Don't know about you but i'm sitting at home getting fed up with the cold weather and my mind has started to wander to warmer times.

And I've never done this before, but, I've set myself targets for this summer and autumn!! ok maybe a bit  extreme, but here goes.

On the sea side of things, oops excuse the pun, this spring I would like to catch a thornback ray over 15 lbs I nearly had one last year but it managed to get itself round a pier pile, grrr!!. I would like to catch a bass over 8 lbs, I always find that when the thornbacks are running there's always a few big bass with them. Am I getting carried away here, just tell me!!

St Osyth beach is going to be my next venue as the summer moves on, early June  and I'm going to have a few trips for the stingrays, they haven't really shown in the last few seasons, although I'm sure if I try hard enough there's going to be one there to be caught, I don't care about the size as I've had them to over 50 lbs off the beach but that was years ago, so any stingray will do.

That's going to take me well into June, so next on my list is smoothounds!! I did have some off the pier the year before last but nothing over 5 lbs, so I'm going to head south to Selsey for a bigger one, has to be over 10 lbs though!!  and if that's not enough I've got Ardleigh reservoir to fish for the carp and I really would like one over 40 lbs my biggest there is 32 lbs no mean feat but it's worth a try!! and some of the bream are massive so that's another target.

Getting near to August now and this one really is a big target and I guess you all think I might be mad, but and it's a big but, it's a conger eel!!   ok so now your thinking I'm mad, we don't get conger eels on the Essex coast, oh yes we do, every time we have a real bad winter and I'm talking really bad, minus 5 for a least a couple of weeks, then and only then do we get congers washed up on the beach. Congers can't stand sub zero conditions. I have found loads washed up on the beach from 50 lbs to a 120 lbs!! and all of theses fish have been found within 200 yards either side of Walton pier, so it doesn't take rocket science to work out where they have come from!!. Think I'm going to stop there, because if I get 50 percent of my targets I'll be pleased. So much to do, if you think I'm a complete nutter tell me, I'll still go and do it..Tightlines Jonpop