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Issue 04.0315.03.04

The Circular - your monthly newsletter

The next excursion is to that well known venue Alan's Hole on the Isle of Grain. I don't know if you have ever seen Alan's Hole but some people say it's not very nice to look at however others say that in a certain light with the sun setting behind the hillocks it can be a joy to behold - well if Jason says he wouldn't mind having a go up there that's good enough for me!!

This is a shallow shelving beach venue that has easy access from the car parking so it will offer some relaxed fishing. We're not sure how long we will be able to fish there before the tide goes out to Southend so the match length will be flexible - there is no point in fishing on if you or the juniors attending can't reach the water with a cast. As with all shallow venues the results at this time of year will depend upon temperatures and wind direction. A frost or low temperatures will make the exposed beach very cold which will in turn make the returning sea water cold and put the fish off coming in for food and if there is a strong wind blowing onto the foreshore the waves in the shallower water will put the fish off coming in too close as well. However I expect conditions will be ideal when we get there so expect to catch those smaller fish including flounders, whiting, a pouting or two, maybe a little bass or even an early eel - you may even get a smelt up at Alan's Hole. When we arrive have a root around the crevices and groins and you might be able to catch some crabs from Alan's Hole. If anyone catches a rockling that will most probably be all we will catch all day so we might as well go home.

The flounders and rockling will be caught close into the shore, flounders preferring ragworm or maddies and the rockling preferring your old lugworm from the last trip. Use longer hook lengths on your traces at least 300 mm long to flutter your baits around in the tide, use small hooks and take some small plain weights to drift your trace around in the tide to search the ground in front of you for fish. Try reeling in your trace to search the beach in front of you - reel in slowly - no slower than that - about 300 mm a minute at most - the little puffs of mud/sand will attract Florrie the Flounder to those bright red beads on your trace hopefully before Colin the Crab eats all your bait.
Bring some 1 hook traces with small hooks because if the fish don't come in close you'll wish you should of attended more of those casting lessons!

Take a variety of baits if you can.....some lugworm, ragworm, maddies, peeler crab etc to give you a chance of getting a variety of fish. Give Jason Mann a call and he might be able to get you some bargain bait.

I'll see you on the beach

John Padmore
Secretary