Nice beach at Lyme too! |
The bit you should read.
This fishing blog details my angling adventures around the UK (although depending where I am in the country I also sea fish from both Boat and Shore, Carp, Pike and Fly fish). I will be giving a summary of 3 values considered by most anglers as well as the additional Disabled Access rating. Since being diagnosed with CIDP and regaining my motor function Disabled angling and Disabled access is now something I always consider when visiting venues. They will all be rated on a scale of 1* to 5*;
1. Fishability *****
2. Accessability *****
3. Value for Money *****
4. Disabled Access *****
I think these 4 points are the key issues which are readily identifiable with all anglers. Feel free to take a look and add your own comments along the way!
Sunday 14 September 2014
Tackle Store Review - The Tackle Box
I was walking along the Cobb at Lyme Regis with the
wife recently and I was pleasantly surprised to see a lot of people fishing.
There were a few guys spinning and even more people using standard bait fishing
tactics. Although I didn't see any fish coming out, the beach definitely looked
inviting to any potential sea anglers. On the walk back to the car with a wet
and muddy dog, I noticed a chap walking past with the Tackle Box logo on the
back of his hoodie. With a quick Google I found that the shop was only a few
meters away! With that in mind, it would be rude not to call in and have a look
around. I will say, not being local to Lyme Regis, I did rely quite heavily on
Google and for the first time it let me down! The location wasn't where I was
expecting, but after a quick ask around, I found out it was only a further 100
or so meters down the road. So we grabbed the dog and headed down the alleyway
to the shop to see what they had on offer.
Being so close to sea I was expecting a heavy sea
fishing presence and from the off I was not disappointed. I had already emailed
the shop earlier in the week and asked if the sold any fresh coarse fishing
baits. The short answer was no. They generally only stocked maggots and casters
from April to the end of August, and this was the final weekend of August. Also
being in such close proximity to the sea and with generally clear water, there
is a heavy focus on lure fishing, which has absolutely exploded with popularity
in the last 18 months both in salt and fresh water. From the outside of the
store I had to chuckle and the array of brightly coloured shovels and spades,
the wake boards and crab lines (there were a number of people crabbing off the
Cobb, it was clear where they bought their gear from).
Entering the store, it was a hive of activity, which
was nice to see and every staff member was busy talking about what had been
caught and what was going to do well in the evenings match. Entering and
walking to the left there were a few fly lines and leaders, which were opposite
several bait fridges. Beyond these and on the immediate back wall was a
selection of coarse fishing bits, floats, weights and various hooks, going down
to size 18/20. There are also several sizes of Pike floats (which I suppose can
be doubled up and used in salt water), along with a few traces and trebles.
Underneath these where some shelf life boilies and on the opposite shelves a
selection of Power Baits and some other groundbaits.
To the right of these and into the main area of the
store there is a double sided rack of rods. The side closest to the door seemed
to hold beachcasters and some boat rods, with the racking facing the back wall
holding what looked like spinning rods and a few coarse rods. But what really
grabs your attention is the back wall which is absolutely slammed full of
lures/plugs/spinners/shads/red gills and weighted hook heads for some of the
smaller jigs. Almost every make conceivable was on display and it was clear to
see that the focus in the area is definitely on spinning and lure fishing.
Under the lures there are tackle boxes, in both
large (Shakespeare seatboxes) and small sizes (lure/bits boxes), and on the far
wall there are some standard sea fishing floats and various bits that accompany
them. I had a quick glance at the rods, and would have liked to have had a play
around but the shop was that busy I didn't manage to get any further, and as
there were people rooting around actually intend on buying things rather than
just having a look, I thought I should leave and make a bit more room. I assume
that the Tackle box sells fresh sea fishing bait from the boxes I saw in the
fridges, but never managed to ask the question. There were a few locals in a
fairly serious conversation about what baits were catching in preparation for
tonight’s match, it seemed as though a fair few people were heading out to wet
a line!
Another thing I like about the Tackle Box is the
activity and response that is encountered on their Facebook page. They actively
use social media to promote their upcoming matches and results, as well
advertising the local catch report from boats fishing out of Lyme Regis
harbour. At the time of writing this (September 2nd) there are still hundreds
of Mackerel being caught from the shore and Bream are being caught in large
numbers from the boats. As far as a tackle shop goes there is the bare minimum
of coarse fishing equipment at the Tackle Box, but then again, being so close
to the sea, it's a wonder that they had any at all! You could easily stock up
your float or hook collection, without looking to hard. But this shop comes
into its own for sea fishing equipment and more specifically lure fishing. I
will be sure to visit again with my Brother and Father in toe when they next
visit as they are both very keen sea anglers, and will probably leave the shop
with their wallets emptied and their tackle boxes full!
As a rating as an all round tackle store I would
give - ***.
But if it's sea fishing you are after, especially
with all the local knowledge that they obviously have at the place it is an
easy ****.
The Tackle Box is somewhere I would definitely recommend having
a look at if you're into your sea fishing, you'll probably end up picking up a
bargain and a lure or 3!
Labels:
Bait,
Dorset,
Fishing,
Lures,
Lyme Regis,
Sea Fishing,
Shop,
Spinners,
Tackle Store Review,
The Tackle Box
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