Well since moving to Glasgow and with the Christmas and New Year holidays upon us, I had very little time for fishing. A few short sessions in the Forth and Clyde canal were honestly pathetic! I was needing some fish and got my chance today since I got a few days off from work. I had only one mark in my mind.. Loch Fyne! Surprisingly, although the temperature was quite low (3C), the lack of wind and the bright sun made for a very pleasant day. I used the tried and tested presentations of cheburashka/offset hook/paddletail and Salty Bait/Gulp and started getting bites from the start.. I could see a few cormorants and a seal working the area so I knew the fish were around, although I would prefer if the seal wasn't there!
After a couple casts and missed strikes (I got rusty!) I finally got the first fish up. A small pollock opened the day and more fish followed soon after. I got the usual species with a few plumb codling making the catch even more special. some pics and notes from the day below:
First fish of the day..
Codling were in superb condition..
What a day!
Decent codling..
Baby octopus? Squid? looks like I'm using tubes next time..
Feels like there's more of a better stamp around now..
Pollock from the 'abyss'.. Skinny and full of eye parasites..
Not nice!
Poor cod numbers high as ever!
Mild day - fish feeding well afternoon onwards.
Codling plumb and in much better condition than pollock. Found pollock with eye parasites near the bottom, not codling..
Bite frequency not very different to warmer months! Albeit fish stayed deeper.
Not necessarily slow retrieves best.. Codling attacked even on faster speed.
Found codling feeding on small molluscs..
3"- 4" paddletails on 10-12g cheburashka most effective.
cormorants and seals good fish indicators.
Poor cod unaffected by the cold!
Pilkers, stick baits not very effective today. Fish wanted natural presentation bounced on the bottom and at times would hit as the lure passed over kelp/rocks on the way up.
Increased number of missed fish. Either due to not taking the lure well or getting unhooked..
As expected, deep basin areas in the sea lochs fold fish even in the coldest weather.
Possibly better stamp of codling now.
A much needed fishing session and I'm now convinced that the sea lochs are year-round fisheries for rock fishing! As long as the correct location is found there are plenty of fish to be had..
Another note from today: I saw two groups of anglers fishing around me with a combination of baits/lures and they had meagre results (a couple dogfish). Testament to the effectiveness of rock/finesse fishing, I just don't get why more people are not getting into it! The net and even the magazines now are full of info and anybody can go for it.. The west coast is a true LRF heaven and so many people are missing out!
I'm pretty sure that this was my last saltwater venture till the change of the year and I hope to have a few sessions like this one in the next year as well. Might visit the canal tomorrow and try again for a Forth and Clyde canal perch!
Tight Lines!
Gear used.
Rod: MC KG Evolution, KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g.
Reel: Shimano Stradic ci4 2500f
Mainline: Duel Hardcore 4x4 PE 0.6
leader: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon, 8lbs or P-line Halo fluorocarbon, 10lbs,
lures: 3"- 4" paddletails, Salty bait/gulp.
Well I've now moved to Glasgow after a 10 day holiday, driving around Scotland and North England. I did almost no fishing but I enjoyed visiting places that I haven't been for in a while.. I did get the chance for a couple casts at Loch Linnhe and I winkled out a couple codling but not much else. I'm not complaining though as this is the latest I've ever fished saltwater in a year and I'm pretty sure that with the first opportunity I'll head straight for Loch Fyne since its not that far away.. I am optimistic that there will be fish to be had in the lochs throughout the colder months. Below a little video and some pics of my last fish here.
Hope they will still be there in January!
My last pollock for 2014..
I need to find a place with bigger ones!
I have to look closer at home first though, and the Forth and Clyde canal seems promising..
I already identified some stretches on Google Earth and today had my first reconnaissance session near Maryhill. I was after perch mostly but seeing how cold it got since yesterday I thought it more likely to catch jacks.
I started fishing jigheads but then switched to dropshot with a pilker instead of a weight, something that's worked for me well on tough, cold days. After a few casts around likely looking spots, I was soon getting the jacks I was waiting for.. Really tiny pike but they were my first fish from this canal and in this horrible weather very welcome!
After fishing for about an hour and a half I decided to call it a day and head home.
I was very surprised with how well the fluorocarbon mainline (I couldn't find my K2K traces!) managed to withstand the jack's teeth as it took 4-5 fish till I had to retie.. I think that it was a good choice upping the line to 6lbs and using it exclusively on dropshot.
New canal looks promising..
Some nice features..
Tiny jacks were the catch of the day!
No matter how cold, they always give some sport..
Another baby pike.
Don't think I've caught smaller!
I will now start focusing more on the canal for my every day short sessions and whenever I get the chance (weather allowing!) I will still make the trip to the lochs to see how the fishing changes in the colder months. Moreover I'm really keen to try with the heavy gear on the East coast for bigger cod, but that may be more of a gamble returns-wise... In any case I'm not hanging my rods (!) and hope that the canal lives up to expectations...
Tight lines!
Gear used.
Rod: Awa Shima Qlite spin, 1-5g, 2.40m
Reel: Tica Libra SA 2500
Mainline: Sunline FC guide special fluorocarbon, 6lbs
Rig: dropshot
Lure: LFT Live baby shad with pilker instead of lead.
Although I have now moved to Glasgow and I'm currently on my holidays. I managed to put a few sessions through before I left and I was pleased to find out that the fish were there till the end. One method/presentation, that although I used quite late in the season, provided me with some good fish was finesse fishing with soft plastic stickbaits/senkos. Therefore below I give a few points on the way that I've used them for my fishing here.
Better used at areas that slope fast in good depth with plenty of rocks and kelp. Steep (bluff) rock walls, points and bays are all good locations
Presence of current is advantageous.
Size 4"- 4.8" best for the fish I encounter most often in my marks. Big enough to attract the larger fish but also small enough to offer good hook ups with smaller fish.
Size 2/0-3/0, 2-4g weighted wide gape offset hooks most suitable for the best presentation in the deeper water.
For my slightly shallower marks (still deep by normal standards!) tungsten insert nail weights added near the lure's centre, may be a better choice than weighted hooks as they retain more of the lure's weightless action.
Heavier lure models are easier to fish in these depths.
Horizontal fall is paramount. Many bites OTD.
Slow retrieve not always the most effective. Mix and match will show how the fish want it.
Colour not so important although the addition of sparkle/glitter seems beneficial.
Heavily salted/scented and with added pork fat etc can give better results in tough days.
Better to tie the knot straight to the hook for added sensitivity.
Solid tipped rods have worked best for me.
Added spinner blades (blink) can 'wake' fish up.
Some ways I rig them:
With added blink...
..It does work.
On weighted offset hooks, best for deep waters.
On standard offset or twistlock hooks with insert weights,
for the slightly shallower marks.
Work well as trailers on madais...
...And jigs.
And a couple videos of fish caught with them!
Overall these lures have consistently sorted the better fish for me and I have now added another card up my sleeve. As I've mentioned before, they are not a method for every day or every mark, but in the right place they can regularly catch you the best fish.
The weather got noticeably colder the past few days and I don't know how this will have affected the fish up on the lochs. I'm planning a short visit though so I will soon find out..!
Gear used.
Rod: MC KG Evolution,KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g.
Reel: Shimano Stradic ci4 2500f
Mainline: Duel Hardcore 4x4 PE 0.6
leader: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon, 8lbs or P-line Halo fluorocarbon, 10lbs,
lures:4"-4.8" stickbaits.
Yesterday I managed to meet up with the well known lrfer Jake Schogler for a day session at Loch Linnhe. Jake is writing an article on Sea angler magazine about lrf in the Scottish lochs and was interested in fishing around my area. So after a few messages of facebook we arranged to meet up in the morning near Kentallen where we planned to fish for the day. Surprisingly the weather for the past few days has been unseasonably mild and sunny, so we were in luck!
We both geared up (some much heavier than others!) and headed for my favourite mark in Linnhe. The sun wasn't properly over the mountains yet and it was kind of a slow start but soon the fish came to the bite.. A steady stream of codling and small pollock followed.
I was mixing it up with paddletails on cheburashka, stickbaits and metal jigs while Jake was using mostly dropshot and jighead presentations. I was hoping that the larger pollock would soon show as Jake was keen on getting some, but unfortunately they weren't in a mood that day. We did manage some nice wrasse though (even got one on the stickbait) and were kept busy by the codling, smaller pollock and coalies throughout the day. On a couple of occasions we also managed the fabled double hook-up (!) and all in all it was a productive day and good fun to fish with a fellow like-minded angler like Jake.
The prevalent species right now.
A surprise wrasse on the stickbait!
Good fun with a fellow lrfer!
Nice codling on the stickbait.
One of a few pollock for me.
Another wrasse.
Double hook-up!
This was our only session to be as Jake had family commitments for the rest of the weekend.
Seeing how good the weather was today, I decided to visit Loch Fyne for the day hoping to find some better fish. I drove to find the loch calm as a lake and the sun glaring down.. A beautiful day but not exactly ideal for good fishing. As expected the fish were hanging deep and I decided that the best way of approach would be an 8g cheburashka and a 3" Keitech Easy shiner shad. I was getting bites every cast and codling along with poor cod were coming in at a steady pace although again the pollock eluded me as I only caught a few small ones. I put the lack of pollock down to the sunny weather and I also witnessed another angler catching a nice mackerel! Its mid November!
I moved along the harbour to the opposite point catching some smaller fish along the way with my first corkwing wrasse among them! Yet another new species for me!
At the point I reverted to cheburashka/shad combo and started fan-casting. I found a spot where the depth changes abruptly and focused my attention there. I was getting bites from poor cod and I quickly retrieved the lure a bit shallower near the base of the breakwater's boulders. I got a good take and a very nice run that made me think I hooked a nice pollock. In the end I brought a good wrasse to the surface! The warm weather has definitely made them more active.. I kept casting around with the occasional codling coming up but it was nearing sundown now and I was hoping for something better to come along. After a long cast towards the spot mentioned earlier, I got another good take and again solid resistance.. This fight was different with plenty of head shakes and the fish kept deep, but with some sustained pressure I managed to bring up a very nice codling! Its been a while since I caught one that big and it put a smile on my face. Of course it was returned straight back and I decided to play around with some mini species afterwards. I caught another corkwing and a golsiney before calling it a day.
My first corkwing!
A good fighter.
A proper codling!
Mr fatty..
Lovely fish..
Feisty golsiney!
And a little video of the wrasse's run although I lost some time trying to turn on the camera again!
Tight lines!
Gear used.
Rod: MC KG Evolution,KGS-832ST 2.53m, 3-15g , MC Crostage CRK-T782AJI .
Reel: Shimano Stradic 1000 fc, Shimano Stradic ci4 2500f
Mainline: Yamatoyo SW super Light Game PE 0.4, Duel Hardcore 4x4 PE 0.6
leader: YGK Nitlon DFC fluorocarbon, 8lbs.P-line Halo fluorocarbon, 10lbs,
lures: cheburashka, metal jigs and 4"stickbaits.
