After weeks pressing my nose against the window wishing for the rain and wind to stop the weather gods relented and I escaped westwards with Ash for a couple of days. More pottering than fishing but we hoped to fit in a little pollacking along the way.
We chose to launch at Taynuilt and head across Linnhe to try around Lady Rock. Campsite to be decided but potentially Mull or Lismore, or just a run back up Etive for the night. Nothing like being flexible!
Even a neap tide means pretty ferocious rips around Lady Rock, with overfalls forming a few hundred metres behind it. Rigging up spinning gear with leadheads we got to work, keeping an eye on the swirling tidestream.
Ash was in first and a few minutes later I netted a spirited pollack for him. Nothing big, but it gave a good account of itself on the way to the boat.
I stayed clear of the worst of the tide run but we still met large boils breaking the surface and could see plenty of whitewater close by. Not a place to visit except in calm conditions!
We both picked up more pollack, mainly in shallower water near the main rock, but their size was a little disappointing. Eventually tiring of constantly repositioning for short drifts, we headed north to Lismore and then across to Ardnamurchan.
Etive Overnight
Stopping ashore for one of Ash’s fine coffees we debated our overnight options. With a light groundswell running I wasn’t keen on any of the more exposed options around Mull so we decided to head back up Etive and set up in familiar territory.
We set up camp at one of my usual spots, just above a sandy beach. I’ve recently acquired a new lightweight tent (a Durston X-Mid Solid) and was keen to try it out before using it for real on a multi-day hike.
Ash supplied dinner, which was soon bubbling away on our campfire and we passed a pleasant evening in calm, midge-free conditions.
A Damp Start
Next morning started drizzly and wet. There was no rush to haul in the longliner so we munched bacon rolls and quaffed more coffee. After a while things cheered up so we broke camp and stowed our gear aboard before heading off. Just a quick chug across the loch this time, aiming for more pollacking along the rocky shoreline.
They proved unusually obliging and we picked up another 9 or 10 over the next couple of hours. Nothing of great size but I rarely try for pollack this far from the open sea and was happy with the results.
We did have a few mackerel with us, together with bottom gear, but didn’t bother using it, knowing that only small spurs were cruising the seabed.
In truth we probably only gave it 2 or 3 hours before cruising back down the loch and extracting the boat early in the afternoon. Hardly a hardcore expedition but a very welcome couple of days afloat!
This little break in the weather was just in time too, as I had a few weeks of non-fishing activities lined up immediately afterwards. Missing this window would have meant no fishing from mid-March to nearly the end of May – a record that only a Covid lockdown can rival!
hi ive recently aquired a seahog hunter, i tow it with a vw camper, do you think launching from kellys pier, [i know it – we usually stop over with the regulars on the waste ground at the stone pier, and fish from a sib] would be ok, id hate to be on one of the videos with the van stuck and the tide incoming, helppppp. jim
Hi Jim, I launched the same hull at Kellys using a 2WD for years. You can get wheelspin if you retrieve near HW, when the slope of the shore is steeper – but all you need to do is angle the tow car to climb the slope diagonally to reduce the angle a bit. You will be best launching and recovering around HW +/- 1 or 2 hours, as the beach gets very shallow around LW and you either need to get your wheels wet or be able to rope the boat out. Access to the beach is not at the Loch Etive Cruises carpark but using a track a few yards further along the road – I occasionally ground my trailer lighting board here, so you might want to be careful if you’ve a LWB camper.