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The West Coast of Scotland has some of the
best fishing in the whole of the British Isles.With its deep,
clean, clear water and all kinds of ground from rocky pinnacles,
reefs and gullies to flat sand, it is an ideal place to fish.
Scotland has some excellent charter boats.
On the whole the boats will specialise in a particular type
of fishing, so for example, if it’s a specimen skate you are
after then Oban is where you should be heading. Tope can be
found in Luce Bay and a prize ling, cod or conger can be had
from one of the wrecks in the Firth of Clyde.
The area of operation for Loch Fyne Services
boat ‘So Fyne’ is Loch Fyne to the coast of Northern Ireland.
We do have our bad weather days, but it does not get in the
way too often , as there are plenty of islands where we can
take shelter.
Between the end of March until October you
can expect between 10-14 species for a day’s drifting over
the reefs and gullies at depths of between 20 and 100 metres.
Pollack, cod, coalfish and ling are the main species found.
For the bigger ling and conger ‘So Fyne’ will anchor over
one of the many wrecks or drop offs and use a mackerel flapper
to entice these beasties to the hook. Anchoring is also the
best method for rays, plaice, turbot and dabs and it’s always
worth putting a bigger bait down : a large mackerel fillet
or mackerel/squid cocktail for the occasional common skate.
July and August will see the blue shark on
its annual visit. Fishing for them can be a waiting game and
is a specialised business, but when they arrive it is well
worth the wait, for they are very strong and fight hard. A
good 30-50lb rod and reel loaded with a good mono with a breaking
strain of 50lbs is ideal. Unfortunately many anglers use line
which is far too heavy for the job in hand. Lines of 120lb
breaking strain are commonly used on blue sharks only a third
of this weight, which is not very sporting. Traces should
always be made of wire with a 10-0 hook. A word of warning
: fish hooks of this size are normally supplied blunt and
should be sharpened carefully with a carborundum stone both
before and during use.
In the last week of September until the beginning
of November blue fin tuna come to feed on the shoals of herring.
The tuna come up the West Coast of Ireland, round the top,
across the Irish Sea, around the top of Scotland and then
down the East coast. Catches have been recorded as far down
as Whitby. Tackle for tuna fishing is supplied and consists
of Moldcraft Hooker lures, 2 x 10-0 hooks on 400lb mono, 130lb
main line, Penn International 80STW reels with strike setting
at 48lbs and full setting at 75lbs and 50-80lb custom built
rods by Julian Shambrook.
For reef, wreck and shark fishing, you will
need to bring two rods : a nice light one like an uptider
and a 30lb rod and reel for the bigger stuff. For those who
do not have any fishing tackle, rods and reels can be supplied
free of charge but we will charge for terminal tackle lost.
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