The mad "Northumbrians" are back!

It was a pleasure to meet up yet again with my Northern English friends and have a session on the sib! Mick and Keith brought Chris and Rob with them for their annual Skye fishing holiday. The weather last week was crap for the most part and the lads struggled to find good fishing. I deliberately waited for last minute and picked the best day of the forecast. We met up early in the morning and the plan was to split up in two SIBs. Mick and Keith in Mick's new Honwave T35 and Chris with Rob in mine.

We launched and headed for our first spot. The forecast gave S-SE winds but we were met with a brisk westerly that got me worried I chose the wrong spot...

We started fishing and soon enough we found the fish holding near the bottom in a 25m bowl.

The old-timers Mick and Keith started hauling some fish in and it took a few tries for Chris and Rob to follow suit.  

The fish were showing a strong preference to soft plastics and this continued for the rest of the day. 

After a couple hours and with the westerly not dying down, we decided to move to a more sheltered area.

The crossing was fun in the chop but we soon came to shelter.

I could see fish higher up in the water column and there seemed to be plenty of fry around. 

We started casting and soon all the guys were in!  

We had a steady stream of 4-6 lbs fish with the better ones going 7-8lbs. We came close but no double graced our net on the day. 

At some point Chris got something heavy on, that kept close to the bottom without making the usual runs and dives of Pollock. We were all surprised to see a decent cod coming up from the depths! And it wasn't alone as Chris managed another one a few casts later, on his homemade cheburaska jigs! 

The obvious jokes of the East Coasters bringing these fish over were made, although it definitely seems like cod catches are becoming more frequent... 

I get codling on the deeper parts of this mark around October and then in Spring, but this was very shallow and unusually out of season. 

Nevertheless they were a lovely addition to the species count and Chris generously gave them to me for my dinner. 

Later on we encountered the first mackerel on this side of the island and we had some nice sized ones on the metals. By then the wind had gone right down and the sun was out. A perfect ending to another fishing adventure with these legends!

It was great having the guys back for another year and I'm glad that I managed to  put them on the fish after the hard days they had. 

The fish we had seemed in excellent condition. We tried to get them up on the topwaters but I believe that the combination of big tides and sunny sky kept them low. 

I had a quick session the other day after work and I managed a pollock on the fly and a coalie on the Autowalker 115s. The visibility was unreal at 18m! 

With the proper arrival of the mackerel now, the sea feels alive and though I suspect fish will be a bit finicky, the golden time is near...

Will be going back to Greece for holidays next week and I'm hoping to get some fishing done there. Been a while...

Tight Lines 

A bit hectic!

The past couple of weeks have been a blur... I've been very busy at work but also with guiding and I got to see some familiar faces. I feel really proud to have so many returning anglers! The fishing has been typical of Mid-summer with fussy fish and short feeding spells. Persistence, frequent spot changes and realistic finesse presentations were key for getting the fish.

Weather has been good for the most part although as we're getting into August, things seem to change. Had the first few mackerel sessions as well, though only at the western part of the Island still. I've yet to find some spare time for freshwater fishing but I'm hoping to change this soon.

I have more guiding to do this week with yet more familiar faces! Hopefully it'll be time for some topwater strikes...

Tight lines! 

Bits and Bobs fishing.

The past couple of weeks I haven't done much fishing as we visited family and time was limited. Nevertheless, I've had a few casts here and there with varied success. The sea fishing is improving day by day and I caught the first mackerel of the year recently. The seatrout game seems to be slowing down and I think it's time to devote more time on the SIB. Have sent both engine props to be cupped and smoothed and just waiting on them to get back.
A couple lochan sessions weren't too bad either with a few pretty brownies and some new ground covered.
Overall, things are looking up and hoping for some varied and exciting fishing to come!
Some pics below.

Wouldnt mind a few more of them...

Loch Lochy trout from a short session.

Eyes bigger than belly...

Lochan brownie.

Lovely spots on them...

My brother's in!

Good stamp of fish,

LRF Coalie

Love them.

Some day that was!

Frustrating yet beautiful...

Tight Lines!

Mission Seatrout.

This is the first year that I have managed to devote some time and effort into going after these beautiful fish in Skye. The change of job and availability of spare time have contributed greatly to this. Previously I'd get them sporadically while rock fishing or lrfing for flatfish, especially in the south of the Island. Thus this year I've refined my gear and approach to suit. I use my MajorCraft Crostage Light Game CRX-784LG travel rod as its light yet can cast and work a variety of lures and weights. Moreover, the rod's moderate action limits hook-pulls and its overall performance has managed to prevent me from buying a specialised rod!
I still use my ever faithful Shimano Stradic 1000fc loaded with 0.6PE Shimano Kairiki braid and 6-8lbs fluorocarbon leader.
The lures I've had better results with were 7g-10g slim spoons and hollow jig minnows.
I mainly target areas that I had caught them before and in various states of the tide. Late afternoons into the evening seem best. Found them more localised in bays around low water, while more spread out and near points around high water.
So far, my hook up to landing ratio is pretty good on this setup and sometimes I can't help but think that these fish could actually have a better chance of escaping if they only kept themselves in the water and just made runs like most normal fish! lol
Unfortunately, most of the fish come laden with sea-lice even though there are no fish farms in that area.

Pretty fish...

On one of my most successful lures.

One of the better ones. Notice the lice.

I reckon I'll stick to the trout theme for a bit longer and then hopefully go after some pike and perch in freshwater. Weather's fair so got to make the most of it!

Tight Lines.