Becky M Newsletter

Monday 16th January, 2006

A belated Happy New Year to everyone.

Well there hasn’t been a lot happening here at the moment, what with the weather, and the time of the year, the fishing it at its lowest point at the moment, still spring is just around the corner so we have got that to look forward to.

I am sorry that the photo gallery hasn’t been up dated for a while, but we just haven’t found the quality sized fish to warrant a photograph being taken, but as soon as there is you can bet it will be on there.

With the onset of spring being just around the corner, I suppose we should be checking the light tackle out in readiness for the Bream fishing, make sure that you have got your hooks and everything, and that your line is still good, and replace if necessary, there could be nothing worse than hooking into your first Bream of the season only to loose it through rotten line.

I expect that a lot of you, like me are wondering what has happened to the Cod fishing this winter. Well the short answer is I don’t know, it seems it has been like it for everyone along the South Coast as far as I am aware.

It has been my worst year in twenty five years fishing the area. I suppose that things like the common fishing policy quotas don’t help, when, I believe I am right in saying, that we have been allocated eight per cent of the English Channel Cod stocks, and the French have seventy eight per cent. If that is right, then no wonder we are catching fewer fish.

The next thing will be Bass. Roger Bayzand was saying that a pair of French trawlers had been reported fishing inside the twelve mile limit, and a fisheries protection boat had been sent out to investigate, and it got there the trawlers had complained to them that they had only netted 1000kg of Bass in two days, and they were fishing TWELVE MILES OFFSHORE what are the chances of us having a good season this year??

I know that there are moves afoot to increase net sizes for the commercial Bass fishermen, but it will have very little effect if it isn’t followed through by other countries, who if they were to follow their usual practices they would ignore any new legislation, and just carry on as usual.

What would be a better idea would be for our fishery protection vessels to be out there, patrolling our waters, and to enforce the rules and regulations that are laid down, and be backed up by the courts if they were to arrest anyone breaking those rules.

Maybe, just maybe some of the high profile fish stocks could then be saved for the future generations to enjoy, instead of the “lets take it all now, and to hell with the future” mentality that some sections seem to have.

Anyway enough of my rantings, I have been ashore too long, and have too much time to think about things.

Tight lines,

Dave