Fishing Whitburn & one that got away
Posted by: Webmaster on 05-02-2006
It’s been 2 weeks since the last time I have been out fishing and many months
since I landed a decent fish. This time of year is very busy for me work wise,
so fishing has to be put on hold. However, with our NE-Fishing Sea League coming
to a close the work was not going to stand in my way.
John and myself decided to return to our favourite rock mark in Whitburn an
area which we found while fishing our 2nd League competition. In my eyes this
is one of the main reasons the NE-Fishing league has been such a success. It’s
given us all an opportunity to try new places that we might have never tried
before.
The Whitburn cliffs and rocks provide an ideal place for cod and can be fished
either at low or high tide. However, it’s not always an easy place to
fish and lose of tackle is common. Therefore, ensure you have plenty of weights
with you as well as suitable boots for walking on slippery rocks. I would also
recommend a drop net especially if you are fishing from the cliffs.
We started our fishing around 11am from the cliffs however, nothing was interested
in taking our lovely rag or lug worms. This was not a problem as we planned
to get down off the cliffs and onto the rocks below us soon as the tide pulled
back. It was not until 1pm that we felt safe to climb down and start our hard
fishing session. We were met by Billy and Peter who also found this mark irresistible.
It was not long before Peter got a bite and hooked a nice Pollock estimated
to be about 3lb but was unable to land it.
With only 1-hour left of our allocated fishing time John’s rod registered
an alarming bite. He was quick to react and hooked into a nice fish. The rod
was still bent and through the kelp bed I noticed a fin sticking out as he was
pulling it back.
The fish did not put up a great fight and was quickly brought close to the
shore however, it was here the excitement came and went quickly. Both Billy
and myself climbed down the rock closer to the water to help land the fish but
the hook line gave in and the fish got away… It was a very sad moment
for all especially John. It was a cod estimated to be around 16lb+ to be optimistic
and it was within few seconds of breaking his personal best of 4lb.
Some say fish like this only come once in a lifetime well, I really hope this
is not the case with John. It’s something we have both waited for over
3 years and we will certainly not give up now.
The session ended on a low, but we will keep the memories going for much longer.
Stay safe and keep fishing it’s the only way you will get a big one.
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