The Second Sea: An illustrated talk from ex-skipper Des Hannigan

Des Hannigan talks about the SECOND SEA, his name for the impressions that professional seagoers retain in their deep memory.

The talk is built round excerpts about the sea from the works of famous writers and poets and also from Atlantic Cornwall, Des Hannigan’s own popular trilogy of prose and poetry about Cornish deep water fishing and the county’s extreme sea cliff landscapes.

Des is a journalist and travel writer who has written over fifty books for Lonely Planet and AA Publishing.

Tickets are allocated by a ballot system. Please email enquiries@morrablibrary.org.uk or call 01736 364474 to be entered into the ballot for a ticket. The ballot closes on Monday 19th June. Entry is £5 by donation to help raise funds for Morrab Library

Refreshments will be provided after the talk.

Fish of the week 29 - moray eel

 

Not a fish you see every day on the fish market in Newlyn. This 3.6kg moray eel was landed in May last year by a beam trawler working south west of Scilly. The first recorded catch was back in 2009, ironically by the same boat. As any fan of David Attenborough knows, The fish is normally found in tropical waters swimming amongst rocks and coral reefs so an event like this is rare indeed.  On catching unusual fish like this, fishermen throw them back if they are still alive.

Fish of the week 28 - the nursehound.

 

More often than not these larger versions of the lesser spotted dogfish are known as bull huss. They can be caught by any fishing method but are not generally landed in any great quantity to the market. The largest species of cat shark in UK waters reaching 160cm in length. The nursehound or bull huss are the most commonly used names but its official name is the greater spotted catshark. Bull huss are closely related to the Lesser spotted dogfish. 

According to the Cornwall Good Seafood Guide, they are not generally targeted by Cornish fishermen although their meat is good to eat - as a member of the shark family the fish are best eaten steaked and then grilled or barbecued - bones of cartilage make them an easy fish to cook and eat - once the art of removing the tough skin is mastered!

More than a fresh breeze - not so #FishyFriday

One of the few Scottish prawn boats able to come this far up the harbour owing to her shallower draft than the bigger boats...

two days of near gale conditions see the crab fleet at rest...

fishing is an an eclectic mix...

a man happy in his work...

looks like another Normandy Fastnet yacht didn't make it to the finish line.

World oceans day - Newlyn.

 Where the North Atlantic Ocean meets the land.

Mid-week market in Newlyn.

Kids been playing crab-shell boats again...

this year the Kelly of Ladram has been fishing...

 almost to the edge of the continental shelf for hake and monk...

a little too far for the Maverick, now back on the move again...

with over eight days of easterly wind mackerel landings...

 are few and far between at the moment...

crusty blues...

a rare golden haddock landed by the seine netter, Acionna...

gill netters spend much of their time ashore taking on...

repaired nets...

the yacht Label Emmaus  retired form the Normandy Channel race citing personal reasons but I think they may be missing something, the rest of the fleet have not long rounded the Fastnet Light and are headed home......

we have to thank a group of artists who put paid to local builders removing the stone from the Old Harbour wall back in the late 1950s by getting the structure designated as a listed building!..

Karen N headed for the Stone quay to pick up her gear.

Langoustine on Monday morning's market in Newlyn.

More signs of summer, the beam trawler Enterprise, not to be outdone by the visiting Scottish prawn trawlers landed a few boxes of prawns herself, perfect for the BBQ...

as would these two cracking Couch's bream be...

more in keeping with indoor dining are these plate-size plaice...

and these less well known witch soles...

good to see the guys taking the time to cut out the cheeks f the larger monks that they have been catching rather then let crabs benefit from them...

the flood of octopus being caught shows no sign of abating either...

more traditional beam trawl fish like these megrim...

Dover sole...

and monk tails...

along with the added bonus of good sized John Dory...

a very dark-skinned bull huss from the inshore grounds...

handline fish from the inshore boats were mainly down to pollack...

while mackerel landings are almost non-existent at the moment...

so t is down to trap caught cuttles...

and bass for those who can catch them to make up for the loss of traditional summer mackerel...

which means the resident scrap hoover is probably hungrier than ever...

the ex-Valhalla now Andromeda...

landed a few boxes of frozen langoustine, weighed and boxed at sea...

then loaded onto the back of the waiting transport...

before fresh supplies of flatpack packing boxes went aboard for the next trip.