Mackerel Fishing this year.

Toutvabien said:
When we used to actually catch fish we used a rod with feathers or lure,
lightly weighted, or a paravane, which keeps the tackle under the surface of the water, with lures or feathers attached. We used to be quite good at catching fish whilst sailing, as long as we were not going faster than about 4 knots, but the fish have wised up in recent years. Still catch a few when anchored up but not had much luck underway lately.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info Toutvabien ! I already course fish so have the tackle. Will give it a try once I have my boat.
 
Toutvabien said:
When we used to actually catch fish we used a rod with feathers or lure,
lightly weighted, or a paravane, which keeps the tackle under the surface of the water, with lures or feathers attached. We used to be quite good at catching fish whilst sailing, as long as we were not going faster than about 4 knots, but the fish have wised up in recent years. Still catch a few when anchored up but not had much luck underway lately.
Click to expand...

Do not like using a paravane whilst underway - imagine that some fish might get caught and have their mouths ripped off. Not sure if this would happen but just do not want to take the chance. Anyone know if this might happen ?
 
In years of using a paravane which only worked really at about 4 Knts certainly anything above 5 made chances of catching very low I never had any indication of either a foul hook or found the remains of a fishes mouth on the hook. With the paravane as soon as the fish takes the hook the vane brings it to the surface and the fish bounce about and if you are watching you can quickly reduce speed if you think it's required. The paravane with imitation sand eels or something flashy on the hook is by far the most successful way of trolling for mackerel.
 
They do seem in short supply on the South Coast this year. We have caught only a handful despite three concerted efforts, and have seen no shoals whilst out and about. The fishy forums reflect this too. Bream also seem a bit thin on the ground....
 
webcraft said:
.
No mackerel up here yet this year - most unusual.

- W
Click to expand...

rbmatthews said:
We were catching 4-5 at a time last year, and the ones this year have been a reasonable size, just not many of them. Lots of folk seem to be saying the same thing, so something must be happening.
Click to expand...

Apparently two weeks ago, at Portknockie harbour, they were literally leaping onto lines - I dragged a line of feathers with a dexter wedge on the end round the wee sheltered bay just East of Buckie last weekend in the kayak with Nada...The fishfinder was giving me sporadic beeps, but never seemed to amount to anything.
 
Storyline said:
Do not like using a paravane whilst underway - imagine that some fish might get caught and have their mouths ripped off. Not sure if this would happen but just do not want to take the chance. Anyone know if this might happen ?
Click to expand...

For a mackerel this is no worse than being caught and released since handling them fatally damages their skin anyway.
 
petehb said:
In years of using a paravane which only worked really at about 4 Knts certainly anything above 5 made chances of catching very low I never had any indication of either a foul hook or found the remains of a fishes mouth on the hook. With the paravane as soon as the fish takes the hook the vane brings it to the surface and the fish bounce about and if you are watching you can quickly reduce speed if you think it's required. The paravane with imitation sand eels or something flashy on the hook is by far the most successful way of trolling for mackerel.
Click to expand...
Thanks, makes sense that you would see the mouth on the hook if my half baked theory was right - will have a go next time we are away.
 
FishyInverness said:
Apparently two weeks ago, at Portknockie harbour, they were literally leaping onto lines - I dragged a line of feathers with a dexter wedge on the end round the wee sheltered bay just East of Buckie last weekend in the kayak with Nada...The fishfinder was giving me sporadic beeps, but never seemed to amount to anything.
Click to expand...

The way they used to behave is to arrive off Cornwall, make their way up the west coast and then down the east coast (followed by the fishing fleets). Maybe this year they have stayed well offshore on their way north.

Edit: on reflection this was herring - not sure if mackerel are similar.
 
Really wish there was a way to reliably catch them as I think a fresh herring is probably my favourite fish ..... or is that Sea trout ... or Dover Sole - well, it is one of my favourites !

Herring is one of those fish where freshness is everything - almost like two different fish entirely. Some people say the same about mackerel but for some reason they do not do much for me.
 
Last edited:
VERY fresh mackerel straightout of the sea and onto the BBQ, with lemon juice and pepper is a fine feed for a sailor boy (or girl)

Any takers for an online fishing competition during August??

category 1 fish caught from sailboat underway

category 2 fish caught from sailboat at anchor
 
Toutvabien said:
VERY fresh mackerel straightout of the sea and onto the BBQ, with lemon juice and pepper is a fine feed for a sailor boy (or girl)

Any takers for an online fishing competition during August??

category 1 fish caught from sailboat underway

category 2 fish caught from sailboat at anchor
Click to expand...

Suggest it is based on size or type (rarity) rather than number as I take no pleasure in pulling in line after line of mackerel as you do if you hit a shoal.
 
The best mackerel fishing we had was in 1974, a two handed 27ft boat we had 2 tons between 8 and 10 am, all on handlines and all went for human consumption. We asked the government of the day to protect the stock from industrial fishing but they said we would never catch them all.....
In 2001 I was on the Lord Nelson, becalmed up east of Shetland somewhere, found some nondescript bits of gear and cobbled together a set of hooks, dropped it over and wallop, huge great plonkers, big as I've ever seen, we had fifty to do dinner and stopped. We know they tend to congregate under a boat with the sounder running sometimes.
 
fisherman said:
...and all went for human consumption. .
Click to expand...

Last year seemed like a bumper year for us... we are off on Tigger tomorrow, so having read these comments, I am not too hopeful of a repeat.

Last year I learnt of an easy way to preserve mackerel (and other) fillets: submerge in a 50:50 mix of sugar and salt for 12 hrs. The shriveled flesh is fantastic (after washing off the salt) with a spot of lemon or... whiskey... and they last for ages. It solved the problems of dealing with 15 fish in one go - and a crew of 3...
 
Two weekends on the trot we have had only just enough Mackies for two off the south coast of Anglesey.
Both times catches have been of a more mature fish than the tiddlers that were around last year.
Also we have noticed the Dolphin schools are back which is a sign the fish are also around. Hoping for a bit more luck this weekend.
Use glitter feathers and standard feathers on a rod off the boat or trawling behind the rubber flubber.
 
fisherman said:
.....
We know they tend to congregate under a boat with the sounder running sometimes.
Click to expand...

Maybe they use the shadow of the boat so they cannot be seen by predator fish from below. Have seen this behaviour with sand eels hiding from mackerel when we were at anchor. The shoals of sand eels hid under the boat and also the dinghy.
 
TiggerToo said:
Last year I learnt of an easy way to preserve mackerel (and other) fillets: submerge in a 50:50 mix of sugar and salt for 12 hrs. The shriveled flesh is fantastic (after washing off the salt) with a spot of lemon or... whiskey...
Click to expand...

Then into a stainless steel pot, lid on, birch chips on the base of the pot, over a low heat for 20 minutes? ;) That's the way I love 'em... :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top