Andy135 Posted June 2, 2023 Share Posted June 2, 2023 It's half term so we headed down to Cornwall for a few days with extended family and took the kids to Harbour Cove on the Camel estuary. There was a brief 30 minute window over slack where I could get the spearfishing gear out, so off I went. Not more that 10 mins in the water and I spy a flatfish on the sandy bottom in about 6m of water. I dived about half way down, pulled the trigger and got him squarely in the middle, behind the head. A nice, plate-sized flounder. Another 20 mins swimming but nothing else to be seen, so back to the beach I went, before the tide started to turn. He was filleted, dusted in flour, salt and pepper then pan-fried until the skin was crispy. Served four adults as a starter and he was delicious. thejollysinker, Geoff and Malc 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonC Posted June 2, 2023 Share Posted June 2, 2023 So you killed the only fish you saw? Good conservation skills ☹️ suzook12 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted June 2, 2023 Author Share Posted June 2, 2023 11 minutes ago, JonC said: So you killed the only fish you saw? Good conservation skills ☹️ You never taken the only fish you caught? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonC Posted June 2, 2023 Share Posted June 2, 2023 8 minutes ago, Andy135 said: You never taken the only fish you caught? No Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted June 2, 2023 Author Share Posted June 2, 2023 3 minutes ago, JonC said: No Spose you'd need to catch something first... 😱 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDP Posted June 3, 2023 Share Posted June 3, 2023 Great result, you must of been pleased with that. Given the small amount of ground you would of covered and fish seen at that depth I don't think there will be to much fear of the population decline to much. The fact you saw one at all was most likely because it had just moved and you were lucky enough to come across it, once settled in the sand they are near impossible to find. Ive followed them and stopped above only to watch them disappear as they cover in sand. Have you searched out any protected headlands from strong current ? High tide is often best for spearing as more fish will move in around areas which were exposed on low. Andy135 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted June 3, 2023 Author Share Posted June 3, 2023 7 hours ago, JDP said: Great result, you must of been pleased with that. Given the small amount of ground you would of covered and fish seen at that depth I don't think there will be to much fear of the population decline to much. The fact you saw one at all was most likely because it had just moved and you were lucky enough to come across it, once settled in the sand they are near impossible to find. Ive followed them and stopped above only to watch them disappear as they cover in sand. Have you searched out any protected headlands from strong current ? High tide is often best for spearing as more fish will move in around areas which were exposed on low. Yes, very pleased. And very lucky too! I'll be back there again this afternoon to see what else is about. I've seen bass there in the past so let's see. I need to explore more areas so will look out for a headland mark as you suggest 👍 JDP and suzook12 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDP Posted June 3, 2023 Share Posted June 3, 2023 4 hours ago, Andy135 said: Yes, very pleased. And very lucky too! I'll be back there again this afternoon to see what else is about. I've seen bass there in the past so let's see. I need to explore more areas so will look out for a headland mark as you suggest 👍 I wen't for a dive (snorkel) a few days ago but didn't take anything as I could only find undersized lobsters (hundreds of them). The reef's were about as fishy as Ive ever seen them with bait schools covering the entire reefs, numerous small sharks and rays etc, was more like being in an aquarium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted June 3, 2023 Author Share Posted June 3, 2023 Well, back again (I'm typing this from the beach) but nothing worth taking. Lots of sandeels, sand smelt and undersized spider crabs though, and spotted a nice ballan wrasse amongst the kelp. JDP, suzook12 and Malc 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malc Posted June 3, 2023 Share Posted June 3, 2023 Sounds fab Andy135 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDP Posted June 3, 2023 Share Posted June 3, 2023 9 hours ago, Andy135 said: Well, back again (I'm typing this from the beach) but nothing worth taking. Lots of sandeels, sand smelt and undersized spider crabs though, and spotted a nice ballan wrasse amongst the kelp. With the bait there its just a matter of time before something should turn up. Do you use google earth to check for shallow water structure around coastal areas ? I use a free chart site which can overlay satellite images which actually seem to have better detail than google earth. I will find the link when I next put my main computer on, what area do you mostly dive ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted June 4, 2023 Author Share Posted June 4, 2023 8 hours ago, JDP said: With the bait there its just a matter of time before something should turn up. Do you use google earth to check for shallow water structure around coastal areas ? I use a free chart site which can overlay satellite images which actually seem to have better detail than google earth. I will find the link when I next put my main computer on, what area do you mostly dive ? Yes, Google earth satellite view for looking for marks. Mostly I stick to sheltered bays on the south coast near Dartmouth or north coast around Padstow. JDP 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDP Posted June 5, 2023 Share Posted June 5, 2023 (edited) This is the site I use a fair amount as it often has better imagery, not always. On the Padstow side it has very clean sat imagery clearly showing rocks and gutter’s between them etc. I’m able to import these images into a Garmin handheld 67i which makes up for the areas my vision and reveal charts don’t cover. I enjoy the researching and finding of areas as much as the hunting. It allows such pinpoint accuracy. https://map.openseamap.org Once you open the above link, move around to find any location around the world and zoom in on any part of the coast that interests you. Go to the view tab and click Ariel photo, you will be able to zoom in pretty close and hopefully be able to locate areas out of strong currents. It can be used on land too, where I use it trying to find @JonC all the time. If you open the tools you can use the trip planner to measure reefs or how far from shore they extend etc. This is close to Padstow. Obviously these are reduced in size so not showing the greatest detail. If the link opens already showing aerial photos and boat traffic the screen will be extremely cluttered and you may want to turn those off at first. Edited June 5, 2023 by JDP suzook12 and Andy135 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy135 Posted June 5, 2023 Author Share Posted June 5, 2023 That's a neat site. Not heard of it before but I've now bookmarked it for future use - thanks! 👍 JDP 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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