The potential of this mark came to light quite by chance as these things sometimes do. Anglers fishing Rhyl had always seen the odd smoothhound as far back in time as Tony could remember, but really that was about it. Then one of the salmon netters picked up several smoothies in a single session close to the river mouth entrance to the harbour. This prompted Tony to try deliberately targeting them. The first year, he picked up a few here and there. But over more recent times they have quite literally exploded onto the scene. We had a similar situation along the Lancashire coast, though our explosion happened back at the start on the 1990's, particularly when anglers started uptiding for them with crab, which is the key technique when fishing out from Rhyl.

Immediately beyond the low water mark, the echo sounder shows the sea bed suddenly dropping away to form a channel literally within minutes of putting to sea. This is a prominent feature running parallel to much of the sea front, and smoothhounds can be taken just about anywhere along its length. The vast majority seem to go between 5 and 8 pounds with the odd better fish perhaps making double figures. One of the Salmon netters had a 14 pounder, so perhaps there are more yet to come. But what they lack in size, the Rhyl smoothhounds can make up for in numbers, and like smoothhounds everywhere, they are always going to be a handful, particularly on suitably light tackle. There is no point in fishing heavy. These are fun fish, so you're not looking to fill the fish box. Bob Cox once described smoothhounds as Gods gift to anglers. What a nice thought.

With their ray like mouths, smoothhounds have evolved to deal with tough shells. Crabs play a major role in their feeding, with peelers and softies sure to grab their attention, and Mickey Duff had brought along a cool box full for us all to share. I also ended up having to borrow some fishing tackle as well. With the weather set fair days in advance and the trip almost certainly to go ahead, I decided to win a few brownie points by finishing off a few jobs around the house, one of which was to paint the loft entrance. It was only after I'd finished that I realised my stupidity. All my tackle was up there and I couldn't get it down. Fortunately, ABU have been particularly kind in providing all sorts of stuff for use aboard Jensen. I picked out an 11 foot Conolan Pro salmon spinning rod paired up to a 6500 Ambassaduer Elite loaded with 10 lbs bs Fireline which handled a small Gemini lead perfectly. That unlikely combination turned out to be spot on for the job at hand.

The reason why Tony had been given the Conolan was to see if the blank could be adapted for other angling purposes. One option I wouldn't mind seeing would be a super-light uptider with different guides better suited to salt water use, and perhaps a little shorter in overall length. While we were fishing, we actually had ABU Product Development Manager Simon Bradbury on the phone, and the word is that the Conolan blank could well be put out as an uptider by the autumn of this year. Certainly it deserves to be, allowing as it does that too often neglected feeling of actually having to work hard and play your fish in the knowledge that there is sufficient reserve of power when the pressure really is piled on to keep the balance of control with the angler. Rods like this turn small to average fish into epic battlers, which with a sport fishing species such as the smoothhound is what it's all about.

What we decided to do was split the day up into segments with specific targets. The first couple of hours would be devoted to the smoothhounds, though we also hoped to pick up some bass and possibly a thornback ray. We would then move out to the banks to see if bass numbers offshore had started building, before heading out beyond the windmills to sample the general bottom fishing, but allowing ourselves the last hour back on the smoothhounds until there was enough water in the harbour to allow us back onto the mooring. We could have fished for tope which Rhyl visitors enjoy in good numbers. In fact we could have tried a number of other options from what is quite an extensive and impressive portfolio. But we decided not to in favour of hitting the general fishing marks hard. The reason for this was to dedicate a good slot of time to putting some new synthetic baits through their paces and simply see what might come up.

Catch or fail, they would get a good a good airing. As people will be well aware, I am not the greatest fan of synthetic offerings and bait additives. Having taken part in fishless scientific evaluations in the past, I have been left sceptical in the extreme about claims such as wonder bait; irresistible to fish, and guaranteed to improve catch rates. So I was always going to take a lot of convincing before becoming a believer. Amazingly, during our test period, this ABU distributed product was at times out-fishing fresh lug and fresh mackerel. The fact that it caught fish at all was enough to grab my attention. Gurnards and dabs were coming up literally 3 at a time, and in total we had maybe ten different species of fish. That's as much as I am going to say for on the subject now. The field trials are continuing.

The objective of the tip, namely the smoothhounds, was achieved almost immediately. We picked up maybe ten or so before heading off. There are specific periods within the tide when they feed best, and they can come through in small packs giving bursts of activity followed by quieter periods. Our afternoon session was pretty much a mirror of the morning, though with a few less fish due to our shorter session. The best session at the time of writing has been 28 fish plus 3 bass and 5 rays in four hours, the rest of the time being spent offshore looking for other things. Jensen also gets quite a few specific bookings to catch of all things, gurnards. I can see why from a numbers point of view. It can quite literally be gurnard city out there. Three at a time is nothing unusual, with individual fish regularly topping 5 pounds. They are spectacular fish to look at and good to eat if you can bring yourself to take them. But I'm not sure I personally would want to target them specifically. As for the smoothhounds, now that's a different matter.

BOAT & SKIPPER FACT FILE

Jensen II is licensed for 10 anglers and had a 60 mile operating range which takes in a large number of wrecks, something Tony Parry specialises in from around mid July through to November. Alternatively, everything else is also available throughout the summer months too. In April and May much of the fishing is done inshore for rays, smoothhounds and bass. Over the winter months Jensen is based in the Mersey for cod. Tony Parry can be contacted on 01745 332766.

SMOOTHHOUND FACT FILE
Depending on the source you turn to for your information, there is either one species of smoothhound, or there are two. The British record list carries two inclusions. These are for the Smoothhound Mustelus mustelus and the Starry Smoothhound Mustelus asterias.. The Welsh record list shows both species, while the Scots record only the Starry variety, presumably because the other species has not made it that far north. The Irish on the other hand see the pair as being variations within a single species and record just the Smoothhound Mustelus mustelus. So who is right?. Obviously both sides of the argument think that they are. According to Alwyne Wheeler, the official identificational expert used by the British Record Fish Committee (BRFC), the two are separate species, though they share the same distribution and general feeding habits which goes completely against the rules of biological speciation which demand that there should be niche differences, however subtle.

To the layman, the Starry Smoothhound differs from its near relative because if has a scattering of often quite prominent white spots over the upper back. This however counts for little amongst the scientists who need to look in microscopic detail at the design of the skin denticles covering the bodies of both fish. When you rub any member of the shark family from tail to head it feels rough. What you are feeling there is the sharp edge of the back pointing denticles. Sharks and rays have these instead of scales. Denticle shape and the way each is ridged is said to be a key identificational factor here. But the real clincher comes from the way each species reproduces. Smoothhound give birth to live young. Asterias however, is said to be ovoviviparous. In other words its unborn young have no maternal connection to the yolk sac, whereas the unborn young of Mustelus are viviparous and do have the connection. Based on that evidence, if correct, you would think there could be little to argue about. But still the debate goes on.