Loaded up the P13 at 945 and headed west to Aberaeron with my favourite plugging rod and reel plus a bag full of plugs and feathers to try for some mackies and early bass.
Launched off Aberaeron beach onto a flat sea and hugged the shoreline towards the first mark as the mist was quite close in. Put a call into Milford coastguard to advise them of my paddle plan as paddling solo.
I paddled around for a couple of miles trying out different marks but not a sign of any mackeral or bass. Stopped off at a beach for a bite to eat and then tried a few more marks.
I headed north and tried a few more marks with feathers and a toby plus my favourite original jointed thunderstick lure (you can already feel a tragedy coming on here I know!)
Nothing doing around the river mouths and only saw one fish jumping the whole afternoon. I pushed out a bit further into deeper water looking for the early mackeral but nothing found, so I paddled back to Aberaeron beach with the help of the ebbing tide, having done around 8 miles in total - which is where is started going horribly wrong!
Having fished and paddled all day on a flat sea, suddenly some large and regular rollers had appeared from nowhere (still no swell at all) and were hitting the deep hole just before steep part of the pebble beach.
I put my feathers and toby away and put a leash around my rod and reel, whilst trying to count the frequency of the largest rollers. I eased my way in and contemplated trying to reverse in, but didnt like the look of the way the larger rollers were breaking just short of the steep pebble section of the beach. So I turned round and attempted to paddle in a lull.
I thought I had timed it right after seven big ones hit the beach, and I paddled like mad for the beach - they were breaking further away from the steep bit, just before a section of sand, and a big one lifted me up - survived that but then saw an even bigger one curl up and I knew this one was bigger and was going to break right on me - sure enough - the rear end came up, right up! and the bow took a dive. Before I knew it I was falling forward and sideways into the water and bobbed up next to an upturned P13. Due to the deep hole just in front of the shallow sand bit I was out of my depth and so I upturned the yak and clambered back on - only to be hit by the next one - radio got pulled off my pfd and snagged on the rear tankwell bungees, and I started to think this is not good!. Managed to get my radio back on the pfd and decided a re entry was not going to happen in that surf - Just managed to get my toes on the bottom, and stuggled to swim with the next breaker and drag the yak with me. Got hit a couple more times before dragging the yak up the steep pebbles and looked around to find my rod and reel and favourite lure had not made the landing with me - ******! **** Luckily my lure bag had been secured at the front and was still hanging on, and I managed to find my coolbag with some tools and leashes in the surf. Spent the next hour of the ebbing tide wading around still in my dry suit hoping that the rod would wash up. I thought I saw it after I had put my camera and radio back in the car, so I launched back into the rollers and got ditched before raising a paddle! Managed to try again and this time got through several big ones out into calm water again - by which time I could no longer see what I had thought was my rod butt end bobbing around at the end of the surf zone! So then had to navigate the surf again to get back in - took another dip (closer in this time luckily) and dragged myself and the yak up the beach looking like a drowned rat!
Not a happy bunny! Lost a nice 7ft xl plugging rod, a diawa reel, expensive braid and my favourite (and only) original jointed thunderstick plug.
Although I have been ditched by surf before in the shallows this was the first time I have been ditched out of a kayak out of my depth in the surf zone - and no amount of regular self entry practice prepares you for it - and the lack of interest being shown by the people on the beach to my plight was a bit of an eye opener too. The dry suit and pfd, and the regular practice of re entrys did help to turn it into a sobering lesson rather than a major epic - and I didnt need to resort to the whistle on my pfd or the radio which was still attached, to call for assistance - just shows though, even ten yards off the shoreline, a deep hole and a nasty surf can put you into trouble. Expensive lesson learnt - will secure the rod and reel more securely next time!
Couple of pics of the rollers below - dont look much in the pics but the way they were breaking made them very nasty!
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