I’d my first foray from Dunbar at the end of June, on a beautiful but rather too calm morning. Launching into a glass-like harbour I nosed out past the castle around half-six.
I stopped just outside the harbour and hoping for mackerel, plonked a set of sabikis over the gunwhale. Leaving them to fish by themselves, I ditched the waders and generally sorted out my gear.
Nothing doing, so I headed offshore a little way to try a chunky reef rising close to the surface. Not really a favourite mark of mine, but it often holds mackerel early and late in the season.
I did pick up a few small codling here, but the mark seemed stuffed full of little 8″ coalfish, so I didn’t hang around too long.
Although there was a slight underlying swell, the North Sea looked beautiful this morning.
My next mark was still hard going, but at least gave up a few codling and a couple of pollack. Dunbar really doesn’t fish well with a slow drift, and 0.3 mph isn’t enough to generate much action.
However, this pair provided some excitement when they both grabbed the same set of lightweight sabikis. The pollack went 4lb 9oz, so hardly a big specimen, but a decent test for a set of sandeel feathers.
I also hooked a few mackerel, my first of the year from either Dunbar or St. Andrews. Only a handful, but good sized fish and destined for the bait freezer.
Heading East
As I said, Dunbar doesn’t fish well with a slow drift so I just kept trundling down the shoreline. I just stopped off at likely spots for a drop with baited lures or a cast with a spinning rod. Gradually I picked up more fish in ones and twos.
I Eventually ended up about 10 miles down the coast, but still struggling to find water movement. To be honest I quite like this style of fishing. Poking my nose close inshore to find a bit of structure followed by a drift or too. Lazier fishing than it sounds perhaps!
Codling proved the most prolific fish, and this 5lb 8oz specimen was the best of the bunch. It took a simple mackerel belly strip fished on a flowing trace for pollack.
Any hint of breeze speeding our drift definitely meant more fishy interest. However, my landing net remained resolutely dry most of the day.
By the end of the session I reckon I had 15 or 16 codling, although I only kept a couple.
Whilst most were codling, a few more pollack also came to the net, although all smaller than my first fish.
Back at the harbour the sun was still shining as I worked my way past other visitors. Not quite as bad as a full on weekend scrum around the slip, but reasonably busy!
Lovely calm seas and sunhat weather Doug – and some chunky codling too – what’s not to like, even if not as much action as ideal? I’ve tried jigging close in to Skateraw/Torness without lots of success – probably need to get that bit further out perhaps.
Hi Martyn,
There are definitely decent fish quite close in but I’ve found jigging under the boat to be pretty hit or miss. Being a lazy bloke I prefer to fish the mackerel belly strip about 6-10 feet off the bottom for pollack (make certain the rod is secure!!) or to bottom fish with baited hokkais or muppets. Ian devastates pollack with an active spinning technique (casting a jig, or a lead head of some sort), but I can rarely be bothered with this for too long. My loss!