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.
