Rigs - hook flappers - 3/0 circles
Tide - High >>>Low
Place - Loch Linnhe
After importunately having to miss the WSF meet yesterday I was determined to get out and have a day's fishing in the great weather. I was swithering between a local mini species hunt and a trip over west to try for thornies. When I got up the weather convinced me that west it was to be.
Up the A9 to Dalwinnie and across to Spean bridge and beyond was the route. The A9 was a nightmare now the schools are off, caravans everywhere so it was a bit after high tide when I arrived at my spot.
I quickly set up and had the baits out.
I decided to use circle hooks for the full session as know people that have very different opinions on them and I wanted to test them properly myself. From the outset I was getting a lot of bites and they seemed to be classic doggie bites. but (even with not striking and letting the bites develop) no fish landed from the first half dozen casts.
Then came my first thornie bite and I was hoping the circle hooks would come into their own. I've learnt the hard way to leave thornie bites till you are sure they are hooked up. So I was patient and waited for the hook to set, lifted the rod and fish on!
It didn't give much of a fight till it was about five feet from shore and it was landed in quick time. A lovely fat thornie a tad over 3lbs I'd guess. It was well hooked in the middle of the mouth making it easy to unhook and release after a couple of pics.
Happy with that as it is my first of the year and my target for the day :)
I switched one of the rods to 2/0 j hooks to try to get my 2nd target a Grey Gurnard.
The large amount of missed bites continued on both rods so I don't know if it was the circles or particularly small fish ripping bites off the bait. There were (a lot) of small sea trout leaping all the time I was there, roughly half a pound and under, some only 3-4 feet from the waters edge. Just wish I'd taken a spinner, ho hum.
Still there was not much longer to wait for the next fish. After another string of what I thought were all missed bites I reeled in to change baits and was chuffed to find my 2nd target species a Grey Gurnard :)
Funnily enough it had taken the large circle hook, but was nicely hooked in the corner of the mouth and again was quickly unhooked and released.
At this point I had a bit of a disaster when my tripod fell over and cracked on of my tip rings. I don't know if it is me or my tripod, but this happens way to often to me, boo :(
So now down to fishing one rod and the bites tailing off I decided two more casts and I'd be off and I was glad I had the extra casts as I landed another thornie. Much smaller than the first, 1.5lbs, but with very pronounced thorns. Very photogenic it was too.
I have to say that thornies are quickly becoming my favourite fish just due to the real variety in patterning etc.
With that I packed up and was off homeward bound, with another two species for the year under my belt.
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