0:00:02 > 0:00:03For hundreds of years,
0:00:03 > 0:00:05small fishing boats have set sail to bring home
0:00:05 > 0:00:08the riches of our coastal waters.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13He's got one, he's caught a monkfish, yes!
0:00:13 > 0:00:15But fishing is changing.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20Deep sea trawlers are replacing traditional boats.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Fish stocks are in decline
0:00:22 > 0:00:25and fishermen are getting a bad name.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31Hour after hour, day after day, I've lowered fish through that hatch.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Can that level of fishing
0:00:33 > 0:00:36be sustained long term into the future?
0:00:36 > 0:00:39While the big boats land vast quantities of fish,
0:00:39 > 0:00:41our small boats are in crisis.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44Can they survive the threats to their future?
0:00:45 > 0:00:46It's a tricky time
0:00:46 > 0:00:49and it's going to be for another few more years yet.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52Marine biologist Monty Halls
0:00:52 > 0:00:56is going to explore the challenges facing our fishing industry,
0:00:56 > 0:00:57but from the inside.
0:01:00 > 0:01:04After completing his apprenticeship Monty is about to go it alone.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08This is a whole new world, it really is.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11But catching fish will be a challenge for a beginner.
0:01:12 > 0:01:15'It's really easy to end up the day
0:01:15 > 0:01:18'with your pockets turned out completely empty,'
0:01:18 > 0:01:21no fish on the deck and wondering what went wrong.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24Empty. Imagine if I was doing this to feed my family -
0:01:24 > 0:01:27this would be an unmitigated disaster for me.
0:01:27 > 0:01:31To make ends meet, he'll crew for local skippers.
0:01:31 > 0:01:34Very different working environment for me today.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38But rough seas give Monty his toughest test yet...
0:01:40 > 0:01:42RETCHING
0:01:42 > 0:01:44Try not to spew over the fish!
0:01:44 > 0:01:47..and his mission is put in jeopardy.
0:01:48 > 0:01:52I thought I'd let everyone down, a dark day for me.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56Just how difficult is it to make a living from the sea?
0:01:56 > 0:01:58I looked at him and thought,
0:01:58 > 0:02:01"Never," you know, "just ain't going to happen, is it?"
0:02:14 > 0:02:18Lying at the tip of the Lizard peninsula on Cornwall's south coast,
0:02:18 > 0:02:23Cadgwith has been a working fishing cove for more than 700 years.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27Today, eight skippers launch their boats off the beach.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30They're about to be joined by a novice fisherman.
0:02:30 > 0:02:335.30 in the morning, I'm going to wander down
0:02:33 > 0:02:37to the beach in a second, to start prepping all the gear.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41There's a certain amount of sort of credibility on the line, I think.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44It's all very well having shiny new kit
0:02:44 > 0:02:47and declaring that you're going to be this fisherman...
0:02:47 > 0:02:52but, er...you've got to walk the walk.
0:02:55 > 0:02:56It's June.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59Since arriving in Cadgwith three weeks ago,
0:02:59 > 0:03:03Monty has been apprentice to 61-year-old Nigel Legge, skipper of Razorbill.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10You know what to do now. It's down to the crab now.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14You haven't got that many pots,
0:03:14 > 0:03:17- but you've got to start somewhere... - Yeah.- ..so this is it.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22Can he earn the respect not just of his mentor,
0:03:22 > 0:03:24but of the cove's other fishermen?
0:03:25 > 0:03:27You can't be thinking about other things,
0:03:27 > 0:03:30you've got to be literally concentrating on what you're doing.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33'Got to get his technique right,
0:03:33 > 0:03:35'get his pots lined up on the boat.'
0:03:35 > 0:03:38He won't be getting tangled up in the gear
0:03:38 > 0:03:41- and getting lost. - HE LAUGHS
0:03:41 > 0:03:42Poor old boy!
0:03:42 > 0:03:45- See you later, mate.- Cheers.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51It's not easy for Nigel -
0:03:51 > 0:03:55Razorbill has never been launched from the cove without him.
0:03:57 > 0:04:01It's a strange feeling, really. It is only a boat after all,
0:04:01 > 0:04:04but I suppose you do get attached to them, really.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08He's on his way now, that's it, job done.
0:04:09 > 0:04:10Gone.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22Monty hopes that running his own boat will help him to understand
0:04:22 > 0:04:25the economic pressures facing our small boat fishermen.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27For the next three weeks,
0:04:27 > 0:04:30he wants to try and earn at least £100 a day from fishing.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34This amount would be enough to cover his main running costs
0:04:34 > 0:04:37fuel and bait and make a small profit.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40It's a big transition in a short period, this.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43It's a very different thing from anything I've ever done before.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47It's a big old chunk of knowledge to bite off in three weeks.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50Not only have you got to do it and try and operate safely,
0:04:50 > 0:04:54I've got to do it to try and operate and actually make some money.
0:05:00 > 0:05:0212 freshly-baited pots are attached at intervals
0:05:02 > 0:05:05to a length of rope, known as a "string".
0:05:08 > 0:05:12Released as the boat is moving, the pots are spread across the seabed,
0:05:12 > 0:05:16maximising the bait's exposure to their target - brown crab.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29Nigel has advised Monty to shoot his pots onto sandy areas of seabed,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33fertile ground for crab, and to make sure that take he avoids areas
0:05:33 > 0:05:35where other skippers are already fishing.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39Over the course of the day, Monty successfully deploys
0:05:39 > 0:05:4248 pots on four strings.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45They will be ready to check in two days' time.
0:05:58 > 0:06:03- Well, Nige, I survived. I think that's one of the keys. - Yeah, you've done all right.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06Whether we'll find the pots again is another matter!
0:06:07 > 0:06:10Everything you told me, Nige, everything you taught me,
0:06:10 > 0:06:12doing stuff slowly was the key.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15You've got bait in the pots, they're good pots,
0:06:15 > 0:06:19they're in the water and it'll be quite interesting even for me.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21- Who knows? - Random pot placement as well.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Yeah, that's going to be very random, I think.
0:06:24 > 0:06:29- Can I buy you a cup of tea?- A cup of tea and a jam and cream scone! It'd be very nice.- Excellent.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32I might even have one of those doughnuts, actually.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34- I might have a jam and cream scone.- Yeah.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49This is the morning I haul my pots for the first time.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53You can see the fleet behind me. The guys are all bustling about,
0:06:53 > 0:06:56all just getting ready to go out for the day.
0:06:56 > 0:07:01I think there's considerable interest in actually how I get on,
0:07:01 > 0:07:04you know, how many crabs I put up.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07I'm a totally random factor here,
0:07:07 > 0:07:09so it'll be really interesting, not just for me,
0:07:09 > 0:07:12but for everyone else to see how many crabs I get today.
0:07:19 > 0:07:20And we're off.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Down to Monty today, really.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27Providing he finds the pots, if he remembers where he puts them!
0:07:29 > 0:07:32He'll be all right. He can't do no more - he baited the pots,
0:07:32 > 0:07:35he put them out, you can't do no more than that.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38The pots are ready to be hauled.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41It's Monty's first opportunity to earn some money.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43Come on, where are you?
0:07:45 > 0:07:50Previously, Nigel taught Monty to take marks from coastal features to find his pots.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54Monty forgot to do this when he deployed his pots two days ago.
0:07:54 > 0:07:56Come on!
0:07:58 > 0:08:02If I wanted to go and be a shepherd, I would probably struggle,
0:08:02 > 0:08:07you know, or a pig farmer, or I don't know, a chicken...whatever.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09I would struggle because I don't know the job.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13It's no different from Monty coming to our world, if you like.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15It's easy when someone else is doing the job,
0:08:15 > 0:08:18but when you've got to do it on your own and try and remember...
0:08:18 > 0:08:22Because out there everything looks the same, and trying to gauge
0:08:22 > 0:08:25where you put them pots takes a lot of figuring out.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30It's really easy to get it wrong
0:08:30 > 0:08:32and to end up the day
0:08:32 > 0:08:35with your pockets turned out completely empty,
0:08:35 > 0:08:39no fish on the deck and wondering what went wrong.
0:08:40 > 0:08:45An hour later, Monty is still searching, wasting precious fuel.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49The sea feels a very different place without Nigel on board.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54I really do need to find these buoys.
0:08:55 > 0:08:57They're out here somewhere.
0:09:00 > 0:09:03Got one on the bow, thank goodness!
0:09:05 > 0:09:07The relief is considerable.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13It's easy to forget the sort of stress of trying to find
0:09:13 > 0:09:17where the pots are, that this is the first time I'm hauling my pots.
0:09:19 > 0:09:20It's a huge moment for me.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29One crab, not going to set the world on fire...
0:09:29 > 0:09:31but that's a keeper.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34You know, there's an awful lot gone into that crab,
0:09:34 > 0:09:37a lot of time, a lot of effort by Nige,
0:09:37 > 0:09:41and I think it's of a size, so... there we go.
0:09:44 > 0:09:46Come on, fella.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52A shellfish wholesaler visits the cove each day
0:09:52 > 0:09:54to buy the fishermen's catch.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57Monty will be selling to the same wholesaler.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00He'll need to catch around 75kg of crab
0:10:00 > 0:10:04to hit his £100 daily target.
0:10:04 > 0:10:07For commercial reasons, the wholesaler has a minimum landing weight
0:10:07 > 0:10:10unless Monty lands at least 15kg,
0:10:10 > 0:10:12his catch will not be bought.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14Nothing in that one.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16To conserve juvenile stocks,
0:10:16 > 0:10:20- undersized crabs must be returned to the sea.- Back he goes.
0:10:24 > 0:10:25No, too small.
0:10:25 > 0:10:27Another empty pot.
0:10:27 > 0:10:29So far...
0:10:29 > 0:10:31four pots up, one crab.
0:10:39 > 0:10:44Monty's first 12 pots yield just two saleable crabs.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47The other strings are equally disappointing.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Empty. Imagine if I was doing this to feed my family
0:10:50 > 0:10:52and have bills to pay and a mortgage -
0:10:52 > 0:10:55this would be an unmitigated disaster for me.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58We all have this romantic notion of fishing, don't we?
0:10:58 > 0:11:02And I did to a degree. There's nothing romantic about this.
0:11:04 > 0:11:09From 48 pots, Monty has caught just five kilos of crab.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13He has fallen well short of the wholesaler's minimum landing requirement.
0:11:17 > 0:11:21Monty can only watch as the other skippers sell their catch.
0:11:29 > 0:11:35I genuinely thought at the start of this little fishing phase,
0:11:35 > 0:11:39having been taught by Nige, that I would turn over enough
0:11:39 > 0:11:41to at least cover my costs.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44500 kilos is an outstanding day -
0:11:44 > 0:11:47I caught 5kg.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51It's embarrassing more than anything...
0:11:51 > 0:11:56and you know, very sobering about how much I've still got to learn.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00Monty is beginning to realise how hard it is to earn a living
0:12:00 > 0:12:02as a small boat fisherman.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07'Everyone's been through it, but a lot of us,'
0:12:07 > 0:12:11it was passed down from the older generation, if you like,
0:12:11 > 0:12:15you know, where to go, where to catch fish,
0:12:15 > 0:12:17and a lot of it you find trial and error yourself.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21And you aren't going to learn that in three weeks.
0:12:21 > 0:12:22It's not going to happen.
0:12:23 > 0:12:28'Lots of little things add up to doing the job properly.'
0:12:28 > 0:12:31The way the bait is put in, the size of the bait,
0:12:31 > 0:12:33where the pots are put, obviously.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38'You need guile and perseverance and tenacity,
0:12:38 > 0:12:40'and you need to...'
0:12:40 > 0:12:43I was going to say get inside the mind of a crab.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45It's probably a very small space.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50You begin to understand the way they work.
0:12:52 > 0:12:56You know, I know the tides and the wind and you just...
0:12:57 > 0:12:59That's just local knowledge.
0:12:59 > 0:13:03But local knowledge is closely guarded.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07'Never tell anybody anything, keep everything under your hat.'
0:13:07 > 0:13:12If you let slip that you've had a decent catch,
0:13:12 > 0:13:15you can be sure to find three boats there the next morning
0:13:15 > 0:13:19because everybody's fairly desperate.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22'Some fishermen will talk quite openly about what they've caught
0:13:22 > 0:13:24'and some won't say a word.'
0:13:24 > 0:13:30You can always ask them in the pub about midnight. You might find something out...
0:13:30 > 0:13:34but...you've got to read in-between the lines as well, you know.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37- You just... It's all part of the game. - HE LAUGHS
0:13:37 > 0:13:40It's all part of the game.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46It's day four.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48The weather has turned
0:13:48 > 0:13:50and the beach is deserted.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52For today at least,
0:13:52 > 0:13:54no boats will be going to sea.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01It's my first proper blow in Cadgwith
0:14:01 > 0:14:04and it's pretty uncompromising out there.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07So for today, none of the fleet will be going anywhere
0:14:07 > 0:14:12and it's another day on the beach of not earning any money.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15And that just adds to the pressure, and I can feel this urge
0:14:15 > 0:14:19to try and get out there, to try and push Razorbill out,
0:14:19 > 0:14:23into the swell and into the waves. Could I do it, could I not do it?
0:14:23 > 0:14:27Those decisions are made every day by every single one of these skippers
0:14:27 > 0:14:32and it's all part of that pressure to get out and potentially put yourself in a dangerous situation.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37Skipper John Tonkins, known locally as Tonks,
0:14:37 > 0:14:39is repairing gear in his workshop.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43You'll go out when it's fairy rough, won't you, Tonks?
0:14:43 > 0:14:45Yeah. Oh, yeah.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48It's just today, it's tide as well,
0:14:48 > 0:14:50- big spring tide...- Right.- Wind.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53But that's quite a lot of pressure on you, isn't it,
0:14:53 > 0:14:57to stand on the beach and think, "I've got to get out today"?
0:14:57 > 0:15:02The biggest pressure is probably walking away and saying, "No, I'm not going," on the iffy days.
0:15:02 > 0:15:06What are your costs of running that boat, how would you break that down?
0:15:06 > 0:15:07- Extortionate.- Right.
0:15:08 > 0:15:10Insurance...
0:15:11 > 0:15:13..diesel...
0:15:13 > 0:15:14bait...
0:15:14 > 0:15:16crew wages...
0:15:16 > 0:15:17gear...
0:15:19 > 0:15:22..keeping the whole cove running - winch fees, tractor fees,
0:15:22 > 0:15:24tractor insurance. I know we all pay it as a unit,
0:15:24 > 0:15:28but it's still a cost. It all needs to be taken into consideration.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32- Those costs don't go away, do they? - No, no. There's still the insurance.
0:15:32 > 0:15:36- If I sit there for three weeks, the insurance still gets paid.- Yeah.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39You've just got to go every day you can.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43Tomorrow might be windy, or the whole of November might be windy.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46Because you've just got to keep plugging away.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50- So why do you do it?- I don't know.
0:15:50 > 0:15:51You've got to love the job to do it,
0:15:51 > 0:15:55for sure, but it is a way of life.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58As you will find here, it takes a bit of beating.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04Britain's inshore fishing fleet is made up
0:16:04 > 0:16:06of nearly 6,000 small boats,
0:16:06 > 0:16:09each under 10 metres in length.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11Unlike deep-sea trawlers
0:16:11 > 0:16:14inshore boats are at the mercy of the weather.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16Without the protection of a harbour wall,
0:16:16 > 0:16:19Cadgwith's fleet is particularly vulnerable.
0:16:20 > 0:16:25On average, the boats are forced to remain ashore for four months a year.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28While this prevents over-fishing
0:16:28 > 0:16:32it makes for an unpredictable, and often precarious, livelihood.
0:16:32 > 0:16:37But making a living is not always what drives fishermen to sea.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40The main thing about it was the freedom...
0:16:41 > 0:16:46..the sudden freedom from the land and everything to do with it,
0:16:46 > 0:16:50and it's still the same for me when I untie the boat in the morning
0:16:50 > 0:16:55and I turn out through the gaps and head out to sea and that's it,
0:16:55 > 0:16:59I put the land and everything to do with it behind me.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02'You're allowed to be yourself
0:17:02 > 0:17:05'and you don't really have to be anybody else to do anything.'
0:17:05 > 0:17:08You don't have to wear a suit because that's what you need.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11You've got to put oilers on, only just to protect you
0:17:11 > 0:17:15from the weather, but that's your suit, you know.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18You've got that sort of certain amount of freedom
0:17:18 > 0:17:22where you can decide to go where you want to go and off you steam,
0:17:22 > 0:17:25you know, you've got that choice.
0:17:25 > 0:17:29So that helps you be yourself and I think that's a good thing.
0:17:29 > 0:17:33Being yourself is a well good thing, I think.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39The weather has settled.
0:17:39 > 0:17:43After two days ashore, the fishermen get back to work.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52I'm always really nervous in the morning, coming down to the beach,
0:17:52 > 0:17:53because of all the activity going on
0:17:53 > 0:17:56and I don't want to make mistakes and things.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58You get a bit tense before the day's fishing,
0:17:58 > 0:18:02and then of course you nose out at the cove, look where you are.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05It's just so, so beautiful.
0:18:05 > 0:18:07Lovely place to have your office.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13Not having been hauled for three days,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16Monty's first pots produce a good return.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20Now that is a decent crab. Big cock crab,
0:18:20 > 0:18:23that's probably...
0:18:23 > 0:18:24£1.50?
0:18:29 > 0:18:32Wahey! My debut lobster.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37It's funny, the financial return of the lobster
0:18:37 > 0:18:41compared to the crabs is... God, there's just no comparison, really.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44It's an animal that takes a very long time to get to this length -
0:18:44 > 0:18:48this is probably, I don't know, seven, eight years old.
0:18:52 > 0:18:57Over six hours, Monty successfully hauls all 48 pots.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05Confident he will meet the minimum landing weight,
0:19:05 > 0:19:07Monty heads back to the cove.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11On the beach, veteran skipper Phil Burgess casts a critical eye
0:19:11 > 0:19:13over his haul.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17For me, intuitively, I'm quite pleased with myself, I'm thinking, "This is good stuff."
0:19:17 > 0:19:20You're chuffed you are, aren't you?
0:19:20 > 0:19:23But some of those are a bit white. If you take the colour
0:19:23 > 0:19:25- you can see the difference, can't you?- Yeah.
0:19:25 > 0:19:29- You want them a bit darker, there's a lot of water in there.- What does it mean when they're white?
0:19:29 > 0:19:33He's changed his shell and he's starting to harden up a bit.
0:19:33 > 0:19:35You want it to be more of this colour, really.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37Same with that one, see the difference?
0:19:37 > 0:19:40So it's kind of quality, not just quantity, is it?
0:19:40 > 0:19:41Yeah, yes.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44So if you were out and pulled up something like that,
0:19:44 > 0:19:46for you that would just go straight back?
0:19:46 > 0:19:48I would chuck it back. I wouldn't bother with that.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51I come round the corner of the cove feeling pleased with myself
0:19:51 > 0:19:55and then duly get crushed on the beach, that's what it's like.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58- If you weren't told, you wouldn't know, would you?- No, exactly.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00That's what it's about, you see the difference.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02Soft-shelled and full of water,
0:20:02 > 0:20:05the unsaleable crabs are returned to the sea.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09They need to be out there, but it is very much
0:20:09 > 0:20:12part of the process of crab fishing on a small scale.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15Individually, you are hand sorting your catch
0:20:15 > 0:20:19and ones that are of low quality, even if they're good size,
0:20:19 > 0:20:22they go straight back until they are of good quality.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25And out there in that bay,
0:20:25 > 0:20:27this fleet has been doing that for centuries
0:20:27 > 0:20:31and that's why I think the crab populations round here
0:20:31 > 0:20:34remain fairly healthy.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36Having returned some of his crabs,
0:20:36 > 0:20:38Monty is now unsure whether he has reached
0:20:38 > 0:20:41the 15kg minimum landing weight.
0:20:43 > 0:20:4816 kilos of crab. I am in business.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52That's the minimum limit that Harveys will take.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57The other skippers are landing big catches,
0:20:57 > 0:20:59but they are tight-lipped about their success.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03No-one particularly wants to tell anyone else what they caught,
0:21:03 > 0:21:08of course, because everyone is sort of vying for the same grounds.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12So you've got to be a bit canny about telling people how much you caught.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15So, Mark, how much did you catch today?
0:21:15 > 0:21:17A little bit less than yesterday.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19Right. There we are.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Lovely, thank you very much, thank you.
0:21:25 > 0:21:31Monty has sold his first catch, 16 kilos of crab, and a lobster.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35His return is just £25, but it's an improvement.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50It's Day 7.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53To supplement his income while his pots are left fishing,
0:21:53 > 0:21:57Monty has found paid work as crew for Tonks.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00Yeah, obviously you know, this boat's different to Razorbill,
0:22:00 > 0:22:02bigger, we work it two-handed.
0:22:02 > 0:22:08Hopefully today we'll haul 350 pots, further offshore,
0:22:08 > 0:22:11it will all be probably a bit awe inspiring to start off with.
0:22:11 > 0:22:16We can't afford to sit around doing nothing, got to get on with the job.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18Tide waits for no man.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26Working onboard one of the cove's most successful shellfish boats,
0:22:26 > 0:22:29today is an opportunity for Monty to learn how a decent return
0:22:29 > 0:22:32can be made from crab fishing.
0:22:32 > 0:22:37Very different working environment for me today.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39It's on a larger scale, kit hurtling off here,
0:22:39 > 0:22:44the roll of the boat is a lot different. A big old swell's coming into us today.
0:22:44 > 0:22:4922-year-old crewman, Brett, was born and raised in Cadgwith.
0:22:49 > 0:22:53His family has been fishing for generations.
0:22:53 > 0:22:55And so you stack how many high?
0:22:55 > 0:22:58You put six at the front and then three or four lots of four,
0:22:58 > 0:23:00then a six and a three, so it's all a bit...
0:23:00 > 0:23:02Blimey, blimey, complicated.
0:23:05 > 0:23:10Monty is fishing in the dangerous tidal waters around Lizard Point for the first time.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17Incredibly dramatic place
0:23:17 > 0:23:21and there's a reason that the pots are here.
0:23:21 > 0:23:25You've got these tides, some of the strongest tides in the UK
0:23:25 > 0:23:29and they're sweeping the reefs all the time, bringing food to the lobsters.
0:23:29 > 0:23:31So it's a very, very rich environment.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34But Razorbill doesn't belong out here, it really doesn't.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52Over the course of the day, 300 pots will be dragged off the boat.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00You do not want to get caught up in that, you really don't.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03- If a pot comes towards you, just stick your foot out.- Right.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14Been on board half an hour, 40 minutes. I'm shattered,
0:24:14 > 0:24:18and we've done as many pots as I'll do all day on Razorbill.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21Very, very efficient, the way everything is laid out,
0:24:21 > 0:24:23this system has evolved over years, you know.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28Quite easy, isn't it? 100 pots down the line,
0:24:28 > 0:24:32you've already got the gist of where it all goes.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36Tonks has recently had some bad news.
0:24:36 > 0:24:40After four years as his crewman, Brett has handed in his notice.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42He'll soon be leaving the cove to skipper a boat
0:24:42 > 0:24:46servicing offshore wind farms in Cumbria.
0:24:46 > 0:24:50It's good money and hopefully I'll be able to put some aside
0:24:50 > 0:24:51towards a boat for myself.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53I suppose it's something you've got to do.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57- You've got to go away.- Got to go away from the cove to earn.
0:24:57 > 0:25:01Do you think it'll happen for you? Do you think you'll end up getting a boat?
0:25:01 > 0:25:04Yeah, it's going to happen one day, I don't know when.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07- That's the problem. - And out of Cadgwith?
0:25:07 > 0:25:12- I want to, yeah, it's my home, been there since I was born, so...- Yeah.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17I'm sure there's somebody out there who wants to travel the world(!)
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- See the sights(!)- Glamour(!)
0:25:20 > 0:25:24- Go on regular mini cruises.- Yeah, someone who wants to live the dream!
0:25:26 > 0:25:29Fishermen do not earn a fixed salary.
0:25:29 > 0:25:34Instead, skipper and crew take their allotted share of each day's catch.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40So, Tonks, as we're closing down the lid on the days' work,
0:25:40 > 0:25:42what do you think we've taken today, roughly?
0:25:42 > 0:25:43Probably about £400.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46What percentage of that is mine?
0:25:46 > 0:25:50- 25%.- 25%, that's pretty much the standard sort of crewing rate?
0:25:50 > 0:25:51Yeah, yeah.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55I've hit my £100 for the today, which is great news.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Today's earnings are split four ways,
0:25:58 > 0:26:03a quarter for each for the crew, the remainder reinvested in the boat.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09I know my limits and my limits are Razorbill at the moment,
0:26:09 > 0:26:14I don't feel that I could be running a boat like this.
0:26:14 > 0:26:16It's too technical, too much expertise involved,
0:26:16 > 0:26:22too much multi-tasking going on and I need to be inshore in Razorbill
0:26:22 > 0:26:24learning my trade, just the same way Brett had to,
0:26:24 > 0:26:28just the same way Tonks had to, as all the lads on the beach had to.
0:26:31 > 0:26:33Today, Tonks has landed around half a tonne of crab
0:26:33 > 0:26:35from several hundred pots.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40These are Tonks's.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43With brown crab fetching around £1.20 a kilo,
0:26:43 > 0:26:47hundreds of pots - thousands of pounds of investment -
0:26:47 > 0:26:51are needed to make a decent living as a crab fisherman.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54As a novice, Monty has neither the finances to invest,
0:26:54 > 0:26:57nor the time to work more pots.
0:26:57 > 0:27:01To reach his £100-a-day target, he needs to change tactics.
0:27:01 > 0:27:05It became pretty obvious with the number of pots that I was fishing
0:27:05 > 0:27:09that there was just no way I could catch enough crab.
0:27:09 > 0:27:11The boats out there will catch half a tonne of crab,
0:27:11 > 0:27:13I was catching 10 kilos.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17If I'd carried on like that, I would have been bankrupt very quickly.
0:27:18 > 0:27:23Monty targets lobster, which is five times more valuable than crab.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27Nigel advises him to use the heavily salted bait that lobsters prefer,
0:27:27 > 0:27:30and to move his pots onto rocky ground close to the cliffs.
0:27:34 > 0:27:38You can see as I'm moving in ever closer to the rocks -
0:27:38 > 0:27:43there's a rationale behind that - the lobsters like the hard ground,
0:27:43 > 0:27:46but of course there is a bit of a risk in it for me as well.
0:27:46 > 0:27:49Lots of hidden hazards here.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52You've got the swell forcing you up against the rocks.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56But it's that balance of risk and return
0:27:56 > 0:28:00that every fisherman in Britain plays every day.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20I'm sort of starting to move into a different league now, I hope.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24I've got a string close in shore there, I've got two strings
0:28:24 > 0:28:27close in shore there, hard up against the cliffs and the rocks.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30And I'm confident my catches are going to go like that,
0:28:30 > 0:28:32when I recover them in a couple of days.
0:28:40 > 0:28:42It's Day 10.
0:28:42 > 0:28:45With the pots requiring time to fish before hauling,
0:28:45 > 0:28:50Monty has found work crewing for local skipper, Danny Philips.
0:28:51 > 0:28:55It's 5.30 in the morning, just got up
0:28:55 > 0:28:59and I've got to be down on the beach by about 6.15
0:28:59 > 0:29:01to go out with Danny.
0:29:01 > 0:29:03And it's a full day's work with Danny, it's well known.
0:29:03 > 0:29:07We're going a little way offshore, it's predicted sort of force five,
0:29:07 > 0:29:11force seven, so it's going to be a tough one today.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16- RADIO:- 'And the UK outlook for the next 24 hours,
0:29:16 > 0:29:20'strong to gale force south-westerly winds, but becoming stormy.
0:29:20 > 0:29:22'There are warnings of gales... '
0:29:22 > 0:29:27The beach is deserted except for Danny and his crewman Perry.
0:29:27 > 0:29:30The conditions out at sea cannot be good,
0:29:30 > 0:29:34Scorpio is the only boat heading out today.
0:29:34 > 0:29:39Most of the fleet use pots to hunt lobster and crab.
0:29:39 > 0:29:43Danny is different, he fishes only with nets.
0:29:43 > 0:29:48So we're netting for monk and we're doing it a long way off shore. It's going to be a big day for me.
0:29:48 > 0:29:51This is proper fishing.
0:29:51 > 0:29:56Danny has reluctantly agreed to take Monty on as crew.
0:29:56 > 0:29:58Fishing offshore in difficult conditions
0:29:58 > 0:30:01is no place for a beginner.
0:30:02 > 0:30:06Nets cast two days ago are now ready to be hauled.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09Forming a metre-high curtain a mile across the sea floor,
0:30:09 > 0:30:13these nets are designed to catch bottom-dwelling fish like cod,
0:30:13 > 0:30:16ray, and today's target, monkfish.
0:30:19 > 0:30:23I've always said, working is for people that don't know how to catch fish.
0:30:23 > 0:30:26It isn't like a job to me,
0:30:26 > 0:30:29I enjoy it, I just love catching fish,
0:30:29 > 0:30:34and nobody here to tell you what to do, you are your own man out here.
0:30:34 > 0:30:36In some European waters,
0:30:36 > 0:30:40monkfish stocks have been severely depleted by deep-sea trawlers.
0:30:40 > 0:30:43By contrast, those caught in the south-west
0:30:43 > 0:30:45with static nets, like Danny's,
0:30:45 > 0:30:49have become the most sustainable stocks in Europe.
0:30:49 > 0:30:52- How much is that worth, Danny? - 20 quid.
0:30:52 > 0:30:5320 quid, that's not bad.
0:30:53 > 0:30:57Get a few of them and your trip's starting to make sense.
0:31:00 > 0:31:04Just over an hour into the trip, Monty is starting to feel unwell.
0:31:06 > 0:31:10Imagine doing a Rubik's Cube on a bouncy castle
0:31:10 > 0:31:12when you don't feel very well.
0:31:12 > 0:31:13That's what this is like.
0:31:17 > 0:31:21A few minutes later, his condition has deteriorated further.
0:31:26 > 0:31:33Basically, feeling as sick as the proverbial dog at the moment.
0:31:33 > 0:31:37Which is really annoying, but nothing you can do about it.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39He ain't looking the best.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44He's gone a bit green around the gills.
0:31:52 > 0:31:57RETCHES VIOLENTLY
0:32:11 > 0:32:13You're going to have to go back aft again, Monty.
0:32:13 > 0:32:15Safer if you sit back there.
0:32:16 > 0:32:18Try not to spew over the fish.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29Danny has little sympathy.
0:32:29 > 0:32:31He's only halfway through hauling his nets
0:32:31 > 0:32:34and won't take Monty back to shore.
0:32:34 > 0:32:36I knew I should have never brought him out here.
0:32:37 > 0:32:39I don't want to go in.
0:32:39 > 0:32:42I've got monk in my nets I want to get out.
0:32:42 > 0:32:46It isn't fair on the fish. Just cos he's spewing.
0:32:51 > 0:32:56An hour later, Monty is back on his feet and trying to contribute.
0:32:57 > 0:33:01But the weather is worsening - and so is his condition.
0:33:01 > 0:33:05What happens next ends any further involvement he has onboard.
0:33:11 > 0:33:13GASPS
0:33:13 > 0:33:19Monty is unconscious, choking on his own vomit. Perry rushes to help.
0:33:19 > 0:33:23CHOKING AND MUTTERING
0:33:25 > 0:33:29- Got him up?- Yeah.- Christ!
0:33:36 > 0:33:39We aren't going to lose him, that's the main thing.
0:33:39 > 0:33:41If I thought he was going to die on me, I would run him in,
0:33:41 > 0:33:43but at the moment I'm more concerned
0:33:43 > 0:33:46about the monkfish dying than I am Monty!
0:33:51 > 0:33:56As Monty recovers in the bow, Danny fillets his monkfish.
0:33:56 > 0:33:59His meticulous care over each one means the region's top chefs
0:33:59 > 0:34:02pay a premium for Danny's catch.
0:34:02 > 0:34:06This fish is out of water, gutted, cleaned
0:34:06 > 0:34:11and is straight into ice and we try to do that as soon as possible.
0:34:13 > 0:34:14That monk there now,
0:34:14 > 0:34:20you would have a job to get it in any better condition than that.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22That will go now straight into this ice.
0:34:22 > 0:34:30There, put to bed, job done, shut the hatch, forget about them.
0:34:31 > 0:34:32That's the wages there.
0:34:36 > 0:34:40Five long hours later, Danny heads for home.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43We got done what I wanted to do.
0:34:43 > 0:34:48Don't know what Monty thought of it, to tell you the truth, he has struggled a bit today.
0:34:48 > 0:34:52I don't think he's got a clue what we've caught.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55Poor chap, I feel a bit sorry for him really.
0:34:55 > 0:34:58But we're nearly in now, that's the main thing, and he survived.
0:35:04 > 0:35:07Today has been a huge setback for Monty.
0:35:07 > 0:35:09Unless he can cope with rough conditions at sea
0:35:09 > 0:35:13his plan to work as a fisherman for the next six months
0:35:13 > 0:35:14is in serious doubt.
0:35:16 > 0:35:19Word quickly spreads that Monty has had a bad day.
0:35:25 > 0:35:27I was quite surprised he was as sick as he was, to be quite honest,
0:35:27 > 0:35:32because he didn't show any sickness aboard my small boat at all.
0:35:32 > 0:35:34He wasn't remotely sick.
0:35:34 > 0:35:38And he sort of died on the other boat, which wasn't that much bigger.
0:35:38 > 0:35:41And he was actually quite ill
0:35:41 > 0:35:43and people were quite concerned about him.
0:35:46 > 0:35:50Just got in from the day's fishing with Danny.
0:35:50 > 0:35:53I've never known anything like that before.
0:35:53 > 0:35:56It entirely lived up to expectations, I think.
0:35:57 > 0:36:01Quite sort of soul destroying in a way, because I wanted...
0:36:01 > 0:36:04I like Danny and I really admire him,
0:36:04 > 0:36:08he's one of the...a very, very good fisherman indeed.
0:36:08 > 0:36:11To just go there and be useless all day, it felt like
0:36:11 > 0:36:15I'd taken a few steps forward with all the stuff I've learnt,
0:36:15 > 0:36:18and now I've just took a load of steps back.
0:36:18 > 0:36:24It's a long day, an emotional day, and it's nice to be home.
0:36:24 > 0:36:29The credibility is that, if you can get over it,
0:36:29 > 0:36:32get back in the boat again and have another go,
0:36:32 > 0:36:36you'll overcome it in the end, it's to have another go.
0:36:38 > 0:36:41The following morning the weather has improved.
0:36:41 > 0:36:43Monty is heading out to check his pots
0:36:43 > 0:36:46for his new, high value target - lobster.
0:36:54 > 0:36:59Here we are, first pot, and that's almost of a size, I think.
0:37:02 > 0:37:06You know, that's worth five or six crabs to me, that little lobster.
0:37:13 > 0:37:15Two lobster!
0:37:23 > 0:37:27For a small boat fisherman who's really struggling,
0:37:27 > 0:37:29every lobster's a little nugget.
0:37:31 > 0:37:34That's a very nice lobster indeed.
0:37:34 > 0:37:37Yep, definitely of a size.
0:37:37 > 0:37:41Just a bit too small, such is the lottery of life.
0:37:41 > 0:37:43You can go back, have another go.
0:37:45 > 0:37:49I think I'm on about ten lobsters today. Nige would be proud.
0:37:52 > 0:37:56I do feel I'm beginning to understand what's involved here.
0:37:56 > 0:38:00I'm starting to understand the tides and the bait and the substrate
0:38:00 > 0:38:03and the different ways of fishing.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06All these highly complex opposing factors
0:38:06 > 0:38:10that make the difference between catching and not catching.
0:38:21 > 0:38:25Literally just come round the corner and what do I see?
0:38:25 > 0:38:30The Harveys van's just pulled up, so I've just made it.
0:38:39 > 0:38:41..9, 10.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44Double figures. Whatever next?
0:38:45 > 0:38:486.6 kilos.
0:38:48 > 0:38:526.6 kilos of lobster, how much is that worth roughly, Gary?
0:38:52 > 0:38:55- You're probably looking around sort of £60.- £60?- Yeah.
0:38:55 > 0:39:00His pots also produced a small return of crab.
0:39:00 > 0:39:03- 36 kilo.- 36 kilo.
0:39:03 > 0:39:06- There you go, Monty. - Lovely. Thank you, Gary.
0:39:06 > 0:39:09- I'm on fire now.- You're away. - I'm on fire, there's no stopping me.
0:39:09 > 0:39:11- Bigger boat next.- Yeah! Very true.
0:39:11 > 0:39:15- All right, mate. Cheers. - Righty-o, mate. See you.
0:39:15 > 0:39:18With £60 of lobster, plus his crabs,
0:39:18 > 0:39:22Monty has finally made £100 from a day's single-handed fishing.
0:39:24 > 0:39:29Oh, it felt fantastic because there have been a number of things leading up to that haul -
0:39:29 > 0:39:33I've been putting the pots a lot closer in,
0:39:33 > 0:39:36and that took a little bit of nerve,
0:39:36 > 0:39:39cos you need to get right up to the cliff
0:39:39 > 0:39:41and I'd always been wary of this crackling boundary
0:39:41 > 0:39:45between the sea and the land, and wrecking Razorbill.
0:39:45 > 0:39:49So, yeah, it felt... I suddenly, for the first time
0:39:49 > 0:39:53in my whole period in the cove, felt a bit like a fisherman.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01Brett, the youngest fisherman in the cove,
0:40:01 > 0:40:05is leaving tomorrow for his new job in Cumbria.
0:40:06 > 0:40:09You've got to leave the cove to come back to the cove,
0:40:09 > 0:40:10if you see what I mean.
0:40:10 > 0:40:13If you're going to have your own boat.
0:40:13 > 0:40:15- Definitely.- Right.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17Definitely, yeah. Can't, er...
0:40:17 > 0:40:21- There's no way I can afford a boat. - Yeah.
0:40:21 > 0:40:25Tonks, Brett's skipper, has yet to find a replacement.
0:40:26 > 0:40:32I think he's put an advert in the job centre,
0:40:32 > 0:40:36because there's not enough people around the cove and around the area to...
0:40:36 > 0:40:38Well, that was going to be one of my questions -
0:40:38 > 0:40:42is there like a group, a cohort, of young fishermen that can crew?
0:40:42 > 0:40:45Cos it is a skilled job, isn't it?
0:40:45 > 0:40:49You don't just jump on board and you can do it straight away, you've got to be trained and...
0:40:49 > 0:40:52Down here, we don't have many people doing it.
0:40:52 > 0:40:56Down in Cadgwith, down on the Lizard and the surrounding area,
0:40:56 > 0:41:00there's not many youngsters doing fishing at the moment.
0:41:00 > 0:41:02You're making this quite bold move to go away
0:41:02 > 0:41:06and, you know, try to earn a little bit more so you can return.
0:41:06 > 0:41:10In ten years' time or so, where do you see yourself?
0:41:10 > 0:41:13Hopefully in the cove, doing...
0:41:13 > 0:41:16Having a boat like Louis or Martin,
0:41:16 > 0:41:20single-handed fishing, enough pots to...
0:41:20 > 0:41:23keep myself going, enough nets to...
0:41:23 > 0:41:24Will you look like Tonks?
0:41:24 > 0:41:25Hope not!
0:41:25 > 0:41:27THEY BOTH LAUGH
0:41:27 > 0:41:33# Throw up your glasses and let us be merry
0:41:33 > 0:41:36# For to roam and to plunder
0:41:36 > 0:41:39# It is our intent... #
0:41:39 > 0:41:42There are few British fishermen under the age of 40.
0:41:42 > 0:41:45If the UK fishing fleet is to survive,
0:41:45 > 0:41:49it needs knowledgeable and skilful young men like Brett.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52But the unpredictable and often limited income
0:41:52 > 0:41:54that inshore fishing provides
0:41:54 > 0:41:57means that many feel their only choice is to leave,
0:41:57 > 0:41:59for a while at least.
0:41:59 > 0:42:01# To the caves in yonder mountain
0:42:01 > 0:42:05# Where the robbers retreat. #
0:42:07 > 0:42:11Well, the price of houses have gone up cos of the coastal community.
0:42:11 > 0:42:16It's disproportionate to...to what people in Cornwall are earning.
0:42:16 > 0:42:19There ain't enough houses for locals, you know,
0:42:19 > 0:42:20that's the problem.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23You've got to go and use your maritime experience
0:42:23 > 0:42:26to go and do something else, which is paying a bit more money
0:42:26 > 0:42:30to be able to afford to buy a house in the area.
0:42:30 > 0:42:32# Oh, Tiger Ridge Won't you give me back?
0:42:32 > 0:42:34# Oh, Tiger Ridge... #
0:42:34 > 0:42:36As the youngest fisherman in the cove,
0:42:36 > 0:42:39Brett's leaving is a setback for Cadgwith,
0:42:39 > 0:42:41and for Tonks in particular.
0:42:41 > 0:42:45It's finding somebody to replace him is the biggest problem.
0:42:45 > 0:42:47You know, they're not easy to come by.
0:42:47 > 0:42:50The height of the season and you think, "Ah."
0:42:50 > 0:42:53They're not queuing up for jobs -
0:42:53 > 0:42:56because it's not everybody's cup of tea, you know.
0:42:56 > 0:42:59If you want a job...
0:42:59 > 0:43:01If you're trying to get a labourer on a building site,
0:43:01 > 0:43:05they're queuing up halfway around the village.
0:43:05 > 0:43:08But, really, the job is no different,
0:43:08 > 0:43:11it's just your work platform moves around a bit.
0:43:11 > 0:43:13Brett could take the boat, you know,
0:43:13 > 0:43:16if I went on holiday or went away or whatever, the boat was still working.
0:43:16 > 0:43:23To get somebody to that standard again is going to be...
0:43:23 > 0:43:26It's going to take quite a bit of time, you know,
0:43:26 > 0:43:27it is going to take a bit of time.
0:43:27 > 0:43:32# And it's good enough
0:43:32 > 0:43:39# For me. #
0:43:47 > 0:43:51For small boat skippers, limited to fishing only the inshore waters,
0:43:51 > 0:43:55being flexible is the key to survival.
0:43:55 > 0:43:57They must change their fishing methods regularly
0:43:57 > 0:44:01to take advantage of whatever swims into their territory.
0:44:03 > 0:44:08'I am an in-shore fisherman, and I multitask -
0:44:08 > 0:44:11'I do lots of different fisheries,'
0:44:11 > 0:44:12from red mullet to gill netting,
0:44:12 > 0:44:16to tangle netting, lobstering, crabbing.
0:44:16 > 0:44:18I can do hand lining.
0:44:18 > 0:44:20And the same with any in-shore fleet anywhere -
0:44:20 > 0:44:22they can swap over in a couple of hours.
0:44:22 > 0:44:25Whatever goes past our doorway.
0:44:26 > 0:44:32Sometimes, it goes dead. That's your time to diversify then.
0:44:32 > 0:44:36You can't catch any crabs, you'll try and catch a conger eel on a long line or something,
0:44:36 > 0:44:39or put some nets out for some monkfish or something, you know?
0:44:39 > 0:44:43Swap and change, and hopefully you'll find something.
0:44:47 > 0:44:50With his lobster pots now working effectively,
0:44:50 > 0:44:54Monty has enlisted the help of local fisherman, Luke Stephens.
0:44:56 > 0:44:58Beautiful, sunny morning.
0:44:58 > 0:45:01Lovely, isn't it? Lovely. This is my kind of day.
0:45:01 > 0:45:04- Very much my kind of day. - My kind of day, too.
0:45:04 > 0:45:0825 years at sea took their toll on Luke's body,
0:45:08 > 0:45:11and he's no longer able to fish for a living.
0:45:11 > 0:45:14He now spends most of his time on shore making nets,
0:45:14 > 0:45:18though his knowledge of the local waters is second to none.
0:45:24 > 0:45:27Luke has helped Monty to lay a net to target valuable monkfish.
0:45:27 > 0:45:29Look at that, beauty.
0:45:29 > 0:45:32That is a nice spider crab.
0:45:32 > 0:45:34The net contains plenty of spider crab,
0:45:34 > 0:45:37and they soon catch their first fish.
0:45:37 > 0:45:39Ya-hey!
0:45:39 > 0:45:42So this is a little... Obviously, it's a ray.
0:45:42 > 0:45:44- Small-eyed ray, that one. - Small-eyed ray.
0:45:44 > 0:45:46- Is this of a sellable size?- Yep.
0:45:47 > 0:45:51- Nice crab.- A great crab. - Yeah, beauty.
0:45:51 > 0:45:54Ooh, I can see something white coming, Monty.
0:45:54 > 0:45:55Wahey!
0:45:55 > 0:45:57- Is that plaice or...?- Plaice.
0:45:57 > 0:45:59Plaice. BIG plaice.
0:46:01 > 0:46:04The last 30 feet of the net is being hauled.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06Wahey!
0:46:06 > 0:46:09He's got one, he's caught a monkfish!
0:46:09 > 0:46:12Yes, I've redeemed myself!
0:46:29 > 0:46:31Here we are, coming back into the cove.
0:46:31 > 0:46:34Do you think that we've had a successful little trip there?
0:46:34 > 0:46:37Luke, you have more than produced the goods.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39More than produced the goods.
0:46:39 > 0:46:42That's by far my best catch, and it's a good mixed catch, isn't it?
0:46:42 > 0:46:46- Yeah, it's nice to see. - Ray, plaice, monk...
0:46:46 > 0:46:48A couple of tubs of spider.
0:46:48 > 0:46:51You know, that's a good spot, isn't it?
0:46:51 > 0:46:53Yeah, I like it up there, a nice little place to go.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56- Are you pleased with that? - I'm well pleased with that,
0:46:56 > 0:46:59that's a good little catch.
0:47:08 > 0:47:10This is what it's all been about.
0:47:10 > 0:47:14I'm just going to the local fishmonger to sell my catch from today.
0:47:14 > 0:47:16HE GRUNTS WITH EFFORT
0:47:17 > 0:47:19Everything in fishing is heavy!
0:47:21 > 0:47:25There we go, my last remaining ounce of strength.
0:47:25 > 0:47:29Jonathan Fletcher is both a fisherman and a fishmonger.
0:47:29 > 0:47:33After working at sea each day from nearby Porthleven,
0:47:33 > 0:47:35he runs Cadgwith's fish shop.
0:47:36 > 0:47:38There's a good plaice, £3 a kilo.
0:47:40 > 0:47:43So there you are, that fish is worth £3.50 to you.
0:47:43 > 0:47:45£3.50, perfect.
0:47:45 > 0:47:46The gills are bright red,
0:47:46 > 0:47:49the eyes are bright and prominent, not sunken,
0:47:49 > 0:47:51it's got slime on it. Look - perfect.
0:47:51 > 0:47:54That's what you've got to be looking for.
0:47:54 > 0:47:57- What else have you got apart from this wonderful plaice?- I've got ray.
0:48:00 > 0:48:02There you are, three quid. And how many have you got?
0:48:02 > 0:48:06- Nine.- That's 27 quid for a start. - 27 quid.
0:48:06 > 0:48:09And there's about 50 mackerel in here.
0:48:09 > 0:48:13It's around about £1, £1.20 a kilo.
0:48:13 > 0:48:15- Call it 15 quid.- 15 quid.
0:48:15 > 0:48:18- Monkfish, then, is £22.- Yeah.
0:48:18 > 0:48:2127, 49 and 15...
0:48:21 > 0:48:2264 quid.
0:48:22 > 0:48:25- I'll make it £65... - And I'll buy you a beer.
0:48:25 > 0:48:27Buy me a beer next time you see me.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31Look at that. Extraordinary. Monty Halls Inc leaps into profit.
0:48:34 > 0:48:39Small-boat fishermen survive by adapting to the seasonal changes within their fishery.
0:48:39 > 0:48:45But government reforms could soon force them to target specific fish types,
0:48:45 > 0:48:47preventing diversification.
0:48:47 > 0:48:51The restrictive legislation that's being proposed...
0:48:53 > 0:48:57..is going to make life impossible. They are businesses, these boats -
0:48:57 > 0:49:00they've got to turn a profit, even if it's a small one.
0:49:00 > 0:49:02I don't think the legislators
0:49:02 > 0:49:04understand the way that fisherman are,
0:49:04 > 0:49:11and I think they've missed a vital point, is that fishermen go fishing
0:49:11 > 0:49:17because they're fishermen and not because they're making a profit.
0:49:17 > 0:49:20'Yes, it's a worrying time.
0:49:20 > 0:49:23'I think not just for us. I think for a lot of fishermen,
0:49:23 > 0:49:26'especially the smaller under 10-metre boats.'
0:49:26 > 0:49:30We're all waiting with bated breath, to be honest...
0:49:30 > 0:49:33for the government's next announcement.
0:49:41 > 0:49:45Monty is heading out to haul his pots for the last time.
0:49:53 > 0:49:55Beautiful little lobster, look.
0:50:11 > 0:50:15Oh, look at that. Now that's the lobster of the day!
0:50:23 > 0:50:26Good, it's been getting better, hasn't it? It's been getting better.
0:50:26 > 0:50:31To try to understand the financial pressures felt by in-shore fishermen,
0:50:31 > 0:50:37for the last three weeks, Monty has attempted to earn a living from the sea.
0:50:37 > 0:50:40It's time to add up the figures.
0:50:40 > 0:50:44That comes to a grand total of £508.
0:50:44 > 0:50:48All that effort. All that time. All that kit.
0:50:48 > 0:50:51The gear, which, of course, I would still have to pay for.
0:50:51 > 0:50:53I'd have to pay insurance on the boat,
0:50:53 > 0:50:54I'd have to contribute to the winch fund,
0:50:54 > 0:50:58I'd have to pay for the tractor fund, as well, all of these costs.
0:50:58 > 0:51:04So, you know, that's not good. It really isn't.
0:51:04 > 0:51:08I couldn't have tried any harder, there's no doubt about that.
0:51:08 > 0:51:10This has been a real lesson for me
0:51:10 > 0:51:14in the harsh realities of the economics of small-boat fishing.
0:51:14 > 0:51:19And I must say, it's just been a real eye opener, an absolute eye opener.
0:51:22 > 0:51:26Monty has hauled 500 pots, used nets and lines,
0:51:26 > 0:51:29and crewed on other boats.
0:51:29 > 0:51:32His aim was to make £100 a day.
0:51:32 > 0:51:33He's made just 24.
0:51:33 > 0:51:37Though this has been a hypothetical exercise -
0:51:37 > 0:51:39he's donating all his earnings to the fishermen
0:51:39 > 0:51:41to help cover their overheads -
0:51:41 > 0:51:43it has revealed the harsh economic realities
0:51:43 > 0:51:47faced by small-boat fishermen.
0:51:47 > 0:51:50The margins they deal with are extremely tight -
0:51:50 > 0:51:53many are lucky to earn £15,000 a year.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00It depends what sort of a living you want.
0:52:00 > 0:52:06If you have to finance the sort of mortgage people have these days,
0:52:06 > 0:52:08then it's exceedingly difficult.
0:52:08 > 0:52:13You can't busk it, you've got to really spend a lot of hours at it,
0:52:13 > 0:52:16more hours than any normal person would want to.
0:52:16 > 0:52:19If you analyse, at the end of the week,
0:52:19 > 0:52:24how much money you have and how many hours it's taken you to get it,
0:52:24 > 0:52:26then logically you wouldn't do it.
0:52:27 > 0:52:29In the last 20 years,
0:52:29 > 0:52:33Britain's in-shore fishing fleet has declined by over a third.
0:52:33 > 0:52:37350 small boats leave the industry each year,
0:52:37 > 0:52:40their skippers either unable to make a living,
0:52:40 > 0:52:44or unwilling to take greater risks for an ever diminishing return.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49While Monty may not have succeeded financially,
0:52:49 > 0:52:51working the beach as a single-handed fisherman
0:52:51 > 0:52:55has earned him greater respect amongst the skippers in the cove.
0:52:55 > 0:52:57With one exception.
0:53:06 > 0:53:125.45 in the morning and just about to go back out on Danny's boat.
0:53:12 > 0:53:15Now, a very different day today -
0:53:15 > 0:53:17it's a lot calmer,
0:53:17 > 0:53:21so I'm hoping there won't be the terrific drama there was last time,
0:53:21 > 0:53:23but I do have a little secret weapon.
0:53:25 > 0:53:31Throwing pharmaceuticals at the problem - seasick tablets.
0:53:31 > 0:53:33So I'll take a few of those
0:53:33 > 0:53:37and hopefully restore a little dignity and credibility.
0:53:37 > 0:53:39We'll see.
0:53:42 > 0:53:44It's a real test for Monty.
0:53:44 > 0:53:47If he succumbs to seasickness again,
0:53:47 > 0:53:53his mission to work within the industry over the coming months will be all but over.
0:53:53 > 0:53:55- Right, Monty, you get on here. - I will, I will.
0:54:02 > 0:54:05Nothing yet in this tier of nets.
0:54:05 > 0:54:08We're sort of a third of the way through.
0:54:08 > 0:54:10This one here has been down one night less
0:54:10 > 0:54:12and last time we hauled it, it was very good.
0:54:12 > 0:54:15- Crawfish is what we could do with catching, Monty.- Crawfish.
0:54:15 > 0:54:17That'd be interesting, wouldn't it?
0:54:17 > 0:54:20We've only had two this week.
0:54:20 > 0:54:24Unbelievable. Not a bloody thing. Not even a crab here.
0:54:24 > 0:54:25Utterly dead.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28- Something's coming up. - Oh, hello. Here we go.
0:54:28 > 0:54:30- What you got? A wrasse!- A wrasse.
0:54:35 > 0:54:38With three-quarters of the net empty,
0:54:38 > 0:54:41four crawfish - a highly valuable rarity in these waters -
0:54:41 > 0:54:44are a very welcome sight.
0:54:44 > 0:54:47So suddenly the net's starting to make a lot more sense, you know?
0:54:47 > 0:54:50And it's all to do with the ground it's laid over
0:54:50 > 0:54:53and if it falls over hard ground where there's a few of the animals around.
0:54:53 > 0:54:57But as I said, it's one of those irresistible attractions of this
0:54:57 > 0:55:00is as you peer down into the blue water,
0:55:00 > 0:55:02you've no idea what's going to come up towards you.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05Danny, is that kind of your incentive as you look over the side,
0:55:05 > 0:55:08you just never know what's coming up?
0:55:08 > 0:55:10- I'm willing them up all the time. - Yeah.
0:55:10 > 0:55:13- All the time, just willing things to come up.- Yeah.
0:55:13 > 0:55:16I was hoping we might see a crawfish today, actually.
0:55:16 > 0:55:19I knew when I shot this one two days ago
0:55:19 > 0:55:22that it went over a little pinnacle and I was thinking...
0:55:22 > 0:55:25- Fairly confident, yeah. - "There could be craw on that."
0:55:25 > 0:55:28And is it four you've had, three?
0:55:28 > 0:55:29We've had four today -
0:55:29 > 0:55:32- one we had to throw back cos he was undersize.- Right.
0:55:32 > 0:55:36The fish caught by trawlers, working far out to sea,
0:55:36 > 0:55:38can be many days old by the time it's landed.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43Fish caught from day boats like Danny's is the freshest available
0:55:43 > 0:55:46and can fetch a higher price on the market.
0:55:46 > 0:55:49I suppose this is an advantage you have, Danny,
0:55:49 > 0:55:52over the boats that operate off shore.
0:55:52 > 0:55:55In that you're literally turning around in a day, of course -
0:55:55 > 0:56:00- you're catching and delivering fresh fish to the quayside.- Yes.
0:56:00 > 0:56:04You know, that fish that literally hours before has been swimming around.
0:56:04 > 0:56:07Well, I would have thought there's a very good chance
0:56:07 > 0:56:10somebody will be eating that fish...
0:56:10 > 0:56:12not this evening, but tomorrow evening, anyway.
0:56:12 > 0:56:15Tomorrow evening, right.
0:56:15 > 0:56:18Only the tail and the cheeks of the monkfish are of value,
0:56:18 > 0:56:20fetching Danny around £10 a kilo.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24Danny has allowed Monty to fillet one.
0:56:24 > 0:56:27So I'm going in there, up there and come back to there.
0:56:27 > 0:56:31- I will pay you for this fish, I will buy it off you if I screw it up.- OK.
0:56:33 > 0:56:36- Right, then stop there. Go into the other side now.- OK.
0:56:36 > 0:56:39- Try and get right in around... - Right.
0:56:42 > 0:56:46- Above the flesh, you've got to be, right back to its navel.- Right.
0:56:46 > 0:56:49- So just trim through here and there.- No problem.
0:56:49 > 0:56:51So what's that worth there, Danny?
0:56:51 > 0:56:52Well, it WAS worth 20 quid.
0:56:52 > 0:56:54THEY BOTH LAUGH
0:56:54 > 0:56:55No, you've done a good job.
0:57:14 > 0:57:17On one level, you could say, of course, financially, that was a good day for me,
0:57:17 > 0:57:20cos £60/£70 is my share of the catch.
0:57:20 > 0:57:24But, of course, that trip wasn't really about the money for me -
0:57:24 > 0:57:27it was laying to rest that ghost of what happened last time on Danny's boat
0:57:27 > 0:57:30and I felt really let down by it and I feel kind of vindicated now.
0:57:30 > 0:57:32There's always the elephant in the room
0:57:32 > 0:57:35about whether I can operate when it's rough.
0:57:35 > 0:57:37I'll only find that out as the season progresses.
0:57:37 > 0:57:39But all in all, not a bad day.
0:57:47 > 0:57:51Next time, Monty has a close call out at sea...
0:57:51 > 0:57:54Swivel out, swivel out.
0:57:54 > 0:57:55When that pot hit me,
0:57:55 > 0:57:59there was nothing that I could have done about it, absolutely nothing.
0:57:59 > 0:58:04He heads out with the competition and fishes on a much bigger scale.
0:58:04 > 0:58:07You're not quite halfway yet - another 600 to go.
0:58:07 > 0:58:10Good grief, that's an outrage!
0:58:10 > 0:58:12Your spider is very good.
0:58:12 > 0:58:14I only catch the very best.
0:58:14 > 0:58:17After following his catch to the continent,
0:58:17 > 0:58:20Monty asks why we don't eat more seafood at home.
0:58:20 > 0:58:24If you tell someone that what they're about to eat is exquisite,
0:58:24 > 0:58:26and then you put THAT in front of them,
0:58:26 > 0:58:29that's the reaction we need to overcome.