Reports from a foriegn land

I posted on here a few weeks ago and some interest was expressed in me putting up a report or two .
I live in Rochester , Kent , SE England . Where I was fishing , The Isle of Sheppey , is situated on the Thames Estuary on the north Kent coast . The fishing here is a bit tricky at this time of year as most of our winter species have left  and the summer ones have yet to arrive .....
So here is my first attempt  I had some problems embedding the you tube video and some code is still showing on the page , they play ok from this end .

   
 
With the forecast good [ yes really ! ] I decided to have a go at the Thornback Rays . I had a few at the beginning of April last year and thought it may be worth a go . The shipping forecast  mentioned fog and although I drove through some on the way down .The Estuary looked pretty much clear of it . I had gps and a compass so it was not desperate if it came in thick .
I dragged the yak down the beach and prepared for launch . It was the first outing for my new re-designed front rod rest .

  View from the beach
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On the paddle out I noticed a wave cloud .



The sun came out for an hour and it was very pleasant to bob about at anchor waiting for a bite . Although it was a bit squinty as I was facing the sun . On one rod I was fishing pacific saurey and the other a chunk of mackerel . I was using just plain running leads and a single 5/o hook on a flowing trace  .
The tide was flowing well when I first anchored but after a couple of hours it just went slack and fitfull .

Nothing for first couple of hours
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So with no action I upped anchor and tried further out hoping to find some tide or some of the concrete blocks that were lined up on the sea bed . I found neither so anchored up again and gave it another go . An hour later I still hadn't had a bite and as it was getting near low water I decided to have another look for the concrete blocks . Why didn't I mark their position on the gps last time I was out ? Eejit .
On a spring tide the blocks break clear of the water but on a neap there was no sign of them .
I paddled out to the mid-cant buoy and looked for a wreck that I remember was marked on the chart . I could not find the wreck [ there is a theme developing here ] but the depth was down to 20 plus feet and there was a bit of tidal flow , so I dropped the hook and fished the last hour or so next to the mid-cant .

Next to the mid-cant       
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There was no action , not even a crab . So I decided to call it a day and head back . About a mile and a quarter paddle , a long way for a beer swilling couch potato like me .
It was a good day to be out on the yak and it was a shame the fish did not play ball . I gave my new Typhoon B max drysuit a work out and I can say I am impressed .The only niggle was the velcro on the material collar  at the front was scratchy .


I hope you have enjoyed this report , sometimes I even catch fish !

I like it, I like it. We have a displaced brit here with us. Possibly he will chime in later. I for one will look forward to more reports. The video was very clear. Thanks, Craig

Welcome.... it will be nice to see what you guys catch and how you rig to catch it.... thanks for the post and video.

Gue

Great to have you here!! I look forward to your reports. Thanks for sharing and great video.

-FF

hey northern boy can you translate for us?  just kidding thank you very much for your report!  we definitely enjoy hearing reports from all around the world.

Thanks for the report!
Looking forward to more!

Thanks for the report from a far off land.  You guys speak funny, though...haha.  When are you gonna learn real California english.........dude? 

It's great to see reports from afar. Keep 'em coming.
Is that drysuit toasty warm?

top of the heap
fish or no fish

move over abking you got company

Whooooo. Welcome aboard mate.

I just registered for anglersafloat. Great to see so much yak fishing in the motherland, especially at this time of year. I'm actively trying to persuade the powers that be back home to employ me. I can't tell you how much of a relief it is to know that there's so much yak fishing in the motherland.

Welcome from the "other side of the pond"!

I often caught thornback skates here in CA, in the surf & from piers. Great little fun-to-catch fish, especially when nothing else is biting. Love the wave cloud photo, that was worth the trip all by itself!

Keep them coming!

Thanks for sharing some vids todaymueller. Totally enjoyed it even without any
fish. Please keep them coming.

Jedmo

I always knew if I caught a large enough fish I could get towed all the way to England.  Now I know I have a NCKA friend to call for help.  Welcome to the group.

Thank you, tm, for giving us a look at yak fishing in far away waters.  Great report - I too love the wave cloud photo, and it's the kind of thing that makes our sport special.  4 hour skunk? - who cares?  Solo adventure in your personal, well-outfitted watercraft, appreciating whatever Nature offers around you - that's what it's all about.  Welcome, Brother.  We share a passion, and now traits of kinship such as pride and loyalty kick in.  Many of us here will look forward to your reports.