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Dave's New BWSeacat 'Gemini'
You may like to join us aboard "Gemini", or to book her for your own angling trip Dave Harrison who owns and Skippers "Gemini" out of Dartmouth has provided numerous advance dates when individuals can book places aboard for a day "Fishing Dartmouth". These opportunities to enjoy your angling in Dave's good company are as always dependant on the weather, numbers, and the wishes of those who book. Dave can provide rods and reels if you are new to the sport or require extra help. Dave will collect your fresh or frozen bait, by prior arrangement, from Brixham Bait & Tackle. Dave is advertising several dates available for full charters at weekends plus mid-week dates, when he is willing to take parties comprised either of full charters or, of individual anglers.
If you would like to
book a charter on another date than those shown below, please call
Dave and he will take your booking, My prices for 2015 are as follows:
'Skerries Banks' and inshore fishing
Reef Fishing
Mid Channel Wrecking
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The English Channel - By Martin Bowler - Angling Times
To most people the English Channel is pretty unremarkable and simply a place to sail over or travel under on their way to their holidays. It is as well one of the smallest seas on the continental shelf of Europe but Britain has got much to thank this arm of the Atlantic Ocean for. Despite its diminutive seize it has been our defence against invasion, scuppering the plans of the Spanish Armada, Napoleon and Hitler to name but a few. It is also a place of natural wonder that is unfairly ignored that houses a full and varied marine eco system; be that the humble crab or starfish right up to sharks, dolphins and whales. As is the case with much of this country’s population we are all too keen to marvel at the rest of the world’s natural treasures and miss what is under our noses. Fortunately being an angler supplies an opportunity no one else has and that is to get up close and personal with this sea. By chartering a boat which is inexpensive when divided by a party of friends, the sport on offer will amaze you as will the variety of fish and opportunities. For if one species isn’t biting another one surely will! The first of two conger eel trips had arrived and as I sat on board Dave Harrison’s Gemini sharpening hooks and preparing tackle during the 20 mile journey to a mid channel wreck the excitement levels rose. I love the brutality of fishing for this species and given the chatter from the rest of my party I was not alone. Fishing for the table is the norm with sea anglers but for all of us the sport dictated the species not its taste, highlighted by the range of 50lb class rods, butt pads and kidney belts on display. Fresh mackerel, cuttle fish or a combination of both were the baits to use and such was my keenness a chunk of inky flesh sat on the 9/0 hook even before Dave had cut the engines. The time had come to lower my offering into the darkness and wait to see who coveted the flesh. The conger today though were conspicuous by their absence but that didn’t stop the sport and when a 22lb ling and a 28lb cod hit the surface at the same time I couldn’t help but marvel at the sport and when it came time to return to shore I started wishing the days away until I was back at sea exploring. Adventure number 2 and the weather looked ominous as Kev Newton, Terry Theobald, shark expert Andrew Allsop and I loaded the tackle on board Gemini. Inside the natural harbour where our berth sat the wind seemed benign but that wasn’t fooling skipper Dave who listened intently on the radio to the gust speeds and news of wet fronts pushing into the Devon coastline. It was obvious that our trip was in the balance but with a ‘who dares, wins’ attitude we pushed on regardless, trying to ignore the white capped waves and freshening winds. Seven miles out though and we had no choice but to face up to the reality that anchoring up just wouldn’t be feasible today. Was this the end of the trip? Was it hell! A good skipper always has a back up plan and providing we were willing the skerries inshore would provide good flatfish sport along its undulating sandbanks. We may have swapped brute strength for finesse but to me this is the joy of angling in Great Britain – a never ending menu of opportunities meaning angling is never off the agenda. Steaming back to Dartmouth the broom handle rods were replaced with ultra fine 6lb class models and great chunks of flesh discarded for prawns, squid and ragworm. Within an hour we were plaice fishing and now sheltered by the craggy Devon coastline, the wind no longer troubled the catamaran especially as drift fishing would replace the anchor. Over the shallow water the tide would pull us along while we investigated the bottom with our baits dragging behind. Braided mainline helped to maintain contact as did the 6oz watch leads which momentarily bit into the sand before being prised free. Behind this came 6 feet of 10lb fluro carbon with a 1/0 hook knotted at its end. To add a splash of colour and increase attraction a series of multi-coloured beads were also included on the hooklength held in place by a small Drennan float stop. Then a half fillet of raw prawn was twice hooked and threaded up to the eye followed by a rag worm which was impaled through half of its body leaving the rest to waft around tantalisingly. Likewise a sliver of squid concluded the cocktail which was also allowed to waft in the hooks wake. With tackle ready we dropped down the 30 to 40 feet and then kept vigil over our rod tips as they transmitted the message sent up from the sandbanks. Our challenge would be deciphering a bite when it came! For that to happen though it was vital that the rig remained hard on the bottom as that is where the flatfish lived and fed, buried in the sand waiting for its prey to unsuspectingly pass by. How different can you get from the type of angling we though we would be doing? However the enjoyment was nonetheless as bets were laid, banter shared and copious amounts of tea and coffee drunk. With each rattle a strike was made which more often than not found an hold inside a plaice’s sideways mouth. The English Channel is a special place so please don’t think of it as just a route to get somewhere better – for my part I can’t wait to return and finally do battle with the conger. To book Dave Harrison’s Gemini, call 07968 599245 or 01803 851766 or visit www.geminifishing.co.uk Martin’s Plaice Tackle Rod 7ft 6-12lb class model Reel Small multiplier Braid 30lb Power Pro Weights 6oz watch Hooklength 1/0 hook and 10lb ESP ghost Martin’s Top 5 Tips
A trip with an old friend, Hugh Miles was next on the agenda to the enigmatic Royalty fishery and with such a choice of species on offer deciding what we would target would be the hardest task.
"Gemini" Pollack - I've just returned home, tired but happy and aching in every joint, after a thoroughly enjoyable day, fishing for Pollack on the mid-Channel wrecks out of Dartmouth, aboard my good friend Dave Harrison's local charter boat, his ever popular, bright orange coloured Blyth 33 catamaran, "Gemini". Today was something of a "red letter" day for me. I have endured 6 thoroughly unpleasant operations and I finally got the "all clear" from my Consultant last Wednesday. I couldn't wait to wet a line. I had been unable to fish for 6 months. I was so happy and excited that it probably would have taken two Stone Masons three weeks to chisel the beaming smile from my face. Look out fish, I am back ! Several weeks ago, I received a telephone call from another pal, Roger Lovell, who lives at Solihull, in the West Midlands. We know several mutual acquaintances and places, as that is where I was brought up as a young lad, at Lapworth, half way between Solihull and Warwick, where as a boy, I started my obsession with fishing in the local Canals. Roger explained that he had a group of 5 or 6 Midland based anglers, who regularly fish Dartmouth at any opportunity. He was having trouble in assembling a full charter party of 10 anglers, and wondered if I knew anyone who would like to join him and his pals, fishing aboard "Gemini". Roger was the original motivation, around a year ago, for the publication on this web page, of charter trips for individual anglers, aboard "Gemini". It had become apparent that many anglers experienced difficulties in organising enough people to fill a charter boat with their own group. Many individual anglers and small groups, sought the opportunity to meet and fish in the company of other like minded people. I was very happy to help, as was Dave Harrison. Three lads based in Paignton and Brixham saw this trip advertised amongst Dave's forthcoming trip dates on this web page and joined us, together with Graham Dryer, who is the Chairman of Brixham SAC, my home club. Graham is also the proprietor of Brixham Bait & Tackle. We had a full compliment of happy like minded people. Dave picked me up alongside the South Embankment in Dartmouth Town centre. I handed my bags and rods to his ever smiling crewman, another good pal and prodigious tea maker, Mick Hallam, who is also known by his "nick name" as "Mr Wilkes", which originated from the TV soap, "Emmerdale", but, I digress. We headed across the River Dart, to Kingswear, on the opposite bank, where we collected the rest of the lads from the pontoon at Darthaven Marina. It was great to renew acquaintances with guys I had not seen for quite some time. Roger was happy and smiling. I also knew Mitch Johnson, from Solihull. We have fished together before, several years ago. I recognised one of the lads from the other group of three; Jamie Hopwood, who is a member of Brixham SAC. Graham Dryer was his usual self, happy and relaxed. As we headed out to sea, past the twin Castles which guard the entrance to the River Dart, Mick handed around welcoming cups of tea and coffee, the first of many that day. We all chatted. There were so many moments to catch up on, and talk of what the day might hold for us. The weather was a little more settled than so many other days in recent winter weeks. It was a big Spring tide, with a difference of 5 metres between high and low water. The company was good. We all hoped the fish would be hungry. Dean West, from Paignton, chatted to me and explained that he was returning to sea angling after a prolonged absence. It was his first wreck fishing trip for quite some time. We headed out to sea at a smooth pace for around 2 hours, fuelled by several more cups of tea. Mick, you should be a "personal trainer". You certainly get me to "Pea Tea"; some would say it's the closest I get to hard exercise. I had my rod rods rigged and ready. Several of the other guys were fitting reels to rods and threading lines through the guides; adding monofilament leaders to braid lines; tying swivels to leaders; and discussing the merits of various designs of soft plastic "Shad", "Redgill", and "Sidewinder" lures. Someone asked me how much weight they might need to fish the anticipated 240 feet of water. I suggested that 10 ozs would be about right. The trip to the fishing grounds passed very quickly. It's an important but enjoyable aspect of a day afloat, "Fishing Dartmouth". The sound of the engines slowing down indicated that we were over the first wreck mark. We took up places along one side and across the stern of "Gemini". These big cats may not be the prettiest boats in the world, but they really are excellent and stable fishing platforms. You can easily accommodate a party of 10, fishing across the transom and from the same side of the boat; none of the problems associated with fishing under the boat from the "up-tide side" on the drift. On the second drift of the day, I caught my first Pollack for a very long time, not huge, but a feisty fish, around 10 lbs. I was happy. I knew that all was well with my world. Within a very short space of time, Roger Lovell caught another fine Pollack, of similar size to mine. It was time to unpack my camera and take some photos of our day together.
The tide was ripping through at a fair pace. The boat was drifting up-Channel, driven by a breeze around force 4 from the North West. There was a slight lop on the water, but conditions were comfortable and forecast to improve as the tide eased and breeze dropped. Dave suggested we should move on to another bigger wreck, which we did. It was only a few miles further out. More chat, more tea, and we were soon there. Graham Dryer, fishing alongside me, soon caught another fine Pollack around 12 lbs in weight.
Then it was Mitch Johnson who caught the next good Pollack, again a fish of similar size.
As the pace of the tide eased, "Gemini" drifted more slowly and the fish were easier to contact. Roger Lovell and Mitch Johnson, using the newer "Sidewinder" soft plastic lures, fished with a 10 ounce weight attached to a sliding boom, with a trace length around 6 to 8 feet, were into fish at the same time.
Dean West preferred the "Redgill" lures, which worked perfectly and certainly tempted some fine fish. Mitch caught several good fish, including a specimen Pollack around 15 lbs 8 ozs, all on "Redgills", fished from a thin wire "French Boom" on a flowing trace. Dean remarked to me how much he was enjoying his day and said he was going to be back for many more in the future.
Jamie Hopwood used a selection of "Jelly Worm" soft plastic lures, and on other drifts used "Redgills" to tempt several fine Pollack.
As the tide eased still more there were times when 4 or 5 anglers were fighting fish at the same time. Dave Poole from Coventry caught another good Pollack around 16 lbs. Roger and Mitch caught similar fish on the same drift. Jamie caught his best Pollack of the day another fish around 15½ lbs. Between cups of tea, pasties, chat, and taking photos, I caught four nice Pollack, all around 12 lbs in weight. I thoroughly enjoyed my return to angling. It made me glad to be alive in such excellent company. On the way home, we stopped off at the same wreck we had visited on our outbound journey and caught several more Pollack, before continuing our return voyage, arriving back in Dartmouth a few minutes before 5.0 pm, in good time for the lads with longer return journeys to Warwickshire and Leicester, and in time for Dave to re-fuel "Gemini" ready for another trip tomorrow with some regulars from South Wales. We said our fond farewells and all look forward to doing it again before too long. What a good day we all had. Thanks Dave and "Thank you" Mick.
Friday 13th February 2009
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