Inflating my boat.

 In various forums, Facebook groups etc that I follow, panel-floor sibs tend to be considered too faffy, heavy and generally hard work to set up every time. Most recommendations tend to be towards models with high pressure V-floors.

Having models of both Sibs (wood floor YAM 380S and V-floor Honwave T-32 IE) I like them both but tend to prefer the solid floor as it feels more like a "real boat", especially when it comes to fishing.

The time it takes to set up is comparable between the two sibs. The V-floor takes approximately 10 minutes while the wood floor 15 minutes. Deflating is the opposite as the YAM just needs a roll up while the T-32IE requires extra deflation with it's foot-pump in order to fit in it's bag.

Below  I have a video of how I inflate my YAM 380S in less than 15 minutes.

As you can see it's fairly easy and having two pumps, really speeds things up. The recent addition of the trolling motor adds a bit of time but its worth it! 

Tight Lines 

Gamechanger!

 The title referes to my recent acquisition of a Haswing Cayman GPS bowmount trolling motor. Its the cheapest model offering a GPS-anchor feature and even though I spent only a couple hours playing around with it, I'm very pleased with its performance.  Most of the fishing I do requires lots of moving about and usually over rough ground. Drift - fishing on a SIB is a pain and the constant anchoring and retrieving of the anchor, accompanied with the losses from snags, really deducts from the fishing time. Needless to say, I've had my eye on one of these motors for a while. They are used extensively in fresh and saltwater overseas and slowly becoming more common in freshwater here in the UK.  For some reason they haven't caught on in the salt here. 

My main issues with getting the motor were obviously the cost but also finding a way to mount it on the bow. I've put down a deposit for a new boat, but not gonna see it in the "flesh" till Summertime as the F-Rib production has been affected by covid etc this year. Anyway, I got the motor, and I decided to make a marine ply frame to mount it flat on the bow and held there by straps that connect to the sib's bow D-rings. 

The end result may not look the prettiest (further designing might be necessary), but it works and feels secure enough. 

I took the boat out the other day with a biggish tide and 20+mph winds and the thing actually worked! Can't wait to get out for some proper fishing with it now...

Fishingwise, either because of the weather or work commitments, I really haven't done much at all. Had a nice session over at the West side of the island but nothing spectacular.  Its been disappointing this Autumn, that I haven't done nearly as much fishing as last year and the times I was out, conditions were not good for topwater fishing.  It is what it is though and I'll hopefully get some good fishing next week. Here's some pics and videos of late.

This has been a testing year to say the least, but I do hope it will end on a more positive note. 

Tight Lines and stay safe. 

Here come the storms...

 It's so frustrating not getting any decent weather when you know the fishing will be great, but this is what we've had to content with the past couple weeks. 

I've been  booked almost every weekend but weather has been far from ideal. Had a new lad visit a few weeks back and we managed a boat session in the West of the Island. The fishing was made difficult by the wind and waves but we managed to winkle out a few. They were staying low and quite picky. Fortunately I had a secret weapon... My Northern English friends Mike and Chris, are making their own jigheads and softplastics, and they were kind enough to send me some! On the day, the Fiiish Crazy Sandeel imitation in homemade darting jigheads proved to be lethal, taking most fish!

The next week was time for serious Skye-addict Rob to come up yet again... We wanted to go somewhere different and for once, the weather  was good. We decided to head to a mark that was one of the main places that motivated me into getting a boat. It's the famous Idrigill Point and the MacLeod Maidens! Only took me about 5 years of living here to actually visit it...

It was a very pleasant day and we found fish straight away. Me off the top, on an Autowalker 115s and Rob on a soft plastic. My fish was actually substantial and I was still fighting it while Rob got his in the net. Then I stupidly tried for the fancy double-header-in-the-net pic and was punished for my insolence soon enough... The big pollock came close to the net and just at the last minute it thrashed and got one hook on the outside of the net. Another thrash and it unhooked itself heading straight into the depths!  Typical...

I jokingly said that this was gonna be my best fish of the day and was proven right as we had plenty of fish but not as big! Surprisingly, although these pollock were in perfect condition with fat bellies, they didn't really fight as hard as usual...

Rob had some good ones on the fly as well but as we were getting closer to the ebb, the current intensified significantly and we had to move. The tides were massive and in retrospect this mark might be better in neap tides. We found a couple concentrations of fish but the coalies were in plague proportions and it was difficult getting a lure past them.  Moreover the current demanded we change our approach and I opted for a soft jerkbait on a 40g bullet jighead while Rob went for 60g plus metals with a single large assist hook.  Both presentations started finding some better fish but no monsters unfortunately. It was great meeting up with Rob again and finally fishing this mark. Definite potential there...

Last week I had return visitor David with his son this time and unfortunately the weather was pants... We opted for a shore day and we fished 2 marks that offered some shelter. The first mark was not nearly as sheltered as I thought but David managed a nice cuckoo wrasse.  The next mark proved more fruitful with plenty of bites and some fish. The action died down after a couple hours and as the weather was getting even worse, we called it a day. The lads were proper soldiers fishing such conditions but unfortunately that's Skye weather! 

Was meant to be guiding yesterday but with 70mph winds and constant rain, we decided to cancel the outing. I really hope we get some settled weather soon as I'm aching for proper action!

I've also got a new reel to try out. My Biomaster has been sounding worse than a coffee grinder lately and after all this time I thought that it's time to retire it. I was hoping to get the new Shimano Saragosa but finances couldn't stretch so I went for a cheap and cheerful Shimano Sedona 4000XG. I know it's not a proper saltwater reel but at only 60quid, even if it lasts a couple seasons I'll be happy. While waiting for the Sedona to be delivered, I decided to open up the Biomaster and play around with it. I only ever oil and maybe change the occasional roller bearing in my reels so this was something new for me. With the help of YouTube it wasnt too hard and I identified where the problem was... The main shaft bearing under the top part of the reel was completely seized and also the roller bearing was sticky. I got some new bearings and now the reel works fine! So this is something that I'm keen to start doing more instead of paying someone else to do it for me (thank YouTube!).

I was also meant to sell my Yam 380s along with the old evinrude but I had to hang fire on that due to technical  issues. I'm thinking of getting something slightly bigger for next year but time and finances will tell if I'll manage to make it happen. 

October's been a busy month that flew by and I hope November will be more chilled out and with better weather. Either solo or with company, I'll make sure I get out every chance I get! 

Tight Lines.

The golden time begins...

 I've done pitifully little fishing since coming back from Greece and that's mostly because of lack of time and bad weather.  Saying that, I had 2 guys visit me for some guided fishing and the sessions we had were fantastic!

Alan and Paul stayed for a week in my caravan and we managed to get out twice during their stay. Firstly, for a late afternoon session in calm weather, where we found Pollock smashing a big shoal of bait fish on the surface. We raised them a couple times on topwaters but the overabundance of bait worked against us. Once the bait moved off then the fishing really started firing up.  They were still picky though and seemed to prefer smaller natural imitations. The Fiiish Black Minnows and similar did best. We had some good fish in the 5-7lbs bracket.

The next day the weather got more challenging with brisk SW winds and we had to move around a bit to find shelter. Still, we got a bit soaked but it was all worth it in the end... We found the fish stacked in two different points and they were all lunkers! This time they preferred larger shads on 35-40g heads. The current was strong and they wanted the lures practically dropping in their mouths. It was a case of touching bottom and then letting the current do the work while hopping the lure from time to time. Alan got keyed in to this and he was having a fish a chuck! The drag was screaming and the rods were bending, happy days! 

Alan had many fish of 5-7lbs with a couple pushing 8lbs and a potential double. When the action died down we switched to a more exposed spot and again, action was instant. This time Paul was getting in amongst the good fish and after a few chunky pollock he got something big on... The fish took a massive first run and for a second I thought it was a seal. Paul managed to gain a few meters on a very tight drag, but then it started another run and reached the bottom. The line parted and we all cried out in disbelief of losing that fish.  Poor Paul was gutted. A few more casts and the worsening conditions gave us the sign to head home. 

It was one of the wettest boat sessions I've had but the action really made up for it! Just need some settled weather now to get the topwaters out. It was a real pleasure fishing with these lads and hopefully we can do it again.

Tight lines 

Holiday fishing with an ISUP!

 Been home for a few days now after my holidays back in Greece. Only went for a couple weeks and it was mostly for family time, especially since my folks hadn't seen the baby yet. I wasn't too fussed about serious fishing but I did want to visit the dams for perch and chub and this time I had a secret weapon...! I brought along an inflatable paddle board (ISUP) and was keen on trying to fish off that. 

The main reason behind the SUP purchace was because one of the dams had gotten overgrown with vegetation and it was very difficult to fish from the shore. I hadn't fished there for more than a decade even though it held big perch and chub.

I opted for a beginner ISUP, the Suprfit 10.8. Its fairly straightforward inflating it etc, though I bought a double paddle as it only comes with a single for stand up use. To be honest I just needed a stable platform to fish from and be easy to paddle. I did try to stand but only when I was playing with it on the beach and let's just say sitting or kneeling is much better for me...lol  Blaming my extra holiday weight for the lack of balance!

Anyway, the ISUP proved to be very good for what I wanted it to do though unfortunately things have changed on the dams... The overgrown dam seemed to have been reclaimed by nature! The road there was full of fallen rocks and had young trees growing on the sides. Moreover the place where I used to park was so overgrown I drove past it without recognizing it! Eventually, I found a single access point to the water and managed to get the ISUP in. I started casting a small spoon around and it didn't take long to get a fish on! A very nice chub came up after a spirited tussle. Been a while since I had a chub and I was chuffed with this one. Its another obliging and pure fun fish to catch! I had a few more smaller fish on little cicada topwaters but it was slow fishing  for sure. Near sundown I concentrated my efforts for perch but despite fishing with little shads and drop shot I got no perch bites... Instead, I had another good chub on a little Fiiish black minnow imitation. Surprisingly, this fish was caught deep, where I wouldn't expect to find them. The water temperature was quite high so maybe that was the cause. 

The high water temperature along with the increased vegetation may have been the reasons why I didn't get any perch. In the other dam, I found them where they usually are, near boulders and a drop off into 15m+ water. Therefore I should have searched for deeper water structure. I suppose that's something for next year...

 

 

 

 I could really stay fishing on the lakes for days but unfortunately time was yet again against me. Reckon theres a PB chub and perch hiding in there for sure!I have left he SUP there for next Summer anyway. Im sure it could have applications here in Scotland (with wet/dry suit) but the wind would make things tricky for sure. On small lochs though it could definitely help.

Back in Skye now and will have a couple days targeting perch and pike before I hit the pollock again. Its about time for topwaters!

Tight Lines