Late last year I posted regarding what I consider to have been a deterioration in the numbers of fish that I expected to catch on a day by day basis in Wexford. That deterioration was significant running at 65%. Surely a reasonable post for discussion.
See this link – A challenging season – but who knows why?
At this stage of the 2012 season that deterioration has continued and worsened to the extent that anticipated versus actual returns is down by 88%.
This post is not a discussion regarding debate across techniques or learning curves or methods employed, I measure very accurately across all factors. This post is a wave of a red flag that something is not right. This may be viewed as contrary to popular belief – but it depends on what and why you want to believe I guess!
Ensure comparisons, logic and timescale are valid – one or two big fish don’t make a season.
Today was a classic example of how tough it is – 
fishing with Pete Browne, who is a return customer who suffered last year too, Pete is a capable fisherman and under my guidance we can make a strong team and yet Pete had an extremely difficult day today, fish yes, fish missed yes but only at extraordinary effort and with minimum returns.
Throughout this blog and for the five years of its existence I have emphasised the extent of the influences that the fishery is prone to. To a large extent those influences are hard wired into the reality of the business, this is reflected here almost daily. The essence of what you see here is a reflection of the fishing, always has been.
Understand the influences and their effects on the marine environment/fauna and you can understand a large part of the challenges of bass fishing.
Remember ‘bass fishing’ is easy and fun and can be done by any person – other elements create the challenges.
Last year and into this year I believed that ‘weather’ was the major reason for such a tough season during 2012 and I guess I tried to validate that. Don’t get me wrong I know what bad weather is, but this is different. I like to believe that the fish are just a short distance off, inshore in ‘suspended’ mode waiting for ‘better’ conditions. A poor growth year perhaps. Just like 1986.
But I cant help wondering at this stage is it something else. Hopefully it can turnaround.
Whatever it might be, a big thanks to all for your patience and perseverance!
Jim Hendrick
..the waves of the sea–beautiful, mysterious and insistent–drew me more and more to the path on the cliff whence I could watch them curl and break, and listen to their splash upon the sandy shore. I stood there on the afternoon of a calm day in early autumn at the time of low water of a spring tide. The little waves, gliding slowly in over the flat sands, bent round the ends of a shoal, as waves of light are refracted, and, meeting, passed through each other, each to continue its own course.
Vaughan Cornish
I left it for twenty-four hours and then e-mailed John. John lives in Sussex and arrives in Wexford on Saturday to fish for bass on the fly for four days. The mail of course informed him of the forecasted weather conditions for his visit, difficult to say the least!
At this time its still only a forecast…….
Giving John the option to cancel and in fact many other people too, is something that I’ve had to get used to over the past few weeks. This is not easy and its very very disappointing for customers who have made commitments and look forward to their days fishing. From a small business point of view its damned bloody difficult.
Getting people from both around the world and from within Ireland to come to Wexford to experience regular quality guided fishing is an exercise in itself, a task that needs constant attention, work and management.
It just doesn’t happen spontaneously!
When customers do arrive the automatic aspects of the job kick into place, guiding, gear, transport, food, location timings…this is what a guide does, no problem!
By default in the middle of June July August or September in Ireland, one should expect ‘reasonable’ weather when the fishery will operate normally to a large extent. In other words with all the other aspects of the job falling into place after months and years of hard work only to be thwarted at the last furlong by something beyond your control is indeed tough.
Other guides worth their mettle and working in Ireland will surely recognise and appreciate this. Realising there’s already enough to deal with at this time, they will already know the reality the extent and the scale of the difficulty of what’s involved!
At this time it doesn’t need to be made even more difficult by anybody playing silly games who doesn’t understand or appreciate that, and I’m not talking about customers here.
So I made a decision this morning, a necessary and now regular one – but John made a braver one, he called me, he’s coming to weather the storm!
Fingers crossed.
THIRTYARDS 
You must be logged in to post a comment.