Up go the lights

Ready for the off, The Cornishman about to let go the ends....
a quick scrub down aboard the Shiralee aftre landing to the market fridge.....
why would these guys be caged and ferried around?.......
all part of the team that annually volunteer to put Newlyn's now famous harbour lights together....
ably assisted by a master forklift truck driver.......
sometimes its easier by road.......
the Cathryn gets a bottom scrub while the propeller is away to put back the bits that Edwin unintentionally knocked off when shooting this week.....
brown crab bait in waiting......
the first pelagic trawler to fish from the port for many years - the 320hp Manx Ranger will be under the command of local skipper Roger Nowell (jnr)....

The 46ft Aleyna turns turtle off the Devon coast

Two fishermen escape from the flooded wheelhouse of their upturned vessel off the Devon coast in the early hours. Luckily for them the crew of the Girl Debra witnessed the Aleyna capsize, immediately slipping their gear to rescue the crew who were forced to tread water alongside the upturned hull.

Early start on the Ajax

The Georide boys take on ice as the sun comes up......
a good night's work for the Cornish Sardine fleet, 25 500kg insulated tubs wait for collection inside the market......
out on the quay all hands pull nets to be mended from the Ajax.....
where the flashing red gauntlet of Jeremy sets the pace for others to follow....

with sardine bins to be shifted, the OceanFish forklift coughs into life.

CFRC new home

Late in the evening, the Billy Rowney puts the finishing touches to her port side gear.....
the view from the reception desk of the Cornwall Fisheries Resource Centre is much improved these days - they have just moved into the old South West Nets premises overlooking the harbour....
looking back into the centre, Sarah Henshall is now confident that visitors to the centre will now be able to enjoy the spacious accommodation which will allow for larger conferences and presentations to be held on the premises....
not only is the centre a base for the South West Handline Fishermen's Association but also the new home for Nathan de Rozarieux and the sterling work of Seafood Cornwall...... doeznes of frozen bait boxes are heaved aboard the Intuition in readiness for her next trip.....

while the Billy Rowney takes on fresh water.

Being Resolute, Oceanfish score last night

One of the most modern punts in the fleet, the Porth Enys is up on the quay for some maintenance work.....
back in action away from the sardines the Little Pearl has a shot of bass on the market....
when your home port is Cadgwith, home to the Lizard Lifeboat, and you care about quality insultaed tubs are de-rigeur these days....
a lonely contrail could have been mistaken for a flare in the dull dawn light this morning....
opposite the market there's not much you can't find on the shelves of Waghorns General Stores....
cocooned and all wrapped up for Christmas, the Plymouth Explorer has the shot-blasting team aboard....

a solid night's work for the Resolute means that OceanFish factory will be kept busy later today.

Basking shark satellite tracking device found on Padstow beach.

A lucky find for a local dog walker returns the tracking device from a programme set up to monitor the movement of basking sharks off our coast.

Twinning visit

Hi-tech electrics feed the power needs aboard the Lisa Jacqueline while she is undergoing a major refir alngside the North Quay......
after dropping off a crewman with a broken knee, Bruno, skipper of DLM's Concarneau (twinned with Penzance) registered Grand Saint Bernard eases her gently out towards the gaps under the watchful eye of Harbourmaster Andrew Munson....
his concern is that, at this state of the tide, she will only just have enough water to exit the harbour without touching the hard ground just off the gaps....
so there are an anxious few moments before he can relax as she heads towards the shallowest part of the entrance.....

safely away, she is passed up by the Dignity from St Ives bound in from a netting trip for red mullet.

Over the half-way line

A 'landmark' as it were in the voyage of the Spirit of Mystery - she has made it across the equator over the weekend! Read up on the celebrations aboard the boat from their web log.

There's more to it than just the fish and quotas

Patriotic and moralistic quota activist Grimmy Mike (Mike Mahon) makes the papers with a supportive article from Telegraph journalist Christopher Booker. The article provoked plenty of support and a number of interesting comments from online readers that reflect on the wider issues of sovereignty and control with regard to our 'Island State' and Europe.

Wet, wintry wind.

With a fresh coat of white gloss given a dousing by yet another heavy shower, the Dom Bosco's new cranning pole waits on the qiuayside to be fitted.....
while the rest of the country suffers snow showers and much colder temperatures it's just plain wet 'n windy her in the far South West of the UK.....
the obligatory 'barn door' skate from the Gary M's netting trip.....
one of a very mixed bag of fish on the Monday morning market.....
with a steady supply of boxes heading to the box washing department.....
making his way aboard the Intuition for a chat with skipper Alan Nudd.....
many of the bigger vessels make use of 3D seabed ground discrimination plotters in the wheelhouse.....
back in port after her maiden voyage, the Emma Louise has plenty of water powering through her vivier tanks to aerate the water....
evidence of the fresh Northerly breeze......
with a heavy swell running even the big scallopers like this TN trwler from Troon cannot work...
late Sunday afternoon and the Carol H heads......
in Through the Gaps......
dark enough this evening as lighting up time arrives quickly under heavy skies....

and a reminder to all those who drive along the front that Ross Bridge will be closed for three months early next year.

Fish farming

Dressed for the damp conditions despite the forecast predicting a quiet day, three anglers make their way to the quay.....
the Crystal Sea II has had a week's worth of fishing with her new trawl doors.......
stood in the drizzle over-ending and cleaning the net, Saturday morning chores aboard the Boy Brax......
Through the Gaps appears to have stumbled across a new enterprise in fish farming.....
time for Gary and the old man to get the brushes out for a bottom scrub on the Achieve.....
the Twilight heads in through the gaps after towing the Billy Rowney in....
after she became 'mopped up' with what appears to be a French trawl in her prop.....
with a fresh breeze blowing down the harbour it takes three of the harbour 'tug' boats to put her safely in tier.