IT is hard to believe that winter can come and go so quickly. In the matter of four or five hours the temperature drops 15 degrees and the winds go from light to gale force, introducing a rather unhappy factor called "wind chill".

That was certainly the case last weekend and, given the high winds and the accompanying seas, it is nothing short of amazing that anyone managed to get in any fishing time at all.

The fact of the matter is that the professionals who depend on fishing for their incomes have to be able to recognise an impending fishable day and then to take advantage of it. It is equally true that there are lots of so-called fishermen who abandon all pretence of making a living from fishing during the winter to indulge in other, more profitable pursuits.

So, the information is rather thin on the ground.

What can be gathered from the rather isolated reports from the offshore is that the yellowfin tuna are continuing to hold court pretty much all around the Island. At the moment some success is being had, notably, at the East End and on the Banks but there is every reason to expect that Sally Tucker's and down north will also produce fish. The key, as is always with chumming, is to get a good lie with a tide that takes the chum to where the fish should be. It would help if you could guarantee that the fish are, in fact, there but unless you have seen them jumping or otherwise showing on the surface, it really is a matter of faith.

The usual spots seem to be where the action is. The south-eastern turn of Challenger Bank has seen some fairly steady action for West End boats while the south-eastern tip of Bermuda's Edge has been the hot spot for boats based in St. George's or St. David's.

Part of the problem is that the commercial boats are not really interested in any more tuna. The fact of the matter is that the fish market pretty much dries up after Christmas and New Year. This is because of restaurant closings, reduced tourism and things are even worse this year with the closures resulting from our good friend Fabian.

Because of this, the boats actually going offshore have been looking for fish that will fill the niche markets provided by roadside selling and a few specialities, the most obvious one of which is lobster and that is