Here it is the end of April: plenty of sunshine, refreshing breezes and it almost looks like the showers have come and gone and high summer cannot be too far away.

It all paints a pretty picture but while this may suit landlubbers the offshore scene is getting on for dismal.

The ocean water temperature is as warm as it ever was at this time of the year; conditions have been otherwise generally favourable but the fish have been all but non-existent. This is not what the sportsman wants to hear and certainly something that the commercial operator does not want to have to experience.

The wahoo have been few and far between with a single strike suddenly becoming a noteworthy event!

The size of the few being caught is alright but the numbers make it hard to justify the fuel consumption, not to mention the time commitment. The faithful believe that they will show up any day now and the yellowfin tuna will soon follow but for the moment it is grim hearing of the usually very successful commercial fleet returning pretty much empty-handed.

The recommendation to weekend warriors is to adopt a "wait and see" posture before committing time and resources to going in search of something that may not be out there at all.

While probably of not much interest to anglers seeking points for club competitions, chumming for small game on top of the Banks can at least lead to a few fillets which will make the expedition somewhat worthwhile.

Although it is early yet, there should be some rainbow runners around - smaller ones do make for a respectable fillet and other species like bonita often show up as well. Bottom bouncing will yield up coneys, barbers and the odd hind; al of which are good kitchen fare.

When chumming up on top of the bank, it is likely that a few blackfin tuna will put in an appearance. The blackfin which actually is really a warm water fish is pretty much present here all year round; giving rise to the belief that it may be a resident population.

Certainly the tagging studies that have been carried out have had the fish tagged here recaptured here, often just a few days later.

Although they do not grow rally large (twenty-odd pounds is big) blackfin tuna do provide excellent sport on suitable tackle. They are tough and fight to the end and this is one of the species that really helped put Bermuda on the map as a sport fishing destination before big blue marlin grabbed the headlines.

The crown of the bank is usually a good place to start looking for this species and fishing there will likely lead to a few other diversions ¿ not all of which might be welcome.

The problem is that the crowns are also home to sharks, mostly of the common or garden dusky variety.

Actually they are not dusky sharks at all but a look alike species that somehow picked up the moniker here many years ago.

Scientifically, they are actually Galapagos sharks but you really don't want to have to look in to the details of the taxonomy. Just accept the local name for what it is worth. Small ones get called "puppy" sharks which is a name that is only used locally.

These are the smaller sharks that are preferred for "hashing" and for making shark liver oil (if anyone does nowadays ¿ yet another dying tradition, I guess).

Bottom fishing often gets them to bite although when chumming on the crown some of the larger sharks will make their way to the surface. That usually happens later on in the summer and they tend to be of the tiger variety.

The nuisance sharks are those that take their share of just about anything that you try to get up off the bottom with –yellowtail snappers being their preferred fare.

Something worth remembering about the crowns of the banks is that the yellowtails there are of record proportions.

While there are opportunities for world records here, the recognised line classes which allow the snappers to put on a performance of note they also expose the fish to shark attack.

Resorting to unsporting heavier than usual tackle might at least allow the capture of some intact specimens that will be of far more value to the angler than to the sharks. While not really the stuff that sport fishing is all about, at this juncture it is less about the angling and more about catching something for the pan.

A by-product of chumming in the shallower water is usually robins and it could pay off to keep a few alive and to take them back out onto the edge of the drop-off as live baits.

If there is anything respectable around, a live robin should get its attention and then you might well be in with a shot at something decent. You never know for sure what might be lurking around ¿ maybe even a mako shark.

They tend to be a bit commoner at the start of the season, often trashing the school wahoo during early May!

Despite the apparent lack of the usual game species the sport fishing season gets underway next Sunday with the first two tournaments being fished coincidentally.

These are the Bermuda Fishing Clubs Annual Tournament (BFCAT) and the Sandys Boat Club tournament. The BFCAT is limited to club members fishing in organised teams while the latter event is open to the general public.

One assumes that the various clubs will be getting their teams together and making some progress on this front.

The public are invited to participate in the Sandys Boat Club event and details are available from the club or from tackle shops.

Looking farther ahead, there is a break of a couple of weeks before the next scheduled events, so that gives the fish time to make their presence known.

It sure would be nice to have something for anglers to look forward to as the weeks speed on by and the emphasis on trolling for wahoo becomes a thing of the past.

For this weekend, perhaps the upsurge in amateur effort and a scouring of unlikely locations will turn up some activity.

It sure is overdue and it is hard to think that Mother Nature is going to completely fail us this year.

We may not get what we expect but just about every year something happens that provides us with more than enough opportunities for some Tight lines!!!