Etive afloat

I'd been looking forward to this trip for a while as I'd not had a trip to Etive in several months. Everyone had to bring a beer, rig and chocolate bar for the sweepys; heaviest spurdog, heaviest thornie and most species

I arrived at the car park at Taynuilt pier to find everyone else just arrived ahead of me and the Ceagallan just tying up. Floaty on, kit oot the boot and onto the boat. Colin the skipper was soon steaming to up the Loch towards the Glen Etive end. First stop was a good 3/4 of the way up the loch and into 40m. Wee knocks quite  quickly round the boat but initially no hook ups. First blood eventually fell to me with a thornback ray (about 2.5lbs)  and a whiting. A few very small and small spurdogs started being landed round the boat and I had species three fairly quickly, a small lesser spotted dogfish. Just as the skipper was considering a move after the bites died a bit Jason (sultzer) then landed a nice 8lb Spurdog so we stayed a tad longer. A few more whiting and another LSD for me before we moved.

Next stop was deeper about 100m pretty close to my depth limit as I was only using light gear and had a small okuma multi. A bit slow to start with then loads of tiny spurs started to come aboard, pretty much to everyone bar me who could not even buy a nibble. Fair few fish coming aboard but this was a slow spot for me and it was looking like no fish on mark two. Then as one last drop before a move was called I got my first bite here and landed a small spur, species four.

Next stop was the shallowest of the day with everyone else hoping to bag a thornie. To get my species tally up I persisted with the wee hooks and was quickly bringing in a procession of whiting but no sign of the gurnard I was hoping for. Whiting and a couple of spurs round the boat but no sign of any other thornies, which was a bit of a surprise. Time again for another move for the last couple of hours.

A pin whiting's pins

Back to the whiting and small spurs round the boat and one cod as well. First up I had my second spur, then whiting and a poor Cod that looked like something had eaten it's eyes out. Gross but species five for me :)

Soon it was lines up and heading home. Starting to get chilly and everyone was ready to finish up. I won the choc bars and rigs for most species and biggest thornie (only one caught) and Jason had the beers for biggest spur.

I (and I'm sure everyone else) had a great time thanks to Jay for the organisational duties, Colin for skippering and coffees and everyone on board for a good laugh, plenty of banter and smiles.

Shore trip West  next weekend weather being kind.

Species count finally off and running

After having a completely fish less January after a single blank I was determined to get out and get 2013's fish count of to a start. My plan was a slightly early finish to work to fish the Tay half tide up. But as I got caught up and never got away when I wanted I wasn't too hopeful as I'd missed the best of the tide when I set up. But a beautiful view as the sun set was worth a wee session even if a second blank was on the cards.
Flounders were my target so usual practice of one rod close one mid distance and to cut a long story short only had a couple of fish. One flounder of 22 cm and a wee coalie of 20 cm. Two hours only before the dreaded weed started after the tide turned and chased me home.

Also had a nice, though slightly remote, wildlife encounter on the way home as a lovely Barn Owl ghosted along just to the front right of my car the full length of a straight on the back roads home. Was probably on 30-45 seconds but was a great sight and put a big smile on my face.

Not a great session over all but still glad to have got the species count off and running.

Tronix Rockfish UL - My new toy

My first impression of the Tronix Rockfish UL(ultra light) is great. It is really light and seems to have a good balance between sensitivity and strength. Time will tell but I'm wishing the weeks away for summer so I can target wrasse, mackerel etc with it. Should be fun playing with mid sized fish on really light gear.

Still I just need some nice calm weather for a few days so I can get out and christen it.

My targets for 2013

Well so far from me the fishing has been non existant in 2013, so while I'm waiting to get off the mark I thought I'd put my targets down in writing to I can more easily review how successful my year has been.

Now fishing wise there are too many different things I want to achieve, some realistic and some a bit more of a push so I have decided to only note five specifics (in no particular order) for this year and mix them up difficulty wise. Some will require a bit of luck and some just need me to put the hours in. More than anything good old Mother Nature needs to play ball with some proper defined seasons and an especailly warm and calm summer would be a real treat!

• Any species over 10 lb from the shore.
• A wrasse (should be easy but a total bug bear for me!).
• A species tally of 20 from the shore (including 5 species I have never caught before).
• Explore more and don't get too comfortable going to the same places to regularly.
• Get to grips with my new light rock fishing gear and the different tatics for using it.

Product Review - Seal Skinz Mid Weight Knee Length Sock

• Anatomically designed knee length fit
• Close fitting knitted construction
• Merino wool pile lining for warmth and moisture control
• Poodle padding on the toe, sole and Achilles panel for extra comfort
• Elasticated instep and Achilles ankle panel provide support and ensure a close, comfortable fit

I''m a fairly hardy soul when it comes to being out and about in all weathers fishing but cold/damp feet is something that can really give me the homing instinct quick time. Coupled with the fact my feet seem to eat boots/wellies etc and create leaks in my footwear relatively quickly is not a great situation for me. So when my friend who is a hardcore cyclist suggested I check out Sealskinz products I took his recommendation as I knew he was regularly out in cold wet conditions.

Now with a recommended retail price of £34.95 for a pair of socks and being tight by nature you can guess I initially wasn't super keen to fork out that on socks (cheapest I've found is £25ish online). But on researching more there were a lot of positive comments to be found online from a very diverse range of sports, but all being mostly conducted in cold and wet conditions; rowing, fishing, cycling, hiking etc. 

In the hand they feel slightly odd to touch, mainly due to the triple layered construction with the middle one being a waterproof membrane. But once on they are extremely comfortable due to them being designed to fit the foot/ankle/calf snugly rather than just a traditional sock 'tube'. 

On the comfort side I've worn these on long rambling 8 hour fishing sessions covering a good distance several times now and they are superb, padding round the feet takes a lot of the impact (of my) plodding steps and I have noticed a reduction in how sore my feet are after long walks/sessions (which I generally suffer due to having fallen arches). The snug elasticated outer layer adds to this without being over tight, almost making it feel like an extra layer of skin rather than a product or piece of clothing being worn. 

The waterproof nature of these socks is the most remarkable and one I only really trialed due to an error on my part. I was going out and had brought the wrong boots (not waterproof ones) and decided to test the socks out. Before setting off across the rocks to the low tide point I had a bit of a walk through some rock-pools about ankle deep in water. I was pleasantly surprised that I felt absolutely no water or even slight dampness. Baring in mind all I had on was an old battered pair of hiking boots this was an unexpectedly good result in my opinion. 

After a few hours on the rocks and having to wade shallow stretches (no more than ankle to calf deep) a few times I was intrigued to take of my now soaking boots and see what the socks them selves were like. I knew my feet were dry and warm. On removing the boots the outer layer of the socks was as soaking as the boots themselves and on turning them inside out bone dry as I knew they would be. 

Since then I've worn them a few times on dryer sessions and with hot sweaty feet they work well in reverse taking moisture away from the skin. I can't speak highly enough about these socks and I'm already eyeing a shorter pair for the summer and some of their hats and gloves.