Rockfish Lochaline!

I have recently been on a really cool road trip to Scotland, the main reason for the trip was just to catch up with my mate Scott, but being as we are both keen anglers it stands to reason that a fair few fish were caught.

I headed up to Edinburgh on the 17th, my first solo long haul since passing my test believe it or not!

It was great to see Scott and his partner Lillian again, it really didn't seem like it had been so long after some food and drinks though!

The first day of the trip was pretty chilled, we just went Coalie bashing somewhere near St Abbs and then to Dunbar where I met a WSf forum member whom I have often exchanged Pm's with, it was a nice wee starter session.

The real trip was about to start though; Scott had planned out a 4 day trip in the highlands for us, starting at Lochaline and finishing at Loch Etive. 

Lochaline was always planned to be a light game session as there are several species to be had there that are just hard to catch here in Wales and a few I really wanted to tick off, mainly Cuckoo Wrasse, Rockcook Wrasse and Short Spined Sea Scorpion.

Being a bit late in the year bites were a little slow at Lochaline and I used Gulp Fish Fry and even some of Scotts Prawn at times, both rigged on a dropshot rig. Yeah I know prawn ain't lure fishing but getting the fish was more important than technique that day. 

Lochaline from the Pier 

I knew some of the species I wanted would be difficult being a bit late in the year, especially so far North, however I did get my most wanted; my first ever Cuckoo Wrasse, which took a fine fancy to my 1" Berkley Gulp Fish Fry.

I also got a larger one on Prawn and surprisingly even one on an ima slow fall jig!

Here are some other species I caught before a stunning sunset too;

Goldsinny Wrasse

Leopard Spotted Goby

Coalfish

Long Spined Sea Scorpion

During the time Scott and I were Rockfishing, Scott also had a Shorecaster with a stinky bait out too and after a Doggie, Scott landed a nice Thornback Ray on a Sandeel Squid wrap.

A tidy fish from at least 75m down!

Scott obviously caught a great deal of fish including a tidy Ballan Wrasse and you can find a good perspective of the session on his Blog.

After sundown I must admit to finding the Poor cod a real amusement, there was certainly no need for prawn here, they were all over my fish fry like it was going out of fashion! 

I found them a real novelty to be honest, although I know where to catch them in Wales, they aren't really a fish I would travel for, but seeing as I was there it'd be rude not to right?!

Poor Cod are greedy little buggers!

We packed up about 19:30 and headed to the pub for refreshments and a tasty Steak and Ale pie before catching 40 winks at the Lochaline Dive centre. The next day we were heading to Applecross and a wee blog shall follow.

Tight lines.

Codling at Criccieth

I couldn't decide exactly what to do today so I figured I'd just head to Criccieth and do a bit of Mackie bashing yet still be in with a chance of a Gurnard a species I still haven't caught yet!

I started off with a Caro rig fishing a HTO Flail on an Aquawave Rockbait head, its a pretty good presentation from the beach as it allows you to get a decent amount of distance yet still keep a light lure close to the deck.

I was getting a few bites here and there and eventually a fish, a tiny fish.

OK, not a Gurnard but Codling are cool and my first of the year. 

I moved along the beach and caught a few Mackerel on the same rig but using a HTO Dagger at the business end.

I briefly met Russell and the regional Savage Gear Rep - Phil who were happily catching some Mackerel for tea.

Russell informed me that the stone jetty was empty, I had avoided it because its usually full of tinsel chuckers, but seeing as it was free I moved around there to access the deeper sandy areas.

It was proper hard to get through the Mackerel to be honest and even when I did my jig was ambushed by Weever and small Pollock.

After about an hour and a half of these and Mackerel I got bored and headed back to my original spot.

I caught more Pollock and Mackerel but also caught some more Codling too, they're quite a novelty for me on lure so I happily took some snaps of those. I really cant be bothered photographing Mackerel, they don't stay still and if you handle them they die, I just grab the hook with my pliers and shake them off. They are a pretty fish and fight well for their size but they aren't the most challenging to catch really.

Anyway here are some micro Cod shots;

Quite a fun afternoon considering the crappy tides, hopefully on the building tides some larger fish might show.

Tight lines.

Llyn Bodlyn

We have had some tough bloody conditions lately and I really didn't know if I was going to get out today, as it turns out it was a gorgeous day.

I'm not a massive fan of fishing in bright sunshine these days, its alright for Wrasse and Mackerel but for many predatory species it really isn't great. Of course I went out anyhow, the day was just too nice to waste.

My chosen spot was a lake I had heard about a lot of times but never visited; Llyn Bodlyn near Dyffryn Ardudwy.

Its quite a drive to the lake itself, three miles of rocky track that I'm pretty sure my car isn't going to thank me for!

When I arrived there were trout topping all over the place and I felt optimistic, however the fishing was really tough!

Even the two local fly anglers on the lake were struggling to get fish. I had a follow then a couple of hits which failed to hook up but things were slow.

One of the fly anglers told me of a stream where bait fish congregate on the lake so I headed there, pretty much instantly I got a take on the Duo Spearhead Ryuki 45S but the fish failed to hook up on the single hooks, hen the same a couple of casts later. I had to swap to trebles sadly but it did win me a fish and the dreaded blank was beaten.

I sat down and had a deserved drink and a vape after that.

I stayed until sundown, I figured I may as well and the fish would switch on then,

The fish weren't as good but I had half a dozen or so which was really nice after such a tough afternoon.

I'm unsure if I will return to Llyn Bodlyn, I like the place but i'm uncertain my car will hold up driving up there, a jeep or something would be far more useful!

Tight lines