Slow times in the East Neuk

With a week off looming and hoping to get out fishing 3-4 times I thought it best to get an early start and get out on Saturday. The plan was to meet Sandy (Fife65) somewhere in the East Neuk. On the way over to the mark Sandy phoned to say the swell was too big and the wind increasing to be safe and arranged to meet at an alternative nearby, where I shortly found Sandy having a coffee after getting his hooks in the water. Big hooks with rotten bottom  pulleys were the rig of the day as we were after some coddies.

The sea was fairly rough but not mad and there was a reasonable colour to it which had us hoping even though the weather and water were both unseasonably warm.

The chat flowed but nothing was interested and after a short unfruitful move along the mark a bit we decided to move further away and give the White Pier at Anstruther a bash.

The tide was dropping so we went towards the end of the pier. This time there were a lot of knocks but we were both fairly sure that the culprits were small coalies and not the coddies we were after. Worried about a blank we had a small rod in the inner harbour hoping for flatties or mini species. Sandy was first to beat the blank with an eel pout followed quickly by myself with a wee coalie so at least a double blank beaten.

We fished on for another couple of hours with no more luck.

Help for Heroes - St Cyrus

1 October 2011 and the day of the Help for Heroes meet to raise a few quid for the charity.

Up early doors for the drive p which was done in (at times) torrential rain. Not looking good I thought and it still wasn't any better when I arrived at the meeting place. So out with the kettle for a brew and thankfully by the time I'd finished the rain had almost died.

My concerns of a poor turnout, due to the weather and the Scotland v England game at the Rugby World Cup (least said the better), were thankfully unfounded as 23 folk turned up and paid their dues to fish.  And with that half the anglers jumped into the tractor and trailer that Paul had kindly brought along to give a lift to the far end of the beach.

The other half of us were to be fishing at the South end of the beach. By the time we walked to our spot at the south and set up the rain had stopped altogether and the cloud lifting a bit.

We could see the tractor offloading at the North end of the beach and everyone setting up there at the same time.

I spent the day fishing with Malky and his son Paul having a good laugh all day. Starting off reasonably even but with Paul then firstly then Malky easing away from me in the catching stakes. Best fish for me was a nice 26cm Dab.

Fishing was reasonably steady for all with Flounders to 36cm, Dabs to 30cm an a lovely 40cm Turbot and over 200 fish in total to the 23 anglers.

With everyone putting in to fish the meet and then a small raffle afterwards everyone's generosity raised £259.50 for the Shoreangler Fish for Heroes Team.

Brilliant.