Dogfish Daddy Strikes Again – Fishing Session at Deal & Hythe

The original plan was to spend the day fishing Walmer Beach near Borrow Pit Car Park after receiving another great recommendation from RP Fishing. With sunshine forecast and conditions looking good, we were feeling optimistic.

As soon as we arrived, however, those plans went straight out the window.

Like half the county, we'd decided to make the most of the sunshine.

Unfortunately, so had everyone else.

The car park was full, the beach was packed, and there wasn't a chance of finding enough space to fish comfortably. It seemed every available patch of coastline had been claimed by sun worshippers and beachgoers.

Fair play to people wanting to enjoy the weather, but personally I can't think of anything worse than sitting shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of strangers, packed together like sardines in a tin.

Plan B was needed.

Searching for a Fishing Spot

We headed back towards Deal hoping we'd get lucky somewhere along the coastline.

Deal Pier was exactly as expected.

Packed.

The beaches either side?

Packed.

At this point we were beginning to wonder whether we'd spend more time driving than fishing.

Thankfully, after heading further down the coast, we found a lovely quiet section of beach that was practically empty.

Perfect.

Fishing at last.

The Dogfish Invasion Begins

The fishing started almost immediately.

Both Connor and I landed dogfish early on, which gave us a pretty good indication of how the day was likely to go.

And we weren't wrong.

One after another, the dogfish kept arriving.

Before long, the unofficial competition had begun.

Nobody wanted the title of "Dogfish Daddy."

Each fish landed brought nervous glances and silent prayers that the other person would catch the next one.

Unfortunately for Connor, Deal Beach had other ideas.

By the end of the session he had officially earned the title.

Needless to say, he wasn't happy about it.

Thankfully, it wasn't all dogfish.

I managed to catch a couple of small green eels, which were every bit as slimy and unpleasant as you'd expect.

We also had a few spider crabs show up to keep things interesting.

Nothing spectacular, but enough variety to stop the session becoming completely repetitive.

We also spent some time chucking feathers around with our lure rods, hoping a few mackerel might be passing through.

Sadly, they never showed.

For anyone wondering how we approached the session, we stuck with our usual setup.

One rod was fished with a larger bait on a pennel rig, targeting bigger fish.

The second rod was equipped with a trusted three-hook flapper loaded with smaller hooks to maximise our chances of finding whatever species happened to be feeding.

It's a tactic that's served us well over the years and gives us the best chance of covering all bases.

As the evening approached, we decided to continue the adventure by heading over to Hythe Beach for the final part of the session.

What happened next had me laughing immediately.

Connor barely had time to settle before he pulled in yet another dogfish.

At that point it felt inevitable.

Dogfish Daddy was well and truly established.

Just when we thought we'd spend the rest of the evening catching more of the same, Connor produced the fish that completely changed the session.

A thornback ray.

While it wasn't a giant, it was a lovely fish and comfortably the best catch of the day.

Even better, it was just the right size to provide tomorrow's lunch.

The ray instantly wiped away any embarrassment over his dogfish tally and secured him the win for the day.

Not every fishing session produces huge fish or memorable catches.

Sometimes it's simply about getting outdoors, enjoying the fresh air, spending time with good company and wetting a line.

The original plans may have fallen apart, the beaches may have been packed, and dogfish may have dominated the catch report, but we still avoided the blank and ended the day with a cracking thornback ray.

And in the end, that's all that really matters.

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We'll see you on the next adventure. 🎣