With low tide being around 8pm Elpez2k and Shane B headed to Aberthaw outlets in search of bass. Having tried once before the lads were confident of some success and headed straight for the outlets when they arrived.

The lads set up on top of the left-hand outlet and 1st casts hit the water around 7.30pm. The weather was perfect, the sun was still shining and although there was a little surf around it wasn't as bad as the last trip to these parts. Still the rocky seabed at Aberthaw claimed another victim as Elpez2k lost his 1st wedge of the evening quickly followed by his 2nd.

Just before low and Elpez2k managed his 1st schoolie bass of the evening the fish was quickly returned unharmed. Not long after and Shane B managed his 1st bass this year a little bigger than Elpez2k's but no monster by any means. By now the water was starting to come around the outlet they were stood on and the lads moved back down to beach level.

This is where it all stared to go wrong with lots of snaggy rocks in front of the outlets the lads were having difficulty casting into deep water and an even harder time retrieving. Elpez2k lost his 3rd lure of the night quickly followed by Shane B loosing his redgill/ float combo. The lads tried various other approaches to fishing the outlets with no joy. After a quick chat to another angler using the same method they packed up and headed for home.

Elpez2k - 1 Bass

Shane B - 1 Bass

Elpez2k and CKK headed to pastures new for the 2nd weekend in a row. This time the venue choice was Tresilian Bay which is situated between Lantwit Major beach and St Donats. The lads parked at Lantwit and took the back braking mile walk along the top of the cliffs and arrived at Tresilian just before 8pm, they set up on the rocky ledge just to the left of the large house set back off the beach.

Conditions were good the sea had a fair amount of surf and there was a strong SW wind blowing across the bay. Some heavy rain and wind during the week should have helped churn the seabed up and the lads were hoping for a good nights fishing. First casts were around 8pm and the lads sat back and waited for the call to action.

About half an hour past without any interruptions, but then on his 2nd cast of the evening Elpez2k's rod gave a few mysterious nods only moments after hitting the seabed. Elpez2k anxiously kept his eyes locked on the rod tip and within 5 minutes another knock confirmed a fish had taken the bait. Elpez2k wound in to find a small pouting of around 3oz attached to his 3 hook flapper rig, which happened to be the 300th fish for the SWFF this year. Elpez2k rebaited and cast out again. It wasn't long before another good bite indicated his 2nd fish of the night, a small strap conger being the culprit.

9pm till 11pm was very quiet one good bite for Elpez2k resulting in a fish being lost whilst reeling in, and a few small knocks for CKK that came to nothing. By now the wind had started to pick up and the odd shower of rain tried hard to dampen the lad’s enthusiasm.

By midnight the tide was starting to creep up the ledge the lads were fishing on and the weather was starting to get worse. No more fish for either member, CKK did have a clonker of a bite but there was no reward and the end of the line. With the rain now lashing down CKK managed a fumbled cast that caused a nasty injury to one of his fingers. This was the last straw for the lads and they packed up and took the pain staking walk back to Lanwit soaked to the skin.

Elpez2k - 1 Pouting, 1 Conger

CKK - Blanked

Elpez2k and CKK headed for Lavernock point in search of conger. This mark had proved successful for the SWFF last year on the conger front with a few good double figure fish being taken. The lads arrived around 8.00pm and took the short walk to the mark and set up camp, 1st casts hit the water around 8.30pm.

The rip caused by the outgoing tide caused problems for the lads for the 1st hour or so. Holding bottom became a chore in itself and the lads took it easy on the bait front waiting for the rip to ease. The rip settled around 9.15pm and the lads went about setting up the 2nd rods.

It wasn't long before a few bites started to register, both Elpez2k and CKK having smallish knocks. Around 10pm Elpez2k had his 1st good knock that then sent his rod tip crazy. Fish on he went about bringing it in, safely brought to shore was the 1st conger of the night, a strap of around 2lb. Not massive but a good start to the night.

Around 11pm another knock came Elpez2k's way, this time it was a clonker. He struck and hooked into a much larger fish, reeling in he could feel the weight of what he thought was a good size conger thrashing around on the end of the line. As he got around 60 yards out the line went slack and the fish was gone, on examination of the rig the hook length had been severed just above the hook.

Things went quiet for around an hour, midnight came and the tide reached the end of the ebb. CKK was unimpressed at the lack of action for his 2nd trip in a row. Elpez2k was busy feeding crabs sand eel tails in a rock pool close by. Around 12.30am there was a change in fortune for CKK, a massive bite came begging and CKK struck and was straight into a fish of good size. There was a good bend in the rod and the lads were expecting a double figure conger, but all of a sudden the line went slack and the bend in the rod decreased. As shockleader broke the surface around 30 yards out the lads could see there was a conger attached another strap of around 2.5lb. Happy days for CKK he was back in business.

1.00am and the tide was starting to flood still the lads fished on, hoping a good size conger would show its ugly face. Around 1.30am came another bite for CKK and another fish on. He reeled in to find a small strap of around 1lb to be the culprit; CKK was starting to like this venue. 2.00am and the lads called it a night, better than recent results but still the fishing is very poor at the moment.

CKK - 2 Conger

Elpez2k - 1 Conger

Elpez2k, CKK and The Codfather headed to Redwick in search of sole and conger. Although this venue had been visited before this was the 1st time any of the SWFF members had fished here.

The lads arrived around 10pm and set up around 50 yards to the left of the sty, 1st casts hit the water around 10.20pm. The sea was very flat and there was hardly any wind. Elpez2k had a freakish start with a bit within the 1st 10 minutes, after some strange reactions on the rod tip he reeled in to find nothing but seaweed on the end of the line.

Around an hour in and it had been quiet, then a good bite for elpez2k indicated the 1st fish of the night. He struck to find some good resistance and knew it was likely to be a conger that had gone for his whole squid bait. The fish was putting up a good fight and Elpez2k was expecting a fish in the 5-10lb bracket, as it broke the surface the lads could see it was a smallish conger and a massive ball of seaweed. The fish weighed in at just under 2.5lb. A quick photo and he was released to fight another day.

Just past midnight and the ebb came, the rip become incredibly strong and a series of nasty tangles involving all 3 members pursued. Not to be disheartened by this the lads fished on. Elpez2k had set up a light 3rd rod with smaller baits of worm in search of the sole, as he went for his 2nd cast there was an almighty crack and the end section of his light rod went flying off into the sea.

The lads fished on until around 2 hours down. There was not a single bite to give some encouragement to our trio, and so they headed for home with only one fish between them. Looks like August is going to be disappointing too.

Elpez2k - 1 Conger

Ckk - Blanked

The Codfather - Blanked 

CKK and Elpez2k headed to Swansea in search of mackerel and Garfish off Mumbles Pier. What they found when they got there was a pier full of anglers. After much discussion the decision was made to try their luck at Bracelet Bay just up the road from Mumbles. When the lads arrived at Bracelet they weren’t too fussed on what they were presented with so on the road again to find a more suitable mark, to add to the lad’s frustration it was now starting to rain as well.

Finally after a quick scout of the area Caswell Bay become venue for the evening, the lads set up on the ledges to the left of the beach around 4pm. Conditions were good, nice SW breeze blowing across the bay, overcast sky with the odd shower of light rain. Around 40 minutes in and CKK registered 1st bite of the day, he reeled in his 1st flatfish of the year a small turbot. The lads got excited after weeks of catching nothing but conger it was good to see something different.

The fishing was slow Elpez2k's first bite resulted in a big ball of seaweed. The weather was starting to improve and the sun managed to break through the cloud at odd times. Around 2 hours in and CKK struck again, a clonking bite followed by a bit of a battle on the rod resulted in the first doggie to be seen in quite a while. Things were looking up and with high tide just under an hour away Elpez2k got out his spinning rod and set about attacking the ocean with a small dexter wedge.

Half hour or so had past with no luck on the spinning gear, when CKK suggested free line some bait close to the bottom of the ledge. Elpez2k removed the spinner and attached a float set up, added a small strip of mackerel and slung it just over the edge of the ledge. 10 minutes or so had past and Elpez2k had but the spinning rod down and was chatting away to CKK. As he turned around he noticed his float was gone and his rod was getting dragged slowly towards the edge. He managed to grab the rod and struck into a glorious battle with a fish. On the light gear the fish was really giving him the run around, he brought it to shore and dropped to the lower ledge to grab the mainline. As he pulled it up the ledge he prayed that the line/hook would hold. Finally the fish was safe in his hands; a nice sized bass of around 2.5lb had been the cause of the chaos. The fish was weighed, photographed and released to fight another day.

High tide came and barely 10 minutes after the bass Elpez2k was into his 2nd fish of the night. Not so much of a fight from this fish, but still an interesting catch Elpez2k's 1st ever tub gurnard. Things were looking good for our duo and the lads were sure there were more fish to come.

The first hour of the ebb past without any action for the duo, but with the light now fading the lads were happy to hold out for another hour and hopefully boost their tally’s. The perseverance paid off, around 1.5 hours down and Elpez2k pulled in his 1st turbot of the year. The species where starting to rack up for both our members. Just before the lads were going to call it a night CKK had a good bite, he waited to see if there was any more knocks to confirm there was a fish on. No other signs came but as he reeled in he smiled a fish like smile here was number 3 of the night to even the scores. At the end of the line was a small-eyed ray, CKK's 1st of the year. A fitting end to a fine session 2 new species for each member at a new venue, and a bass that will leave Elpez2k smiling for a while.

Elpez2k - 1 Bass, 1 Tub Gurnard, 1 Turbot

CKK - 1 Turbot, 1 Dogfish, 1 Small-eyed Ray

The SWFF continued their assault on the west by heading down to Langland to fish Snaple point. The lads arrived around 6.30pm and took the short walk to the point. First casts hit the water around 7.00pm; the weather was good a slight NW breeze and clear skies.

Within 5 minutes of casting Elpez2k was into his first fish as he was reeling in what he was sure was a dogfish it came off around 50 yards out. Gutted but a good sign that the lads were in for a good night. Not long after and Elpez2k was in again this time he got it to shore, the result was a nice doggie of around 1.5lb. It didn’t take CKK long to join the action and 10 minutes or so after Elpez2k, CKK was pulling in his 1st doggie of the night again around the 1.5lb mark. Just so he didn’t feel left out Shane B hooked into a fish as well but he lost it before it broke the surface. Still an encouraging start as the lads had been fishing under an hour.

Last hour of flood and another doggie for CKK again a good size around 1.5lb, the light was now starting to go and the lads were hopeful of a very productive night. Shane B had some problems holding bottom on the tip of the point so he moved further into the bay to try and combat it.

High tide came and Elpez2k managed to land his 2nd doggie of the night, followed by CKK landing his 3rd and not long after a handsome bass weighing in at 1.5lb. His 1st bass of the year and another species under his belt. Out of the darkness appeared The Codfather who had decided to join the lads to fish the last 2 hours or so. CKK brought in another dogfish to celebrate.

Into the ebb and things started to go wrong, the ebb was pulling massive amounts of seaweed past the point that caused Elpez2k no end of problems. Also with the lads fishing so close together it was always on the cards to get the odd tangle, but this was becoming a problem on almost every retrieval. Elpez2k and CKK were now losing tackle trying to retrieve over the sharp rocks being exposed by the dropping tide.

Around an hour down and CKK brought in another doggie quickly followed by another to take his tally for the night to 5 dogs, making this session his most productive to date. But with the tide exposing more rocks and potential snags the lads decided to call it a night around 2 hours down. Well worth trying this mark but there has to be easier marks to fish in the area.

CKK - 5 dogfish, 1 bass

Elpez2k - 2 dogfish

Shane B - Blanked

The Codfather - Blanked

Elpez2k and Ckk ventured to Sudbrook for the 1st time since March. A favorite haunt for the SWFF during the Cod season, Sudbrook had been given a wide birth all summer as the lads have found the east end of the channel has fished poorly all summer. The lads headed out in search of conger, with nothing much else showing around the Newport area Elpez2k was sure there was a good chance of a few over the mixed ground around the beach situated to the left of diver’s rock.

The lads arrived 2 hours before high tide and first casts hit the water around 9.45pm. Big baits on pulley rigs were the order of the day, and within minutes of Elpez2k's first cast the first bite of the night ensued. At the end of the bite was a wee strap conger of around a pound, nice start to the night though.

Things were quiet up to high tide Elpez2k went about loosing more tackle, while CKK tried various bait combos trying to attract the slimy critters in the murky depths.

Into the ebb and at last some action a few small knocks before CKK had a clonker of a bite. He struck and was into a fish that was putting a good bend in the rod but offering little in the way of resistance. Still the lads were expecting a reasonable conger in the 5-6lb bracket. Elpez2k scuttled down to the shore line ready to help CKK haul it up over the rocky beach. As its head broke the water both the lads could see it was bigger than expected, a lot bigger! CKK got the conger to shore and Elpez2k ran forward camera and scales in hand, the eel just sat there massive mouth wide open. As Elpez2k grabbed the shock leader to eel went into freak-out mode and started thrashing around on the rocks, it managed to break free and headed straight for the water. CKK tried desperately to stop it as Elpez2k tried to get a quick photo, but it was too late and the conger had its freedom back. Both the lads were gutted not to have got a weight, but it was an easy 12lb if not pushing the 15lb mark and was by far the biggest fish caught by any SWFF member to date.

Despite the disappointment of not getting a tidy photo or weight the lads fished on morale boosted by the previous 5 minutes of chaos. It wasn't long before CKK was into another, but this was no monster just another strap of around a pound. One more bite for CKK that came to nothing and another lost rig for Elpez2k plus a heavy shower of rain signaled the end of the night for the lads. Excellent nights fishing anyway and much respect to our newest member CKK for such an awesome fish.

CKK - 2 conger

Elpez2k - 1 conger