The cuckoos are out!

My days off didn't start in the best way this week. Issues with my car kept me home for most of the morning (turns out I had left a light on and drained the battery...) but as soon as I sorted it out, I was out fishing! This time I took my usual light shore jigging setup but also the finesse one as I wanted to 'scratch' around the bottom for extra species.I was fishing at one of my favourite deep water rock-marks and started with a 14g cheburashka and a 3" Ecogear paramax on the #2 offset hook. It took a long time to hit the bottom but I felt sharp bites as soon as it did... I struck and at once I knew I had something other than pollock on! I took my time reeling the fish in and soon enough had a chunky female cuckoo wrasse on the rocks.. I love catching these fish and persevered looking for the male to bite my lure.. Alas as is usually the case up here, the pollock had different ideas and didn't let anything else get a taste of my offerings. I got a 4-5 pounder that gave a very good fight and thought it was time to change to the heavier gear...
This saw me catch yet more pollock but towards the end I got a lovely male cuckoo wrasse!

Less colourful but still feisty!

Can never get tired of catching these...

And the videos of the session.

As I was making my way back (getting dark by now) I passed the shallow bays and the water just looked perfect for some topwater action. It was almost past the high tide mark by now and as I approached the waters edge I saw fish splashing close in.. Pollock hunting...
Straight away I put on the only surface lure I had with me (Tacklehouse Vulture) and casted towards the splashes.. The rest on the video below...

Almost night-time...

On the next day I visited Rubha Hunish as I hadn't been there in a while.
The session didn't start with a bang and things were pretty slow but after moving around a bit I decided to fish the rocks facing the wind and covered water quickly with hardbaits. This saw me get some good fish and the lures that shined were the Ima Hound 125 Sonic and the ever-productive Megabass Zonk Gataride. As I was walking and casting along the rocks (tide turned and was on the ebb by now) I identified a gully emptying out and it was there that I had non stop action for about 20mins! In retrospect I shoud've used hardbaits and even topwaters but the classic 6.5" Sluggo on a darting jighead did the damage..

Ima hound...

A very dark fish...

Megabass Zonk Gataride..

And the video.

A very productive couple of days and I couldn't ask for more!
I'm really hoping the weather improves a bit though as I want to make the hike (and fish!) to Idrigill Point and Rubh na Dunain. Two hard to get to marks that I'm sure are well worth the effort. Plus I need a bit of exercise!

Tight Lines!

Gear used:
Rod: MajorCraft Solpara SPS-1002LSJ, 3.05m. max 50g
Reel: Shimano SW Biomaster 4000XG
Mainline: YGK G-Soul X3 PE1.5
Leader: Duel Hardcore Powerleader fluorocarbon 20lbs.
Lures: Various

The usual fishing with a few surprises...

On my days off I covered my usual areas as the weather again wasn't the best.. It has to be noted that the pollock fishing hasn't been on fire lately, something that I've tended to note every year around mid-summer and blame the overabundance of prey-fish for the slow sport...  This time of the year fish are far more picky than usual and will feed energetically at only specific times. Usually early mornings are such a time but with the rainy weather we've been getting I just cant get my ass out of bed so early! Moreover slim profile lures are now the best type to use but even then the number of fish is markedly smaller than what it was a few weeks ago...
On a positive note though, more species have finally appeared with the mackerel especially showing in good numbers in some marks.
With that in mind I knew I had to cover a few areas to get some decent fishing and that I did!
I started on Wednesday fishing at one of the Southern marks and things seemed to be going well with pollock from the off. They soon quietened down though and the mackerel started... Moreover I caught a lovely short spined sea scorpion with the most vivid red colour I have ever seen!
Towards the end of the session I had an even greater surprise when, after changing lure to a metal, I caught a nice sea trout!
Below some pics and the video of the session.

A beauty!

And another beauty!

On Thursday I started the day by visiting a shallow kelpy mark with the intention of trying a new rod out (Lucky Craft ESGII 971 XHXXF, 9'7" 3-30g). I got this rod to be used mainly with hardbaits and after catching a couple fish I decided to head home and have a break as things were very quiet around low tide.

Later in the afternoon I visited Neist Point (after a while) but unfortunately the weather turned really bad and after a nice 2.6kg first fish, things slowed to a grind.. The rain intensified but I soldiered on for a few more fish taken at range and in deep water. Too much effort for little reward but you never know... I was again let down by my waterproofs as i got soaked to the bone again and also my smartphone stopped working... These issues will be addressed seriously soon...
Something else to add is that most of the fish came on the Hayabusa Kicktail and the biggest one on the lovely slim Hayabusa Jack Eye D-Slide (from an area already covered by another angler) and I speculate that the slim (sandeel) profile along with its exacerbated irregular fall are the cause...

A serious fighter...

The video.

A great couple days in all and I'm glad I got the camera working again!

Tight Lines

My first boat fishing session on Skye!

Last week I had the rare opportunity to go on a boat with my mate Dylan. He had just bought a boat in Lochmaddy and was meant to get there by ferry and then return with the boat to Skye.
Without a second thought I agreed to go with him (obviously with fishing-stops included) and we were very lucky to have very good weather.
On reaching Lochmaddy (North Uist), the first thing that struck me, were the cliffs surrounding the inlet and the many rocks in the bay on the way to the harbour. I now knew where my first fish-stop would be later on...
After waiting for a while for the boat to arrive and getting it in the water, we jumped in and set off. The outboard was only a small one, and the trip across would take most of the day but we were well provisioned and enjoying the fine weather.
We had a sounder on board and it was my first time trying out such equipment. It was only a basic one but it clearly showed the depth and bottom contours and proved to be extremely useful..
We stopped on the first fishy looking rock and I told Dylan to get close enough so that I could let a few casts. I tied on a 30g Salty bait with a 4.5" Sluggo for a trailer and cast near the rock. The current was strong but the lure didn't have time to sink for more than a few seconds before it was intercepted by a fish! A short fight later and a pollock was on the deck. This fish was followed by many more in varying sizes. They were practically stacked around the rock and feeding actively. I couldn't believe how easy it was and to be honest I now realise the great benefits of having a boat... I do love my rock fishing but this was just pure fun and no effort!

One of many from the rocks at Lochmaddy.

Salty bait and Sluggo. lethal combination.

So much fun!

Decent scrapper!

Fish on!

Go back!

 After spending about 20mins on the rock, we decided to move as there were too many areas on the way that I wanted to cast a line at!
It took us a few hours to make the crossing and we then hit Waternish Point. This is an area Ive yet to fish, but with clear potential (as so many other similar areas on Skye!) that I just haven't gotten around it yet. We noticed large shoals of sandeels in the sonar and I started picking up some fish. The usual pollock but also s few mackerel and coalies that were trailing the sandeel shoals.

Waternish Point..

A very welcome mackerel..

..and a nice coalie!

Again we didn't spend too much time there as it was getting late by now. We headed towards Uig and after passing next to the cliffs, I identified a hump in about 30m depth and thought to make a couple casts. I had a 30g Hayabusa Kicktail on and casted out over the hump with the intention to bounce it on the bottom back towards me and over the hump. Soon after touchdown though I felt weight and habitually struck. The rod tip stayed down and after briefly thinking I was stuck, I felt the 'snag' move and heard the drag letting of line at a slow, constant pace. This was very similar to the 'thing' that took much of my line a few months ago but I thought now I had a good chance of seeing what it was..
I fought the fish for well over an hour and chased it with the boat a few times. I managed to get it off the bottom twice and on the second time I brought it to a depth of about 12m and we could clearly see it on the sonar. Moreover it seemed to have company as another shape followed it up!  The fish refused to come up though and made another near unstoppable and determined run, although it felt slower this time and seemed to spend more time in a single place on the bottom. Unfortunately we were loosing light and the wind was picking up. Unprepared for navigating at night (no lights) I tried to hurry the fish and tightened the drag more. This lead to the leader breaking at the knot and my second chance of landing the 'Skye monster' was lost...
After that I lost all appetite for fishing and we went straight to the harbour.
I'm now 99% sure it was a common Skate and I'm surprised it took the inchiku lure (there was no fish caught on this time). They are clearly more predatory than I thought. Alas it was the same setup I had as last time and its just not enough for fish of this size...
Below a little vid I took on my mobile as I'm experiencing problems with my action cam (one day I needed it!)

Regardless of the lost monster it was a great day afloat and it certainly opened up my eyes on the potential of boat fishing here on Skye. We are planning to make these outings more regular now as I'm now hooked!
Just when I though I had most of my gear sorted for my fishing here, I now realise I need more!

Tight Lines and more to come...

Rod:  MC KG Evolution KGS-902L, 2.7m, 7-23g.
Reel: Daiwa Freams 2500
Mainline: Duel Hardcore X4 PE 1.0
Leader: Duel Hardcore Powerleader fluorocarbon 20lbs
Lures: Various (mostly inchiku type metals)

My first guiding session and a lot of rain!

I was unlucky with the weather this week as it was raining practically non-stop during both my days off! Moreover there were strong Southwesterly winds that made fishing even more unpleasant..
I had a session alone on Wednesday and caught some fish in the shallows with a mixture of hard and softbaits. Unfortunately the wind didn't allow for the use of topwaters and that was a pity as I found a good number of fish active and willing to hit shallow runners but not OTT...

Looks like a scene from Jurassic park!

Megabass Zonk 120 sw...

DUO Realis Jerkbait 120sp for the best fish of the day..

 A video of the session.

On Thursday I met up with a friend who wanted to get a taste of saltwater fishing on Skye. Robert is from Poland and had never before fished in the UK. Therefore I promised him that he would catch his first Scottish fish on the session! Thankfully the rain was less intense in the morning along with a lighter wind. Thus we quickly drove to one of my northern marks as we would only have a short window of opportunity before the tide and conditions change.
We arrived at the spot and it was looking pretty good. A light chop on the surface and plenty of birdlife about along with a seal, indicated that there was something going on under the surface. I prepared the rod for my friend and set him up with a 15g darting jighead and a slug type lure.  I pointed him in the direction that I though the fish would be holding and told him to just let the lure sink on a tight line and to start a steady retrieve as soon as it touched down. Well that didn't happen as the lure was intercepted on the way down (first cast!) and my friend had a good bend in the rod fighting a decent sized pollock!
This is how the session unfolded with more fish and some good fights. No monsters on the day but considering the conditions, I think we did well...
It was interesting to note a good blitz we saw on the surface although we didn't see what caused it...
We had to cut the session short as the weather deteriorated after a while and it just became too much hard work trying to control the line, feel for bites etc.. My friend Robert was very happy though as he had a few fish for dinner and a very productive session. I think he is now hooked on rock fishing!

Happy faces...

A good bend on the rod!

Number one!

A happy angler!

Something Ive realised on these two days is how insufficient normal rain-wear is under these conditions. On the first day I was wearing my usual Vass waterproof smock and waterproof trousers, but by the end of the session (a few hours long) I was absolutely soaked to the bone! I think its time to look more seriously into some dedicated rough-weather clothing as it appears that I will be on Skye longer than I had planned and autumn and winter will bring even worse conditions...

Thanks for reading and tight lines!

Gear used.
Rod: MajorCraft Solpara SPS-1002LSJ, 3.05m. max 50g and Tica Seha graphite 2.70m,~10-30g
Reel: Shimano SW Biomaster 4000XG and Abu Garcia Soron Stx40
Mainline: YGK G-Soul X3 PE1.5 and Duel Hardcore x4 PE1.5
Leader: Duel Hardcore Powerleader fluorocarbon 20lbs.
Lures: various

Light Shore Jigging setup completed...

Ive recently got a Light shore Jigging rod (Major Craft Solpara SPS-1002LSJ) in order to help me target the bigger fish from the rougher marks here. The plan was to use it with my trusty Abu Garcia Soron 40 Stx but in truth the reel is showing its years of hard use (and abuse!) lately even though its been serviced fully (not a very good idea in the end). Thus I was on the lookout for a powerful reel in a similar size and weight to the Soron. I could well get something larger but I'm intending to get a new 10-30g rod soon and would like to use the reel on both rods. After a bit of searching around I decided to settle on a new Shimano SW Biomaster 4000XG from Japan that cost much less than even the cheapest price from European e-shops. I received the reel on Wednesday and spooled it straight away with the YGK G-Soul X3 PE1.5. This may not be the best braid around but I couldn't pass on its price (around 9 euros), besides I also have a dedicated jigging braid to fall back to (YGK G-Soul Super Jigman X4) if things don't workout.

New shiny toy!

More recently I have bought some Hayabusa Kick tail inchiku jigs as they are of a similar style to the Duel Salty Bait and could be very useful for sorting out the pickier fish especially in the deeper marks.

On Thursday I decided to try out the new setup and visited one of my favourite Northern marks after a slow session in a kelpy bay. The day was rainy but with little wind and a neap tide. The latter made fishing on this mark much easier as there was less current and the fish seemed to be liking it! As soon as the Kick tail hit water I was getting bites even before touching bottom. Moreover the fish seemed to be everywhere (!) with some surface activity and I was also getting bites even at distance over relatively clean ground and not just at the usual holding spots (reef, rock base etc). The Kick tail has got a little muppet at the back that has that sway side to side but instead of an offset hook, it has a double assist hook. I had some missed strikes due to the hooks being a bit small in my opinion but then again I didn't snag it!
It didn't take me long to start hooking up though and I had two decent fish over 5lbs that gave a very good scrap! On the second one I thought I had a seal/tuna again...! After catching a good few fish on the inchikus, I switched to softplastics and then hardbaits and had success with them all but not as much as the inchiku.
 The reel performed very well with effortless winding of the fish from the depths and no trouble with wind-knots etc while the casts were superb. I hope it will continue to do so for a while!
Unfortunately something went wrong with my action cam on the day and Ive got no video from the session, hopefully this wont happen again...

Xrap opens the day...

A nice coalie on the softplastic.

A hungry one hit the DUO...

First decent fish of the day on the Kick Tail.

The Zonk 120 sw...

The little Volkien inchiku.

The second good fish of the day on a softie..

It was interesting to note that the fish were so active at this deeper, 'reefier' mark yet not so much at the shallower 'kelpy' bay I fished earlier that day. Admittedly I was a bit late reaching the first mark and fished some of the incoming tide (soon after the low tide point) instead of my preferred outgoing tide. But nevertheless I don't think it was a coincidence. The weather was textbook pollock-weather (westerly breeze, overcast, wet) and only the tide being a small one seems to be the most significant  factor for the fish feeding activity. I theorise that in shallower waters fish like larger volumes of water pushing in and out the bays, bringing more food, while in the deeper reefs this current can get too much and turn the fish off... More on this soon..
All in all it was a great day out and I really enjoyed my new toys! Definitely onwards and upwards as they say...

Tight lines.
Gear used.
Rod: MajorCraft Solpara SPS-1002LSJ, 3.05m. max 50g
Reel: Shimano SW Biomaster 4000XG
Mainline: YGK G-Soul X3 PE1.5
Leader: Duel Hardcore Powerleader fluorocarbon 20lbs.
Lures: Hayabusa Kick tail 20g and 30g, Volkien Soul Mini battle inchiku, Rapala Xrap, Megabass Zonk 120 SW, Duo Realis Jerkbait 120sp, and slug type soft plastics on darting jigheads.