Boy Richard was built in 1948 and is of carvel pitch pine on oak construction. She is 9.14m in length and has a beam of 3.1m, with a draft of .95m she can achieve a speed of 7.5 knots.
A 2 hour mackerel fishing trip - searching the local waters onboard the 'Boy Richard'.
This well established boat and business operates from Paignton Harbour and fishes the waters of Torbay. Boy Richard is totally equipped for your fun and enjoyment.
Good Fun for all the family
2 Hour Trips
Fully Licenced by the Maritime Coastguard Agency
All Tackle supplied
Parties Catered for
Discounts for large groups
Catch Shared
All day and half day trips on our 33FT spacious launch. Charlotte Louise is our new boat for superb fishing. She is a Husty 33 and was purpose built in 1989 by Paul Armstrong, in the Isle of Sheppey.
Licenced for 12 people
COP 60 Miles
Available for full charters
Rods & Tackle available
Tea and coffee supplied
Boy Richard is fitted with the following navigation and safety equipment:
Radar
Depth Sounder
2 x VHF Radio's
Compass
37 Person Liferaft
30 Lifejackets
12 Para Flares
2 x MOB Smoke and Light floats
First Aid Kit and portable firefighting appliance
Boy Richard is certified to MCA Passenger Class V and VI.
Ashley Lane has owned and skippered Boy Richard for 7 years, with the business having been in the family for over 14 years. Ashley has always lived in Paignton and is a well known local with strong ties to the harbour and fishing community.
Ashley has acheived the following to ensure passenger safety is not compromised:
Radar and Coastal Navigation Certificate
Sea Survival Certificate
First Aid Certificate
Certificate of proficiency in Survival Craft and Rescue Boats
VHF Radio Licence
RYA Day Skipper Qualification
Ashley is a well respected professional mariner who is sure that you will enjoy your fishing trip!
Mackerel (belonging to family Scombridae) are found off all British coasts. The family Scombridae is a large family of marine fishes, containing fish such as the Tuna. Members of this family are well streamlined for efficient and fast movement through the water.
Mackerel are predetary fish, primarily feeding on crustaceans, fish eggs, small fish and even other mackerel fry.
There are a number of different types of Mackerel found on either side of the Atlantic Ocean, but only those found in and around the UK are described here.
Common Mackerel (Scomber Scombrus)
An important commercial species fished by drift nets as food fish or for industrial use, but popularly fished from boats for sport. They grow on average to about 12" long (30cm) and are coloured blue/green above the lateral midline and silver below. The also have wavy black vertical lines covering their backs. The common mackerel has two well separated dorsal fins with 5 dorsal and anal finlets. Two keel like fins are also present on the undeside of the fish.
Mackerel winter in deep water (approximately 300m) but return to the shallows around the coast in May-June to spawn. The fish will then spawn, the resulting eggs released into the sea in great numbers, up to 90,000 per spawning. The eggs are between 1 and 1.4mm in size planktonic. They consist of an unsegmented yolk surrounded by a greeny-black pigmented oil globule. Hatching occurs after 2-6 days. The juvenile fish stay offshore for about 2 years until they are sexually mature. At this time they join the great shoals of mackerel that form at spawning time.
The shoals of mackerel that form at this time consist of hundreds of fish. Larger shoals have been estimated in the thousands. The shoals are constantly on the move, as the mackerel must keep moving. The common mackerel has no swimbladder and uses a passive gill ventilation form of breathing. The fish swim mouth open and the gill chambers expanded, thus water flows through the gills. (Ramjet effect) This saves engery which is used by other fish to pump water through the gills when the mouth closes. Therefore it must move to live, if the fish is not swimming it will drown. The fish also are on the move after it's prey, they feed in the summer where there will be currents, thus around headlands, breakwaters, piers and beaches that experience a strong tidal flow.
If common mackerel are not caught then they can live to about 20 years, when they can be 2kg or more in weight.
Chub or Spanish Mackerel (Scomber Japonicus)
This mackerel is similar to the common mackerel but with two differences. The first is that addition of a swimbladder which enables the fish to hold position off the bottom of the sea with no mechanical energy. The second difference is in the markings. The chub mackerel has dark lines or spots below the laterel midline, with some having darker lines along the lower flank.
The Chub or Spanish Mackerel are found around from the south west/west of England and Ireland to the Mediteranean Sea and the shores of North Africa. The Common Mackerel are also found in these areas, but their range extends to the North Sea and up to the northern shores of Norway. The common Mackerel is also found in the Baltic Sea.
There is little as good as eating a freshly caught mackerel, but they do deteriorate rapidly if not frozen. This page gives a "how to" for mackerel fishing.
As mentioned on the Mackerel Reference page, mackerel like a good water flow, therefore shoals can be found around headlands, breakwaters, piers and even reefs. It has been known for mackerel to shoal around sewage outfalls. To locate these shoals, there are a number of methods:
Watch for diving birds, either offshore or near a beach
Heavy concentrations of jellyfish, in warmer waters. This indicates a warm flow of warter, which can hold mackerel shoals.
Small bubbles breaking at the surface of the water. This effect is seen when mackerel are feeding.
User an echo sounder/fish finder!
Good conditions for fishing are muggy, heavy evenings that threaten a storm but with little, if any wind. The mackerel will move inshore with the tide after food. Good fishing can however be found in most conditions if in a boat!
Once the fish have been located they will need to be caught! From shore or boat the most common method used by anglers is the feather. The most basic form of feather can be as simple as a piece of silver paper tied to a hook. The most common form however, are cock neck feathers whipped to a hook. The paper or feather should be mobile so that it flaps when pulled through the water. The colour of feathers can be bright, reds, blues and even white are common but any colour that can provide a contrast to the water can be used. There is no best colour to use as differing water conditions will affect the contrast acheived. Modern plastic lures are also becoming popular, and these work equally as well as true feathers.
The lines should be weighted, either by lead or a substitute and cast as far as possible. The line can be retreived eratically by raising and lowering the rod tip, interspersed by short periods of reeling in, until a mackerel is hooked. If a shoal is found then this will not take very long! If a good shoal is found then a fish for each feather on a line can be caught.
For the more sporting fisherman, a small spinner, normally in silver can be used. These must be retreived steadily when used.
When wishing to freeze mackerel, it is best to wrap the fish individually as this will ensure a faster feeze, thus the fish will be as fresh as possible when defrosted. If a number of mackerel are packed together and frozen the freezing process can take a few hours, thus causing deterioration and decay of the flesh.
Caught mackerel is also good for use as bait for other types of fish such as Turbot, Bass, Rays, Dogfish, Cod and even Conger. Depending on the target fish type the mackerel can be cut into fillets or used whole. If used whole then the head should be left on and the guts allowed to trail for the best results.
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