I’ve been across to Loch Leven three times since New Year and it’s been relentlessly cold so it was a full set of thermals for yesterday’s trip – only to spend most of the day in windless, warm weather with a good deal of spring sunshine to boot. This is Scotland though, so it did… Continue reading Spring Strikes on Loch Leven
Category: West Coast
Anything relating to Scottish west coast and sea lochs, and exploring and fishing them. This is a catch-all category for posts that don’t fall neatly into one of my usual fishing grounds. For example, posts about Loch Etive are shown in a category of that name. For SW Scotland have a look at Galloway.
Into The Wilderness of Ardmeanach
Ardmeanach lies on the exposed, lonely but very beautiful west coast of Mull. Only twelve miles in the round, it is almost inaccessible in places due to trackless terrain and boulder strewn hills that drop 1500 feet into the sea. The emptiest and most remote part is called simply “The Wilderness”. I’d no idea how much, if… Continue reading Into The Wilderness of Ardmeanach
Two men in a SIB
It must be a decade since I last fished two men in a SIB, as it’s usually cramped enough for one disorganised angler, let alone two. However Loch Leven ain’t the open Atlantic, and a few hours fishing in calm conditions made it an decent proposition. Apart from the outboard taking a bit of flogging… Continue reading Two men in a SIB
Blast Frozen on Leven
Now I know what an Ammo sandeel feels like… Out with Ian on the loch yesterday and the wind was blasting down from the east, straight off the snow fields of the Mamores and Rannoch Moor. Frigid! And pointless 🙁 Our total catch was 1 crab and a solitary clappy doo (although in my defence it… Continue reading Blast Frozen on Leven
SIB’ing in the Snow
With a forecast of a few hours of light winds and a few snow showers later, I reckoned it was time to get the boat fishing gear into action so the SIB got packed into the back of the car and I headed towards one of my favourite west coast sea lochs. It was minus… Continue reading SIB’ing in the Snow
Assault on Glen Etive
The plan was to use the narrow, winding and un-gritted road into Glen Etive to access the headwaters of Loch Etive and drop the inflatable in where the river reaches the sea – then head off for an overnight camp, fish and stargaze. Things went just fine to start with, until I stepped ashore and… Continue reading Assault on Glen Etive
Shorefishing on Loch Leven
Well, the original plan had been a session from Ian’s boat, chasing St. Andrews cod and Pollack, but the virtual closure of the Forth Bridge put the brakes on that. It’s been a good while since I was last shorefishing on Loch Leven so a hasty rethink saw the rods packed in the car and… Continue reading Shorefishing on Loch Leven
Re-visiting Etive
It’s been weeks since I was last out, and it’s been frustrating watching a shedload of wet and windy weather blasting through on any available free time. However a calm sunny day was forecast for the Etive area so I decided to combine that with an over-nighter boat camping well up the loch. Launching in… Continue reading Re-visiting Etive
Back to Oban for more Skate Fishing
It was a bit of a toss up whether to head to Etive or carry on a bit and try fishing for skate off Oban, but a combination of small tides and calm weather tempted Ian and I into a spot of skate fishing from Gallanach. My reservations about skate hunting were further overcome when the sun… Continue reading Back to Oban for more Skate Fishing
A Pilgrimage to Sandwood Bay
Very remote, often stormy, and always stunning, Sandwood is a broad sandy bay guarded on either end by sandstone cliffs hundreds of feet high which sits in the extreme and rather inaccessible NW corner of the Scottish mainland. Over the years it has acquired an almost mystical reputation as a place to visit, complete with the ghosts of drowned… Continue reading A Pilgrimage to Sandwood Bay