Nobody does it like the BBC

• The majority of fishermen I meet have an increased level of interest in nature and the outdoors, so I am presuming that a load of you watched the staggering new programme on BBC1 last night - Nature's Great Events - 1. The Great Melt. If not, watch it as soon as you can on iPlayer right here. I love nature related programmes, and I still believe that when the BBC puts their mind to it they make the greatest natural history shows on earth. I spent most of last night's episode with my jaw on the floor. How many of you went "aah, aren't they sweet" when the first polar bear mum and her cub trundled across the screen ? I bet they aren't so sweet when they haven't fed for four months !!

• How on earth is the BBC ever going to replace the timeless David Attenborough ? His commentary always lends an air of class, and I appreciate the fact that there is a gentle but persuasive environmental feel where it is required. Utterly outstanding, and I personally can not wait for the episode next week on the salmon migrations - how cool do the slow-motion shots of the bears waiting open mouthed for the salmon look ? Just imagine getting proper budgets and time to make fishing programmes look as cool as that ? And how about shooting them in full HD ? The mind boggles at the possibilities........

Photo courtesy Jako Lucas

• I mentioned some recent and very good ray fishing around here from the other day, but how about the ray that you can see in the photo above ? Now that is proper ray fishing !! It is a 90lb plus stingray (not sure which type, there are loads) caught in South Africa a few weeks ago by one of the FlyCastaway guides, Jako Lucas. I have worked with Jako in the Seychelles and in South Africa, and as well as being a seriously talented fly fisherman and guide, Jako is also scarily good at rock and surf tactics for the silly-sized kinds of fish you can see here. More keen fishermen should check out the shore and boat fishing opportunities in South Africa - how do you fancy being spooled by a shark that takes exactly 1000 yards (yes, one thousand) of line off you ? I know somebody that this happened to. We have some awesome fishing around us here, but it never gets as "out there" as it does in places like Africa. Insanity prevails.

• Thanks to Stu and a couple of comments he placed on this blog (check here)- please take the time to read the last few posts on his own blog right here, and take serious heed of what can so easily go wrong when you go fishing. Thankfully the guys are all ok, but they were horribly close to a serious disaster. Push your fishing hard, but please play it as safe as you can.

My favourite bass lure of 2008

• As we move swiftly into a chilly 2009, here are some thoughts on my stand out favourite bass lure of 2008. Anybody who has been following this blog will know that I have a bit of a problem when it comes to (shiny new) bass lures, but there was without doubt one single lure that stood out for me last year. Bear in mind that I am talking about a combination of what I saw caught, plus what I caught myself, for most of the time I tend to put my fishing gear down and take photos when the fish come on the feed.

• So my top bass lure of 2008 has to be the Tackle House Feed Shallow, as you can see in these photos. I saw a huge amount of good bass taken on these lures last year, and I actually managed a few myself as well !! Lures like this are not easy to track down, but you can get them from Mick at Mr. Fish. No, they are not cheap, and yes, you would be well advised to replace the (rubbish) trebles with some decent ones, but the lure kills, plain and simple. But why on earth does a company like Tackle House put such awful hooks on such a good lure ?

• There are of course many outstanding bass lures out there, and some need not cost a bomb. The continuously outstanding Maria Chase BW in holographic silver is going to keep on catching plenty of fish (get them here), and last year I really learnt a hell of a lot about modern bass fishing, and some of the tools we can use to improve our catch rates. Lures such as the various and outstanding Duo Tide Minnow and Terrif range, the Xorus Patchinko, of course the excellent Lucky Craft Flash Minnow, GunFish and Sammy (see here) are always in my lure box now, together with an expanding range of soft plastics such as the Slug-Go and the MegaBass XLayer. If you want to see a load of decent bass taken on various lures last year, there are loads of my photos here, here, here and here.

• But it was the Tackle House Feed Shallow that I saw the most bass caught on - bear in mind of course that a lot of the guys I fished with were using it a lot of the time, but there is obviously something about it. The lure casts well and fishes just below the surface at a fairly fast rate, with a stunning "side to side kind of slightly slashing" action, and this suits a lot of the bass marks I fish very well. The silvery/reflective colours are my favourites as I remain convinced that bass switch on to these colours both in bright and dull conditions. I remember one flat calm morning we fished in Ireland when nothing was happening - the sea was like glass and the clarity was almost too good, but eventually a nice fish obviously could not resist roaring out from behind a rock and smashing into my Feed Shallow. That was the only bass of the morning.

• If you have any interest in sharks and the sea, I really hope you watched the recent Natural World programme on the BBC - this was some of the most impressive great white footage that I have ever been fortunate enough to see, and the South African guy involved in the story has my utmost respect. This seriously was a hugely inspirational and stunning programme that every single person with any saltwater interest should make sure they watch. Great white sharks have always fascinated me, and they will continue to do so. If you live in the UK and missed this programme, you can watch it on the BBC iPlayer service right here. Immense in every way.

• Anyway, back at work and 2009 stretches out in front of us all - here's to the best possible year in what we all know are going to be some turbulent times. But if there is one thing to get us all through whatever happens, it has to be fishing. What else can provide such a release and a rush at the same time ? What else forces us to keep learning new stuff all the time ? Here is to a successful fishing year for us all, whatever you choose to fish for, and wherever you do it.

Fly fishing for yellowfish

• I am sitting in Johannesburg airport, waiting for my flight home, so I thought I would use a bit of the time to update this blog with some news of my last few days here in South Africa. This is the first internet connection I have had since my last update. What a trip. What a place. What awesome fishing......

• We have been staying on the banks of the Vaal river at Parys, about an hour and a half outside Johannesburg, chasing these awesome smallmouth yellowfish on the fly. Above is Jako Lucas with a seriously good "smallie" that he took on a wet fly stripped back slowly. Working with these FlyCastaway guides is always a fantastic experience, for they are all outstanding fly fishermen and are huge fun to spend time around. The more time I spend with the guys simply reaffirms my belief that they are one of the best guiding operations on this planet. Check out what they do here, and then get in touch with them if you want to experience some of the world's best fly fishing.

• We spent a bit of time rafting and fishing certain sections of the Vaal river, and the two photos above show Jako landing a nice fish and then paddling down to the next spot. Africa is usually about the whole experience, and I love it with a passion. There is just so much fishing to do.

• Above is Jako with another big smallmouth yellowfish - these magnificent creatures are arguably more loved than trout down here, and big numbers of fly fishermen target them in the Vaal and Orange river systems. You can fish dry flies and wet flies, with upstream nymphing being particularly popular and successful in the faster, shallower water. These fish pull big time. All the FlyCastaway guys are so easy to photograph.

• Here is FlyCastaway guide and all round "freaky good" angler John Crabb bringing a "smallie" to hand as the sun goes down on another perfect African day. Last night they smashed the fish hard on small dry flies, wading right out into the middle of the river. What is great is that the water is warm enough to wet wade - no need for chest waders.

• The Vaal is also full of huge catfish and some nice carp, including this stunner that Jako nailed as he was trying for the yellowfish. We were hoping that it might be one of the rarer and more elusive largemouth yellowfish - these thing grow huge, but they are not as prolific as the hugely numerous smallmouth yellows. Very much worth chasing though.

• You can see from this head shot just how adept the smallmouth yellowfish is at grubbing around on the bottom for the large percentage of its food. They simply light up when the sun is out, and all fish are of course returned.

• Here's that carp barely slipping into the landing net - Jako just managed to fit him in there. The carp are in fantastic condition and John Crabb nailed a few that he saw literally tailing like bonefish. He also got smoked by a big, 30lb plus catfish !!

• This has been a hell of a trip, meeting some fantastic new people, and also catching up with some good friends. I am already making plans for multiple return visits, but not before I get home and actually spend some proper time with my family. These last few weeks have been seriously travel hectic (check backwards on the blog for the info), and I have photographed a huge range of material that is going to illustrate a serious number of features all around the world. Now though I am so looking forward to getting home to my girls and being around for a while - my wife is awesome the way she holds the fort when I am away and I could not do what I do without her. If all goes well I should be landing at Heathrow early tomorrow morning, and then I have about a three and a half hour drive back down to Plymouth. Hopefully the bass are biting big time......

• Far too many people simply have no idea about the world class fishing that is on offer throughout Africa, from some outrageous rock and surf fishing on the southern coastline through to monstrous Nile perch in Uganda. I have done a lot in Africa over the years, and I have every intention of doing a whole load more. This place gets to you in a big way. A lot of the fishing really need not cost the earth - and some really good news is that the incredible beach fishing in Namibia is really firing once again, and the guys are catching stacks of big sharks again, together with the edible species such as kob and steenbras.

• Talking about kob (kabeljou), I am already about to put some dates aside for next autumn to come back down and fish with John Crabb again for some potentially huge kob - they have been caught recently to over 100lbs from the shore. Yes, you read that right, that is a "fish" and not a "shark" - imagine what that must look like. Anybody into serious shore fishing needs to check these kob out. A lot about how they are caught reminds me of our own bass, although this is on a somewhat extreme scale.

Bow to the silver king

• Around first light this morning, John hooked a steam train of a tarpon on a live crab. I reckon the fish jumped six feet out of the air within seconds of being hooked - every single time I see these fish I am reminded of just how seriously awesome they are. The silver king kicks you hard from time to time, but to see one close to the boat is something you can never forget. Rodney managed to grab the leader and I was just about to rattle off a few frames when the line broke and the huge fish powered away. It counts as a caught fish over here, but I didn't get the photos I was after. But I got a very cool wide shot of John playing his fish, with the tarpon jumping clear of the water as the sun was rising - see above. Rodney put the tarpon at around 150lbs, so it was a proper fish. John played it perfectly. What a result after yesterday's kicking.

• I got a couple of half-takes, when the fish hits the crab yet the line does not tighten up enough to go for a proper strike. I did hit one of the bites just as the tarpon let go of the bait, but the moment I did so I realised my mistake.

• And then we went after some permit again - and I broke my duck. Once again we lost a few good fish to sharks and breakages, and I was heartbroken when my 50lb braid suddenly broke right on the tip ring as a nice permit snorted off. Stupid of me really, I should have checked the rings before fishing, as after the breakage I found a damaged tip eye that had caused the line to snap.

• But take a look at Rodney holding my first ever permit below. Over 20lbs of prime Keys permit, taken on a freelined live crab fished behind the boat. This fish ripped off so fast a couple of times during the fight, to the point where I reckon smoke had to be coming from the reel !! Their pace is off the scale - how does this fish move so fast and so powerfully ? I can quite see why some fly fishermen dedicate their lives to nailing these spooky fish on the flats. Permit are such pretty fish and it happened so fast today that I am not really sure I took it all in. Guess I'll have to try and catch a few more.

• There were a couple of sharks landed today as well, including a nice blacktip of around 60lbs that put on a serious turn of speed when it picked up the bait. These blacktips create mayhem close to the boat, but both were successfully unhooked and released. We also saw some proper barracuda around the boat at one point, but they refused the livebaits.

• I hear the weather has been nice and warm back home, so hopefully this might do some good on the bass fishing front. I am having a blast out here, but I can't wait to get back and see my family, plus head out plugging of course. I need to go and use that new Tenryu rod of mine again. I have found a couple of really interesting looking lures out here that I reckon might do nicely for bass, so yet again I have added to my collection.

Chewed up and spat out

• Today was one of those days when fishing decided to show us just who the boss is - we got torn to pieces by big fish all day long. We have returned this evening with bruised bodies and shattered egos. It started at just after 5am when Scott hooked a really big tarpon under Seven Mile bridge, and then for over an hour he played it really well, almost to the point where it was time to grab the leader. You can see Scott playing the fish above. But tarpon are not one of the world's ultimate game species for nothing, and right at the last minute the fish took off on a huge long run and smashed Scott up on the bridge. Gutted. John then had a good bite on live crab but did not connect. Back for breakfast and a regroup. 1-0 to the fish.

• Later on this morning we headed out to a wreck to try for permit and amberjack, and the fish were on the feed. I have never fished for permit and was dying to hook one. I have seen one hooked on the flats on fly, and I have seen the Indo Pacific variety on the flats in the Seychelles refusing flies, but I have never fished for them myself. Down goes a live crab on 50lb braid and a very tight drag. A few minutes later and I get a gentle kind of bite, but after I strike it, all hell lets loose. Within five seconds of hooking this permit I can see what all the fuss is about - they are awesome fish. Their turn of speed is insane, in fact I have rarely seen a fish take off so fast against a seriously tight drag. And of course the fish went and did me like a kipper. OK, so it isn't fly fishing for them, but this way of fishing for them is serious fun. 2-0 to the fish.

• John meanwhile has dropped a live pinfish down to the wreck on 80lb braid and a proper boat rod and reel. Above you can see what happened about five minutes after he put the bait close to the wreck - that drag is wound down as tight as it will go, I could hardly pull line off it myself, but the amberjack ripped him up big time. Look at how much pressure John is putting on the fish, but still he never stood a chance as it powered back to the wreck. The power level of this fish is simply impossible to describe. 3-0 to the fish.

• I then get done by another big permit - I wound my drag up even tighter, but still I could not stop the fish reaching the wreck and cutting me off. I am ashamed at my language when I lost that second permit !! I abused that fish, and still he did me good and proper. 4-0 to the fish and we are starting to wonder what on earth is going on here.

• John is next to be ripped up by a good permit, and by this time his body is suffering a little bit after getting abused so badly by the amberjack. 5-0 to the fish. We are bleeding here.

• We make a move to a different mark, and the permit are there as well. Sometimes you can see them swimming around, and Scott hooks up on a small jig baited with prawn. Things are going really well and the fish eventually begins to tire. This is it, nearly over, time for some photos of a fish I have wanted to see for ages. But then the permit suddenly charges to the surface with a number of sharks in hot pursuit, and then these sharks tear into the unfortunate fish and rip it to pieces in a complete frenzy. Seriously gutted. 6-0 to the fish. Pain time.

• I rush to change over to a little wire trace and a bit of cut fish bait, and within a few seconds one of the smaller sharks hits my bait and I set the hooks. The shark charges off and promptly bites through my wire trace. 7-0 to the fish and we head for home - broken, damaged, sore and humbled. What an incredible day. What else can humble like fishing ?

• The Florida Keys are insane. I know of no more cost effective way to get at this world class fishing than to get in touch with Rodney Goodship of Fish the Dream and book some time out here. We simply have no fish in the UK that fight anywhere close to species such as tarpon, permit and amberjack. Tomorrow is another day.