hbsurfcasttonz, visited Clifton this morning. I have to say it was one of those times that are truly special. I set out to deliberately target eagle rays, hopefully to catch a small specimen. Well it didn't take long in fact I got hammered and a very long run on the very first cast. After a spirited fight I landed a fish of about eight kilos, which was quickly despatched and the wings removed.

Not much later I hit a larger fish I just couldn't turn, so we agreed to go our separate ways. An hour later I had a small tope, this was returned to grow a bit. Then I hit a third ray, this fish I would estimate at six kilos.

It is frequently mentioned it's called fishing not catching, well this is one session I really enjoyed. I had great fishing in damn near perfect conditions, rays are always a challenge to land and they gave me a good workout. When I got home the wings were filleted off the cartilage and skinned. This was then treated with Teriyaki marinade and enjoyed for my evening meal. Not a hint of ammonia and the fish was simply delicious.

Thanks again for your hints on where to go, it paid dividends big time.

Incidentally all I used was a 30cm running trace complete with two 6/0 hooks in a whole anchovy. There was no activity from crabs and thankfully breakout leads were unnecessary, a three ounce scud sinker held perfectly.