February — stay home at weekends, go to the Miami Boat Show or fumble around with minor repairs to the boat or fishing gear. Pretty much the only choices for the angler at this juncture.

There are a few wahoo offshore and a tiny bit of tuna action but getting out continuously enough to establish any sort of movements or concentrations of bait or game fish is proving nigh on impossible, making it really a “catch as catch can” situation.

As always, working the bottom for hinds, barbers and coneys is the surest bet for some fresh fish. Closer to home is the channel. While a little too cool for whitewater snappers, there are usually some turbots that are willing to please and these also provide firm white fillets. Not much excitement for the sportsman but an alternative to staying home and defrosting a pack of imported frozen fish.

Something that just about everyone agrees on is that the fishing here last year was pretty much the worst ever. Something else that seems to have slipped people’s minds, but which the meteorological people have pointed out, is the truly unseasonable winter that was last year. February and March were considerably warmer than usual and the gales few and far between.

That latter bit is the part that stands out. The normal pattern is a sequence of calm days with light easterly winds that see the breeze move into the south, increasing as it moves around the compass with gale or near gale winds howling out of the west or northwest before swinging north and dropping right out to the calm. This is what we are seeing at present and while it means cold, damp and windy days for the most part, it is also a return to the normal situation.

Suspecting, as we do, that the weather, ocean conditions and fishing all relate to each other in some arcane way, maybe there is some correlation between a proper winter and a predictable summer fishing season. Maybe there isn’t but this is something worth bearing in mind a few months hence; and maybe we will have learned something.

Although it looks and feels like winter, offshore there are numbers of whales to be seen. By all accounts, these are humpbacks, the species more usually associated with the spring. These whales do migrate from the Caribbean past Bermuda on their way to the rich northern feeding grounds off New England and the Canadian Maritimes during the spring and that is when we usually encounter them. We do not often see them making their way back south in the autumn, so what is out there now is either some sort of anomaly or an indication that an early spring is on the away — sort of like a groundhog.

An angling-related exercise that should be attractive to the landlocked angler and which might prove profitable is the month-long IGFA Angler’s Choice Contest. While the real value of this competition is questionable, it does provide some insight into the extent of the records granted by the IGFA during the course of a year.

Participation is easy, for the computer literate. Existing IGFA members merely need to log into their account and follow the prompts. Happily, the contest is also open to non-members who only need to provide an e-mail address and name to create a free account that allows them to cast their vote.

Sign — up and voting can be done at www.igfa.org/anglerschoice. Just follow the instructions and cast a vote. The catch that receives the most votes will receive the Angler’s Choice Award at a ceremony this year.

Everyone casting a vote is entered into a draw to win a world-class ice chest, which is ideal for fishing, boating or picnicking.

The choices are highly varied, including some freshwater fish along with the expected saltwater species. Many of the fish were released after being weighed and measured, something a bit alien to local anglers here in Bermuda.

Things are not as simple as they may seem. Most local anglers will be drawn to the 500lb-plus blue marlin caught on light line or the familiar wahoo that set a new light-tackle record. But, to be realistic, most of the voters will come from the land that holds most of the world records, the United States. To the country lad from Arkansas who has spent his life trying to catch a 15lb largemouth bass, those sea-monsters just don’t measure up and, as such, aren’t likely to get his vote.

It appears that multiple votes are encouraged, so perhaps the best shot at being a winner is to cast a whole bunch and then hope to get lucky. It is also possible to view a running tally on where the votes are going and that might also be interesting.

Looking ahead, the BGFA should be putting out the 2015 tournament schedule shortly and that will allow some to plan their summer entertainment. In the absence of that document, the rest of us will look to late March or early April to herald the start of the recognised angling season and a realistic shot at some Tight Lines!