Boat Fishing with Mat (3 trips in 21/22/23)

This post will be a short amalgamation of several reports. As these happened over consecutive summers back between 21/22/23. Without boring you about the details of the launches (one was particularly entertaining) I will get right into the location and the fishing.

We launched from the Oxwich Bay each time. I’m not a normal boat launcher, but I will say, the slightest bit of swell and holding on to a boat of any size becomes a difficult task.

Our first trip we plodded around the bay catching Mackerel, Rays, Dogfish (standard) and Smooth hound. It was quite disconcerting to be out on a boat, at sea, trying for quite literally anything, and a significant change to my usual waggler, feeder and pole fishing.

We varied our tactics from “uptiding”, “drifting” and “downtiding” as well as the obvious feathering for the mackerel. We never managed a Bass, but we did manage a multitude of other sea species. 

The second trip we headed around the bay looking for “hounds” and rays using the mackerel we had caught and the crabs I had winkled out from Port Eynon bay the day before. That day the launch was particularly interesting, and at one point I thought. “We aren’t going to be able to make this. Fortunately, some good Samaritans held the boat steady in the chop and eventually we hopped onboard, heading out into the bay.

The third trip was a tope trip. We ventured out further than previously after catching a solid head of mackerel as bait. We baited our lines and began to wait. This was exciting fishing, because with the ratchet of the reel on, generally takes (bites) would be ferocious. I lost a truly magnificent specimen about 8-10 feet below the boat, but managed another in the low 20. Mathew managed several fish, but nothing as big as mine (haha). We then switched lines and tried drifting for Bass. They all evaded us, and after 4-5 unsuccessful drifts we headed back into the bay and remained there for the rest of the afternoon catching rays, smooth hound and bull huss.

I can’t really rate this type of fishing. It is a wonderful experience to get out on a boat, fishing for everything, especially when fishing off the Gower peninsula. I would definitely recommend a charter boat if you get the chance, you never know what you’re going to catch!