Norway have increased their fish exports to try and boast their foundering economies. Iceland has recently increased its cod quota by 30,000 tonnes, meaning even more fish to lower Europe's prices.

But as the world once again looks for cheaper food, it's the environment that's in danger of being forgotten. We all try to save our pennies and organic vegetables get left on the shelf, cheaper meats mean that mass producing comes back, free range chickens are twice the price of broiler house so we grab the bargains and try to forget the welfare issues that seem more important when we have more money in our pockets.

The truth is that food that's produced with good ethics and in a responsible, environmentally sustainable manner costs more to produce and buy and so loses favour during times of a crunch.There is a very real danger that all the good progress we have made in making the fishing industry more sustainable and responsible goes to waste. It costs more to work this way and if nobody buys our more expensive product, then the responsible producer suffers most of all.

Cheap imports are cheap for a reason, mass produced goods come at the expense of the environment or of peoples lives, producers take the hit hardest. Credit crunches are bad for the world as a whole, if we are all forced to choose the cheaper option, then standards slip.

Instead of boosting the coffers of greedy banks that started the problem in the first place, maybe government money would be better spent making sure we avoid bad practise and the environment doesn't suffer or the working conditions of people who produce the cheap goods.

As banks hold on to their money and watch businesses falter, wouldn't tax payers money be better spent on grass root industry? Any farmer knows that if you don't invest in manure for the roots... the harvest looks poor for everyone.

23 December 2008

Sorry I've not had time to blog lately. So to bring you up to date, one major change in my life is  the arrival of Sophie. On the 5th of December Isabelle, my wife, gave birth to a gorgeous little girl, 6pound 5oz. All went well and now we are looking forward to Sophie's first Christmas. Now I have new found respect for working parents, it's a big change but it's great to come home to a new bundle of joy. Isabelle is a great mum and both seem happy, if a little tired.
 
Also, not long after Sophie was born we were back at Sea with a film crew making a film about sharks and ray for Euro News. Working with Cefas we put our views across about the waste that is caused by the by-catch rules. Since then I hear from my good friend Allen Mculla that the 5% by-catch rule was discarded during the talks in Europe. This is good news even though the spurdog quota was cut considerably. At least now we can land them. Most of the time spurdog are not a target species, but why waste good fish when they are caught by accident? Throwing anything back dead is a waste and it's good to see the end of this stupid rule - one more step towards putting common sense into the Common Fisheries Policy.

More good news is that the cod quota has been raised by 30% - hopefully this will help in the year ahead. 2008 has been a tough year in the fishing industry so any good news feels like water in a very dry desert!
 
We have had a meeting with Cefas concerning the pilot scheme we are working on. Lots of good data is being collected and all at Cefas and Defra are excited with the findings. They are learning a lot about how and where we work, and can see in black and white that the sea may not be as devoid of life as they thought. It's all going well and we hope to keep up the good work in 2009.
 
Wishing a very happy Christmas to all my readers, and let's look forward to 2009, I hope it's a good year for you all. Now, where's that bottle of rum..... Cheers folks!

Wednesday 26 November 2008

Hi folks
 
Our meeting with Alan Mculla went well. He does a very good job in breaking through fisherman's rivalries with each other and seeing past the problems of individual fishermen (however dire the circumstances are) and putting the fact across in an eloquent way that the Irish are very good at... All fishing problems effect ALL Fishermen...

Lack of quota, high running costs, the heinous crime of discarding good fish back dead into the sea, loss of ground to wind farms, dredging areas and future marine parks. By-catch rules, gear restrictions, licence limitations.... the list is long but every fishermen will have more in common with each other in their problems then differences to argue over.

Now can we at last stand up as one industry, no matter if we are English, Scottish or any other nationality (yes, even those from Europe) and be united in our grievances. Concentrating on filling in the gaps of scientific knowledge (and they are huge gaps) to show that we are heading in the right direction for a sustainable fishing future, if only we can ease the burden of restrictions upon us.

The future lies with a much more diverse fishing fleet, of all sizes and methods, catching a huge range of species, but not over doing any one thing, closing the door on any species increases effort on the other remaining ones. And also closing fishing grounds only pushes boats to fish in an ever smaller pond.

During a recent trip we caught a huge bass that came in at 8.3 kilo. I don't think it's a record but it was a fine looking fish. Local Merchant Donny Cole bought it and intends to have it stuffed and mounted to put on display in his award winning seafood pub The Swan Inn, Barnby (near Beccles.)
 
I have been in contact with CEFAS and they are working with a film crew to produce a film for the E.U. concerning sharks and ray in British waters. We hope to take them to sea to catch a few and I shall hammer my point home that 5% by-catch rules only waste good spurdogs and like all discards should be avoided. As long as slow growing species of shark and ray are taken in moderation and not targeted by large scale fishing then I see no problem. It also helps take some of the heat off other stocks by spreading the effort through many types of fish it makes for a more sustainable industry as a whole. I will let you know how filming goes.
 
At the moment we are still stuck ashore waiting for northerly gales to calm down. Over the weekend we had snow and I'm sure we will have to search for fish when we get back to sea and will have to find out whats been going on. Fish move around a lot in gales of wind and strong tides and it normally takes a few days for us to get back to grips with it all.

Cod are now starting to develop their roe, and should start feeding with vigour during December. Normally we start doing very well just as the market shuts down for christmas, and if it's fine weather on Xmas day my Dad (Terry) looks very grumpy indeed over his plate of sprouts - why can't Christmas be in August when fishing is poor... We can't blame that one on Defra or the MFA I'm afraid.

Monday 3 November 2008

Hi Folks
 
Its been far too long since I last wrote, and even now I'm writing quickly before work at 5.30 am.

It has been a busy time, we have been moving home, both at work and personally. I have moved house, and so have not had a chance to blog [sorry] also we have moved our baiting shed from a small ex-shipping container to a great steel framed building, more room and hope to add a chiller in future so we can store our own fish and send it to the best markets. These days with quotas so tight its more important than ever to try and avoid poor prices for our fish.

It's sad to see that nothing has yet been done to stop the waste of discards. Good honest fishermen are struggling to make a living not because of poor fishing, but from quota cuts that make things too tight. It's killing the fishing industry and destroying the environment as fishermen are forced to work longer to find fish they can keep, while all the time dumping good fish back dead... seems to me that instead of saving stocks, quotas make the problem worse needlessly wasting good fish.

We have a chance to discuss this and other problems facing the inshore fleet with Alan Mculla on Friday as he continues his tour gaining the views of fishermen all around the country for the NFFO.
And as we have a Greenhorn minister going to the december talks in Europe this year, we need all the help we can get. It's typical of this Government to ignore the industry's needs and reshuffle just as we need someone to fight for British fishermen's interests. A poor outcome in December could see even more good men joining the ranks of unemployed, all down to bad policy and incompetant Government.
 
Fishing continues to be ok, we are ticking over nicely. If the November weather lets us get to sea then we can knock up a small living and pay the bills. When the bills are all getting paid it's as good as smooth seas, not much chance to relax, even for my bonfire night birthday. We have to get to sea as often as we can, watching for gaps between north easterly gales to bring afew fish ashore and keep the wolf from the door.

Thursday 4 September 2008

Hi folks

August has come and gone very quickly, fishing has been steady and although we are only catching enough to keep things ticking over, we are happy because August can sometimes be a swine for us with very poor catches and gales as we get Atlantic lows move across the country, the last gasps of Hurricanes from America that are just wet and windy for us Brits.

Normally at this time of year we would be scratching a living from drifting nets for Dover Soles. This involves using fleets of around 400m of nets, each net has a float rope containing poly floats as the top rope, and a lead line (rope inlaid with lead) on the bottom.

These fleets are attached to marker buoys and laid across the tide so the tide pulls them along the bottom, hopefully disturbing soles along the way, as you can imagine, sometimes the nets fall foul of all kinds of corruption on the bottom, returning with rock, weed, lumps of metal or old fishing gear etc.

We are very glad that this year enough cod and skate have been around to keep us long lining, the method we know and love best.

I'm very happy that some other fishermen from around the country have contacted me expressing interest in using long lines in their area too. I think there is a lot of room for experimenting with this method. There are many types of hook available and I'm sure experimenting with different bait and hooks will open up new sustainable fisheries for fishermen wanting to land top quality fish.

I know how heartbreaking it can be having to dump the contents of a cod end in a trawl containing fish too small or the wrong species. Quota and by-catch rules force fishermen to  dump good fish back dead. All in order to CONSERVE stocks, how insane. No wonder people are looking for ways to avoid discards. Long lining has almost zero dead fish being thrown back.
 
New ways of preserving stocks and keeping fishermen in work need to be implemented - quotas don't work in my opinion. It's much better to give boats a limit on days at sea (if set at a sensible level to pay the bills) and land all that's caught, closing areas at fish breeding times or if a large percentage of the catch are juvenile and so a bit of a waste.
 
I heard today that in some parts of the world bio-fuels are now being made from fish guts and waste. This sounds like a great idea for ports to ease the burden of fuel prices. Even better for fish farms as the residue left from making fuel can be used to make fish pellets. I can see salmon farms not only making more money by creating bio-fuel from unwanted guts, but also saving money on pellets. Got to be a good idea, eh?
 
The new pilot project I mentioned before is now underway. Lots of information is now filtering down to CEFAS and DEFRA. The 30 boats in the scheme are now filling in forms with info on gear worked, discards, catch size, location, weather conditions, species caught and ship running costs/ value of catch.

That's a lot of information from the inshore fleet, and a great improvement on the limited surveys CEFAS were able to do up to this point. To gain this vast amount of knowledge would have cost an absolute fortune, much better to cooperate with fishermen to gain a fuller picture of environmental impact and see the true state of the seas. I personally hope this project can be expanded to more vessels of different sizes and methods and left to run for a few years to gain an idea of natural cycles of rise and fall in fish populations.

Hopefully, greater understanding of how the ecosystem works will spawn new ways of creating sustainability across the industry as a whole. Both fishermen and scientists want to see our oceans thrive with life, and I hope we are making a few steps towards that common goal.

Tuesday 29 July 2008

Sorry its been a while folks, it's been a busy time for us Maximus boys. Let me update you.

First of all my days as a single man are running short as I (Chris) get married to my beautiful fiance Isabelle on the first of August. Then, after a short trip to Venice for a few days we celebrate by getting back to sea and doing our best to prevent fish dying of old age.
 
During a recent trip, we took out our local mission man Tim Jenkins for some rare sea going experience for him. He was so keen to get fresh smoothhounds for his bbq that he jumped on board.  However, he soon found that after entertaining old people with tea and cake for so long, he went a little green around the gills. He soon perked up when we got down to business and started hauling, and to add to the excitement a Sea King helicopter came over during some training and they decided to drop a man on board.

After a few minutes being blasted by wind and water (blowing my hat to a watery grave) a man from the RAF made it on deck, and a damn good bloke he was too. Maximus and her crew are proud of our forces and the lads do a great job. He made off with a bag of cod and left me to get sunburn on my bald spot after losing my hat!
 
Also, we have had a spot on camera for the upcoming food series 'Mitch and Matt's Big Fish Adventure'. We went to sea with Matt Dawson (rugby player) and Mitch Tonks (fishmonger,restaurateur,food writer) and had a great day with the lads. To be honest, I was expecting a couple of big-headed wide boys. How wrong I was. They are both top blokes and we had a good laugh and felt like old mates. The series goes out in November on UK TV Food and looks like it will make good viewing for fish lovers everywhere. Mitch Tonks certainly knows his stuff, and I hope to keep contact with him as it's nice to find someone who loves fish as much as we do.
 
We continue with longlining as we have been knocking up a weeks work with a few ray and cod. It's unusual for us to still be getting cod in August, but I'm not complaining. The new fisheries/science pilot scheme starts soon so stay posted for more news on that.
 

Tuesday 8 July 2008

Hi folks,
 
I have been trying to show fishing in a positive light and not moan and groan too much about the overall state of the industry we work in, but in doing that I think maybe I've failed to give a full picture of what its like to work as a fisherman. So now its time for a rant.....
 
At this moment in time we are waiting to be fitted with a satellite tracking device to monitor our movements during our time in the Inshore pilot project for environmental impact of small vessels. This will let us fish quota free for a year at least. However, that does not help our brother fishermen who find themselves in a dire situation of not having any quota to catch, only three months into the year many boats already found themselves running short of quota. As a comparison, imagine your local supermarket being told they can't get any more stock in to sell for the rest of the year, and its only March!

Never mind the crippling fuel prices and rising cost of living, ship's mortgages have to be paid and monthly shore expenses that roll in even if the boat is tied up in harbour. And this problem is industry wide, not just for small under 10m vessels. I'm afraid all fishermen have the same problems, it's just the scale that's different.

No matter if you run a 100ft trawler or a 15ft beach boat, lack of quota and high fuel prices are bringing the industry to its knees, and without help and positive action the already tiny fishing communities could vanish into the history books and future generations will only be able to read about us, the last of the hunters.

History does repeat itself, anybody who reads American history will tell you that the plains Indians could not be broken until they had no buffalo left to catch, but now instead of teams of hunters shooting buffalo, we have government quota restrictions and misinformed green groups taking away our ability to earn a living. And like the poor abused American Indian we too are starting to get moved to reservations that are poor grounds to live upon...

The new Marine Bill recommends many areas as possible sites for closure to fishing activity, that coupled with loss of ground to wind farms and aggregate dredging areas and our pond starts to look ever smaller.

So now your hardworking fishermen are facing a pounding stronger than any gale can throw at us. We can hold on by our fingertips in foul weather, we can endure lean times with bad fishing and bad luck, we can even change our methods of fishing to make ourselves more environmentally sustainable, but nobody can be a fisherman without being allowed to kill fish for a living. And the men who have the power to change it all drag their feet, procrastinate and deliberate for so long, good men loose their jobs waiting for them. Ships lay in harbour with empty fuel tanks, unable to pay to fill them, and ships at sea are forced to dump good fish back dead as they have no quota to land them. Imagine watching your months wage sink beneath the waves as your wife calls to ask how to pay all the bills on the doormat. Now my dear readers you are starting to see how British fishermen are living today...
 
But despite it all, the industry survives by the skin of its teeth, and its only because men like us love the job. We keep trying to find ways to change things for the better and earn an honest wage. So now I hope the public can show that they still want a fishing industry, an industry that's changing from the old ways of kill all you can to a more sustainable fishery, in balance with nature.

But it takes money to change methods or build ways to add value to fish, there are grants available to do this, but most fishermen cannot take advantage of grant money because they have to pay the other 60% themselves and have no way to earn it extra to the running expenses. Why not give 100% grants to fishermen trying to add value to their catch, and let them pay back the 60% when things are up and running and cash flowing more freely?

I know from experience how difficult it is to change, we are interested in selling more to the public, but can't yet get the funds or staff to do so. But we will keep trying because I know people enjoy our fish, and its our job to bring it to your plate.

Tuesday 1 July 2008

Hi folks
It's been a busy time for the Maximus. Last Saturday we had a stall on the Lowestoft fish fayre for the first time and it was great to get the chance to talk to the fish buying public. Many people had never seen fish like thornback ray in its whole form and only as ready skinned 'skate' wings, so it was great to be able to give people an idea of the job and what it takes to bring fish to the plate.
 
The summer is now in full swing, and long-lining tends to go quiet in July as fish go off to feed in the hot weather and clear water. Only the Lesser Spotted Dogfish turns up in huge numbers, we have to remove them from almost every hook and watch them swim away to pester us again. They have no market value and take the bait before other fish can sniff it out, so despite the very best intentions, they quickly become a pain in the neck... Also, it's more difficult baiting up, our shed goes hot as an oven and slowly cooks us and the spiders that live in the shed with us. It may soon be time to get the drift nets out and try for a few Dover sole.
 
We have also been in the media quite a lot just lately, first in local papers and Fishing News after the fish fayre, and today 30th June I had a chat with Declan Curry from Breakfast News on BBC, he is a nice fella, but I'm afraid I'm not good at chit chat when the camera points at me, and words stutter and jumble before they leave my lips. Anyway, I'm told it came over OK and there is a nice bit on the BBC News Business website http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7448361.stm. Welcome to any new readers by the way, please do get in touch.

Hi Folks
Its been a few weeks since I last wrote, it's amazing where the time goes. My arm is now fully healed and I've been back at work for a while now, us fishermen can't afford too much time off.
 
The cod have started to move off now as summer progresses, however a few more thornbacks and seabass move in to take their place, along with lots of smooth-hounds, we cannot seem to sell these on the market to my frustration, because the meat from smooth-hounds is fantastic once you know how to prepare them. I would choose to eat them instead of seabass any day!
 
This month sees the Lowestoft Sea Fayre with proceeds going to the Mission. It takes place on the 21st June in the auction hall of Lowestoft fish market.

Our mission man, Tim Jenkins, is one of the nicest blokes you will ever meet, always ready for a chat or to help in any way he can. He does a good job looking after ex-fishermen or their family's who find themselves in need of a helping hand or even just a friend to talk to. He recently went on tour in a car done up to look like a fish and raised both money and awareness for the RNMDSF.
 
Yesterday, we had a man from the BBC come to sea with us, he watched us at work and asked many questions and his report will be on the BBC website later in the month when the powerboat race around Britain comes to sunny Lowestoft.
 
As follow up to my concern about litter at sea and in the harbour, I had conversations with the port manager, and now ABP have promised to issue every boat with sacks to bring in any litter and dispose of in the port skips. Small change I guess but it all helps.

Tuesday 20 May

Hi folks
Fishing for cod continues to be good. In fact it has been many years since we have seen fish in these numbers on our grounds.Long may it continue...

However, summer approaches and the water is already changing colour. As it goes clear and dark the fish migrate north again and we loose them until around November.
 
I am currently typing this blog one handed as I had an accident at sea yesterday. The weather freshened up and set things rolling around in the fish room. As I tried to clear things up a little a large ice bin containing around 90 stones of cod moved and trapped my arm against the bulkhead, crushing veins and nerves in the process.

So now I have a haematoma in my right arm and I'm left at home until the swelling dies down enough for me to hold a gutting knife or bait some hooks.

Lucky for Maximus, my other brother, Spencer, is able to hold the fort and give Steve a hand until I'm back in action. Then we will set about making sure things can't shift around in the fish room. That's the thing with fishing, no matter how safe and careful you try to be, strange things can happen, especially in bad weather. And being self employed there's no sick pay and no point calling Claims Direct....
 
Anyway, now I'm shore-bound for a bit I can catch up on reading and paperwork, lucky I'm left handed.
 
I have noticed that the litter problem appears to be getting worse and I often see plastic and other muck floating around and, as last year, we see two turtles in the harbour for the first time.

I'm concerned that we should clean our act up. So I shall be looking into this too. I was amazed to read on FishUpdate that the angling community has raised concerns about the numbers of young seabass and took their concerns to Johnathan Shaw in a bid to impose tough restrictions yet again upon the fleet.

Well, from personal experience, seabass numbers in this area appear on the increase, and Lowestoft harbour and the river contain shoals of tiny bass in good numbers. So I think there is little need to change things just yet. However, I applaud the angling groups concern for the environment and would suggest that if they imposed a 'catch and release' scheme for all species across the country they could save a huge quantity of fish. Six million anglers putting all their fish back in the sea would save many times more than the total under 10m quota every year. Food for thought...

Wednesday 14 May

Good news this week for a change. First of all, I'd like to welcome a new member to the Wightman family. Skipper Steve and wife Emma had a beautiful daughter on Friday 9th May. She was 7 pounds and Georgina will join her older brothers Max and Alex in mischief and mayhem to provide a distraction from fishing and make sure Steve doesn't catch his full quota of sleep.

Also we have been selected to be part of a fisheries/science partnership pilot scheme. This means that after the forms have been filled in we will join 30 inshore boats from the east coast in fishing quota-free for a year to determine the impact of inshore vessels on the environment. We hope this will lead to a more relaxed system for all under 10m and inshore fleet.

We will be fitted with a tracking device to record all our movements and fill in extensive information about catches, methods, weather conditions, discards and also collect samples for CEFAS or bring scientists to sea with us.

Each vessel will be expected to continue fishing as normal only with the benefit of being quota free, however the number of days will be restricted to prevent an increase in fishing effort.

I think this is a very positive move from Defra and CEFAS and it shows the desire to learn the 'true' state of the inshore grounds which in my opinion are much healthier than some environmental groups would have you believe. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for sustainable fishing, but sustainability means that both nature and fisherman can find that all important balance between using the resource and damaging the environment.

The Native American hunters used to take only what they need and use every part of the animal they killed. Maybe we can learn from that. We need projects such as this one to work out the correct balance and provide a future where the industry works more in tune with nature in a more flexible system.

We need to find ways to make more money from the fish we catch using every part of them. Also use other species that the consumer doesn't buy much at present. Spreading the fishing effort over different methods so that no one stock of fish gets over exploited. I'm sure it can all be done to create a more positive future for all.

So I will keep you informed with all that's happening with us and the scientists and give more details as I have them. In the meantime, let's hope someone invents an engine that runs on seawater instead of diesel. That would remove a major expense. If NASA can make rocket fuel from lumps of ice on the moon then I'm sure we can do something with all the water on our blue planet. But where is the profit for fuel companies and governments?

No photos at the moment because my camera is broken.... sorry folks.
 

Wednesday 7 May

We are having some gorgeous weather here in Suffolk, it's getting quite warm and the sap is rising, everywhere you look things are bursting with life.

There are still plenty of cod around and seabass are arriving in greater numbers. We had a couple of tagged thornback ray this week, these must be sent to my good friend Dr Jim Eliss at the CEFAS lab in Lowestoft where they can learn crucial information regarding the behaviour and distribution of rays.
 
In my last blog, I mentioned the lack of  young people in the industry at the moment, this is something I feel very strongly about. We must be allowed to earn enough money to bring young blood out to sea and ensure that future generations can enjoy fish on their plate as we do now.

However, as you may know, the fishing here is done mostly from under 10m boats, and they find themselves in a terrible situation of having no quota left to catch. In order to continue fishing quota must be rented and the current price is £1200 per tonne. As cod averages around £2 per kilo on the market you can see there is not much left to pay the high fuel and bait costs, let alone take home a wage.

This MUST be addressed soon if we are to have any fishermen left at all. There is a good living to be earned and it can be done sustainably, but pressure must be lifted by drastically reducing the cost of fishing, it's shortsighted to squeeze people out of business in this way.

Any young people who are drawn to sea need to earn a living, surely that's not asking too much is it? For training you can go to www.whitbyfishingschool.co.uk and I encourage any skippers in need of crew to contact them and give a youngster the chance of a mans life at sea.
 
Now I must get my boots on jump into my stinky little Fiesta and head to work, another fine day is ahead of me, let's get to it. Bye for now folks.

Monday 21 April 2008

Hi again mates and bloggers.

It's been a good weeks fishing for the Maximus, there are as many cod as we have seen for a lot of years and we have been working close to port which saves time and fuel. If only there were more cod quota available then fishermen would be happy.

We have to rent our quota which makes it difficult when prices are low. Lowestoft is just a small time fishing port these days, and once the local hawkers and van salesmen have enough fish then the prices take a tumble.

Lowestoft really needs some young blood in the industry, most fishermen are in their early 50's and so are the merchants and processors. I'm afraid apart from a small handful of people there are no young hungry men to push the job forward.

The rules and regulations set by successive Governments have simply made fishing unattractive or totally impossible to get into. Many single-handed skippers would love to take on young crew, but rising costs of operating and quota reductions make it difficult to make a living even when fishing is good.

It is frustrating to see good fishing on your doorstep and not be able to catch it because quota levels are set so low. Nobody in the under 10m fleet is able to catch huge quantities enough to damage the environment, so it's sad when even they struggle to make a living. It's not mother nature that's falling short but too much red tape that's strangling the fleet.

We can only hope that some day the EU can manage to bring some common sense into the common fisheries policy, it's no good having such strict quotas for some species and none on others, I'm sure Jimmy Buchan would agree that there are already too many boats turning to prawns and other shellfish, it's only a matter of time before those stocks suffer.

Balance must be found and the fleet must be able to have viable quotas for a whole range of species, this would split the effort into a range of methods and make for a more sustainable and profitable industry as a whole, markets are always better with a mixed fishery instead of a glut of afew species at low prices.
 
April is a funny month for weather, it's difficult to know what to wear on board because things change so quickly. Rain squalls prowl across the sky like huge sharks, full of violence. We watch them approach on the radar screen and the flat calm warm day turns dark and chill before things go mad and wind howls, rain and hail whips at us in torrents, it's like hell for a few moments, before the cloud moves on and we are left in the sunlight wondering what all the fuss was about! Makes the day interesting I guess.

We have just bought new oilskins with floatation in them, same ones as the crew of Amity II wear, they are nice and good to work in.

Hogni, our friend from Cleopatra, Iceland, recently sent me this photo of a 200kilo halibut caught on a Cleopatra 28 last summer, makes our 20 kilo one look like a tiddler. The lads in Iceland certainly have fish that we can only dream of. Hopefully we can work towards a future where catches like this are more common even in our part of the North Sea puddle.

Thursday 10 April 2008

At Last, we got back to sea today and gave the new engine a trial, worked 16 baths of lines and we caught around ten boxes of cod. The prices are terrible in Lowestoft at the moment so we will start looking to send our fish away to another port.

But it certainly feels good to be back in action again, the engine seems to be running smoothly and all went well. Thanks to Priors Diesels from Great Yarmouth who fitted the new engine without too many problems. Good job lads.

Now... time to get to the grindstone. We have three and half weeks to make up for so I better get busy.

Tuesday 8 April 2008

Our new engine went in today, so we are both feeling a little happier that we will soon be back fishing. To be honest I'm getting fish hungry, nothing quite comes close to eating fish that we have caught ourselves and I need it to keep me going properly.

Last Friday, Dad, Steve and I went up to Glasgow for the Fishing 2008 Show. To be honest it seems to get a little smaller each year, a bit like the fishing industry itself I guess. The biggest stand by far seemed to be for Seafish, showing the full range of things they get up to, I expect the site this blog appears on will keep you readers up to date.

It was nice to see Mick Bacon who helped with our Responsible Fishing Accreditation and also I got to meet Gaynyr Dickson who does such a good job making this blog look professional. I briefly met my fellow blogger Jimmy Buchan who was somewhat shorter and rounder than he looks on TV! He was polite enough to share a few words of advice with me, then he got whisked away to yet another meeting...

After a full day of yarns and dodgy sandwiches, we flew back home with even more enthusiasm to get back to sea.

Nelson used to say that ships and men rust in port, I know what he means... too much messing around on shore makes us fat and frustrated, bills need paying and I'm going crazy looking at clouds barely moving in the fine weather...

At sea the spring cod season is in full swing, lots of good fish move inshore at this time of year after the herring, soon the spurdogs will turn up too followed by the skate moving into summer feeding ground inshore.

April is also the time when Dover soles start to move in to breed, they are full of roe at this time of year, a few netters that work around here tell me there are not many soles yet, however, with such a good sign of cod this year we are not surprised it's lean for soles. It's rare that both fisheries are good in the same year. It all goes in cycles and no doubt soles will be in abundance in a couple of years and cod will be else where.

It's natures way always to provide something for us to catch, we just have to be free to diversify and change methods according to the stocks available. Also it would be nice if the public bought more variety of fish, herring are in abundance but nobody wants to eat them, yet sardines are in demand.. are they really so different?

Anyway, next blog I should be back to sea so I'll let you know how it goes. I'm interested in my readers, so write to me with questions or ideas for fishy dishes I can cook.

Thursday 3 April

Hi folks, it's been a difficult time for Maximus just lately. Our small engine problem turned out to be a much larger and frustrating saga...

We thought it was just a fuel injector that had jammed, as we were banging and crunching one morning as we tried to start up. However, it turned out one of the valve seating's had come loose and filled a piston and liner with broken metal, causing quite some damage and headaches in the process.

Anyway, a new engine is on its way and if all goes well we should be back fishing next week. In the meantime we are looking forward to visiting the Fishing 2008 show in Glasgow on Friday, and catching up with our mates from around the country.

Cleopatra will be there, it's always good to see the boys from Trefjar in Iceland. We have always been happy with the service they continue to provide, anyone looking at a new build for potting/netting/lining would do well to talk to them as I can safely say they have provided a high standard all the way from when we signed contracts with them in 2004.

Despite our recent bad luck with the engine, we have opted to replace with another Cummins C series, hopefully we were just very unlucky with the last one and should get many years happy running. I will let you know how it goes.

Thank you to some of the blog readers for contacting me with your kind comments and best wishes, it's always good to hear from anybody who's interested in our work or want to obtain Maximus fish.

A recent email from Scotland asked me what's the largest fish, and strangest fish we have caught lining.

Well, the largest fish we have brought aboard was on a previous vessel we owned called Semper Victoria (last I heard she is prawning in Scotland now) one night we were bringing in codling on the Indefatigable banks, when a huge porbeagle shark came up wrapped in the lines, obviously she was after an easy cod breakfast and became fouled with hooks, anyway, it was 11ft long and weighed 19st. At the time in 1999 I believe it was one of the largest female porbeagles to be landed on the east coast.
 
The strangest fish we ever bring up must be the revolting hagfish, on our trips north we sometimes see them, foul, slimy things, when distressed they let fly with loads of sticky slime, I guess this gets in the gills of any predator stupid enough to nibble them, it certainly put me off and I won't fry up a hagfish anytime soon!

Thursday 20 March 2008

Hi again
Maximus is at the doctors having a few jobs done to the engine, so while I'm stuck ashore it gives me the chance to tell you about a recent trip when we were joined by Graham Reid, Head Chef from the Wentworth Hotel in Aldeburgh.

It was a cold foggy day in February and Graham joined us with his second chef 'Junior'. We spent the day catching a few codling, blonde ray and some good sea bass that Graham claimed and dropped into the Wentworth the same night, doesn't come any fresher than that.

It was great fun having the boys on board and it's always nice to see them when we drop orders off. It makes fishing even more interesting when you can follow the fish all the way from hook to plate and makes me feel good to see people enjoy our product. In fact, the customers enjoyed our fish so much that Graham has just introduced a new menu mainly fish-based and sourcing all ingredients locally and according to season.

I only wish our microwave on the boat could turn out such good grub! Never mind, I don't expect we will go hungry!

The photos are me (Chris) with the chef and the other is the lovely sea bass we caught for the hotel

I hope all my readers have a good Easter break, eat lots of choc, but eat even more fish to make you healthy again. Happy Easter folks.

Tuesday 18 March 2008

Hi Folks
It's been a funny old week, we survived last weeks gales, the Maximus's ropes were staining at times in the 50/60 mph southerly winds, trees were uprooted and tiles dislodged on roofs all over the country. But somehow we managed to get to the Europa Canteen and didn't even spill a drop of tea.
 
Then, when the weather calmed down around Thursday, we managed to get back to sea again, the fishing has been OK really for the time of year. February and March can sometimes be quite difficult for us longliners, it's the time when cod are breeding, and one of the few times their minds leave their stomachs, when they're breeding, they're not feeding....

However, this year the roes were shot quite early and a nice mix of fish have turned up, all hungry! There are good fish of all sizes and year classes, which is an encouraging sign for the future, maybe we have turned a corner as an industry, and as long we don't return to the days of bulk landing and poor prices, the stock should be able to be fished in a more sustainable manner. Though of course the quotas do need to be set at a sensible level, and rental/ buying quota made cheeper so everyone can earn a living.

It's a difficult balancing act between sustainability and economic viability, and as the cost of living goes up then it all has to be paid for, either in higher fish prices or larger catches.

The fuel prices are becoming a real burden, as they rise, the margins get squeezed, and even more demands are made on the limited quotas. It's typical that other Euro members protect their fishing fleets with grants and subsidised fuel, while we are ignored and left to struggle or hang up our oilskins.

I agree with our Scottish brothers that the 5% by-catch rule on spurdog is ridiculous, this is the second year it has been imposed on us, and only leads to discards. We do not target spurdog, but at certain times of the year as the shoals pass through our grounds they are an important part of our income, but instead of boosting our earnings we have to put them back.

I know CEFAS are keen for information and bio samples of spurdog, and we already work closely with our local laboratory with regards to local ray populations, but throwing fish away doesn't do anybody any good.

A sustainable fishery needs to be a diverse fishery, many fish species and fishing methods must be used so as not to put too much fishing effort on any one stock. In other words, a skipper must be free to change his methods of fishing according to availability and not be forced to keep going even when grounds get exhausted.
 
Fishermen are a unusual breed of men; we go to sea in awful weather, get thrown around and battered about, deal with poor catches and long periods without a wage at times. And yet despite all that we love our job. When things go right its the best feeling in the world, there is nothing better for a fisherman than to be able to watch a good catch sold for good money.

That's why Steve and I were very keen to join the Responsible Fishing Scheme. It gives us a tool to show we are doing our best in all areas of production, we care for our catch and try to bring it to the plate in the best condition possible, and it's good when people outside the industry notice that and come to buy our fish.

Tom Aikens from London got in touch with Seafish looking for a source of line caught fish for his new fish and chip restaurant in Chelsea, Tom's Place. We are the first longliner in the country to join the scheme and I hope others will follow.
 
Tom came down on a grotty February morning with a photographer and reporter for the Sunday Times, we took them all to sea for a short demo of our way of working, and it was an insight for us into city life as we watched three 'townies' go from pale-looking londonites to a nice healthy green colour that we recognise. click on the link to read the finished article in the Sunday Times Style Magazine.

After the trip, Tom gave us the certificate and posed for even more photos, before we went for lunch and demolished some home-caught cod and chips. Now we are working with Tom to bring Londoners some of our good fish. Hopefully, this will work well for us both.

We are also working with more local resturants and hotels and I'll talk more of that later. I'm adding a promo pic of us with Tom (courtesy of Lucy Pope), and also a rare pic of a happy skipper. Thats Steve realising it's lunchtime again....

Monday 10 March 2008

Hi folks and welcome to the new blog from Chris and Steve Wightman, longlining fishermen from Lowestoft.

We come from a fishing family with a long history of hunting the grounds off the east coast, and have been longlining for many years, both of us following in the footsteps of Dad, Terry Wightman.

I'm Chris and I will be keeping you up to date with the comings and goings as we try to put bread on the table and stay a step ahead of the expenses. Steve is on hand as the skipper, and ready to answer any questions of a technical nature that you may have, though I don't think he will pass on very many lat and long readings, in fact, most the time even I dont know where we are going until he tells me to throw the dann bouy over the side and we shoot the gear!

During times of bad weather, when nothing interesting is happening, I will raid the memory banks and interrogate the old boy (Terry) for some salty yarns of past events.
 
But first things first, a brief discription of what we do may be in order for those that don't know... Longlining is a form of fishing that involves the use of very long coils of rope, with  twine snoods and hooks (we space our hooks every 8ft) baited with squid or herring and laid down lovingly into 1950's tin baths. These lines are baited by hand and around 220 hooks go into every pack (bath.) They are stored in our walk in freezer to wait for us to take them to sea. Each pack takes around an hour to bait up and we use around 16-18 packs per day... As you can imagine, it's a full time job just baiting the gear and when the weather is fine it's a neverending task to keep up.

The lines are shot over a roller on the stern of the boat at around 6 knots (faster when Steve wants to get our gear fishing before the other boats!) Each line is weighted to the bottom with clip on chain or anchors. We normaly shoot around six mile of line and then wait two hours before we haul it out again. Catching cod, ray and seabass.

This is a very environmentally friendly form of fishing, we only take those hungry fish big enough to take a hook, and don't damage the bottom. There are almost zero discards and any small fish can be released alive.

All fish are of great quality as they are undamaged and landed the same day. We work around 12/14 hours per day and the fish is on ice as soon as possible to be sold the next morning.

Time for me to close my eyes for a few hours now before I get baiting again in the morning.

I've added a few pics of lines, our ugly mugs and a lovely 20 kilo halibut we caught recently, it made £220 and got into the local papers as it's a rare catch this far south.

Talk again soon. C.