A tale of two butts.

An unsettled start to the day with threatening clouds hovering over the Bay.........

not that they will deter the patriarch of the Pascoe dynasty as he breaks through a sparkling sea......

with his morning's mackerel aboard.......

Sennen men come round to.......

take on some new pots......

watched by one the thugs of the sea bird world, from the port's black-back gull population......

time must ticking towards the tuna tangons call to action.......

a romantic fishy tale, turbot pair up for life - as any long-line fisherman will tell you, they would often sea the other half swimming up alongside their partner as the line was hauled...........

lucky lemons get the otolith treatment from CEFAS Sam........

and a quiet conger poised king cobra like.........

some red gurnards come complete with table decoration for the more discerning buyer......

more like dawn than dusk.......

'Through the Gaps' featured in the Blog review section of local newspaper, The Cornishman for a second time - appreciated Gareth!.........

a chance for an enthusiastic and committed fisherman to join Plymouth Marine Laboratory's research programme aboard their vessel  ...........

head to the Boats for Sale page for more info on the Sea King GRP fishing punt......

what an offshore near gale leaves behind at the high water mark......

keeping the quay in the sun......

don't forget the Orion Gallery now provides superb coffee with an uninterrupted view over the Bay.......

well stocked with pirate shirts ready for the big world record pirates in one place day in June.

'The Beamer' a short film by Alex Hudson and William Darby.

Filmed entirely aboard the Newlyn beam trawler Elizabeth N, skippered by Michael Nowell.


The film was shot and edited by Alex Hudson and William Darby, third year students at University College Falmouth. This and The Lady Hamilton short will premiered on the big screen at Pixel8 in June.

Hake with a Spanish sausage twist.

In a heavy based pan, fry off for till soft a few shallots and an one onion in some olly oil, then add a handful of diced carrot and five minutes later add chopped chirizo and after a further five minutes add a can of butter beans - the oil from the chorizo will add colour to  dish........

 the hake fillets, seasoned and drizzled with oil should be cooked skin side down for a few minutes on a high heat to crisp that skin before putting in a pre-heated oven (200°).........

a herb like a parsley or chervil chopped and added after serving.......

making sure, the secret of every good fish fish, that the plates have been given a couple of minutes in the ting ting machine to warm them through prior to serving.......

the combination of crispy skin and new potatoes.....

serve with the bean stew poured over the fish before topping with the herb of choice.

Falmouth Film festival - Pixel8 coming 24-26th June!

Picture worth 1000 words

Apart from all the other amazing flicks on show, be sure to take your seat in front of the big screen and catch two fishy films:

 'The Beamer' - Life aboard a Newlyn beam trawler filmed earlier this year by third year Falmouth film students.

'The Lady Hamilton' - day-hauling with Mr Sushi, Chris Bean and his Falmouth family fishing operation aboard their tosher - named after Lord Nelson's mistress and artist George Romney's muse - as they work the inshore grounds of Falmouth Bay, targetting red mullet and wrasse.

The thorny discard question, debate and debacle - a must be read.

Discards won't go away - but what are 'discards' - a term that any journalist or reporter covering the fishing industry needs to be more than familiar with if they are to pass comment, judgement or assess the actions of the industry.

If the the nature and use of the term discards was straightforward then much of the recent interest in and around the industry would not have caused such angst within the fishing community at alrge. Hugh's FishFight for instance, would be seen as a right and proper case and good cause for taking action at the highest level - EU CFP reform even. Unfortunately, discards apply to any and all fish that do not meet the requirements of a fishing operation - through quota restrictions, MLS (minimum landing size) requirements or market demand and therein lies the rub. This Seafish article begins the debate and provides links to the most recent articles covering the natuire of discards and should be compulsory reading for those not closely acquainted with what falls out of the cod end and on to the deck.
Discard dilemma photos:

Prawn trawling in the mud of the Smalls.

Scad by the ton when white fish trawling - if there were no discards would you keep these aboard - given that you could fill the fish room in a few days or even less?

Beam trawling - juvenile and under MLS fish, not that many but enough to fill many boxes in an otherwise small fishroom.

Heart failure and how to avoid it - eat more baked or broiled fish - simple.

Fish Intake and the Risk of Incident Heart Failure: The Women's Health Initiative



Corresponding author; email: dlj@northwestern.edu

Abstract: Background—Whether fish or the fatty acids they contain are independently associated with risk for incident heart failure (HF) among postmenopausal women is unclear.

Methods and Results—The baseline Women's Health Initiative Observational Study (WHI-OS) cohort consisted of 93,676 women aged 50-79 of diverse ethnicity and background of which 84,493 were eligible for analyses. Intakes of baked/broiled fish, fried fish and omega-3 fatty acid (eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), α-linolenic acid (ALA)), and trans fatty acid (TFA) were determined from the WHI food frequency questionnaire. Baked/broiled fish consumption was divided into 5 frequency categories: <1/mo (referent), 1-3/mo, 1-2/wk, 3-4/wk, ≥5/wk. Fried fish intake was grouped into 3 frequency categories: <1/mo (referent), 2) 1-3/mo, and 3) ≥1/wk. Associations between fish or fatty acid intake and incident HF were determined using Cox models adjusting for HF risk factors and dietary factors. Baked/broiled fish consumption (≥5 servings/wk at baseline) was associated with a hazard ratio (HR) of 0.70 (95% CI: 0.51, 0.95) for incident HF. In contrast, fried fish consumption (≥1 serving/wk at baseline) was associated with a HR of 1.48 (95% CI: 1.19, 1.84) for incident HF. No significant associations were found between EPA+DHA, ALA, or TFA intake and incident HF.


and the bottom line is.........


Conclusions—Increased baked/broiled fish intake may lower HF risk, while increased fried fish intake may increase HF risk in postmenopausal women.

Hot off the press - A Book of the Night back from the printers.

Click to enjoy A Book of the Night.