Boat fishing with Barham
Ever wondered why anglers go boat fishing or how to get yourself aboard to see if it’s for you?
Why you should be fishing afloat.
Why do anglers go boat fishing? For many, the thrill of riding the ocean waves cannot be beaten and, quite often, a good catch comes way down the list with regards to what constitutes a good day afloat.
For me, being on a boat, whether it does a mean 50 knots or a meagre five, is all about the sound of the engines and waves, the smell of the exhaust fumes mixed with the fresh salty air, and the voyage into the unknown, coupled with the anticipation of what the day may hold.
Of course, there is always the fishing. It’s a completely different sensation playing a fish under your feet than one some 100 yards out in front of you from the shore.
Equally, if one spot isn’t producing, then you can fire up the engine and move a couple of miles to new fishing grounds in a matter of minutes.
Whether you’ve caught the boat fishing bug during a short trip in a friend’s private vessel, or enjoyed your first day on a charter boat, chances are that you’re probably hooked for life. If you’ve never been fishing on a boat before, but have thought about giving it a go, then it’s really not a daunting a task to get afloat.
GIVING IT A GO
There are 400 or so licenced charter vessels in the UK, offering every conceivable type of boat fishing trips you can imagine. They vary from custom days where you dictate what you want to do, including enjoying a three-course meal, and specifying what times you want to fish, to four-hour mackerel trips or taster sessions where adults can take their kids out for a few hours. There’s something for everyone.
If you’ve never been on a boat, there can be a few worries in the build-up to your trip, so let’s get a few things out of the way that will help calm your nerves.
First of all, seasickness is not always going to rear its ugly head. A lot of the time it’s all in the mind, and if you convince yourself that you’re going to be seasick, the chances are you will be, even if it’s flat calm. Convince yourself that you’re going to be fine, and nine times out of ten you will be just that.
A few rules can minimise the risk even further. Don’t go out on the beer the night before. Try to ensure that you get a couple of night’s good sleep before the big day (tiredness is one of the main causes
of seasickness), and try to eat something before you get on board.
It is known that some people just aren’t meant to be on boats, and that they can suffer terribly with seasickness – but it is quite a rarity.
With this in mind, if you’re really not sure about how you will feel on a boat, then make your first trip a taster session. During the summer you will find that a lot of charter boats will offer four-hour evening sessions, which are perfect for finding your sea legs.
You can search out a boat near to you by looking at the classified adverts in the back of this magazine, or by going online and checking out the many dedicated charter boat pages.
JOINING A CLUB
Once you’ve decided that boat fishing is something you want to get into, it can be a good idea to join an angling club. This doesn’t have to be a club near your home, but could be somewhere that you intend to concentrate your fishing efforts.
The main reason for joining a club is meeting new fishing friends and drawing from their experience. You could get invited on some amazing days afloat, during peak times and tides – a lot of clubs will book various charter boats at the start of the year for one trip a month.
You will probably find that some club members have their own vessels, and if you get to know them, you may be invited out for a day’s fishing. If you search the Internet, especially Facebook, you will find a host of sea angling club pages where you can interact and meet new fishing buddies.
There are so many different types of boat fishing available, which I’ll deal with during this series. To whet your appetite, here are just a few of my favourite types of boat fishing adventures…