Malta Fishing Forum

Lampuki season is upon us once again! Since I only started fishing last year, haven't had the experience to feel the pull of a lampuka! Hopefully this year I will have plenty :D

When do you guys start going for lampuki? Any favourite places you like to go? Whats your biggest catch of a lampuka?

Discuss.

Bdew issemmu xi wahda jew ?

Hafna cimi kienu ghadhom bla palm, nhar santa marija naha tisfel.

Went out once and caught 2.

Did you go out this year? There are alot of cimi in b'bugia with palms already there. I've located 40 plus, however some have been there longer as some of the palms aren't green :P

been out 2 times......... 5 strikes, 1 hookup.....

Went out yesterday and managed to catch 2, but lost another 7 as I was equipped for the small ones.

So the lampuki are definetly in malta :D Do you use the squid looking lure?

Where did you go?

Was out yesterday, caught 31 decent sized puki, lost a good number too. I use the red plastic squid lures on double hooks.

I was out early morning till 10am on wednesday. South west of Filfla. So many cimi but not even a strike.
Disappointed!

Takinu I was that same area on Monday and Tuesday mornings got few very small "tunnagg" which I released since they are illegal to keep  but no sine of "lampuki" unfortunately Tuesday's trip had to be cut short after my wife got a treble hook stuck into her foot. Luckily had on board a well equipped first aid box and a good side cutter.    

The cimi near filfla were only put out last monday

The Gaffer where did you go when you caught the lampuki?? Nice catch by the way

Hurds bank area. Trolled around the anchored ships and some FADs in the vicinity. Try to notice the direction the fish swim when they come attacking the lure, draw an imaginary circle around that area, and troll in a clockwise direction. You will notice that you always get hit in the same segment of that area. Don't know why, but that's bow it is!

Can you please help me setting up my lures. I need to know the lenght in between each lure and the lenght of each line(fergha). Thanks.

aw xi had jaf il coordints tal lampuki ta hdejn b'buga tad deletanti pls

jekk inti membru ituhomlok kavingrech. Jekk m'intix m'ghandek l-ebda dritt tistghad fuqhom u issaqsi dal-mistoqsijiet!

benri sorry ta jiena deletant bhalek ukoll nistna nifem li inti tiehu gost tmur tistad u taqbad xi haga issa jekk inti tadli xi rid namel biex inkun membru bhalek habieb jiena inkun nista niehu pjacir daqsek u ma kellex alfejn igobom daqsek bi kbar jiena ma nahsiebx li kullhad telaq jimxi mil lewwel mhux ekk habieb jiena adni nibda u naqa ajnuna kun tajjba al minu bhalli grazzi u il gurnata it tajjba benri

aw xi had jistja jadli xir rid namel PLS

Skuzani kont daqshekk iebes Kevin ghandek ragun imma kienu ghadhom kif qaluli li l-bierah filghodu xi sajjieda dawru ic-cimi tad-dilettanti! Jekk naghtu il-co-ods hawn tista tobsor x'jigri! Biex tidhol membru mur taht il-Gillieru San Pawl u hemm il-Klabb tal-ghaqda. Matul il-gimgha ikun miftuh wara 7pm u nahseb il-hadd filghodu.

prosit hbieb,hekk imorru l-affarijiet.

Went out today however didn't go to hurds bank because my friend was to scared to go out :/ we caught a few tunnag (catch and release) and a sargu I think :P

No lampuki. :(

Went for lampuki last Friday sea was as clam as could be (Mirror) to my usual hunting ground in the west of Gozo plenty of Cimi close to land and going out as far as my sight could sea on the first four cimi we caught four small sized puki the size of the early season on plastic squid white and then for the next twenty cimi nothing, but later on we caught one each  on cimi 22 and 23 then nothing till cima number 40.

On Cima 40 as we had been trying out the new Auto pilot for quite a while a school of dolphins surrounded us and made a show of themselves to our pure pleasure, not to hurt any one of them we put up our lures and stayed watching them put up a display of fun and showmanship (photos to be put up soon).

As soon as they left we continued fishing and playing with the Autopilot,  zig zagging, circles straight and figure of clover around the cimi we finally caught one of them (a cima i mean) turning to retrieve our lures we saw a Hanzir coming out from under the palm we shot him and thereafter we put up our lures and went for the hinzer instead and managed to catch 4 good sized ones.

Coming in we set the autopilot for our port in M"forn and came in from 19miles out in 18minutes with a speed of around 35/37 knots to the exact spot i had marked.

All in all a good day fishing , boating , sightseeing and great satisfaction from the investment i did on the boat,

Tight lies everyone and my uncle said ok to use his cimi as long as we don't damage them.

@kevin....I think u asked for the B'Bugia cimi. If that is so go near the pier at St Georgies bay and ask for Barun and ask him where to go to join the B'Bugia club.that way u have the right to use the Fads....Good luck mate.

jew staqsi ghal kaxxier ta l ghaqda nenu jkun hemm kwazi dejjem.

Out of curiosity how much does it cost to be a member of cimi of bbugia?

any luck on Saturday Benri. I didnt make it but I have to make it a point that I go this coming week... I am getting lazy........

I went out yesterday

Trolled around 20 cimi and got only one lampuka after the 3rd cima, then trolled to the fishfarms and hooked a nice 750g lampuka and another one a bit smaller.

All in all 3 Lampuki and 1 cervjola :)

just back, saw lot of lampuki under the fads but didn t wanted to bite. We got 11 today.

emic,just say hello and it would be your 1000 post. welldone.

hrigt dalodu bir rixa al lampuki. domt addej xi 3 sieghat u lanqas messa wahda. tistu tieduli fejn irrid immur!

hrigt fuq san giljan.

kemm irrid inkun addej? klamar frisk jaghmel differenza?

thanks u

could someone help me catch a lampuka!?!?

we leave usually from bahar ic-caghaq. any good spots around???

thanks

Zaffa - I will be quite honest and straight with you.  You need to enrol with a club, preferrably the Bugibba fishing club first.  They will provide the coordinates of their FAD's (Cimi).  Once you get those, it should be easy.  Go out to the FAD's, and troll around them in a clockwise circle. Further up you should find information where the bugibba club is, failing that, send a PM to Benri.

Attention Zaffa.  here is the info required to join the Bugibba fishing club

Quote from: benri on August 21, 2011, 10:16:20 CET
Skuzani kont daqshekk iebes Kevin ghandek ragun imma kienu ghadhom kif qaluli li l-bierah filghodu xi sajjieda dawru ic-cimi tad-dilettanti! Jekk naghtu il-co-ods hawn tista tobsor x'jigri! Biex tidhol membru mur taht il-Gillieru San Pawl u hemm il-Klabb tal-ghaqda. Matul il-gimgha ikun miftuh wara 7pm u nahseb il-hadd filghodu.

Are there cimi near the breakwaters? As since I troll in those areas I would like to join the fishing club and get permission to troll near the cimi? Any ideas as to who to contact? Thanks

we use lacci as bait

What are lacci?

@shanook and benri  thanks for the information iwill go to pay there

no lampuki........
went today with shanook...
usless try... :-(

They seem to be scarce, remember that now with all the Cimi that have been deployed, the puki will tend to move far offshore attracted out by the FADs. I reckon a trip to the main fish market in the early hours is a good research indicator into what is around and what is being caught far offshroe by the commercial guys!

Not so much Skip !!

Last Thursday there was'nt so much lampuki only cirka 150 boxes

Not a good  season at all !!!...4 times out there...south west... for nothing!

Quote from: zaffa on August 22, 2011, 13:44:47 CET
could someone help me catch a lampuka!?!?
we leave usually from bahar ic-caghaq. any good spots around???

Same problem with me my friend. I go out from St Paul's Bay, sometimes trolling for 5 b****y hours and not a single strike from puki. Tried various lures and speed. No luck. Near the tuna fishfarms i think it's a waste of time cause there's still tuna around.

only a few lampuki will come close to land. The reason being is that Fishermen's FAD's are laid out far out at sea so the fish will stop out there.... as in, the first cimi may be laid at 4-5 miles but these will strech out to over 65 miles out (SW of Malta) with regards to the Sicily Malta channel..... not many lampuki pass through here and the few that do stop on cimi laid out mostly off Gozo...

Last year the lampuka remain small till October...Do you remember?
I caught my first decent size late October.
This year seems to be worse 'cause not even a strike here.
And for those fishing lampuki From land...sure it's to early...

Are lampuki normally seen under the FADs?

My friend and I were trolling around the tankers on hurd's bank (caught a couple lampuki from there) and saw some cimi in the distance but were afraid to go trolling around them. Is it a very terrible thing to do if we went? How do the commercial fishermen react to ppl trolling on their FADs? We wouldn't be netting after all..

Quote from: bmamo on August 25, 2011, 13:27:48 CET
Are lampuki normally seen under the FADs?

My friend and I were trolling around the tankers on hurd's bank (caught a couple lampuki from there) and saw some cimi in the distance but were afraid to go trolling around them. Is it a very terrible thing to do if we went? How do the commercial fishermen react to ppl trolling on their FADs? We wouldn't be netting after all..

The reaction from commercial fishermen if they catch you on the FAD's could be:
1.  A good telling off
2.  A good telling off plus a VHF report to Valletta port control (very serious - risk a fine + confiscation of boat)
3.  A good telling off +VHF call to Valletta port control + formal report to Fisheries Control directorate (same as above)
4. You get rammed!! (its happened before)
5. You get shot at!!! (also reportedly happened before)
6. A combination of some of the above

You won't be netting, but you'll sure as hell scatter all the lampuki that would have congregated under the FAD's.  That's what the commercial fishermen hate. 

Quote from: The_Gaffer on August 25, 2011, 14:30:59 CET

2.  A good telling off plus a VHF report to Valletta port control (very serious - risk a fine + confiscation of boat)

Ara huma, la jirriskjaw il-multa u l-anqas il-konfiska tad-daghjsa meta jdardru l'alla bil-parit max-xatt jew f'nofs xi port.

Tista ccempel fejn trid, AFM/turretta, ALE, ghassa tal-lokal....  KULLHADD jaghlaq ghajnejh.

Quote from: J_Z on August 25, 2011, 14:47:29 CET

Quote from: The_Gaffer on August 25, 2011, 14:30:59 CET

2.  A good telling off plus a VHF report to Valletta port control (very serious - risk a fine + confiscation of boat)

Ara huma, la jirriskjaw il-multa u l-anqas il-konfiska tad-daghjsa meta jdardru l'alla bil-parit max-xatt jew f'nofs xi port.

Tista ccempel fejn trid, AFM/turretta, ALE, ghassa tal-lokal....  KULLHADD jaghlaq ghajnejh.

Meta tkun taf ix xoghol li fiha l lampuki habib imbad iftah halqek !!!!!!!!!!!
Hafna xoghol u hafna spejjes u illum biex tidhol b naqra hut sew difficli hafna !

Quote from: bigboy on August 25, 2011, 14:55:45 CET

Quote from: J_Z on August 25, 2011, 14:47:29 CET

Quote from: The_Gaffer on August 25, 2011, 14:30:59 CET

2.  A good telling off plus a VHF report to Valletta port control (very serious - risk a fine + confiscation of boat)

Ara huma, la jirriskjaw il-multa u l-anqas il-konfiska tad-daghjsa meta jdardru l'alla bil-parit max-xatt jew f'nofs xi port.

Tista ccempel fejn trid, AFM/turretta, ALE, ghassa tal-lokal....  KULLHADD jaghlaq ghajnejh.

Meta tkun taf ix xoghol li fiha l lampuki habib imbad iftah halqek !!!!!!!!!!!
Hafna xoghol u hafna spejjes u illum biex tidhol b naqra hut sew difficli hafna !

Habib tieghi, anke li taghmel 45 minuta kulljum nizel taht irdum ha taqa u ma taqax ghal isfel, tissogra hajtek u ssib parit 10 metri mix-xatt tahtek fih kedda tibzax.

Kullhadd jara t-tbaghtija tieghu. Biex ma nsemmux l-ispejjez tal-fuel kull darba li titla ghal xejn, ghax xi gharef ikun xehet parit fejn mhux xieraq.

Mela bazikament inzomm il boghod minnhom! issa nara nhallasx ghac-cimi wkoll, avolja meta kont hallast is sena l-ohra ghac-cimi ta wied il ghajn,

1) kienu vojta (xi hadd kien ga dawwarhom nahseb)
2) kienu mimlijin nies iduru maghhom
3) minn 10 jew 15 kulma kien baqa xi 5 ghax nimmagina li xi purcinell kien qatahhom.

U din tal-pariti jien ukoll ma nabilx maghha ghax ma niflahx ghaliha, ghalekk issa bid dghajsa ghax darba kelli glieda kbira hafna ma wiehed li beda jitfa parit qas 20 metru il barra miz zonqor... EZATT minn quddiemi bla skrupli ta xejn. U Parit twil xi haga ta kien.

Pero ma nifhimx illi jien ghandi infotti il haddiehor ghax haddiehor injurant u jfotti lill proxxmu. ghallinqas nuri li jien ragel aktar imbad, [plus li min qalli li dawk ic cimi li rajt kienu ta dak li tefali il parit? malh hazin ma jridx jehel it tajjeb imbad ux.

--------------------------

Basically i have to stay clear of them, i'll see if i can pay for the FADs provided for amateur fishermen, even though last year when we paid,

1) they were empty (someone had netted them)
2) were full of people
3) from 10 or 15 only 5 remained (someone must have cut them)

The rest is a rant about "pariti" or trammel nets (http://vafd.gov.mt/fishing-gear) in that they are an unfair method of fishing against shore fishermen who end up with nothing to catch when these nets are thrown close to shore.

Habib jekk jrid jista jitfaw taht l irdum ezatt il parit ax ma hemm l ebda ligi li tghid li ma tistax tkala pariti taht l irdum. Jkala mal irdum ax bahar fond allura ghalih jkun xorta jista jaqbad il gurnata.

Issa jekk idejjaqx lilek dik storja ohra imma sihbi l ewwel ix xoghol imbad id delizju !!

jien jidhirli li parit ghandu jkun il bod mill kosta certu ammont u fil port ma tistax twaddab u qas fil bokka ta l-ebda port.

--------


I think that trammel nets should only be laid at a certain distance from shore, not in harbours and neith at harbour entrances

naqbel mieghek mijja fil mijja imma meta ed insemmu portijiet hemmek dejjem hemm bahar ta madwar 20 metru, pero postijiet bhal irdum ma narax hazin alfej jintelaq parit.

Personalment ma taffetwanix ax dejjem hdimna gol fondijiet bil parit hlif meta jkun zmien it trill u s sicc

le minix nghid ghall irdum jien. jien qed nghid ghall kaz bhal tieghi fejn kont qieghed iz-zonqor wied il ghajn

------

No I am not referring to cliffs, i was referring to my case at Zonqor in marsascala

If possible can we post in english? lol

It's taken me nearlly 15 minutes to read through one page of posts and not exactly sure what you guys are on about.

What is a parit? thx

hey he is right there guys the threat was started in English so translate ur posts please thanks

This one is good.......
And what about them (professionals) encirling FAD pertaining to 'Sajjieda Dilettanti'. Me and shanook nearly had a nice fight........

By the way....
Hawn Lampuki..... Mr. Fish ilbierah qabad kaxxa..... u kien fid dlam ta' xi 8.30pm..   :-)   :-)

e lampuki kienu?? hsibtom vopi jiena!

Quote from: rammx on August 26, 2011, 08:16:02 CET
e lampuki kienu?? hsibtom vopi jiena!

LOOOL!!

Quote from: J_Z on August 25, 2011, 14:47:29 CET

Quote from: The_Gaffer on August 25, 2011, 14:30:59 CET
Tista ccempel fejn trid, AFM/turretta, ALE, ghassa tal-lokal....  KULLHADD jaghlaq ghajnejh.

Amen :(

translations added in posts

Quote from: bigboy on August 25, 2011, 16:06:42 CET
Issa jekk idejjaqx lilek dik storja ohra imma sihbi l ewwel ix xoghol imbad id delizju !!

Iddahhani Kane kif titkellem. Bhallikieku qallu kull min ghandu xi MFC biex ma nsemmix l-MFA u l-MFB qieghed jaqla jiekol mill-hut. Kollha kemm huma jiehdu l-hut il-pixkerija!!! Jirregistraw MFC ghas-semplici raguni biex jifrankaw il-licenzja ta' matul is-sena u xejn aktar.

as lampuki not biting and not much action we decided to go for deep sea fishing, so supplied with Mr. Shanook"s clamar Chomb and even with his light and his blessing we went to coordinates supplies also by shanook on the way to the place we found the cimi and tried our luck as they were on our way and for thirty cimi we fished and nothing except two small (back to sea ) cervoil, which by the way the Gozotians call them minuri.

So deep fishing we dropped our lines and first time lucky we caught a very nice sized ciapullaz so kept on fishing in this place but nothing (dept of 270mts) moved to two other places also supplied by Shanook but still nothing except for a small bazuta.

So we decided to head back after a full day fishing, on our way back on the cimi of the delattanti we caught a puka nice size and believe me as i cant believe it, out of nowhere a dolphin zooms and snatches my lampuka out of my line, this was followed by another ten dolphins chasing lampuki out of the water and making a show, a show that cant be described here, but one of the dolphins kept leaping out of the water and slamming on the cima . this happened about three times while its mate was with its nose under the Fad, thinking that its mate was stuck with the FAD we ventured closer, only for them (all Ten) going away. jumping for joy for eating and chasing all the lampuki away. upon arriving on the fad we found one battered lampuka right under it, no wonder they kept trying to scare it away from the fad where it took refuge, so not all puki caught by the dolphins one got away.

Thereafter we sped back to Mgarr to reach the only petrol station in Malta and Gozo open.

Good day out overall! pity you lost your lampuka! :P

waiting for the video Visa........pity u didnt get more deep sea fish but it seems that yesterday was kinda bad as even Moonwalker and busu didnt catch a lot and not real big ones.......

Must have been very nice to watch. Usually with dolphins in the area they say its more likely that you will not catch any fish. I don't have a boat so I can't confirm it myself. But watching such playful mammals should have made your day anyway.

Thanks for sharing, and pics if you have pls..

Yeah dolphins scare away most of the fish :(

Out this morning in my usual area (hurds bank), and caught 23 decent sized lampuki and 1 fanfru.

Out this morning in my usual area and landed nothing :'(

Quote from: The_Gaffer on August 27, 2011, 17:04:10 CET
Out this morning in my usual area (hurds bank), and caught 23 decent sized lampuki and 1 fanfru.

Pics please!! You're the only one doing well Joe :)

me only 1 lampuka today guys near the oil rig

Quote from: skip on August 27, 2011, 19:34:41 CET

Quote from: The_Gaffer on August 27, 2011, 17:04:10 CET
Out this morning in my usual area (hurds bank), and caught 23 decent sized lampuki and 1 fanfru.

More. Yes caught 23, and lost more than that either by the boat or on hookup. I can confirm also a report further up of BFT thrashing lampuki. I came across a number of lampuki shawls not interested in my lures. Then when I'd give up and move on, the sea would explode behind me with BFT in a feeding frenzy, attacking the lampuki. The scene behind me would be 3 or 4 spots with the sea erupting in great big splashes and gulls picking up the pieces.  No wonder the lampuki were not biting. They were running scared trying to get away from the BFT.  This activity was happening about 200mtrs away from the FADs. 

Pics please!! You're the only one doing well Joe :)

I have seen loads of puki jumping of of the sea to be followed by gaint tunas yesterday, sometimes with the tunas also getting completely out of the waters.

yesterday decided to try Jigging and went out west of M'forn on the side of the cliffs, jigged in depths of  25,35,50,80,100,and 135 mts till my arms ached while jigging saw some surface fish on my gps so we decided to change fishing modes and went for surface trawling.

With two different sized Strike Pro one about 2.5inches and the other blue size 4 inches we kept trawling till the fad of the delatantti and  on the second one i caught (blue strike pro) a nice sized Lampuka while my friend caught a big vopa size on his small strike pro, went round and same thing happened mine was a big lampuka and his was small, third time around and same thing again, must have gone round this cima 15times without another strike.

Six lampuki on the second cima which is about less than two miles out of land, so it goes to show its with what you fish and no need to go out 15/16 miles to catch lampuki.

Now i am stuck in M'forn waiting for the wind to subside before ending my fifteen day Holiday, and looking forward to meed my mentor Shanook who i haven't seen for one month and a half. (need him to fix my bridge pump again) photos next week as no equipment to transfer photos from my camera.

Shanook..... good luck!!!! here he comes :)
Apparently next weekend will be windy John so we can organise the garage while Tony's here ;)

apparently i will have to join since that yesterday finally i took by rib to the beach,,, and uppps.... back agian... the trottle and cables went nuts.....

that yr fault for buying on the cheap hehe

Here in Gozo the part time fisherman are grumbling also about the lampuki season and the delatanti are grumbling even more, they are saying that they don't remember a bad start like this but they have hope that it will come later as we are a moon behind whatsoever that means. Anybody know what they are talking about as was not going to tell them i don't know what it means, so i just agreed with them.

maybe we had a moon less this year? :D
don t forget to tell your uncle I'll be using his fads please!

Sorry to hear about ur rib Silv...better now and close to land than out there and when weather is good. u are getting ready for the season then.

Yep, big pity Silv! Is it something we can repair ourselves with the help of chief engineer Shanook?

Dont tell everyone about the Strike Pro as there are not a lot of lampuki around. I think the strike pro is one of the best Lampuki lures (my 2 dollars of course) I never leave without a couple in the boat.

dear fellow fisherman ,,, i have a question about dorado fish long line, is it legal or not ??

I will try to remove the cables myself tomorrow..

are u MFB if not it is illegal.........only full time or MFB can use long lines for lampuki.......another passtime eradicated by our beloved Government...

Silv if u need help just whistle.......I need to clear the cars, insurance and what not, but I will do my best to give u a hand....noooooo a helping hand....noooooo help u with ur work.......

so  it is illegal for me .. s reg, 10x

Quote from: yogi on August 28, 2011, 22:05:54 CET
so  it is illegal for me .. s reg, 10x

you could still troll

hot hot hot yogi....better make the most of it as there were a few thunder claps regarding the S reg and fishing.....who knows whats next....

in our meeting with the fisheries at punch and judy earlier this year, the fisheries itself could not establish or define what is meant by a longline..... so, having 25-30 for lampuki on a piece of line does not even start to compare with an 800-1500 hook longline let out for swordfish or tuna...... so what i would recomend is, don't refer to it as a longline but an extended floating paternoster rig.  ::)  ;D

Robby017..naqbel 100%.....20 sunnara shortline mhux longline.

the important factor is,, what it is for the afm crew!! if they stop me and for them is a longline what can i say? extended floating paternoster lol.. and regarding the s reg  can we see the s reg for sportfishing ? manafx manafx.. better i opt for a new hobby qisu

Guys why do you worry so much about the AFM ??????????????????????????????????

Let me give you a good picture:

AFM are by the SPB Tuna penns at Dawn, Everyone is out of the pens waiting for the AFM to move, as soon as they see it moving eveyone speeds to the penns to fish for tuna !!!!!

At this point the afm are still in the vicinity of the Penns, so do you think that if they want to do something they dont???? they just dont care less and you really do not need to hassle so much about them!!!!!

Just go out and have fun ppl :) Do not worry about carrying longlines for lampuki or any other fish

If you want to keep people (ppl) having fun,better take care of what's being written publicly here,,
I mean their mentality can change simply by reading certain posts ...I'm pretty sure we (sports fishermen) aren't alone watching whats being written on this forum

just my opinion  ::) ::)

Only a snapped cable.....Rib on the sea again...

Great Silv! Halli lampuka please!

Quote from: bigboy on August 29, 2011, 22:57:39 CET
Guys why do you worry so much about the AFM ??????????????????????????????????

Let me give you a good picture:

AFM are by the SPB Tuna penns at Dawn, Everyone is out of the pens waiting for the AFM to move, as soon as they see it moving eveyone speeds to the penns to fish for tuna !!!!!

At this point the afm are still in the vicinity of the Penns, so do you think that if they want to do something they dont???? they just dont care less and you really do not need to hassle so much about them!!!!!

Just go out and have fun ppl :) Do not worry about carrying longlines for lampuki or any other fish

I don't agree with you. First of all if some people are in the wrong, doesn't mean everyone is in the wrong. Second amateur fishermen (like me) who read your post just get the idea that it's a free for all out there. Don't break any laws. Once you get caught you'll find out what a bad idea it was! Thirdly, you think this post won't be cached by google and be seen by the prying eyes of law enforcement? If I were you i would abstain from writing such posts encouraging law breaking because it puts everyone under a bad light.

All i did was state the facts as they are !!!!!

Quote from: bmamo on August 30, 2011, 10:19:06 CET

Quote from: bigboy on August 29, 2011, 22:57:39 CET
Guys why do you worry so much about the AFM ??????????????????????????????????

Let me give you a good picture:

AFM are by the SPB Tuna penns at Dawn, Everyone is out of the pens waiting for the AFM to move, as soon as they see it moving eveyone speeds to the penns to fish for tuna !!!!!

At this point the afm are still in the vicinity of the Penns, so do you think that if they want to do something they dont???? they just dont care less and you really do not need to hassle so much about them!!!!!

Just go out and have fun ppl :) Do not worry about carrying longlines for lampuki or any other fish

I don't agree with you. First of all if some people are in the wrong, doesn't mean everyone is in the wrong. Second amateur fishermen (like me) who read your post just get the idea that it's a free for all out there. Don't break any laws. Once you get caught you'll find out what a bad idea it was! Thirdly, you think this post won't be cached by google and be seen by the prying eyes of law enforcement? If I were you i would abstain from writing such posts encouraging law breaking because it puts everyone under a bad light.

big brother syndrome...... hahaha!

I've been out for Lampuki twice this season.  On both occasions, the fishing has been good.  There are a number of things which I have noted and am willing to share with the rest of you here.

* Lampuki this year are staying well out offshore.  Indeed, you get the odd hookup in the 5 - 15  mile area, but the bite gets serious when over the 20 mile limit.  My assumptions are that:
          1.  Too many boats are now ploughing the inner waters in  search of lampuki, thus scaring them away
          2.  The inner waters surrounding the islands are inhabited by BFT, so lampuki are keeping a safe distance away offshore

* Early reports from commercial fishermen indicate that this year is a slow year for Lampuki catches.  Some indicate we are 'One moon behind' (Qamar lura), which in real terms suggests we are a month behind in catches.  I have caught 3 distict sizes of Lampuki on my second outing.  One was very small, in the region of 150grs, the usual sizefor this year, 300-400grs, and some good sized ones in the region of 800grs.  This suggests a mixed feeding pattern by the lampuki present in our waters.  However, I have no idea why this is happening.

* At least where I go, Lampuki tend to stay away from the FADs and move in shoals about 200mtrs away from the FADs.  The bite is not frenzied, and as soon as one escapes, you won't get another bite from that shoal.  This seems to reinforce my 1st point that too many boats are out there fishing for Lampuki.  They go direct onto the FADs, get a couple of hookups, the Lampuki disperse, and no more bites.

*  I have witnessed Lampuki following my boat on hookup.  Simultaneously, I release another line, bring in the line engaged with the fish, and continue to troll.  The other line does not get attacked.  I have no clue why this is happening. 

*  Also, I'm loosing half the catch on hookup.  So if I come in with 30 Lampuki, I can safely say I lost another 30 or more during hookup.  I'm using the usual double hooks and sizes which I've always used for the past 30 yrs or so during this period.  But yet again, I have no idea why the lose rate is very much higher this year then previous years.

Bonus section. 
bThis year, I'm not using the usual small plastic squid lures (you know which ones, they're the red, or little red and white platic spuids yu by in packets of 5).  This year I've opted for small plastic fish that resemble small sardines, with a waggy tail.  They have proved to be much more productive then the small plastic squids.
         
     

Thanks for your notes gaffer!

Bigboy - hekk instemghat imma ux!

Fdal pajjiz kulhadd jaf bmamo!!!!!!

L awtoritajiet kolla b ghajnejhom maghluqin

Quote from: bigboy on August 30, 2011, 12:53:41 CET
Fdal pajjiz kulhadd jaf bmamo!!!!!!

L awtoritajiet kolla b ghajnejhom maghluqin

Imma mal-kbir jghalqu ghajnejhom ghax ikun hemm ir riperkussjonijiet. Tghid mhux se jaqbdu lili jew lilek u jghalqu ghajnehom!

Found an excellent spot for lampuki finally :) Whoever would like to try it out it's in B'Kara at the end of Psaila Street - A Marina van, he has loads :)
Joking apart, anyone been out this week? Any improvements/

Was out today...south area...not even a strike...i don't remember a year like this one!

yesterday out too. Managed 4 in a quick succession but the fun part is there were no cimi or shades around. For this time of the year I am considering them juveniles.

Definately there is abundance of tuna but it cannot be fished

lampuki kullimkien hemm, il problema li ma tridx tmiss

ma nahsibx li hawn kullimkien lampuki! Almenu nahat taghna mhu sew xejn dis-sena.  Sal bierah ma nafx kemm il-cima... ma tarax huta! Matul dawn l-ahhar tlett gimghat kwazi dejjem il-bahar kont! Fejn is-snin ta qabel tista' tghid li m'hawn xejn. L-istagun tal-lampuki ilu sejjer lura. Xi kultant titfacca sena mhux hazin ma nafx xi tkun ir-raguni 'mma zgur mhux din is-sena.  Mela biex taqbad lampuka trid ghandek isiefer bhal dan iz-zmien? Nitamaw li taqliba fil-bahar igib bidla ghax ghandu bzonn!

Lampuki hawn habib trid tinzertahha imma u ddur u taqad. Lbierah ghamilna gurnata ma waqafniex naqbdu il lampuki!! Konna 3 dghajjes hdejn xulxin hadd ma seta jlahhaq ma s sahha li kien hemm. Ahna qbadna il fuq min 300 fgurnata u li kien hemm hdejja qabdu kwantitajiet kbar ukoll!!!! Ic cimi nsihom ghal din is sena u kull sufra li taraha mitluqa mar rih mur dur mahha ghax taf tkun passa hut bhal ma sibna.....

kaptar jr, bhala distanza il-barra hafna kontu jew?

Ma kellix dik ix-xorti mela.  Naha t'isfel vojt dejjem sibtu. Int naha ta' fuq hux? Ghaddejt hin sew imma ghalxejn. Lanqas rajtha. Pero qatt ma kellna bahar hekk hawn...Inhossni qed nohlom naqra li qbadt dik il-kwantita. Prosit hija...j'Alla l-gid.

Fl-ahhar qbadt l-ewwel lampuka :) ta' hajti - xejn specjali ghax kulma kienet 320g (tal-misthija). Marritli ohra mad-dghajsa ftit ikbar. Lampuki taht id-dghajsa rajt mhux hazin izda ma riedet tmiss b'xejn. Pruvajt xi 7 tipi ta' lures differenti, pruvajt fil-wicc, bic-comb, speed baxx u mghaggel - izda kollu ghalxejn. Ilbierah qbadna 9 cervjoliet (hamsa minnhom sbieh fid-daqs).

kull ma kont il barra 10 mili lbarra mil art lbierah

Quote from: malvizzu on September 02, 2011, 18:27:32 CET
Fl-ahhar qbadt l-ewwel lampuka :) ta' hajti - xejn specjali ghax kulma kienet 320g (tal-misthija). Marritli ohra mad-dghajsa ftit ikbar. Lampuki taht id-dghajsa rajt mhux hazin izda ma riedet tmiss b'xejn. Pruvajt xi 7 tipi ta' lures differenti, pruvajt fil-wicc, bic-comb, speed baxx u mghaggel - izda kollu ghalxejn. Ilbierah qbadna 9 cervjoliet (hamsa minnhom sbieh fid-daqs).

daqsix kienu c-cervjol malvizzu?

Dal lejl tajba kienet hafna almenu ahna morna tajjeb hafna.

Mellieha

imma biex xibka mellieha ?????

Jew bil konz!

i was trolling for lampuki last sat had hooked lots of tunnag [hlisniom kolla] but i was wondering if some of this fish are tumbrell ,, possible ?? we also seen lampuki but cached only one and lost  few .. bdw any hint how to recognize tunagg from tumbrell??

Yes.. show them to the AFM and prepare your cheque book cos I think its a €1000 each if they are Tunagg :)

Joking apart,

http://maltafishingforum.com/talk/index.php/topic,610.msg6068.html#msg6068

Tumbrell are more slender, hence their English name, Bullet Tuna.

And as they say "If in doubt, Don't"  I mean dont keep them.

Quote from: J_Z on September 02, 2011, 20:23:48 CET

Quote from: malvizzu on September 02, 2011, 18:27:32 CET
Fl-ahhar qbadt l-ewwel lampuka :) ta' hajti - xejn specjali ghax kulma kienet 320g (tal-misthija). Marritli ohra mad-dghajsa ftit ikbar. Lampuki taht id-dghajsa rajt mhux hazin izda ma riedet tmiss b'xejn. Pruvajt xi 7 tipi ta' lures differenti, pruvajt fil-wicc, bic-comb, speed baxx u mghaggel - izda kollu ghalxejn. Ilbierah qbadna 9 cervjoliet (hamsa minnhom sbieh fid-daqs).

daqsix kienu c-cervjol malvizzu?

Il-kbar qisu xi 25cm u z-zghar madwar 18cm.

isn't tumbrell frigate mackeral???

http://www.google.com.mt/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=hp&q=frigate+mackerel&gbv=2&aq=0&aqi=g2g-m4&aql=&oq=frigate+m

Quote from: malvizzu on September 05, 2011, 10:19:11 CET

Quote from: J_Z on September 02, 2011, 20:23:48 CET

Quote from: malvizzu on September 02, 2011, 18:27:32 CET
Fl-ahhar qbadt l-ewwel lampuka :) ta' hajti - xejn specjali ghax kulma kienet 320g (tal-misthija). Marritli ohra mad-dghajsa ftit ikbar. Lampuki taht id-dghajsa rajt mhux hazin izda ma riedet tmiss b'xejn. Pruvajt xi 7 tipi ta' lures differenti, pruvajt fil-wicc, bic-comb, speed baxx u mghaggel - izda kollu ghalxejn. Ilbierah qbadna 9 cervjoliet (hamsa minnhom sbieh fid-daqs).

daqsix kienu c-cervjol malvizzu?

Il-kbar qisu xi 25cm u z-zghar madwar 18cm.

zaghar mela....

zammejtuwom?

5 minn 9 tfajthom lura - l-ohrajn moqlija :)

Quote from: robby017 on September 05, 2011, 10:19:30 CET
isn't tumbrell frigate mackeral???

http://www.google.com.mt/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=hp&q=frigate+mackerel&gbv=2&aq=0&aqi=g2g-m4&aql=&oq=frigate+m

both, frigate mackerel and bullet tuna are Tumbrell.

Auchis Rochei Rochei.

Auxis thazard thazard

Quote from: robby017 on September 05, 2011, 11:14:25 CET
Auxis thazard thazard

hehe ekk hu... il-huta ta hazzard! lol :P

hazard if you mistake a tunnagg for a tumbrell haha

Quote from: robby017 on September 05, 2011, 12:13:16 CET
hazard if you mistake a tunnagg for a tumbrell haha

uzgur... ghax jekk jaqbduk... ibelhuk bil-multa!

insomma dan kif dejjem jghidu... IT AIN'T A CRIME IF YOU DON'T GET CAUGHT! :P

sushi and sashimi are the best at their freshest...... just out of the water lol  ::) :P

Quote from: robby017 on September 05, 2011, 14:07:22 CET
sushi and sashimi are the best at their freshest...... just out of the water lol  ::) :P

For Sashimi:

Freezing is often used to kill parasites. According to European Union regulations,[4] freezing fish at −20°C (−4°F) for 24 hours kills parasites. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends freezing at −35°C (−31°F) for 15 hours, or at −20°C (−4°F) for 7 days

Most Western restuarants will not serve freshly caught tuna for sashimi but will blast freeze fresh tuna for a period of time that also aids with slicing it so thinly

The worst parasite problem is anisakis.  It lives in the intestines, but when it senses that the fish is dead it burrows into the fishes muscles.  So if you want extra fresh sashimi you need to fillet the fish while it is still alive, and DO NOT puncture the intestines.  Bon Appetito.

firstly, i'd get rid of the intestines as one whole thing inc the gills and head and rince the remaining in the sea. then i'd cut a line parrarrell to the middle bone to get rid of the blood and rinse well again........ then its filleting time........ first off with the tail and bones then place skin side down cut/slice/cube and eat...... having soy sauce/ginger/balsamic vinegar and lemons on board is an asset :-D

robby, A tip from a fellow friend of mine who had his liver removed due to anisakis old me to never eat crude fish without leaving it deep freeze for 4 days. The worst property of this parasite is that it resists heat of 45 degrees celcius if not mistaken (enters in hibernation and respawns afterwards). It can only be killed if freezed below twenty degrees celcius.

These worms/parasites are no joke robby. I wouldn't take the risk of introducing these parasites to anyone's body. while fresh fish tastes very well, there is too much of a risk without taking necessary precautions.

For whoever interested, there is this interesting interview about anisakis

http://www.video.mediaset.it/video/iene/puntata/182456/toffa-anisakis.html (http://www.video.mediaset.it/video/iene/puntata/182456/toffa-anisakis.html)

It is in italian

nich

thanks nich.... good to know.....

WOW  :o THANKS GRANITU FOR SHARING WITH US.

is it found in all fish???

it can be found in all fish as far as I ve been told as there is not much information from what this parasite comes (can be a particular weed (sea weed ;) ) or small fish, however I have been told that cold blooded fish like groupers as far as information permits do not suffer from this parasite.

I know a person who is preparring a thesis for his masters on anisakis, I think he is more knowledgeable in this aspect.

What i can tell for sure that I have found this worm in Sawrell caught near farms, bream, saddled bream, mullet(not port mullet) and once even in a 8kg amberjack.

There is no definitive answer, if you take the necessary precaution you are safe and you can enjoy the beloved suschi and sachimi (forgive the spelling) as much as you like  ;D

Went out on Saturday West of Cirkewwa, we ended up approx 23nm offshore where it seems that this year the fishermen based either in the North of Malta and Gozo have perhaps decided not to lay out very many Cimi. I remember a few years ago it was quite hard to navigate offshore without driving across them all!

Anyways.....we trolled with 3 lines (rods :) ) and we were consistently being hit during the day by Tunnag (tks for the confirmation buddy) in varying sizes, some even coming up 3 on each line, and yet Lampuki were nowhere to be seen. Even if one stayed in the vicinity of the Cimi lines as I often like to troll parallel but staying away from them you can see Lampuki jumping across or coming towards you. In the end we got 10 Lampuki perhaps 500g max each and we counted hooking and releasing around 30-40 Tunagg. It was a fun day out in a bit of a swell but no wonder Lampuki are being sold at €6 a kilo!

Yesterday I tried the NE coast leaving from Xemxija in better conditions as the sea was very calm and the swell almost non existent. There are definately alot more Cimi out on that side and we ended up 25nm offshore pointing diretly at Pozzallo, the sea was really clear but aside from some occasional surface activity it was verrrry quiet and all we got was some Cerviol (4!!) from around 90m away from a Cima.

Now I know everyone is very different, but my own personal rules with Cimi are very simple, I will not encircle them and I will keep a reasonable distance away from them, but I am certainly not staying 200-500m away from them, i don't care what the authorities say nor what the fishermen think. The sea is everyones, but if Commercial fishermen think that they have a right to take the law into their own hands, they are sorely mistaken. I have heard in the past and yesterday witnessed through the binoculas threatening behaviour and actions of these cowboys, so when I read that the Sea Shepherd guys etc were involved in ramming or colliding with fishermen, my sympathy levels drop for our beloved commercial guys who are much happier selling their fish with our tax paying subsidies to the Italians than landing them in Malta. I can start to understand a bit better why people illegally carry weapons/firearms to protect themselves against these cowboys! After having a good go at some poor sod  who wasn't on any Cimi, and trying to ram him and throw stuf at him, these guys decided to turn towards me, even though I was a good 100m away from any cimi lines and travelling across, but as they were on a roll they decided that well the whole damn area was theirs. Needless to say I did not hang around to have a chat with them, but what a shame that one can't even enjoy a few hours in peace! In my opinion it's all about mutual respect which it seems they don't believe in, regardless of the whole argument of they paid to lay them etc. Encircling or netting someone elses Cima is one thing (and we all know they do it even on the Cimi or others), but trolling past in the general area is of very little harm unless you have deliberately gone ahead of a commercial boat going out on his lines.

Insomma! That's my lot for September, will wait a bit more till October and perhaps give it another go but with these experiences at sea, I'd much rather save my €120 worth of fuel for something else!

lampuki are at 3 euro nick

Quote from: baghira on September 12, 2011, 09:03:18 CET
lampuki are at 3 euro nick

I guess the guy who my buddy Gareth went to was ripping ppl off then although it was at the begining of last week!!!!!! Did anyone do well this weekend?

im thinking of going out south of filfla on wednesday morning, any tips for exact positions of floats etc ? :)

i have tried the floats on the north of bugiba (all 80 of them) twice, and nothing. im hoping south is better.

but i dont know where the floats are. Do i need a separate permit for the south ? i have the one from the bugiba fishing club. if i need a different one, where do i get it ?

thanks :)

Quote from: visa on August 21, 2011, 13:33:46 CET
we saw a Hanzir coming out from under the palm we shot him and thereafter we put up our lures and went for the hinzer instead and managed to catch 4 good sized ones.

what is a hanzir ? :)

a pig =P or in the fishing sense a Stone-bass

Last Sunday me and my fishing buddy decided to get another try for Lampuki so by 5.45 we were heading out from Birzebugia towards the closest ship about 8km out. Cruising at about 25knts/hr we were there in about 25 minutes. We put out our lines and went twice round the ship but nothing not even a hit. We were there at the first lights of the day, I always have been told that it is the best time but nothing no fish no surface activity, nothing. So since this was my 5th time this year out  for Lampuki with only 5 lampuki caught I thought that we were heading for another big flop. We went round another 3 ships with no good result only 4 small amberjack (cervjol) so we headed further out. On the way we saw cimi but I prefer to avoid fishing close to them and went for a group of ships anchored at about 12kntm out. We went round the first 2 ships and we caught a few cervjol and about six tunnagg while trolling from one ship to another which we released . The sun was well high up we have been trawling for about 3hrs and the catches were very poor most of all no Lampuki. The sea was great and for a moment we were contemplating whether we should go for bottom fishing and forget about trawling. About a mile further out there were another 2 ships at anchor but these were also tied together most probably transferring fuel or whatever so we stayed away from them and went for another ship. On the way I noticed that very close to this ship bow there was a fishing vessel that was stationery and those on board were hauling a big red net. There were no cimi and they were too close to the ship to be cimi there, so since I was not on the cimi and the ship was mine as much as was theirs I kept on going towards the ship. Approaching the ship from the stern to stay out of their way as possible we had the first good hit and we caught our first nice sized lampuka of the the day in a  few minutes we caught half a dozen plus some cervjol as well. We decide to move to the bow since the fishing boat headed towards the stern and started to throw the net again, but from there we had no hits although we still could see few fish going around we pulled up the lines and off we sped to the next ship which was about 2 miles further east.  There the fish was abundant but hits were not as frequent as one would expect  with such amount of fish that we could see. We caught 30 lampuki and about 15 cervjol, we were using the usual rubber squids and some maggots like white things with a funny tail you just put a hook in start from the head and comes out from in front of the tail but very effective. We also used 7cm minnows on which we landed only tunnagg that we had to release so we stopped using them to minimize their catch as much as possible. To cut it short after about an hour that same fishing vessel as if they had not enough sea where to fish came to throw their net were we where and we decide to leave the ship and start heading slowly towards land and avoid any confrontation with these tugs. On our way back we were approached by the petrol boat and they kindly asked to hand all the relevant documentation including making sure that we had a VHF. After seeing that all papers were in order they asked us to head inwards since we were more than 12knm far from land. By 13.00 we were back in birzebbugia harbour with the best lampuki catch we had so far this year.     

Quote from: fisheye on September 12, 2011, 16:15:44 CET
Last Sunday me and my fishing buddy decided to get another try for Lampuki so by 5.45 we were heading out from Birzebugia towards the closest ship about 8km out. Cruising at about 25knts/hr we were there in about 25 minutes. We put out our lines and went twice round the ship but nothing not even a hit. We were there at the first lights of the day, I always have been told that it is the best time but nothing no fish no surface activity, nothing. So since this was my 5th time this year out  for Lampuki with only 5 lampuki caught I thought that we were heading for another big flop. We went round another 3 ships with no good result only 4 small amberjack (cervjol) so we headed further out. On the way we saw cimi but I prefer to avoid fishing close to them and went for a group of ships anchored at about 12kntm out. We went round the first 2 ships and we caught a few cervjol and about six tunnagg while trolling from one ship to another which we released . The sun was well high up we have been trawling for about 3hrs and the catches were very poor most of all no Lampuki. The sea was great and for a moment we were contemplating whether we should go for bottom fishing and forget about trawling. About a mile further out there were another 2 ships at anchor but these were also tied together most probably transferring fuel or whatever so we stayed away from them and went for another ship. On the way I noticed that very close to this ship bow there was a fishing vessel that was stationery and those on board were hauling a big red net. There were no cimi and they were too close to the ship to be cimi there, so since I was not on the cimi and the ship was mine as much as was theirs I kept on going towards the ship. Approaching the ship from the stern to stay out of their way as possible we had the first good hit and we caught our first nice sized lampuka of the the day in a  few minutes we caught half a dozen plus some cervjol as well. We decide to move to the bow since the fishing boat headed towards the stern and started to throw the net again, but from there we had no hits although we still could see few fish going around we pulled up the lines and off we sped to the next ship which was about 2 miles further east.  There the fish was abundant but hits were not as frequent as one would expect  with such amount of fish that we could see. We caught 30 lampuki and about 15 cervjol, we were using the usual rubber squids and some maggots like white things with a funny tail you just put a hook in start from the head and comes out from in front of the tail but very effective. We also used 7cm minnows on which we landed only tunnagg that we had to release so we stopped using them to minimize their catch as much as possible. To cut it short after about an hour that same fishing vessel as if they had not enough sea where to fish came to throw their net were we where and we decide to leave the ship and start heading slowly towards land and avoid any confrontation with these tugs. On our way back we were approached by the petrol boat and they kindly asked to hand all the relevant documentation including making sure that we had a VHF. After seeing that all papers were in order they asked us to head inwards since we were more than 12knm far from land. By 13.00 we were back in birzebbugia harbour with the best lampuki catch we had so far this year.     

fantastic post! thanks for all the detail, there is hope!! iv been out about 10 times this season and have not hooked myself a fish yet :( ...

Quote from: skip on September 12, 2011, 09:24:51 CET

Quote from: baghira on September 12, 2011, 09:03:18 CET
lampuki are at 3 euro nick

I guess the guy who my buddy Gareth went to was ripping ppl off then although it was at the begining of last week!!!!!! Did anyone do well this weekend?

Went out on Saturday to my usual place, but apart from a ton load of hits by tunnag which I released, I only managed 1 lampuka.  Continued to troll further out, and came accross a wide piece of wood, probably the remains of a big box.  Whammmm, lampuki everywhere.  Managed to hook up about 2 dozen, and alot of Cervjol (hurrab).   All in all, a great day fishing, with lampuki in the 1kg 1.3kg range.

Very nice detailed account fisheye. Thanks for sharing. It seems that only up north there's no lampuki at all. At least out East of the tuna farms there's nothing. Only caught one of 320g. At least had some decent catches of cervjol around the coast, 9, 5 and 2 in three consecutive days.

guys there are lampuki ...... change the method of fishing. Lampuki from the early start are not very much interested in lures. Bait fish has increased a lot in recent years. Try learning more the way of fishing lampuki with baits instead of artificials ... you will surely catch more

Quote from: placebo on September 12, 2011, 23:58:10 CET
guys there are lampuki ...... change the method of fishing. Lampuki from the early start are not very much interested in lures. Bait fish has increased a lot in recent years. Try learning more the way of fishing lampuki with baits instead of artificials ... you will surely catch more

can you describe in more detail, exactly how you were catching them ?
what bait?, with what rig?, did you use a surface float ? where did you catch them ? did you drift ? :)
id love to try it, but its not enough info.

Quote from: geekorgy on September 12, 2011, 10:27:09 CET
but i dont know where the floats are. Do i need a separate permit for the south ? i have the one from the bugiba fishing club. if i need a different one, where do i get it ?

thanks :)

You would need to contact the B'Bugia Fishing Club and enquire how many cimi they have laid, membership rates etc.

The Professional lines of Cimi that you might see offshore are allocated on a line by line basis to commercial fishermen, each year they get different positions in the same general area, at least that is my understanding.

Your other option is to try and make friends with some who have cimi lines and get permission to go on them.

The Bugibba club just has a few up North only.

thanks!

is 70 only a few? cause the club gave me the co-ords to a 6 mile row of 30, another 6 mile row of 30 and a 2 mile row of 10, making 70 floats (okay, a couple may have been missing) ... how many is more than a few ? :)) not trying to be a smartass i really appreciate all the tips, just wondering if im missing out on something bigger/better! i was pretty impressed with that many fad's being out for the club.

I do have a friend who keeps promising to take me to their private fad's, but hasnt yet ... i'll be saving that co-ord when he does!! :) he's taken boxes upon boxes of lampuki so far ... i think around 50 boxes so far this season, or so he says.

Im not even after quantity just quality, for the fun of it, ill probably release most except what i plan to eat myself.

Not sure Alex, though 70 is a nice amount for a club, so hats off to the Bugibba club.

A typical professional line can extend (some of the guys will confirm) 70nm offshore and they lay them quite often so over 100 for sure

Quote from: geekorgy on September 13, 2011, 00:06:03 CET

Quote from: placebo on September 12, 2011, 23:58:10 CET
guys there are lampuki ...... change the method of fishing. Lampuki from the early start are not very much interested in lures. Bait fish has increased a lot in recent years. Try learning more the way of fishing lampuki with baits instead of artificials ... you will surely catch more

can you describe in more detail, exactly how you were catching them ?
what bait?, with what rig?, did you use a surface float ? where did you catch them ? did you drift ? :)
id love to try it, but its not enough info.

use calamaretti as bait and troll at 0.5-1knot and you will see results.

I say this today after catching around 45 puki fresh bait trolling. I might be out also this afternoon too

my opinion - ignore fads this year they are useless

Quote from: Granitu on September 13, 2011, 10:32:18 CET

Quote from: geekorgy on September 13, 2011, 00:06:03 CET

Quote from: placebo on September 12, 2011, 23:58:10 CET
guys there are lampuki ...... change the method of fishing. Lampuki from the early start are not very much interested in lures. Bait fish has increased a lot in recent years. Try learning more the way of fishing lampuki with baits instead of artificials ... you will surely catch more

can you describe in more detail, exactly how you were catching them ?
what bait?, with what rig?, did you use a surface float ? where did you catch them ? did you drift ? :)
id love to try it, but its not enough info.

use calamaretti as bait and troll at 0.5-1knot and you will see results.

I say this today after catching around 45 puki fresh bait trolling. I might be out also this afternoon too

my opinion - ignore fads this year they are useless

great! where are you trolling if not around the fad's ? :)

Quotegreat! where are you trolling if not around the fad's ?

i suppose he was trolling in open waters....  ::) :-X ::) :-X ::) :-X

wow freedive...is that a lampuka in your avatar???

Well i trolled open water from around 20nm NE of Comino, 4.7knots and got no strikes whatsoever. At times I would speed up and cover a few miles at 25 knots to reduce the time to get home, and a couple of times saw some nice surface action but by the time we got there, stopped infront not to spook them, I found they kept going back under.

I always keep saying to myself to keep some chum handy and I never do, so I guess only myself to blame!!

today i caught only 7 but again, ignoring the fads is ideal. Unfortunately when the fish was biting a shoal of dolphins came around.

I caught 3 near the awrat pens outside st thomas bay

the rest was caught trolling at 0.5-1.5knots and chumming with fresh caught kavalli/calamaretti

If you want the exact position, I was between line no 2 and no 3 at the 5th cima level. the fads where far away and again, yes fads are not productive at the moment, especially when professional fisherman are circling them..... (i withnessed this in the morning while fishing kavalli)

no hits near cimi, what I am doing is carefully using my eyesight for any splashes and  good use of the fishfinder.
Going far out seems not the way at the moment in my opinion. I spoke with people who fished the 10-15mile areas and they got very few puki today.

What I can definately notice is that most of lampuki is staying deep and hunting deep. (10-20m)

A very huge tuna shoal monitored by the afm patrol boat is in the 10 mile range, eathing everyting edible.

hope it helps.

Nice write-up

The huge tuna shoal, are these Tunagg or big Blue's? If Tunagg I can understand the AFM shadowing.

Woke up early this morning for some live bait fishing.
At 4am at sea and we got a couple of clamari to rig with.
No strikes apart from the usuall entangling with some ropes etc on the bottom.

At about 10am we decided to change fishing method and go trolling lighter and not on the bottom (midwater) with lighter weight for some AJ.
We had no strikes at all..and we were tolling with whole  clamari fresh from the morning.
We headed in and on the way we noticed that someone threw some FAD close to the shore and we went past.... and had a hit on both rods.... Two nice sized lampuki 500g 700g range..... wow we were astonished.........not the usuall fish to target so close to shore (100 meters), and with whole clamari, and in mid water.!!!

Nice new experiance.

Any help how to catch kavalli and clamaretti. This weekend I tried for the clamaretti with the light and normal squid rig but just three small squids came near the boat in the surface and no strikes in the bottom.

Quote from: skip on September 14, 2011, 19:51:51 CET
Nice write-up

The huge tuna shoal, are these Tunagg or big Blue's? If Tunagg I can understand the AFM shadowing.

big blues skip in the 100-150kg range

Quote from: cityfish on September 15, 2011, 07:59:58 CET
Any help how to catch kavalli and clamaretti. This weekend I tried for the clamaretti with the light and normal squid rig but just three small squids came near the boat in the surface and no strikes in the bottom.

well, kamalaretti you buy them. You catch squid not kamalaretti but they are equally productive. fresh squid is better though.

kavalli - wake up at 2 am in the morning or earlier, find a good reef with a nice drop off, a very strong light spot under water - like calamari but if you have something brighter the better.

a paternoster rig with luminous beads and shiny silver hooks. when kavalli comes up you fish in the 1-5 metre range either light jig movement or else leaving it stilll waiting for a bite.

sometimes you can also fish calamari with a rod at the same time (having someone else doing it)

Quote
big blues skip in the 100-150kg range

Interesting that the AFM are shadowing those probably to stop the commercial guys from illegally landing them after their quota has been used up and season closed. I believe we are still entitled to fish for them catch and release, and those 18 guys with a permit are entitled to still try and land one up to 100kgs!! I think their permit expires at the end of October if I'm not mistaken?

Quote from: Granitu on September 15, 2011, 08:09:36 CET

Quote from: cityfish on September 15, 2011, 07:59:58 CET
Any help how to catch kavalli and clamaretti. This weekend I tried for the clamaretti with the light and normal squid rig but just three small squids came near the boat in the surface and no strikes in the bottom.

Thanks...Mela a sabiki rig would be ok?

well, kamalaretti you buy them. You catch squid not kamalaretti but they are equally productive. fresh squid is better though.

kavalli - wake up at 2 am in the morning or earlier, find a good reef with a nice drop off, a very strong light spot under water - like calamari but if you have something brighter the better.

a paternoster rig with luminous beads and shiny silver hooks. when kavalli comes up you fish in the 1-5 metre range either light jig movement or else leaving it stilll waiting for a bite.

sometimes you can also fish calamari with a rod at the same time (having someone else doing it)

sabiki are better i gave you a low cost option which is productive

I was going to ask you the same question about how to catch kavalli - however this type of fishing clearly does not suit me - there is definitely no way that lazyfisherman is going to wake up at 2 am to go fishing!

mur gibek tqum fxi 1am mela int sihbi u tidhol lura l port fxi 5pm jew tamel xi jumejn fuq il bahar haha

No way bigboy - not even if the fish jump into the boat on their own! I have learnt to be satisfied with what I can catch at more reasonable times. Ta' bil-lejl kollu ghalikhom!

Quote from: lazyfisherman on September 15, 2011, 13:56:06 CET
I was going to ask you the same question about how to catch kavalli - however this type of fishing clearly does not suit me - there is definitely no way that lazyfisherman is going to wake up at 2 am to go fishing!

lol believe me until you try fishing at night you say so - at the moment I love fishing at night rather than in the scorching sun even if I have a canopy.

kavalli are fun to catch as with the right technique you catch as many as you like. Sometimes they do not bite as much but if the bite is hot they are enjoyable. Plus they put a good fight - even if one should avoid this as it scares the others around.

I agree that the present scorching sun is not nice at all and I have no doubt that it is a very pleasant type of fishing once you are awake and kavalli are very, very good to eat. The problem remains one - managing to get out of bed at that time!

(It's more thn once that I set the alarm at a much more decent 5.00 am, only to switch it off as soon as it rings, turn over to the other side and bye bye the morning's planned fishing trip!)

the trick is....... don't go to bed ;)

Sorry for bumping this thread again, but has anyone seen any change in the bad lampuki trolling season this year started with? Has there been any improvements in catches and sizes? Are the FADs tad-dilettanti and the tankers still empty? To catch one do we still have to go abroad? We usually troll, is there any other method that can be used by recreational fishermen?

thanks guys!

where do u fish for kavalli at bugibba near the fishfarms.....as i have never tried on this side.........

Was out trolling for Lampuki yesterday.  Left the marina quite late in the morning, about 9.00am, and headed out to my usual area.  At 13kmiles out, started trolling.  Baby tuna (tunagg) were everywhere.  It is rather annoying to hook up tunagg all the time, especially where you're targeting Lampuki.  At 15Kmiles, first strike from a lampuka.  This was a massive 3kg one.  Turned round, and trolled the area again, no more strikes.  Continued to troll, and another strike froma big lampuka.  Very unusual size for this time of the year. Further out, I started catching more lampuki, only this time they were more decent sized, in the 1.5kg range. In all, caught about 20 lampuki, 3 hurrab, and released about 50 tunnag!!!

Sorry no pics, as I then went through an ordeal coming into my berth at the marina.  

I returned when it was raining hard over cenral Malta.  My berth is at Pontoon A, Msida Marina.  Opposite my berth is the exit flow of all the rain that comes down from regional road and valley road.  The force of the rain water gushing out of the exit flows into the marina creates a current that pushes against the pontoon.  I could see there was a current, from the amount of debris that was floating and steadly flowing in one direction.  The marina sea was brown, filthy and stinking of drainage!!.  As soon as I turned the boat into the pontoon, this current hit me so violently that I could not control the Gaffer.

The current pushed the Gaffer onto the mooring ropes, and one rope got snagged between the rudder and the propeller. Luckily, I had already disengaged the engine.  But I was stuck.  I deployed the fenders on the bows to protect mine and other moored boats.  Sat down, lit a cigarette, and thought it through.  I couldn't jump in an release the rope.  The sea was filthy with drainage material, debris and the colour of the sea was dark brown and stinking.

So, I secured the stern of the Gaffer to another boat, and figured out a plan how to (1) release(cut) the rope that was causing the problem, (2) Berth the gaffer in her usual place, (3) secure the other boat once I had cut the rope.
I called Marina security, who were there in minutes.  Told them my plan, and they agreed.  

First, we boarded the boat that had the rope snagged into my stern.  Released the tension on the rope, but the Gaffer did not move.  I boarded the Gaffer, and using a boat hook, brought up the rope from one end (pontoon side) and cut the rope.  Then using the boat hook again, brought up the snagged rope from the other side and cut the rope again.  The Gaffer was free. So all we had to do was manuever the Gaffer into her slot.  Then we secured the other boat to mine, and made sure all was fast and tight as there is a NW high wind forecast for the weekend.

By that time, pictures of my catch were the last thing on my mind!!

When the sea clears, I'll go down and release the snagged rope that's caught between the rudder and the prop.  But until then, the surrounding area is very unsafe to breath in, let alone swim!!

What an ordeal! I would have gone into panic for sure :) Nice write-up though. Thanks for sharing.

What a frustrating end to a fun day out fishing..........The last thing you want to have to deal with and then the thought of maybe having to go into that water....yuk!

Once you managed to temp secure the boat, calming down and evaluating the situation is often the best way forward to formulate a good plan.

lil ta quddiemek ma qtajtlux ic cimi ukoll hux Joe ? :P

Nick, there was no way I was going into that slimey stinking muck, not even for the Gaffer.  The only way out was to cut the mooring rope of the other boat. I couldn't do that without the permission of the Marina.  Once that was solved, I did however get my hands in that muck to pull up the snagged rope.  
I agree with you though, its good to just sit down, evaluate the situation, and go over possible solutions.  If the sea hadn't been to dirty, I would have jumped in without a moment's hesitation.  But then again, the sea wouldn't have been dirty if it hadn't rained and I and the gushing water creating that current.  I've been moored at the same spot for 8 yrs now, and this is the 1st time I've snagged a mooring rope.  I've got used to the prevailing currents at that spot, and always position the boat and use the currents to my advantage when berthing the boat.  Its not easy to berth in reverse using a single screw boat with no bow thruster, but with time one learns.  
More importantly, it was those 2 big lampuki that I caught.  There seems to be 3 sizes out there at the moment.  The usual size for this time of the year (around 1-1.5Kgs) a smaller size (about 600-700g) and these 2 which I managed to land.  I caught another 4 large ones (when I say large, I mean large for the normal size found around this time of the year), but they all managed to get away.  I usually associate that size of Lampuki with Novemeber.  I always go out on one last trip for Lampuki around that time, using some heavy gear (I use hand lines, so its .80 as a main line and .60 for the leader.)
This year, I'm planning on using rods as well.  Just bought 2 new Shimano Sienna 4000FD reels on ebay for €60 for both reels, including shipping.  I'll match them up to two light spinning rods I have.  
This is new territory for me, trolling for Lampuki using rods.  I was planning on spooling up with very light mono and a 20lbs leader.  

What do you guys think?

Quote from: bigboy on October 07, 2011, 13:49:31 CET
lil ta quddiemek ma qtajtlux ic cimi ukoll hux Joe ? :P

Le siehbi, ma tarax. 

Ostra Kane, taf kif jiehdok il-kurrent hemm?...Jien qatt ma bsart li l-ilma tax xita jinzel b'daqshekk forza u jikkreja kurrent qawwi hekk.  Xejn man, kif dort ezatt ghal pontoon, il-pruwa tal-gaffer qisu qabada tugboat u garra ghal gol pontoon.  Ipprovajt insijja, imma ghal xejn, il-kurrent kien bsahtu wisq!

Hemmekk tal biza Joe meta tamel xi wahda maltemp tajba !!!

Jien al grazzja t alla qatt ma kont fiha dik is sitwazzjoni pero gili kont fuq l art u rajt is sahha tal kurrent li tigi hemmek.

l ahjar haga li tamel ek darbohra terga tinqabad fdik is sitwazjoni mur fej l islipp u tih cans joqod naqa l kurrent

Quote from: bigboy on October 07, 2011, 14:35:05 CET
Hemmekk tal biza Joe meta tamel xi wahda maltemp tajba !!!

Jien al grazzja t alla qatt ma kont fiha dik is sitwazzjoni pero gili kont fuq l art u rajt is sahha tal kurrent li tigi hemmek.

l ahjar haga li tamel ek darbohra terga tinqabad fdik is sitwazjoni mur fej l islipp u tih cans joqod naqa l kurrent

Vera, sewwa qed tghid.  Qatt fit-8 snin li ili norbot hemm ma dhalt f-duluvju ta xita.  Allura ma kellix esperjenza x'jigri f-sitwazzjoni bhal tal-bierah.  Ghall darb' ohra.  Sewwa qed tghid, l-ahjar post hu fejn is-slip, norbot naqa hemm temporarju, u nigi hdejn il-pontoon.  Kif narah ikkalma l-kurrent, nigi norbot.  Thanks Kane.

gaffer do not forget to clean the strainers , la adejt min dak il hmig ta bahar

Thanks yogi, I will now that you mentioned it.

Well, if the wind forecast is anything to go by, I'll be trolling for lampuki on Saturday. Guess they should be decently sized now, between 2 and 3 kilos at least, if there are any around that is!

where will you be trolling ? i might give it a go too.

Considering the wind forecast, it will be in the area of Hurd's bank

i dont know it, where is that ? :)

i am berthed in gozo mgar but i can get to anywhere ...

geekorgy go out of Mgar harbour go between gozo and kemuna and keep going east when u see a lot of ships in about 18 miles u will be somewhere close to hurds bank.................cant tell u to go straight and then take a turning as they took off all the signs........if you need to just post here and i will give u the bearings..............

Penny jigik fuel min ghawdex sa hurds bank ghal lampuka!!!!
Mhux worth nahseb...

Quote from: shanook on November 23, 2011, 20:06:45 CET
geekorgy go out of Mgar harbour go between gozo and kemuna and keep going east when u see a lot of ships in about 18 miles u will be somewhere close to hurds bank.................cant tell u to go straight and then take a turning as they took off all the signs........if you need to just post here and i will give u the bearings..............

Yeah bearings would be awesome! :) i have a raymarine onboard so that should be the easiest ... thanks again!

edit: by bearings i guessed you meant the gps coordinates but after that i realized you might just mean the direction.. sure that would also help though!

On your raymarine you should find hurdsbank marked.

It is an anchorage are located 12Nm east Southeast from the grandharbour

geekorgy, if your boat is an S registration don't risk it! Last month I got booked on 2 occasions in that area for going beyond the 12nm! Patrol boats (especially the P22) seem to patrol that area daily.

@bigboy are u sure its east southeast rather to east northeast

To be exact, 92deg from grand harbour brakewater with a distance of +/- 12NM

110deg from Comino with a distance of 21NM 

   

Hurd Bank, latitude of 35.92 (35° 55' 0 N)  longitude of 14.83 (14° 49' 60 E),
   
      


The location is situated 64 kilometers north east (43°) of the approximate center of Malta and 29 kilometers east (86°) of the captial Valletta.

Quote from: benri on November 23, 2011, 22:07:01 CET
geekorgy, if your boat is an S registration don't risk it! Last month I got booked on 2 occasions in that area for going beyond the 12nm! Patrol boats (especially the P22) seem to patrol that area daily.

Just for curiosity did you had a VHF on board when they booked you?

Yes I did. I was booked for exceeding the 12nm limit. I was approx 13.5nm out

if you go by the fishfarms it is enough for decent lampuki at this time ..... do not travel too far

how mhuc is the fine for exceeding the limit of 12 nm

@bigboy... u are perfectly right I got my inbuilt bearings mixed up..........well my battery is running low after 59 years eh urs is still in tiptop condition............:)P

i was nearly there ehhhhhh, i usually find huirdsbank with the gps cursor then press navigate to and there goes the outopilot :P  so i do not really uise the bearings to find it

Quote from: benri on November 24, 2011, 15:25:52 CET
Yes I did. I was booked for exceeding the 12nm limit. I was approx 13.5nm out

oh, i thought this 12nm rule was only about the captains boat license not about the boat registration.

i recently did my maltese nautical license test, and it was explained that it allows me (the licensee) to go no further than 12nm from land, but no mention of the vessel.

i just assumed that if i had a high degree of license i could then go wherever i want ... as long as the boat was in condition and equipped to do so safely ...

so what exactly did they fine you for, your boat being the wrong registrations for exceeding 12nm or your license being wrong ?

on a side note i have a friend who has a 60 foot luxury cruiser and he goes to sicily etc no problem, and i think he has a S registration ... though now i am not sure! its definitely not MFA anyway, in which case, what are the other maltese registration classes ? i was only aware of MFA, S.

Quote from: benri on November 24, 2011, 15:25:52 CET
Yes I did. I was booked for exceeding the 12nm limit. I was approx 13.5nm out

I also was stopped by the patrol boat this summer while being some 15 knm out, they asked for the VHF and took particulars and asked us to head towards land. Maybe they were in a good mood than.  

@geekorgy in this link you might find some answers for your questions I think very useful

http://www.smemalta.com/downloads/Opri%20tal-Bahar.pdf

@Geekorgy:  This is what the regulations stipulate.

All vessels over 6 mtrs and either registered MFA, MFB or MFC must also be registered with Transport Malta's small ships registrar 'Valletta'.  All the above vessels are allowed to conduct fishing activites in the 25Nmile Malta territorial fishing zone and over

All vessels under 6mtr may also be registered as MFA, MFB and MFC, however, they are not allowed to venture beyond the 12 Nmile Malta territorial waters limit.

All Vessels over 6mtr (E.g. Yachts, cabin cruisers, ect,) may opt to register either with the Small Ships registrar, thus gaining the advantage of going beyond the 12Nmile zone
OR
Register as 'S' and thus are limited to the 12 Nmile zone, irrispective of size.


Classification of vessels:
MFA - Full time commercial fishing vessel
MFB - Part Time commercial fishing vessel
MFC - Recreational fishing vessel (fishing is restricted to recreational activities, no surface long lines, no nets, etc)

VALLETTA - TM small ships regristry for vessels over 6mtr in length- vessels are allowed to go beyond the 12 Kmile malta territorial zone

'S' Registration - Vessel is only allowed to navigate inside the 12 Nmile zone irrispective of size, make and model.

Your nautical licence has nothing to do with vessel registration.  Your nautical licence covers you to skipper vessels used for recreational activites that are powered by engines over 30HP.

Captains who skipper vessels registered for commercial use (e.g harbour cruise vessels, tug boats, fishing charters, ect) must be in posession of a Yacht Masters Certificate before they can skipper such vessels.   

Hope this clarifies any misconceptions that exist.

@fisheye - I was stopped first time same as you but believe me your particulars were taken and they'll recognise you the second time :(

Quote from: The_Gaffer on November 25, 2011, 10:12:35 CET
@Geekorgy:  This is what the regulations stipulate.

All vessels over 6 mtrs and either registered MFA, MFB or MFC must also be registered with Transport Malta's small ships registrar 'Valletta'.  All the above vessels are allowed to conduct fishing activites in the 25Nmile Malta territorial fishing zone and over

All vessels under 6mtr may also be registered as MFA, MFB and MFC, however, they are not allowed to venture beyond the 12 Nmile Malta territorial waters limit.

All Vessels over 6mtr (E.g. Yachts, cabin cruisers, ect,) may opt to register either with the Small Ships registrar, thus gaining the advantage of going beyond the 12Nmile zone
OR
Register as 'S' and thus are limited to the 12 Nmile zone, irrispective of size.


Classification of vessels:
MFA - Full time commercial fishing vessel
MFB - Part Time commercial fishing vessel
MFC - Recreational fishing vessel (fishing is restricted to recreational activities, no surface long lines, no nets, etc)

VALLETTA - TM small ships regristry for vessels over 6mtr in length- vessels are allowed to go beyond the 12 Kmile malta territorial zone

'S' Registration - Vessel is only allowed to navigate inside the 12 Nmile zone irrispective of size, make and model.

Your nautical licence has nothing to do with vessel registration.  Your nautical licence covers you to skipper vessels used for recreational activites that are powered by engines over 30HP.

Captains who skipper vessels registered for commercial use (e.g harbour cruise vessels, tug boats, fishing charters, ect) must be in posession of a Yacht Masters Certificate before they can skipper such vessels.   

Hope this clarifies any misconceptions that exist.

Wow, now thats informative, thanks very much!

Well, my boat is over 6 meters, but i have just the maltese nautical license, so to legally go further i guess i need to;
- obtain an MFC registration (i suppose this is just a formality ?)
- obtain a yachtmaster cert (which i will be doing for next summer)

thanks again for the info!

i assure you its not a formality

it is a hethic beurocratic process!

I'm sorry to disapoint you Geekorgy, but you misunderstood my post.  You say you have a boat which is over 6 Mtrs.  My question to you is:
Under what registration classification is your boat licenced?

If its an 'S' registration, they you need to get it registered with the small ships regisrar under 'VALLETTA'.  You do not require an MFC licence to go beyond the Kmile territorial limit.

If on the other hand your boat is already registered as 'Valletta' then you havve no problem

Again, may I stress that your personal nautical licence has nothing to do with the limit you are allowed to go beyond territorial waters.  In this case, it's boat size and type of registration of vessel that matters.

Quote from: The_Gaffer on November 25, 2011, 15:11:18 CET
I'm sorry to disapoint you Geekorgy, but you misunderstood my post.  You say you have a boat which is over 6 Mtrs.  My question to you is:
Under what registration classification is your boat licenced?

If its an 'S' registration, they you need to get it registered with the small ships regisrar under 'VALLETTA'.  You do not require an MFC licence to go beyond the Kmile territorial limit.

If on the other hand your boat is already registered as 'Valletta' then you havve no problem

Again, may I stress that your personal nautical licence has nothing to do with the limit you are allowed to go beyond territorial waters.  In this case, it's boat size and type of registration of vessel that matters.

ahh i see, yes okay understood!

thankyou very much that makes sense :)

jien gbajd najdlek kif tarafom lol

Quote from: The_Gaffer on November 25, 2011, 10:12:35 CET
@Geekorgy:  This is what the regulations stipulate.

All vessels over 6 mtrs and either registered MFA, MFB or MFC must also be registered with Transport Malta's small ships registrar 'Valletta'.  All the above vessels are allowed to conduct fishing activites in the 25Nmile Malta territorial fishing zone and over

All vessels under 6mtr may also be registered as MFA, MFB and MFC, however, they are not allowed to venture beyond the 12 Nmile Malta territorial waters limit.

All Vessels over 6mtr (E.g. Yachts, cabin cruisers, ect,) may opt to register either with the Small Ships registrar, thus gaining the advantage of going beyond the 12Nmile zone
OR
Register as 'S' and thus are limited to the 12 Nmile zone, irrispective of size.


Classification of vessels:
MFA - Full time commercial fishing vessel
MFB - Part Time commercial fishing vessel
MFC - Recreational fishing vessel (fishing is restricted to recreational activities, no surface long lines, no nets, etc)

VALLETTA - TM small ships regristry for vessels over 6mtr in length- vessels are allowed to go beyond the 12 Kmile malta territorial zone

'S' Registration - Vessel is only allowed to navigate inside the 12 Nmile zone irrispective of size, make and model.

Your nautical licence has nothing to do with vessel registration.  Your nautical licence covers you to skipper vessels used for recreational activites that are powered by engines over 30HP.

Captains who skipper vessels registered for commercial use (e.g harbour cruise vessels, tug boats, fishing charters, ect) must be in posession of a Yacht Masters Certificate before they can skipper such vessels.   

Hope this clarifies any misconceptions that exist.

For someone coming from England and hoping to soon be enjoying a bit of sport fishing in what I thought was an easy going place, this thread is mind boggling. As if cimi's, cima's, fad's and heavy penalties for catching what sounds like it's the most plentiful fish in the sea weren't enough to scramble my brain, it sounds like I also need to ensure that the boat has more documentation than an Afghan attempting to enter America and a cannon on board to fight off the pirates.

This sure don't sound like a leisure activity ! 

what can i say ''The Darkman'' Welcome to Malta............

apart from that if you are in Bugibba, St Pauls bay join the Amateur fishing club and its much easier to know what to do. Usually clubs organise their own fad's (cimi) so if u are a member u can fish these fads.

Thanks for the welcome shanook. I'm sure my initial head shaking is just down to being the noob in town. At least I hope so   ::)

My base is likely to be Mjarr, but if not it'll definately be somewhere on Gozo. I imagine that once I've had a good look around the forum I'll find a club that's suitable for my location, but any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Tight lines   ;)