07/10/2024 - Portishead pitstop

Another enjoyable weekend in North Devon shot by and no sooner than we had arrived it was time to head back up the M5 to the Midlands again. 

My friend Ken needed dropping off in Taunton for 1100 hrs so after a quick tidy up we were away a bit earlier than usual. This meant it was still before mid-day when I got to Junction 19 near Bristol. As the weather didn't look too bad I therefore decided to come off the motorway and hang a left to Portishead and ten minutes later I was pulling up in the car park at the marina. I'd left one of my rods made up on the off chance, so grabbed a few prawns and a bit of squid and walked round to the basin, stopping at Costa to grab a coffee on the way. 

Close to the lock gates it was looking a bit brown and murky, but as I walked further along the clarity improved and the water took on a greeny hue. Stopped where I'd had a few gobies in May, baited up with a bit of prawn on the bottom hook and a strip of squid on the top, and then dropped the rig down the side. Could feel the dropshot lead sticking in the silt but by walking slowly backwards and hopping it along the base of the metal pilings I found a couple of harder patches. Had a few rattles on the rod tip straight away but couldn't connect with anything, so carried on a bit further towards the slipway. After a few more nibbles the tip finally bent over properly and a rock goby came reluctantly to the surface. 

Had two more of these, followed by a black goby before the little spot appeared to dry up. As time was ticking (I'd given myself and hour and a half maximum and wanted to get onto the little pier at the top of the marina) I got moving once more, stopping briefly to chat to a chap who was float fishing for mullet. There was nobody up at the top end of the marina, so had the pier to myself. Baited up again and dropped the rig down the side of the wall. Here the holes in the brickwork looked as if they would provide a bit more cover for things like gobies and blennies, but the lead didn't even hit the deck as the squid on the top hook was taken on the drop. Unfortunately, whatever it was soon came off. 

However, next drop in the same spot resulted in a pin whiting. Had a few more rattles and knocks before connecting with the smallest bass I'd ever seen, sporting his juvenile black spots. A silver bar in miniature. Quickly had three more of the greedy little buggers, all on the squid strip. Had seen a large shoal of small fish in the shallows on my last visit and had guessed them to be small bass. The marina probably acts as a nursery area, providing a relatively safe haven for them away from most predators and the strong tides of the Severn estuary. At this point another angler turned up. He was on his way back home to Malmesbury from Cardiff and had also decided on a quick stop. 

Edgar, as it turned out, had fished the marina on a regular basis in the past and had caught a range of species including gilthead bream (another one on my wish list). He'd also fished a lot of the same venues as me in Pembrokeshire, such as St Brides Bay, so we were able to swap advice and share experiences. Had one more little bass before reluctantly heading back to the car as I'd now gone well over my self-alloted time, leaving Edgar with the remains of my prawns and squid. The car park at the marina is "pay as you leave" and when I went to pay for my ticket I found that I'd tipped over into the next price band by just one minute. Not that I was complaining as I'd got a bit more local knowledge in the bank that would hopefully stand me in good stead, including where to park for free next time!