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Sunday 10th August, Venue –Scrabster;
I awoke (sort of) to my alarm at 4.15 am excited by the prospect of my fourth trip with the Club. Nine of us met at Dornoch at 7am to share transport, for which I am truly grateful as I have far to travel.
At 9am we found Scrabster in a (rare!) flat calm, overcast but fair, and with neap tides, drift would be gentler. Skipper Chris of the “Hebridean Warrior” stopped very briefly just out of harbour for mackerel for bait, then it was “Lines up.
Let’s go for haddock!”
Fifteen minutes steam west of Scrabster and clean ground! Within minutes we were into haddock! Everyone had fish-best around a very handsome three pounds.
I haven’t caught haddock in my own area of Loch Torridon for many years. Overfishing has left much of the North West with depleted or non-existent stocks of species like haddock, cod, big coalies and spurdog.
Also turning up were a few gurnards, dogfish, ling and even a plate-sized octopus which took fright and tossed the hook aside when it saw me!
Later in the morning, as the breeze and drift picked up, we moved further along the cliffs, seabirds everwhere, and drifting over rough ground, tactics changed and pollack, ling and a few cod to six pounds came aboard. The most effective bait and tactic evolved as mackerel strip on a long flowing trace.
A move later in the afternoon into deeper waters targeting spurdog produced a fine fish of around six pounds-looked just like a mini-tope!
This was destined for Ben the Chef’s kitchen—if you know how to skin it, it is very good eating. Ben, give us your recipe!
Towards late afternoon the sport slowed as the breeze got up and it got quite choppy. Back in for 5.15pm and off home , all stopping off at Helmsdale for Scotland’s finest and most generous fish supper!
Another great day with a very hard working “Lines Up!” skipper who knows where the fish are and puts you over them.
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Minimum Fish Sizes
Fixtures 2006 Chart