Barely enough room to swing a catfish...
on the first #FishyFriday of 2019 in Newlyn...
with a big selection of hake from 2-3kg fish...
right through to 6kg [plus fish from...
the Charisma...
and the Govenek of Ladram...
along with over 10 tons of line caught mackerel from the local handline fleet and boats like the Tegen Mor...
while other boats topped the quality league with cracking examples of John Dory...
red mullet, bream...
bass...
and some cracking tub gurnards...
that helped fill both auction halls and such was the amount landed this week that vessels were forced to use their own boxes as many of the harbour's own boxes were still in circulation with the local merchants......
the beam trawlers like the Lisa Jacqueline landed good shots of megrim sole...
Dovers...
and lemon soles...
after they found good fishing in the Channel...
as usual there were full landings of haddock...
landings of big flats like these turbot...
less common undulate ray...
and blonde ray will keep the restaurant chefs well supplied with perfect winter dishes over the weekend...
while big, but not big enough landings of crab bait for...
for skippers like Mario...
of the local crabber fleet...
and his skippers' chair in the wheelhouse overlooks...
the working deck of his boat...
not dissimilar to this video shot on another of the Real Cornish Crab Company's vessels, sistership Emma Louise a couple of year's ago in poor weather...
astern of her the much smaller inshore crabber puts a tub of backing ropes aboard...
while merchant's forklifts vie for position to pick up the morning's fish...
after porters have dragged them by hand outside, long-gone but not forgotten trawler skipper Freddie Howis used to say, "hundred years ago boy they had donkeys to pull fish about"...
cephalopods, ugly they may be but they make great eating...
first light in Newlyn...
time to take fuel for the next trip...
or repair your net - such is the risk you take when shooting in 6m (2 fathoms) of water with a net over 20 fathom deep...
and it needs to be hauled ashore...
talks are underway to set the quota for the fifteen vessels registered to land MSC Certified Cornish Sardines in this year's sardine fishery.
