Meet the Cumbrian fishermen who spend winter at sea seeking scallops

From November until April, Shaun Humphreys, his son Cameron and brother Wayne will be out tackling conditions in the Irish Sea to gather scallops for some of Cumbria’s best restaurants.

Shaun, 52, has been fishing since he was at school, going out on his great uncle’s boat from Maryport as a child and then working for other fishermen before gaining his skipper qualification to take on his own boat over 30 years ago.

While they fish for scallops in the winter, they spend the spring and summer trawling for langoustines in their 15m vessel.

During the year they will travel along the coast of Scotland, the Isle of Man, Northern Ireland and Wales and they can be at sea for weeks during the height of the scallop season.

Queues of people buying fish from Chelaris Fresh Fish (Image: Shaun Humphreys)

They catch the langoustines by trawling in shallow waters with a net, while the scallops are caught via dredging on the seabed.

Shaun says the licences for dredging around the Isle of Man in particular are very restrictive, with only a limited number granted and strict quotas to preserve the shellfish populations and conserve the environment.

“They really do a lot to look after their stocks and so it’s really good fishing for us,” he said. “You’ve got to earn the licence through the years you spend at sea and how many days you put in.

"You can’t buy them, no matter how much money you’ve got. It’s policed very heavily and there’s fines of up to £50,000 for breaking the rules.”

When the team are fishing for langoustines, they can work 24 hours a day for up to three days before coming back to shore to ensure they remain fresh.

"It's a way of life,” said Shaun. “It's just what we do. We've had different folk come with us before and tried it and they just can't hack it. Sometimes we've been fast on the seabed and you think ‘This is pushing our luck.’”

When fish markets closed during the pandemic, Shaun turned to selling direct to the public on the quayside, with partner Leanne Howard drumming up custom via social media.

Direct sales have endured and the return of the Chelaris to the harbour at Maryport is usually greeted by a queue of customers keen to buy fresh produce.

Elsewhere, its catch is sold to Michelin-starred restaurants such as the Dog and Gun, in Skelton, and Allium, at Askham Hall.

Some of the langoustines are also exported to Spain via Prestwick, in Scotland.