Bonjour Guest House - Sea Angling

Sole 4lbs 9ozs 2dr from Alderney's South coast	Alderney is an angler’s paradise with a variety of rock and beach marks to suit everyone from the holiday “dangler” to the most serious of specimen hunters. Species regularly caught from Alderney’s shores include; Bass, Pollack, Grey Mullet, Red Mullet, Black Bream, Conger, Ballan Wrasse, Cuckoo Wrasse, Plaice, Sole, Tope, Blonde Ray and Undulate Ray. At present seven British shore-caught records are held for fish caught from Alderney’s seven miles of coastline. How many other places in Britain can boast a British record for each mile of coast? The Alderney Angling Festival is held during October each year, it is in the form of a week-long specimen hunt with trophies and cash prizes for each of these categories; Best Conger, Best Plaice or Sole, Best Bream, Best Thick Lipped Mullet, Best Other Specimen (under 5 lb) and Best Other Specimen (over 5 lb). There is also the chance to win Ł3000 if you break a British shore-caught record during the Festival. For further details of the Alderney Angling Festival telephone Alison on 01481 823343.
Anglers are particularly welcome at Bonjour, (in fact Bill is a keen angler himself), and freezer space can be made available for bait, fish, etc. Need a fork to dig bait with? No problem, we’ll lend you one.Lugworm can be dug at Braye and Longis beaches, where there is also a few White Ragworm, (Known locally as Catbait), The best all-round worm bait is the local ragworm, which is scratched up from beneath rocks and stones, it's known, not too surprisingly, as Rockbait and it is taken by almost all species found in Alderney waters. Green crabs, the number one bait for Ballan Wrasse such as Alderney angler Dick Smith's 7lb-14-02 monster in the picture, and in season, peelers can be collected from under stones and weed at Longis and various other places. If you don't want the hassle of collecting your own bait, there is a good tackle shop two minutes walk from Bonjour, where the proprietor Mark Harding, sells a wide range of tackle and accessories for the shore and boat angler. He also stocks a selection of frozen baits and imported King Ragworm. Mark usually has his finger on the pulse of what's being caught in Alderney and is happy to advise on places to fish, tackle, tactics, bait, etc. You'll find him at Alderney Angling & Sports in Queen Elizabeth II Street or QE2 Street as it's better known. You can phone Mark on 01481 824884, or outside shop hours on his mobile 07781 130304.
	Dave,"Bugsy" McAllister of McAllister's Wet Fish Ltd, Victoria Street, is another good source of bait. He keeps frozen Calamari squid in 1lb and 5lb boxes and fresh or frozen mackerel, depending on the season. He is also able to weigh any potential record fish you may catch. Bugsy's phone number is 01481 823666. Mullet enthusiasts needing "shirvy" (groundbait) should head for Slade and Son Butchers where the proprietor "Chad" will be happy to oblige. Failing that, a few tins of cat food and a couple of stale loaves of bread mixed with water should do the trick! The main problem with using meat or fish shirvy is that you can end up being inundated with greedy Garfish, so it can sometimes be a better idea to use just bread. It doesn't make such a scent trail, but if you know the mullet are there, it's just as likely to get them feeding as shirvy. < Alderney shore-caught Black Bream. A previous British Record at 5lb-15oz-11dr

A nice Bass over 8lbs from the Schole Bank	Boat Angling around Alderney Numerous angling charter boats run trips to Alderney from ports on the south coast of England. They come here for the superb bank fishing for Turbot, Brill, Bass, as well as some excellent deep-water wreck fishing in mid-Channel. At Bonjour we understand the needs of boat anglers, so early breakfasts are not usually a problem. We are also able to provide packed lunches and flasks of tea or coffee for those long days at sea. If you want to fit in some boat fishing as part of your holiday but don’t want to spend every day at sea, you can charter a licensed local boat for the day or for an evening trip. Call us or e-mail us for further details.