Common Skate fishing

[lozzpunk]

Ive been asked to put up a bit on my skate fishing so here it goes.
Ive tagged 17 skate biggest est-180-190lb female fish and caoght 7 previously tagged fish. My choice of tackle consists of a Conoflex 50lb rod Shimano tld 20 twin speed (although i now use and Avet JLX after killing 2 shimanos) 65lb braid 15ft catfishpro 225lb kevlar rubbing leader, 6 inch boom and 18inch trace of 400lb mono conected to a 12/0 or 14/0 debarbed bronze hook. Most of my skate fishing is done in the Sound of Jura or Loch Sunart (NW Scotland) the water is generally between 400-600ft where i fish so not fun hauling the anchor at the end of a day ;DHere are a few of my adventures ive pasted them from another site im a member of as it would take all night to type other wise sorry fro the long post but maybe an eye opener to some asto what is achevable on a kayak ;D
Well where to start My week started on thursday morning before Sharkatag. Hunt for a drysuit idrove form dover to southend to the wetsuit outlet hoping to be there for 9am no sutch luck a pile up at the dartford tunnel put pay to that i finaly left southend at 11am with a shiny new typhoon multisport witch i con highly recomend. Great im on my way to Scotland the sun is shining the m25 is clear and i pull onto the m1 and hit the brakes a multi car pile up 1/4 of a mile ahead 3 hours later and the police turn us all around to drive the wrong way back down the motorway and slip road and back to the m25 i finally arived at Sandhead at 11pm after leaving dove at 7am.Friday morning up early for the photo callat Drummore then off to launch at Ardwell for some tope with high hopes Curly had already had one before i launched but it was not to be i did manage a thornie though.

We went out a bit later that evening in Port Logan this is an amazing location with lots of potential but you have to be careful as there are strong tides off the points and outside the bay the fishing is supurb with lots of different speices cod whiting polock coalie ling haddock to name but a few.



Saturday saw an hour drive to Wigtown where the tope had been located it was a fair old paddle to the mark and the sea wasnt being as kind as was hoped for but the fish were there ;D for some anyway



I bagged 4 but only managed to tag 3 fish as one released itself at the side while i was making a grab for it .
Mission accomplished i decided it would be rude not to head north after a flattie ;D and a few others had the same Idea after all they were on the target list ;D So Sunday morning we said are farewells to those at sharkatag and we set off for the sound of Jura .4 pm ish myself Hatter and Stargazer paddled off into the sound we located a suitable spot and formed up a daizy chain me taking the spot i was told to avoid right at the lead as the fish must swim past every one elses bait to get to yours .i did wonder why in the last 1/4 mile paddle i started to leave every one behind this proved true to form as 20 mins later Stargazer on the end of the chain hit into a fish i was gutted but half thinking thank f*** ;D

25 mins late
r the fish started moving i was full on taking the p*** wishing hed hurry up and get the fish in as i wanted to get a bait down for one, how inconvenent having to reel up while he girl thingyed about with this fish ,a comment i lived to regret later .



This was amazing wed been there an hour and half and had a 140 ;D;D ;D I was to meet this fish again in 2 days I then had 2 small fish around 20-30 lbs


Time was getting on and and we decided to call it a day
Monday morning was the hunt for bait and tackle i done a shrwed one and bagged every bit of bait in the tackle shop ;D ;D ;D ;D
Me and Hatter paddled off to the same mark as the evening before and spud and tribble heading further off logic was in pairs wed have more fishing time as if one was hooked it would only be his buddy who couldnt fish and also assist if needed .Stargazer paddled off to target something smaller wanting a rest
I had fish but still no monster so did spud and tribble



Then Stargazer paddled over to tribble and spud and said he had one bait left and was gona have a go 10 mins later we hear over the radio hes into another big fish

Then it was tribbles turn for a big fish

Next up was Hatter ;D

the face says it all

with the weather getting grim we called it a day

Tuesday was just me and spud and some old leftover bait off we paddled on a lovely day probly the best weather we had i was soon into a fish but it still wasnt the one i was after

it had leaches on it to
then i hooked another fish this fish was definately much better 15 mins later i had a big skate at the side i bulley the hell out of it and made a grab next thing all hell broke lose as it power dived against a full clutch (50lbs class) my yak lurched over to the fish box hatch : luckily i managed to back off quick enough the it didnt capsize me i banged the clutch straight back to full and it still peeled line off ive never experianced anything this powerfull before it was incredible and it made it right back to the bottom 400+ feet below i got it back to the top again and it done it again but only made it half way down this time got it back to the yak and it was Stargazers one from the first night tag number 071 .i was trying to hold the fish while spud paddled round to take a photo and it started to thrash taking the skin off my fingers and i had no choice but to let go without a picci :'(but the memory is there and i had started to think skate fishing was boring just like reeling up a fridge 400ft that fish totally changed my mind its great ;DI decided to call it a day and watch spud catch one while i had a resh he was soon in and said its just a small one so i thought i may aswell have another drop while he gets this up while he was unhooking i was into another big fish ;D didnt even think to take a pic i was so chuffed ???part 2 to follow soon ;D
just a few more pics


My 50lb class outfit maxed out even a 250lb porgie didnt pull it this hard



f**k its diving again




I had been planning this trip for 3 months a week of fantastic fishing with good friends in a spectacular area while the rest of the country was moaning of lack of fish ;DMy chosen base was Duntrune Castle cottage .Overlooking Loch Crinan and The Sound of Jura


And my cottage right on the shore with my own beach 20 ft from the door ;D



I woke up on Saturday morning to wonderfull sunshine and Stargazer rigging up on the slipway .Things couldnt be better it took me a while to get organised as id only had 2and half hours sleep after a most eventfull drive up (popped turbo hose and deer strike )I think we eventually hit the water at 9.30 -10 am after a chat with some local boat anglers who were off out after skate and had had some sucess the previous week.Things where slow at first but the tide was running quite hard where i was anchored further out than usual as the boat was slap bang on my mark and we were still on spring tides.eventually my 2.5lb lead was float fishing so i moved closer in to just 400ft ;D Not long after i had a good bit which i promptly bodged up ,fresh bait on and back down and nothing.An hour or so later i was just dozzing off and all of a sudden my rod was almost wrenched out of my hands as a skate picked up the bait and just started making its way down the sound ;D I quickly slipped anchor and the fight was on

The first 15 mins consisted of lots of swearing and me gaining 6ft of line for the fish to take 20ft back enough was enough and i eased the drag on my tld 20 twin speed upto the stop and with thumbing the spool started to gain line .The fish then gave another powerfull dive there was a loud crack and my reel went into free spool :'(I frantically thumbed the spool prevented an overrun the fish had now made its way back to the bottom and all i could do was jam my thumb in the spool and start stripping the side of the reel i soon had it going again eventually i got the fish up a nice female quickly photoed by Stephen and released


Big thanks to Stephen for that as with all the skate ive had its almost impossable to photo them your self due to size and needing both hands to handle them.
Mission accomplished i had one more drop but i was concerned about my reel Hatter had just arrived and i needed to check into my cottage i decided to call it a day
We retired to my cottage for the night and a few beers ;D although not as many as hoped we were all shattered

Sunday arrived and it wasnt looking that great Stephen drove round to Crinan Harbour to launch i was in no real hurry as i had all week. Kev walked upto the headland and came back confiming my thoughts not nice >:(10 mins later and Stephen phoned saying he was coming back in .We said goodbye to Stephen Kev decided to go for a drive down to Tarbet and Loch Sween and i went off to town .When i got back an hour and half later the wind had dropped right off and the sun was out within minites i was on the water as it was now 3 oclock i took Trudis Scupper pro for a paddle ,i paddled up past the castle folloewd the headlans round to the entrance of Loch Carnish and then followed the line of rocky outcrops/islands in the middle of the sound i stopped off on the small twin hump one in the middle for a quick smoke and drink ;D

I then took a line for the Crinan Hotel to avoid the rough water you get off Crinan harbour ,and on upto Bellanoch and the river Add then back to the cottage ,a really nice paddle and great to get back in a scupper after so long
Monday and again the weather was pants to say the least >:(Still this gave the opertunity to target another spices i wanted to hook whilst up hear.So off me and Kev set for Loch Etive we were greeted with magnificent scenery and force 5 gusting to 6 winds ;D


It wasnt long and we were anchored up on the edge of a drop off ;D ;DI soon had my target and a monster one at that ;D ;D

Then my selfish streak kicked in again ;D ;DPoor Kev was tyed off my yak facing into the wind and rain ;Dhad to endure watching me hoover up every fish in sight ;D3 spurs 2 thornies a whiting and a gurnard .I realy did feel gutted for him ::)Sorry Kev


Etive really is a magical place that i will definately be returning to.
Tuesday and yet another pants day. I convinced Kev on a paddle inside the loch in slightly less than ideal conditions ::)Conditions were a bit more taxing than had been expected but hey ;DWe landed on a small island and had a stroll i then heard a shout from Kev ;DHis sit in yak was going for a sight seeing tour without him ;D ;DSoon rescued and back on the shore .Ive never paddled a hard chined sit in before but Kevs Tehee is a lovely yak and feels very stable compared to my soft chined hull very fast to.
Wednesday was meant to be a good day ???Well the wind was dropping around 3 pm we decided to go for it .It soon became apparent that although the wind had dropped there was still quite a swell running Kev decided to try for thornies in the loch i was in a skate or nothing frame of mind and pushed on a bit further but the only bouy i could find was only in 220 ft of water i gave it a go there for an hour but no joy .I unclipped and made my way to another bouy that had apeared form the depths some way further out ,things were looking good i was 100yards form the bouy in 420ft of water just right then by the time i reached the bouy it was on a ridge in 170ft of water with rocky bottom >:(with that i paddled into Kev who also was having no joy the wind was steadily picking up and in all honesty if i had hooked one i think it may of ended in tears in the conditions.We got back in checked the weather and it didnt look any better for the rest of the week .Kev decided to call it a day and head back to wales (get a few points in for future trips )Thanks for your company Kev sorry it wasnt better for you but it was great to have your company will will get it right one day ;)soon i hope
Thursday and i woke at 6 am no wind no rain ???I rolled a quick ciggi and walked upto the headland it was a clear calm but moody looking day

I knew now was the time i was getting butterflys in my stomach and had to go take a dump :oIt was 8.30-9am before i hit the water it seemed like a long paddle to the mark from the castle against the tide but i was soon at the mark

Id sat there for what seemed like ages ,i had a call from FFF to brake the boredom .It was around 12 and the wind was just starting to pick up a little nothing much but enough to put a chill down my spin and i got a few small taps then nothing 10 mins later i decided to check my bait ilifted the rod and wound down and thump thump ;Dfish on ;DAt this point things all of a sudden seemed a bit more serious :oI had butterflys in my stomock and felt sick the wind seemed to feel stronger ,and i started feeling a bit paranoid :-[The 11 oclock shipping forecast was the only thing id heard on the radio all day and gale IMMINENT was serioiusly playing on my mind.This lasted a few minites only thankfully but i was a lot more gentle with the fish than i normally would have .I eventuly got the fish to the side a smaller fish than the first but still a very good fish i had to cut the hook lenght free a the fish was facing the yak and i couldnt safely get to it

thats as good as i could manage i tryed to take a couple of pics as i cut it free .I drifted around for a bit had a smoke and slowly paddled back in that was more than enough for me. A few hours later and the wind really did pick up and the rain came in
Friday morning bought with it another lovely day if a bit drizzly me and Trudi decided to go for an early walk through the estate we got to a small bay buy the inlet to Loch Carnish and we spotted an otter driving for food we sat on a rock watching for around 30mins before he got out of sight ;D this was truly amazing and they are a lot bigger than the small inland otters we get. By the time we got back to the cottage i was itching to get back on the water and as the yak was still in the garden ready to go from yesterday i was soon at the waters edge ;DWent to turn on the ff and its not working >:(check the battery terminals all ok take the head unit off and one of the terminals has corroded through off the power cable and stuck in the head unit >:(I had a kit kat in my stash so i ate it and screwed up part of the wrapper and shoved it in the housing and replaced the head unit ;DIt worked ;DBack out at the mark and it wasnt as nice as has looked but i was there and gonna give it a go i found a bouy at just the right depht and tyed off all was going fine and i saw the first boat for a couple of days but it was pulling pots. >:(15 mins later and hes heading straight for me so i started reeling in and unclipped from his bouy he motored over and gave me a right old earfull for hanging off his gear So off i went to anchor up but all i had left was a 1.5 kg with no chain it was soon apparent i was drifting i decided id had a good run and headed back for shore and dragged Trudi out for a paddle down to Bellanoch ;D
I had a truly wonderfull week and anyone going to the area i could recomednd Duntrune castle as a base ,even if you cant get out fishing there is always somewhere sheltered to paddle nearby .Hope you enjoy this post ;D

Shark a tag what can i add that allready hasnt been said a cracking event put on by SSACN .Day one Had a lazy day waiting for people to arrive and headed down to Ardwell bay around 2pm things were looking good ;DA sign at ardwell tackle said tope at ardwell bouy and sandhead tower ;DThings proved a bit different at anchor though lots of little smothies 2-4.5lbs thornies and gurnard


Port Logan on arrival 3.20am


Much merriment was made that first night resulting in me having a bit of a dodgy tummy in the mornin ;D(results can be seen in another thread) ;D
Day 2 A nightmare 1/2mile + drag through sand dunes and soft wet sand with a dodgy gut hoping i didnt strain to much and fart ;D
To get yet more smothies and rays i gave this an hour and decided that the best course of action was to catch a bucket load of macci and head back to shore and get slaughtered ;D This done the trick ;D
Day 3 and i headed off to fort william armed with some magic numbers suppled by a man that knows where the fish are (The Champ himself Stargazer )So off paddled me Scoot and Jose ;D 3/4 of a mile later and we slowed down and anchored up after a few dogs it became apparent id followed Jose and hed followed me ;D ;D
None of us had entered the numbers in are gps we both assumed each other had ;DSoon had the numbers added and i was off leaving Scoot and Jose to it. Although unknown to me they were doing quite well Jose bagging 2 and Scoot missing a couple.Me id had dogs and thornies Then all of a sudden zzzzz id waited so long for this i grabbed the rod and beat into it after about a second and half and totally fluffed it ::)The sea was now starting to get a bit snotty


Pics never do it justice
Jose came paddling over to say hed had a couple and was off went i hooked into another tope this fish decided to run straight ended joses yak and wrap my line round a pennel rig that was hanging from his rod A bit of faffing about and we were free and a small tope of 15lb landed and tagged jose took a few snaps and it was off .Before Jose and Scoot had reached shore i had another 22lb tagged and released

It was now starting to get quite grim out there but i was on fish ;D
Next up was what i thought was a very small tope but a fish of around 18lb deep hooked (it had been biting just like a doggie so i left it a while)i just cut this fish off at the side .next up a better fish of 35-40lb tagged and released ;D didnt get any pics it was a nightmare trying to measure tag and hold onto a fish that size in the tricky seas, It then went mad with doggies and a thornie and it was now getting horrible and the shore was looking quite nice but there were fish and i still had bait ;DSoon the little boats started coming in one stopped to see if i was ok ;DSoon after another came over and was a little concerned for me ;D ;D even offered me a lift to shore ;D ;DFor some reason he wouldnt have it my Dorado was more seaworthy than his raider ;DThat pretty much killed the fishing though and i soon headed back in ;D
Sharkatag was a great event for me meeting new friends and old for next years event i really think the kayakers need to base themselves around the Port William area if they want tope there are more fish deeper water closer in,your not going to get the number of different fish like in Sandhead area but you definately have the better chance of a good fish, the fish are just to far offshore at sandhead and ardwell.
Day 4 no fishing just goodbyes and a long drive north in search of Skate
Monday the mentally challenged trio ;D

Off we paddled with high hopes and dreams of monsters ;D
Conditions couldnt have been better



An hour and half later and i hear f***in doggies ;D ;DA strike and a rod buckle over

much pi$$ taking then ensued for quite a while ;D



Popeye beat his quarry in style ;D ;D


Not only was this Pauls first skate it was his first fish over 10lb off a yak Outstanding mate
A male fish 60" wingspan =126lbs
45 minite fight tagged and released
My turn next ;D ;D


Female fish 55" wingspan = 115lb-120lbs
25 minite fight tagged and released
Tuesday hunt the anchor bouy an hour later i spotted my anchor bouy over half a mile from where i left it some where where there is nowhere the tide could have took it ???lots of heavung and we had it up and back in place but now the wind was picking up >:(an hour or so later we were heading in its not that it was unfishable but for what we where after it wouldnt have been a good situation in a hook up .Paul and Neil decided on having a mooch around the point with lures and hokies i sat on the shore with Daz who was shore fishing and then went off for a paddle down towards talli something or another stopped to take some photos of seals and realized id left my camera and pfd back on the rocks miles away ::)So i walked all the way back ::)did i hell ;D By the time i got back it had calmed down quite a bit .Infact it was doable ;D but we now had no anchor >:(A new tacktic was needed ???mm 5lb of lead and drift fishing for skate :osounds good to me ;DAnd it works .I think we were on are second or third 1/2 mile drift and i had a bite i gave it 2ft of line so i didnt pull away from it to quick it bit again i slammed the drag lever to the stop beat into the fish and leaned in and cranked with every thing i had :othis fish was 50ft off the bottom before it knew what was happening ;DIt made a powerfull dive taking line off the full drag at a rate of knots




I pressed the line against the foam grip on my rod for more drag but this just split my thumb wide open so i palmed the spool the kayak lurched over then started shaking under the pressure the rod was creaking iwas wondering if i was going in cos there was no way i was backing off the fish slowed and i started winning line back i then moved into high gear and beasted the fish to the top ;Din under 10 mins start to finish ;D

Female fish 60-62" wingspan=130-145lb fish
fight 10 mins previously tagged glasgow museum released
hope you enjoy
Well ive now had a few days to recover and catch up with work so ive finally got a chance to post a proper report ;D. Left Dover 6pm thursday after work and was passing Glasgow by midnight and arrived at Crinan 2.30 am .Weather was still and i was almost in 2 minds to launch there and then as the forecast was decidedly dodgy for the weekend.Friday and Crinan looked awfull >:(the launch was aborted and after much discussion Etive was the chosen venue for the day.

Etive is a stunning venue stuffed with fish and it lived up to expectations as usual.Plenty of whiting pollock cod and spurdog ;D.The spurs were all of a better stamp this time being 4-6lb fish rather than the 4-6oz variety that id encountered on my last visits.sorry no pics
Saturday and we were greeted with light winds and sunshine game on ;D.We were soon on the mark and chucking the anchor down in 420ft of water.An hour or so later and Paul was into the first fish then Stephen then Spud



Then Paul was in again and so was Spud this was seriously starting to take the pi$$ WHERE was my fish .It then went quiet for a while then tap tap this was it the moment id been waiting for but id waited so long the antisipation had got to me my heart was pounding through my chest and my breathing went erratic a quick ciggi and i was sufficently calm enough to get back on with the job in hand another bite came i struck and fish on i slipped off my anchor and went off for a little tow and soon had a male fish of around 70lb at the side .A little sigh of relief as this fish really was a god send 1300 miles for a days fishing it re4ally did need to pay off and it had i could now enjoy myself as the pressure was off .Soon back on the anchor and a strange bite struck and was obviously into a fish but not a scate or thornie my thought were ling but soon at the side was a conger of around 30lb with a serious case of the bends ;D ;Dhaving been wrenched from the bottom to the top in as quick a time as i could retrive a lead from that depth.I was to catch another skate later another small male of 50lb.Things were going well Stephen had 2 Spud had 3 Paul had 4 Alian (in the boat) had 3 and poor Neil was still on el blanko.But he had a plan to target the gay skate with a 14/0 butt hook and some ky bait additive ;D ;D ;D .This done the trick as one of Pauls skate had Neils hook up its a$$ then just before dark Neil hooked his first skate himself the fight continued into the dark when Neil finally boated it and this was also a gay skate with neils 14/0 firmly embedded in its a$$.personally Neil i dont think gay butt hooked fish count but each to there own ;D ;D

[richi]

Awe inspiring stuff Lozz,brilliant!

[Sunny]

Flippin heck...Lozz ..... that has to be one of the greatest adventures an angler can possibly experience; the photos say it all..... truly amazing

I'm going to have to read it several times now..... WOW !!!!!!
I'm already thinking in my mind how I can get the Raider up there

Give us a break, let us absorb that and then if you don't mind ...I heard you mention a 250 Porgie .....any piccys for another Blog

[lozzpunk]

Dec 12, 2010 18:08:11 GMT Sunny said:

Give us a break, let us absorb that and then if you don't mind ...I heard you mention a 250 Porgie .....any piccys for another Blog

Yes i did mention a 250lb porgie ive had quite a few but on that rod not off the yak yet hopefully that report will come around July/August as i havent given them a serious shot off the yak yet ive tryed for thresher whith no joy .May do a tope post in a day or so im quite good at catching them

[overrun]

Good evening Lozz ;D ;D ;D

...it's a cracking read mate.

[paintfly]

Epic stuff Lozz. Good to see it again all in one go

[freeliner]

First time I've seen this - wow.

[olly]

breth takeing lozz
fantastic fishing
olly

[spud]

very good some serious fish and lots of cracking pic's

what an adventure

looking forward to reading about the porgie's in the summer having caught porgie's and threshers in a boat and seen plenty caught that will be an achivement well worth reading

good luck

[sidewinder]

awsome adventures,top report.thanks for sharing.

[snoopy54]

Wow doesnt begin to describe those jaunts - you guys are seriously Hardcore fishermen of the first water and I very much look forward to you taking on Porgies in July/August - probably the best read and pics I have seen on Beach and Boat in four years - fabulous - keep them coming

[brightonearly]

Best post ever, on any forum, ever, amazing

[bassmanrob]

Amazing!

Have you ever considered approaching any television companies? Watching you guys battling skate, tope and porgies from kayaks would make a great series and has to be better than endless Wilson repeats on discovery shed.

[Dazza]

amazing!!! seriously well done!

[pb1]

WOW
that really is some amazing angling