The hardest yet most enjoyable guiding session ever!

Sometime ago I was contacted for a guiding session to take place last Tuesday. As so often happens up here in Skye the weather had other ideas and we had to reschedule as it was actually snowing and dropping hail for the most part of Monday and Tuesday! Temperatures plummeted and we had gale force Northerlies. Thankfully Wednesday was much kinder, flat calm and sunny skies actually (!), and we gave it a go then.
I met the brothers Zubair and Zaheer at their accommodation and after a cuppa and a chat we set off for Neist Point.
I knew the fishing would be tough as the fish surely were affected by the previous day's weather and also the large tides we're having, along with the calm sunny conditions.
We arrived a couple hours before low tide and I thought our best chances would be at a sheltered spot near low tide.
I set the lads up with metals at first and then soft plastics as the fish were hard on the bottom and not willing to chase metals. Moreover we realised that they were holding further out than usual and I employed 20-25g cheburashkas to reach those spots.
Soon enough we started seeing some fish, with coalies at first and then some good pollock.
As is the case with this mark the lads had a few fish lost due to snags or cut offs as they weren't able to stop them, but that's pollock fishing for you..!
After some fish, the resident seal took interest in our catches and we decided to move instead of offering it more free meals!

The day before...

...And after!

Zaheer with a decent one.

Zubair with another slim pollock.

The tide had turned and the current was increasing by now so I adjusted weights accordingly but it was still slow going.. Was using straight 3"-4" lures at first on Carolina rig or cheburashka and after getting some fish the bites dried up. I knew the fish were there and downsized to 3" strong scented paddletails that got hit instantly. A couple more fish followed but they were clearly not in a feeding mood as they were getting hooked barely on the lips. Thankfully the lads had brought an impressive array of cooking utensils and snacks (carrying it all the way down and then up Neist was a feat!) and we decided on having a tea break. The sun was shining, birds were chirping and we enjoyed a lovely curry and a cup of tea on the rocks... That's the life!
Afterwards we persisted for a while longer on this spot but after a couple missed strikes and some smaller fish we decided to move again.
The third spot only gave a couple more small pollock and by now the current was particularly strong. I decided that we should give the first (sheltered) spot another go but even there the current was too strong. Thus we headed back up to the car and drove to a nearby mark that is much more sheltered and less affected by the tide.

Best fish of the day..

Finicky pollock in a cracking day!

Fishing brothers in action.

Average sized..

Bendage!

Tea break!

The sun was setting when we arrived on the second mark and we didn't have much time. I made the first cast to see if there was anything going and hooked up soon after! This mark hasn't got the numbers of fish Neist offers but all the pollock here seem to be 3lbs and up!
So it was that I had a nice fish landed on the rocks soon after a spirited fight. On close inspection I realised that this fish was previously caught and after a quick photo with Zaheer I let it go back.
Surprisingly no more fish were caught by the lads while I was cleaning and filleting the catch of the day and we decided to head home.

A recaught fish.

On arrival to their accommodation the brothers were adamant that I should have dinner with them and since I really cant refuse a good homemade curry, we enjoyed another lovely meal!
It was a long and tiring day but the company of such kind people, passionate about fishing, made it very rewarding.
The lads wanted me to guide them again next day before they leave but having other obligations I told them what their best plan would be and I was glad to later find out they caught some more good fish and went home happy!
It was a pleasure fishing with them and they are welcome again any time.

Passionate fishermen!

Tight Lines!