By Ryan Barroff
Photography by Vincent Starr
Why do we need to go out so far?’ asks my nervous companion as the catamaran plummets once more from the top of a white-capped wave. We’re onboard skipper Andrew Alsop’s boat – the appropriately named White Water – and we’re set to go shark fishing, accompanied by award-winning sport fisherman Andy Griffith.
Stormy weather
Clearly it’s not a great day for heading out to sea. ‘It’s too stormy to go out,’ confirms skipper Alsop as he slows the boat’s outboard engines and waits for a safe gap in the waves before turning the boat back home.
Alsop is considered the best shark boat skipper in Europe and runs sport-fishing trips from Neyland, Pembrokeshire, Wales. He takes anglers out into the Irish Sea, giving his all to help them reel in one of the 21 species of shark that have been recorded in UK waters, including blue, porbeagle, thresher and, for the first time in decades, the short-fin mako.
A prized short-fin mako catch – this shark is a close relation of the great white
In angling terms, catching a mako is the stuff of dreams. Fast, strong and aggressive, this close relation to the great white is torpedo-shaped and able to swim at speeds estimated to be up to 46mph, though it could be significantly quicker. It’s the fastest fish in the sea, so fast in fact that no one has ever been able to measure its speed.
Record catch
Within its first year of operation White Water has seen a number of records achieved on deck, including the six-foot, 194lb mako catch in July 2013, the first time this shark has been caught since 1971!
Griffith caught two other shark species – nine blue sharks and a porbeagle – to achieve a ‘Grand Slam’ marking the first time three species of shark have been caught on the same day.
‘Was the boat significant in that?’ I ask Alsop. ‘Yes!’ interrupts Griffith excitedly, ‘no other boat would have been able to keep up with a mako. It would have outrun us.’
Shark protection
Alsop operates a strict catch-and-release policy to maintain the health of the shark population. All eleven of the sharks caught by Griffith were unhooked and returned to the sea alive.
Andrew Alsop’s boat, White Water
Alsop’s boat is an agile, stable and spacious 9.2-metre Cheetah Marine catamaran. Its large 15m2 deck provides lots of empty fishing space for landing sharks but it’s the unusual addition of two Honda 200hp marine outboard engines that make it so useful for shark fishing in these waters.
Honda outboards battle rough seas
For British waters, shark boats have traditionally been fitted with diesel inboard engines, but the Honda outboards that propel this boat are robust enough to deal with such rough sea conditions.
The impressive speed of these Honda engines wins anglers more fishing time out on the water
‘These engines are fast, powerful and reliable and these Honda 200hp outboards are more economical than a normal diesel engine,’ explains Alsop.
‘Also if an engine needs repair the shut-down time is much lower and you don’t have to lift the boat out of the water. Best of all, the speed of these engines means anglers get more fishing time as we can get out to sea and return quicker at the end of a long day.’
And White Water is quick. During our trip, even in such heavy seas, we achieved a speed of almost 25 knots – in calmer conditions the boat has been measured at 37 knots.
At times the waves obscure the view of the headland that I’m trying to keep an eye on in order to stay ahead of my stomach, which is mirroring the turbulence of the sea.
Clearly, there’ll be no fishing in this weather. Instead we enjoy Alsop and Griffith’s fishing anecdotes and learn of superstitions including Alsop’s strict no bananas on board rule, and blasting out ACDC’s Thunderstruck every time they leave shore as White Water powers across the sea. Today, even a short trip out on this boat has been adventure enough.
