During the first few days in May and the weather decided it wasn’t best for My Way to set sail, we remained tied up while temperamental winds had their say.
During the first weekend, things settled down over the Spring Tides. Conditions were still breezy but quite good given the conditions, pollack and codling on the drift with doggies, whiting, more codling, huss & others coming to the boat at anchor.
We managed a couple firsts of the year early May, with a very small tope falling to Stockport angler Lisa, this tope also being her first catch of the species.
My Way regular Mark Dolben also came up trumps with the first smoothhound of the year. A pair either side of the 10lb mark kick starting what was to be another fantastic season on these hard fighting small sharks.
By the middle of the month, we had some fairly settled weather coinciding with neap tides. This was going to allow My Way to push a little further out than we had been doing and fish a few marks in Holyhead Deep, a popular area with the potential to throw up some fantastic sport.
A regular crowd from The Wirral were not to be disappointed on a recnet trip to Holyhead Deep, with Scottish International angler Mickey coming up trumps with a great pair of spurdogs.
A 16lber on his first drop and a magnificent 20lb specimen towards the end of the Deeps anchor. From 200ft of water in 1.5knots of tide, this really did put up a great fight.
Plenty of species showing up inshore, with small pollack and wrasse making far more regular appearance whilst on the drift around the rock marks and on the back of Holyhead’s famous Breakwater.
The Deeps fishing continued for a few days, with the settled weather remaining over Anglesey and the fishing obliging our anglers. The main target remaining the big huss and big spurdogs, small tope also falling to the baits on the odd occasion.
Middle of May and the weather was turning a little as the neap tides made way for larger and stronger tides. The good movement in the water added more smoothhound fun to our trips as the season slowly got underway.
Local angler Peter Williams nailing himself a new personal best after landing our first 20lb smoothie of 2016.
Back in the Holyhead Deep and our spurdog rigs are famed for the ability to continually land big spurdogs, over an over again. Tide in house with only the best products, the rigs also benefit from using wire on the snood lines
Spurdogs have small rows of razor sharp teeth, that can be seen clearly in the photograph.
The last full week of May saw the return of My Ways annual hound competition, The Smoothhound Challenge, handsomely sponsored by Tackle Giants TronixPro Marking the start to our hounding season, last week saw the return of the annual Smoothhound Challenge aboard GO Angling – My Way Sea Fishing Trips, this year sponsored by tackle innovators Tronixpro.
Conditions were great all week with calm seas greeting all that fished with us. The fishing wasn’t hectic, with packs of smoothhies failing to show. Instead a steady stream came to the boat, mainly lone hounds with the odd double or triple hook up through the week.
Up for grabs each day during our Smoothhound challenge a TronixFishing rod and reel combo, Envoy Multiplier reel and a 3 piece multitip, Iridium Berlangas 275 rod. All the angler had to do was catch the heaviest smoothhound of the day.
We managed to land over 120 smoothies, many in the 6 to 10lb range, quite small by our own standards, but true to form with the cycle of smoothhound fishing and sizes.
However the best during our week was caught by local rod Mark Cain, a whopping 24lb 2oz, just short of the current Welsh Record.
On reflection, May was another good month aboard My Way
Sailing regularly from Holyhead Marina, our reports and numerous photographs help tell the tale of our season and how fishing aboard My Way progresses through one year
With July promising to be a great month once again, check our spaces here – boat or current individuals
