Trying out a new rod from Aliexpress...

A few weeks back, the unthinkable happened and I lost my Tailwalk Power Rock rod and Stradic FK combo... That combo had worked really well from the rocks for me and even better off the SIB. Thus I needed to find something similar to replace it. I really couldn't justify the cost of it though and started looking for cheaper options...
For some reason, it appears that the market has geared more towards £200+ rods and I couldn't see many options of comparable rods for less than £100.
Now its no secret I use a lot of gear from Aliexpress and after trial and error, I think I've found out which companies tend to produce ok stuff and which ones crap... Thus I thought I might try and find a rod there.
Moreover, I started looking around in Youtube as well, especially in Russian channels as they tend to use a lot of this gear.
Somehow I ended up watching a video with a rod called Ruffy (!) by the company JOHNCOO. Its action and specs seemed close to what I wanted and after a quick search, I found it on sale in Aliexpress for around £40 delivered!
I pulled the trigger and a few days ago, I got it in my hands. First impressions were very good. Fuji guides, robust reel-seat and pokey/firm action. I went for the S862MH model (2.6m, 15-55g) that's more akin to the Power Rock I had.
Yesterday, I got the chance to try it out on the rocks in a short session. I used 20g+ darting jigheads and 16cm soft jerkbaits along with 28g cheburashka and 11cm paddletails.
The rod had no problem jerking the softpastic in 15-20m depth and I could feel quite easily any taps and touches. Did pretty well on dragging the paddletail on the bottom as well.
I got no monsters on the day but the fish were thick with big bellies and I even managed to lift a couple sizeable ones without the net...

Getting ready to spawn.

I'll let the video below show the rod better.

I know its entirely possible that this rod might break on the next outing, but I reckon even if it only lasts me one season, I'd still be very happy considering how little I've spent for it. I'm not in any way sponsored by JOHNCOO or anyone but feel like I had to talk about this rod as I was so pleasantly surprised by it. I'm very keen to see if it's anywhere near as dependable and impervious to some 'heavy handling', as the Tailwalk was. Only time will tell...

Tight Lines

Gear Used.

Rod: Johncoo Ruffy S862MH
Reel: Shimano Biomaster SW 4000XG
Mainline: PE1.5
Leader: Daiwa Tournament FC fluorocarbon 25lbs
Lures: 16cm soft jerkbait on 20g+ darting jighead, 11cm paddletail on 28g cheburashka.

August fishing between the gales!

Somehow its already the end of August and typically for Skye, this month brings unsettled weather.
I haven't had many solo sessions but I did two days guiding with my friend Rob from Yorkshire.
The forecast gave 20-30mph Southerly winds and we had planned one day on the SIB and one from the rocks.
I decided on hitting a Northern mark with the Sib, as it offered the most shelter. We would be fishing from Rob's Honwave T32 inflatable and after a couple pump issues, we got it all inflated and launched.
The fishing was done very close to shore and over a steep kelpy shelf.
We used mainly 12-14cm shads and soft jerkbaits on 20g jigheads.
From the off the fish showed an aggressive presence and they were all of a surprisingly good size... Most of them were well over 2kg and we had a couple that must have went to 4kg plus! The fights were spectacular and it was very difficult to stop these fish reaching the bottom. Most were coaxed out slowly and with some patience, a few broke us off and one was taken by a seal that gave the reel a proper workout!
We didn't stay long out as the wind and rain intensified but this was one of the most successful SIB sessions of the Summer!
On the way to the harbour, the waves made going a bit wet but we were soon on the slipway and glad to be getting out of the rain.

A fat mamma!

A happy angler!

Lighter coloured fish.

Excellent average size on the day..

This one was probably caught before..

The next morning the weather got even worse and we met at a shallow bay, where again, we would be most sheltered from the wind. There was some swell running that made fish a bit fussy but we managed some nice dark pollock on the softplastics but also on the fly! Rob is a keen fly angler and even though he thought that conditions were prohibitive, I insisted on him bringing the fly rod along in this mark.
It's always amazing fishing so close in for pollock and being able to see them take the fly!

Pollock on the fly!

Beautiful kelpie.

Saw this one take!

One for me too.

Unfortunately, the bad weather conditions really slowed down the fish on the next spot we hit and we decided to call it a day.
It was a pleasure fishing with such a passionate angler like Rob and seeing those bites on the fly was just mesmerising!
Yesterday, I had a SIB session with my friend Adam, this was his first time ever going fishing (!) and I was determined to get him on the fish! We fished Staffin bay mostly as again the weather wasn't good. Northerly winds and lots of rain had given a tannic tinge to the water, that made fish finicky.
Still, we persisted and after Adam got used to how the reel etc worked, started getting some tentative bites. He hooked up and lost a couple fish along with one break off but in the end he managed to get some nice fish!

Not bad for a first timer!

Perfect condition.

Even though the wind and swell meant that most fish kept low, the tide was right for trying topwaters. I put on the Mechanic Lures Autowalker 115s and had a few casts in a good looking spot. I'm always amazed at how hard pollock can slam topwaters and not get hooked! See the clip below..

 I'm now looking forward to the Autumn months, as this means that Ill get more free time and hopefully some settled weather! Also, its time for the serious fishing to begin!

Tight Lines!

Into February now..

Weather has been the usual up and down this month, but there have been a few good days and I've taken advantage of breaks in the storms. I've been fishing off the SIB mostly and at my usual spots as there was no time to explore further.
Even though the fish were still there, the 7.5c water temps after all the melting snow, has definitely slowed them down and as expected the bites were more finicky and would come very close to the bottom. The large shads that were so successful the past few months, were still getting hit, but I had to downsize to get more fish to stick.
At times the fishfinder would show shapes hard on the bottom, they were pollock and could still be caught but needed the lure jigged right in front of them to incite a take. Many fish had eye-worms.
I did manage to get a couple closer to 70cm though and they were all full bellied, getting ready for the spawn.

Fat belly.

A lovely one in the sun..

Better stamp of fish now.

A wee video as well

 I've also had a couple shore sessions and the fussy bites were an issue too. Moreover, the fish were very colour-picky, with bright colours (chartreuse and pink) faring much better than natural ones.
Texas rigged paddletail with a 30g tungsten bullet weight and 8mm glass bead was the most productive presentation along with soft jerkbaits on 20-30g darting jigheads over cleaner bottom.
I got a proper shock at some point after landing a nice Ballan wrasse that put up a spirited fight! It was my first ever in February! Must be global warming...

There's a 7" DOT Crawler in there...

WTF!

Pink was the most effective colour on the day.

Something had a go at this one.

Bruiser..

 I lost a what felt like a big fish due to the snap opening up and I now tend to tie straight to the Softplastic every time. A bit time-consuming but as the best chance for a big female is now, the stakes are higher and lost fish hurt!

Tight Lines!

Gear used (Boat)
Rod: Tailwalk Saltyshape Dash Power Rock S90H,
Reel: Shimano Stradic Fk C3000
Mainline: PE1.2
Leader: Daiwa Tournament FC fluorocarbon 20lbs - 25lbs
Lures: various

Gear used.
Rod: Sportex Black Pearl travel, 2.7m, 80g
Reel: Shimano Biomaster SW 4000XG
Mainline: PE1.5
Leader: Daiwa Tournament FC fluorocarbon 25lbs - 30lbs
Lures: Texas rigged 4" bright coloured paddletails, 5" soft jerkbaits on 20-30g darting jigheads.

Birthday morning guiding and trout fishing!

On Friday it was my birthday and I had arranged to get on a boat with my girlfriend in Loch Morar, for a bit of trout fishing/picnic. I had also had a request for a guiding session on the same day and since the lads didn't have another day for it, I decided to take them out on a very early morning session.
We set off at 5AM and reached the mark in 25mins (usually takes 40!). A quick hike down to the rocks and conditions were looking perfect... Overcast, slight chop and ebbing tide.
I set up John and Jamie with softplastics on cheburashka on my two medium setups and after a few casts, John was in! The fish fought well but soon enough a decent pollock was up on the rocks. John caught a few more fish while Jamie was getting bites but failing to connect... I had given Jamie a stiffer, less forgiving rod and the fish being fussy nibblers didn't help him to strike home... After a while, the bites slowed down and it took many lure changes to entice them again... Time was passing and I was worried that Jamie might not catch a fish! We changed a couple spots and as the tide was nearing the low mark we started getting bites again. I had set Jamie up with a soft jerkbait on a darting jighead and he soon hooked up to a good fish! A good fight and we managed to land it after dislodging it from the kelp... Jamie hooked up to another good fish soon after and another good fight ensued! I then set John up with the same presentation and he managed to get a nice coalie just before it was time to go!
  

A chunk!

Early morning face.

John with a hard fighter.

Wanted the soft jerkbait...

Took him a while but...

And another one!

I drove the lads home and then I was off to get the ferry to Mallaig and then on to Loch Morar with my girl! We had a slow start (could be better if I had brought the right lures with me!) but found some fish while slow trolling some mini spoons. Also, I had good results trying mini slow jigs for the brownies with the 7g Duo metal Tetra jig catching a fair share of the day's total... Definitely something worth experimenting more with, in those deep lochs...

Lovely Morar trout.

On the mini slow jig!

Some colour on them!

Not a bad day!

Couldn't really ask for more on my birthday and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Now I'm hoping to have my own boat next time I'm on loch Morar...

Tight lines!

Big fish in unsettled weather.

Weather in October has been properly pants! Winds and rain over and over again along with work commitments really dampened my enthusiasm for fishing.
The other day though there was a slight dip to the wind's force and it was relatively dry, thus I thought it a good idea to visit one of my favourite distant marks in the SW part of the island.
I was hoping for some surface action but was also prepared for some soft plastics work as this mark is a steady good-fish producer.
Moreover it wont be productive for that much longer as fish tend to move out of it in winter and had to make the effort count...
I begun the long hike to the mark around 09:00 and was planning to hit some kelp beds with topwaters on the way to my spot. I realised that even though it wasn't very windy (Easterly wind) there was some swell running that made the conditions less than ideal.
I started casting my topwaters about but other than a few slaps from mostly smaller fish and coalies, they weren't doing much thus I tried metals and softplastics too. I was getting some bites but they seemed half-hearted and the fish wouldn't hit a second time... Very finicky.. Moreover Id expect far more fish-action in the ground I was covering..
Despite the slow first couple hours, I pushed on towards my spot and was there by midday.
The swell was significant there but I timed it well and arrived on low tide.
I started with 5" straights/soft jerkbaits on 15g-20g darting and swaying jigheads and had solid bites straight on. Hooked a couple fish that felt good but managed to do their usual thing and came unstuck in the kelp. Then I got one up of approx 65cm and in great condition, that's what I was there for!

A solid fish.

It was evident that I found a group of better fish as the bites were fairly localised and all of them felt heavy. They wised up fast though and I changed presentation to a 4" slim paddletail on 18g cheburashka. This presentation got more positive hits and I was soon connected to an even better fish.. It was just swaying along while I dragged it over clean ground and as soon as it came close to the kelp stared peeling drag! That's a common way that these larger fish tend to fight sometimes..
Nevertheless I soon had her up and scooped her in the net.
A lovely stocky fish that swam strongly back after a few photos!

Big mama...

I noticed that this pollock had lice on it, indicating that they were staying close to the bottom and not very active. Winter is approaching...
The tide turned and with it the waves from the swell got bigger.. I caught a little wrasse that took the lure in midwater almost (!) and a smaller kelpy pollock and decided to call it a day.
Don't think ill get the settled weather to give this place another try but theres always hope!
At least it would be great if I could get some more fish on topwaters before going in 'winter mode' with the usual soft plastics. Moreover I'm planning in doing 'something different' soon...
Here's a video of the session.

Tight Lines!

Gear used.
Rod: APIA Foojin'R Best Bower 96 MLX
Reel: Shimano Stradic FK C3000
Mainline: Duel Hardcore X8 PE 1.2
Leader: Daiwa Tournament FC fluorocarbon 20lbs
Lures: various

New spot in the wind!

The other day I had a half day off and thought it was a good opportunity to check out a spot that I've been wanting to fish for ages... Its very close to one of my favourite shallow water marks that I favour when there are strong Southerlies (as it has been lately).
I had my Apia with me and also wanted to get some footage of it in action and was thinking that Id soon have it in my sheltered spot..
After going through various lures I managed to get two pollock on a metal and softplastic but the bites were few and far between.
I thought it might be worth checking out the aforementioned spot even though it was exposed to the wind. A short walk later I arrived to the ledge and the sea here was much rougher with plenty of whitewater close in. The kelp was almost up to the surface close in but further out the bottom was cleaner and the depth grew abruptly though still only 10m or so..
I decided to stick to lures that would swim through the kelp without snagging and thus the two most effective presentations were: a 20g Salty Bait baited with a slim sp, and a slim jerkbait style sp on a 30g Crazyg offset jighead.
After a few casts I started getting some serious takes and fish in quick succession. They were clearly there in numbers and were staging just in front and to the side of a rocky spit where the wind and current 'broke'. These were good 4-5lbs fish and this signifies a good mark in my book!
The only problem is that this spot is tidal and thus I had to leave after a while as the water was rising..
Definitely going there again!
Below some pics and a video of the session.

A hard fighter!

Salty Bait slays...

A bruiser...

Tight lines!

Gear used.
Rod: APIA Foojin'R Best Bower 96 MLX
Reel: Shimano Stradic FK C3000
Mainline: Unitika Shore Game X8 PE 1.2
Leader: Daiwa Tournament FC fluorocarbon 18lbs
Lures: 20g Duel Salty bait with sandeel sp, 30g Ocean Ruler offset Crazyg jighead with 5" jerkbait style sp.

Mission Barracuda: Complete!

For a while now I have been planning a trip to Southern Greece in search of the predatory Mediterranean barracuda! This is a species I've never caught before as its not very common in Northern Greece. I was visiting relatives in Athens and it would be a good opportunity to fit a fishing day or two in between.. My friend Stelios invited me way back in Summer and now was the time.
Although, with the weather we were having here in the North I had to postpone this visit twice and I finally found a window of settled weather last week. It was only gonna be a short visit thus we had to make every minute count...
Upon my arrival in Athens we arranged when to meet and our fishing destination would be the island of Poros. With me I had only the UL travel rod and two reels (1000 and 2500) as my friend would bring an extra heavier rod for me. Tactics wise we would fish mainly softplastics during the night (slugs/soft jerkbaits on darting jigheads) and hardbaits at dawn (slim jerkbaits and minnows).
Thus, late afternoon on Friday we reached Poros and after settling in the hotel, sorted our stuff and got out fishing. There were splashes in a wide area near some strong lights as large shoals of baitfish were attacked by the cudas.. I started with the UL setup as I wanted to land one of these fish on lighter gear and after a few casts with the 4" Attira on a 7g jighead I got a solid take near the surface and immediately the drag started singing! The fish was making powerful runs and shakes and when I tried to get line in it felt like pulling a brick! Needless to say that the Mobile Stick was bent to the handle! After a few minutes I managed to bring the fish close to the wall and my friend Stelios got it in the net. We then realised that the cuda was hooked on its side (!) something that tells me it reacted more out of aggression than hunger. Nevertheless I had my first cuda in the net within minutes of starting the session and enjoyed a great fight!😀

Success!

My first Cuda!

After releasing the fish we persevered but I only got another half hearted bite near the bottom before we called it a night around 22:00. We grabbed something to eat and then got to our beds as we had to wake up at 03:00 for the morning bite...!
I was up before the alarm and we headed down the harbour straight away. We then met up with Stelio's friend Alex. A local who fishes for cudas day in day out. The news weren't encouraging... The past few sessions he only got a few fish by fishing all night long (!), while as is always the case, he was having great catches a couple weeks ago when I was bogged down by the snow...
Alex had already caught a couple fish though and I was paying attention to what he was using since this is always a good thing to do when fishing for new species and in new areas.. When in Rome...
He was using 4.5"-5" white or chartreuse/yellow Sluggos and Xlayers, working them close to the bottom with a few jerks and medium speed. I was using my friend Stelio's rod (a Lucky Craft ESGII 871HXF) but it was slow going. Bites dried up and we moved to another spot (a chokepoint) where the fish usually hit hardbaits at first light. I put on a Tide minnow slim 140 and as the sky was turning colours just before dawn I got the first strike. I hit the fish hard but didn't manage to set the hook. The same thing happened a few moments later while the others (friends Gianis and Nasos also showed up) were hooking up! It became apparent that this rod wasn't ideal for fishing hardbaits and cudas as it was too soft and couldn't set the trebles hard enough in the cudas bony mouths. My friend Stelios then offered me his rod (Apia Foojin'R ART MAGIC 88MLX) and I finally managed to land a couple cudas! This rod was quite impressive and I might look towards Apia next summer...

On a jerkbait around dawn.

A little one.

The channel..

As soon as the sun came up the bites stopped and we fished a couple spots for the chance of a bonito. Giannis was the lucky one and got the only one for the day... Then it was back to bed till lunchtime (well fed!) and out again after sundown.
On the second night again the fish were splashing and hunting about soon after dark but I felt more confident about how to get them into biting. I started with a chartreuseish 4.5" Xlayer on a 10g Owner darting jighead and started covering the spots that the fish were working over... I was retrieving and pausing the lure to touchdown in regular intervals and made sure not to strike in any nibbles but kept working the lure.. I then got a sudden and powerful take and the fish immediately took drag.. The rod was well bent (the Lucky Craft) and the fish took off again. Then all of a sudden it got off! I thought it bit through the line but soon felt the lure's weight again and took it out of the water to be met by this...

WTF?

 

 I'm not entirely sure it was a cuda and I'm even considering a big gilthead as a possible suspect, since they're known to frequent that mark and got jaws strong enough to do this.. I proceeded to lose another fish that didn't hook up properly and by this point I had no faith in this rod...Thankfully for the remaining of the fishing trip Stelios lend me his Apia...
After the second lost fish, the spot dried up and we decided to move to a nearby spot for a chance of scad and False scad. We used 3" Sluggos on 7g jigheads and soon enough Stelios got a scad while I got a false scad of about a pound. The fish weren't tightly grouped and holding near the bottom a fair cast away, but I still would've preferred to get them on the UL/LRF setup.. In any case things soon slowed down again and we were back to beds in preparation for the last session.

A nice False scad.

We woke up slightly later that day (04:30) and we headed down the harbour to find the others fishing already. They had caught a couple fish each and were hammering the most productive spot, though the fish seemed to have shut down. I moved in close to them with a plan in my mind. They were using 5"-6" bubblegum and chartreuse slugs on 15g+ jigheads but it had been a while since they had another bite. I opted for a 10g darting fishead jighead and a pink 4.5" Xlayer. I fished slower than them and with fewer darting movements on the retrieve trying to show something more 'natural' yet still enticing to these pressured fish. The first bite didn't take long to come but I didn't get a good hookset even with the Apia (damn those bony jaws!), I changed Jighead and lure immediately after, opting for a white Xlayer on a 15g Ecogear jighead. This would make me work the lure slightly faster and I hoped to aggravate another fish to bite as I knew I wouldn't get many chances. A few casts later and I was in! Not a big fish but it felt good managing to 'unlock' them.

Another on the Xlayer.

Going back.

 We soon moved to the 'chokepoint' for another go with the hardbaits. Out of curiosity I decided to use shallower running jerkbaits than the others to see if they fish would show a preference.. And they did though not for my lures! As the sun started to come out the others started getting fish while I got one strike and a couple follows. The bite didn't last long but I wasn't bothered too much about not catching since I got useful hints to the behaviour of these fish.
After the sun came up higher, I had a few casts at the bonito-spot but with no luck. We then picked up our stuff and boarded the ferry back to Athens. A lovely fishing trip with plenty of exciting moments although without tonnes of big fish. I'm glad that due to my friend Stelios I managed to catch a species that eluded me for years and also have a great time and make new friends!
Bellow I add some bullet points and observations regarding this trip.

• Use jigheads with sharp 2/0 plus size hooks.
• Midwinter, softplastics near the bottom at night and possibly hardbaits at first light.
• Preferably a stiffish rod for good hooksets.
• 0.34mm fluorocarbon leader minimum.
• 4"-5" soft jerkbaits/slugs on darting jigheads most effective.
• When having lots of nibbles etc keep working the lure. Strike hard on positive takes!
• White, pink, with hint of chartreuse etc good colours for nighttime.
• Begin with lighter jigheads first and then go heavier for faster/more reaction based work. Typically 10g-15g at aprox 6m depth.
• Trailer hooks such as open eye Siwash may be a useful addition to the jighead hook.
• Vary lures and presentations after dropped takes and overworked fish.
• On Poros, cudas at night were staging at the deep parts of the canal, usually at the drop offs and near the first major light source but in the shadows. At dawn in the chokepoint.
• Megabass Super Xlayers most consistent softbait. DUO Tide Minnow Slim and Seaspin Mommoti for hardbaits.
• First bites and splashes after sundown and then again around 04:00.
• Feeding spells can be brief especially with hardbaits midwater and higher, Softplastics near the bottom more consistent.
• 14cm+ jerkbaits very effective at dawn on straight retrieve with some speed variations.
• Sayori, cuda and 'sparkly' colours most effective then.
• A slightly larger lure than what the others are throwing might get more fish when they're fired up.
• Cuda like more 'intense' actions on hardbaits than bass do and a slightly deeper dive.
• Scad and False scad near the lights but in more 'open' areas and deeper water.
• Bonito might pass soon after first light at the deeper water near the chokepoint.
• The presence of baitfish is a must!

The fishing team!

Well its soon back to Skye now and my more usual fishing targets. Although I had hoped for much more action filled holidays (fish-wise) the horrendous weather really killed any chances for that but I cant complain too much as at least my main target was achieved and besides I had a great time!

Tight Lines!

Gear used.
Rod: Spro Mobile Stick 80MH, Lucky Craft ESGII 871HXF, Apia Foojin'R ART MAGIC 88MLX
Reel: Shimano Stradic 1000fc, Shimano Stradic ci4 2500f
Mainline: Duel Hardcore X4 PE 0.8
Leader: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon 0.34mm+
Lures: Various.