Beach Fishing, Hayling Island

Who Hit The Chaos Switch?

Inn on the Beach, Hayling Island PO11, UK

daytime recon

With one fish still eluding me, the humble Black Bream, a difficult catch around my fishing area, but with a visit to family who live at the beach on Hayling Island, which is further west around the coast and offers the chance to fish well known Black Bream holding areas. I just couldn't help myself, but have a go to catch them. I visited the beach during the day for a scout around, and with a few fruitless casts with a rod, just in case. Having got there a little later than planned, I didn't get to see the lay of the beach properly as the tide was half way in, but what I did see was the beach where I planned to fish was a fairly shallow and sandy beach, which didn't bode too well with me, remembering disastrous fishing trips on shallow sandy beaches before. but none the less, armed with 1lb of live Ragworm and with the spare time, I decided to return later for the flooding tide during the cover of darkness.

tiny hooks and bait for tiny mouths, what could go wrong?

My target was Black Bream having never caught any before, my plan was to fish 2 rods, both identical rigs and baits, but at different ranges to help locate the fish. the rigs I choose were boomed rigs with  2 x size 6 short shanked Aberdeen hooks baited with 1" sections of Ragworm, not a bad choice to cover a few other species as well if the Bream wernt about, because the venue screamed flat fish to me, and the small hooks and baits would also do well for flat fish, especially if any Dover Sole were about, as the hot humid stormy weather is always good for bringing them onto the beaches to feed. I cast out 1 rod as far as I could, and the other rod I literally dropped 10 meters out. conditions were calm, the sea was flat and clearing. with a clear starry sky, but with dark stormy sky's in the far distance, maybe a sign of things to come?

Hey they cute, new species the Black bream

With virtually no tide run or weed both my rods sat motionless in the stands, and it wasn't long before the close in rod rattled away, I lifted into the fish and landed would you believe it, my first Black Bream all 8" of it! lol it may have been small but it was a new species for myself and the target fish, I was over the moon, all the bites were coming from the close in rod, not lots but every 15mins or so, so I bought the other rod and cast at the same range to increase my catch rate, I had landed 4 Black Bream now, all about the same size, it was a lovely easy fish in perfect conditions, all alone on a empty beach, I was happy as Larry and could of sat there all night totally unaware that the fishing gods had other plans for me, and had unleashed something that was going to test my skill, rig components, sheer agility and luck with a tornado of chaos.

With both rods out with tiny hooks and baits at about 10 meters out, I happily sat on my box waiting for a little rattle rattle on either of the rod tips, it never happened, one rod got pulled down so fast and hard it ripped the rod rest out the ground, forcing a running dive from myself where I had to catch some seriously nice rods and a rod stand, 1 from getting dragged into the sea and the other from smashing into the shingle. I caught all! and all at the same time, I adjusted the drag on the rod with a fish on, re stood up and re positioned the rod stand and placed the second rod back on it. accident adverted! Now to get playing the fish! and boy did it just scream off, tearing line off the drag at a ferocious speed, Bass 1 thought to myself, and a seriously strong and powerful fish, now I was playing a big fish on a tiny flimsy size 6 hook on 10lb snod, the chances were well in the fishes favour, although one thing in my favour was a nice softer continental rod to help play the fish bending into the fish unlike a stiffer rod, I couldn't pull hard at all, the hook would of just bent straight or pulled out! run, after run, after run, but the fish was still hooked and I had gained back all the line it had taken.

This is when the fishing gods turned up the chaos level, the other rod tore off, again I caught it before it catapulted itself into the sea, I now had a rod in each arm with big powerful fish hooked with tiny hooks tearing around the shallow beach in front of me!!! I was playing the fish like this for about 3 minutes before after a few powerful lounges the fish freed himself off the second rod, I was glad if I'm honest, I rested the rod back onto the rod stand and preceded to play the first fish, it must of took another 5 minutes to gently tease the fish close enough to land, I could of guessed what they were, and wasn't surprised to see a dorsal fin sticking out the water in the surf, Smoothhound! a lively starry! I grabbed the fish, it was a beast possessed, with one hand I could not control the fish so I had to put the rod up on the rod rest and preceded to unhook and weight the fish which came in at 9lb 6oz!

A beautiful chaotic starry smooth hound 9lb 6oz

Then again the fishing gods were being mischievous and again turned the chaos level up anther notch!! what did I do? all of a sudden whilst trying my up most to get a nice picture of the fish, crash bang wallop!!! my rod stand smashed into my head! and yet again for a third time I caught both my rods before they either got dragged out to sea or smashed onto the shingle!!! dam another hound must of picked up the second hook bait as each rig had 2 hooks! I now had a angry hound in one hand with its tail under my armpit, and clinging on to a rod for dear life with the other hand as another fish tore off stripping braid off the spool, unable to reel in I walked out into the surf and put the hound in the water, now I was soaking wet to my knees, but I was able to keep the fish upright and between my legs whilst I played the other fish to give it time to recover to release safely, Again this fight was long winded due to end tackle, but slowly I gained on the fish till the tapered leader was on the reel, I saw the fish, another big hound, it swam straight across in front of me, then the hound between my legs kicked off with a ginormous splash as he powered off actually joining his hooked friend who then spat the hook, I watched with relief and exhaustion, wet and in pain as the two dorsal fins sticking out the water swam side by side together back out into the sea!!!!

What the hell just happened! from calm tranquil perfect fishing to absolute chaos in a millisecond that lasted 30 minutes, as quick as the hounds arrived they left, even the Bream left, hardly surprising considering the commotion. I never had a bite for the next hour of the rest of the session lol. What went wrong? well, nothing to be honest, I'd caught my target tiny Bream, I'd saved the rods 3 times, I'd landed a large hound on ridiculously light tackle, and safely unhooked, photoed weighed and released him, I'd only ever purposely fish one rod for hounds by myself for this reason as they patrol in packs, and double hook up are common, also fishing at such close range with braid the takes were so ferocious as there was no stretch, They just took me by surprise, like a hit and run attack this time, but no harm done, You know noone ever says whilst your tidler bashing remember to set the drag. But one thing I will take from this is I will always loosen the drags regardless of target species being fished from now on, I had just gotten complaicent and you just never know! This is certainly going to be a trip I don't forget!