My Hobie Outback is ready to go.

Having had my Outback a couple of months now I’ve pretty much finished setting it up and buying the various pieces of kit to get myself on the water safely. I’m a couple of weeks behind where I expected to be, it’s been very easy to go over budget starting from scratch. After my drysuit arrived back from Typhoon this week with a convenience zip fitted I reckon I’m now pretty much good to go.

It's now named, a slant on one of my favourite films and one of the best anti-war movies ever made.

My mate Jamie at Bad Panda Graphics took my request and put this together for me. I’ll get it put in place after Jamie has it printed shortly. We intend to do some self rescue practice on the water together on Monday, should be fun!

This being the first time I’ve gone through this process I’ve had a number of headaches along the way. Everything from a dive reel to roof bars was new to me and there was some serious internet searching done along the way. The  Anglers Afloat forum  has been a massive help, everything you need is there, in fact I don't think I've had to ask a question after using the search facility. Also, Saltwater Kayak Fisherman  has been really handy given that he's rigged a similar boat and in a fashion that seemed to suit my needs.

I'm in no position to review anything thus far, that is a long way off for the minute. I may need to make a few changes in the future as I work with the gear, maybe somebody will however find this useful if they find themselves in a similar position.

I wasn’t a fan of the anchor trolley kit that I got with my boat and I did in fact nearly bin the lot. I did however end up using the running line and pulleys.  I got this as part of the deal but I wouldn’t purchase it if I had to do so today. I’ve added a carabiner, two stainless rings, double piece of knotted bungee and two plastic rope stops.  The stainless fittings will be more robust than the plastic ones provided and the rope stops will prevent the knots on the running line jamming in the pulleys. With this set up I will also be able to disconnect the carabiner from the ring and use it to pull the boat through the shallows or utilise it as a tow point.

I removed the screw in holders for the paddle retainer and replaced these with screw in pad eyes. I understand that these used to come with the trolley kit but have been replaced with the well nut eyelets. The supplied instructions suggested that these were to be fitted to the paddle supports, you can’t see these in the picture but drilling two significant holes here made no sense to me. I contacted my supplier; they agreed and sent me the screw in pad eyes FOC, job done. The supplied parts would have allowed the installed kit to be fitted to the bottom running line but I don’t believe this will be an issue in practice. In addition I also fitted a bungee button to prevent the top running line encroaching in to the boat. I found this to be a bit of pain and really awkward for me to reach. I actually bruised my ribs leaning in to the hatch and reaching around to tighten the locking nut. It would have been much easier if someone else was there, also, if I had not had to use a shifter to lock off the nut while screwing the button down.

I went with the low profile GT 175 rails from YakAttack. These are quality fittings which come with everything you need including the drill bit and screws. I did however add backing plates to these to spread the load and give what should be a really robust mounting platform for any gear that I attach to them in the future. I should also point out that anything which has been drilled has had a liberal coating of Marine Goop as a back up to any potential water ingress in the future.

Scotty gear head track adapters will provide some flexibility for mounting a variety items. These slot in to the rails perfectly and screw down providing a solid mounting point.

                                                   In this case a Scotty extender and rod holder.

I chose a RAM mount for my fishfinder. It has two ball joints which provide a range of movement enabling me to adjust this towards me in easy reach when attached to the rails.

The  Outback comes Lowrance ready and has a transducer pocket built in to the hull. You can of course fit other brands with a few adjustments.  I have used Lowrance on my boat in the past as well as a mobile unit when I’ve been fishing abroad. On the whole I like them and have found them easy enough to use so went with a 5 HDI plotter combo which has both downscan and broadband sonar.

I can see this being really useful on my hunt for big Perch on large waters which was another reason I went with it.
The fact that these were on sale in the Vegas Bass Pro when a friend was on holiday was a big help. I managed to take some cost out of a number of items thanks to this trip. A word of warning though, some of the Lowrance units, namely the HDS range are geo-locked so you won’t be able to use any bought outside of Europe in the UK. The HDI range is fine.

The 2015 Outback has the new Vantage seat with multiple adjustments points including a lumbar support. It even has 4 fold down legs to enable it be used as a camp chair.

Lynne got me a really nice  top spec PFD for Christmas but sadly I had to sell it recently.  I found it incompatible with the seat. I went for the Kokatat Bahia Tour which is way more comfortable sitting in this chair than the Kaikoura was. This is down to Bahia Tour being a high back PFD with the floatation up towards the shoulders leaving the small of my back fitting the curvature of the chair much better, massive improvement in fact. Given I was sat in the chair adjusting the seat for a minute or two and my back was sore, using the Palm was not an option.

                                                Not a great picture but you can see what I mean

I’ve fitted a 10l Orteleib folding wash bowl to the centre hatch to assist in storing items but mainly to prevent them moving around inside the hull.

        

                                                 The supplied tackle tub sits neatly on top.

                            The new Mirage Drive Glide system, the boat also comes with a paddle.

I went with a rear installation with the Hobie battery kit which I negotiated in my deal. Unlike the anchor trolley kit I’m initially pleased with this. It provides a really tidy finish and has quality components. Some online checks and a few calculations suggests the battery capacity should be fine to drive the Lowrance for about 8 hours. This will depend on the settings but I’m crossing my fingers with this a little.

 As I learn what works or needs changing I'll post as I go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Perseverance pays off

A frosty start this morning, clear sky and a big tide rolled up in the forecast and I was looking forward to making my first cast. I was in two minds where to start so I made my choice and set about choosing a lure starting with an in-line Kinetic cream/olive UV, a proven catcher. I covered some ground and after walking about 300 yards there was no presence of life, well fish anyway. Three starts here this year, three blanks, the last two years were excellent at this spot but I don’t believe the fish have arrived here yet for whatever reason.

 By about 11.30am I was enjoying the sunshine but losing interest in fishing.  I caught site of a fish following the lure so did a spin stop and it took  it, either I wasn’t quick enough or my hooks were blunt and the fish was gone. On checking the points they were ok but to make the most of this type of take they need to be like needles, easy to get lazy sometimes when you’ve put a good few hours in with no action.

                                Are they in there? Probably were at some point.
I decided on one last move as the tide was now spot on for this mark. I set about changing lures yet again and as I sat on the rocks I caught site of  what I thought was a fish turning on the surface. I watched for a minute or two to make sure it wasn’t a diving bird and then spotted another two fish…excellent, found them at last!

It could have been July, flat calm, warm and gin clear and the fish were in that sort of mode as I had five deep follows and a connection at distance, no idea how it didn’t hook itself as it really banged the tip round. I felt a blank looming.  I had pretty much used all the usual tricks and tactics that normally work, every colour combo and retrieve I had up my sleeve. I called Lynne to say I was just about to head home, had enough I said, remember and get a bottle of wine. As I walked back to the car I decided on ten more casts, if you’re reading this you’ve probably been here.  I tied on the only lure which I hadn’t used today which was a gold and red Pilgrim and belted it as far as I could can’t catch the cauld but I can cast this lure a mile, again, you might also have been here on day like this.

I must have had no more than a dozen turns on the reel when the fish went airborne and seemed to stay there on repeat for a while. As it neared the net I was pretty sure it was planning on climbing in for a nap but it managed a few more summersaults before it took a break. A welcome fish and great to see in the sunshine after such a dour morning.

I made a few more casts at distance and it wasn’t long before I was hooked up again, it couldn’t have been more different. At first I was sure the fish was foul hooked as it felt pretty odd, clearly a better fish but I honestly thought it was hooked in the tail as it made some cracking runs and zig zagged around at speed. A nice fish in very good condition for March.

                                     I think the fish was wrapped at some point
A dog walker that I had been speaking with me did the honours. I wasn’t sure he even pressed the button, after two takes the fish had to go back and I’ve had to crop fingers out both pictures.

I should take up cricket, this was a great catch, check the concentration.

 

 
 

Baptising Buddy

My  boat trip with Scott on Sunday looks like it will be cancelled  and the weather forecast  today was building up to be quite frankly rotten! Having a day off today and rather than leave Buddy at home on his own I decided to take him fishing for the first time. Lynne wasn’t too keen on the idea as he’s a rescue dog and been with us less than a week.  I reassured her it would be fine, character building even.

When we arrived I saddled him up in his new coat, attached his extendable lead to my wading belt and made my way to the first spot. As we arrived the ducks that had been sitting on the bladderwrack took flight and when we got to where they’d been sitting Buddy had a good ferret around digging down till he hit rock. It looked like it was the first time he been stood on anything like this as he wasn’t sure of it at all. With nothing doing after 15 minutes I took him over to some rocks where he seemed to feel more at home. I walked about 40 yards casting as I went with nothing to show for my efforts. After an initially bright start I could see the weather closing in so decided to sit out the first rain shower under some trees.  Not long after, we were back to the car and I opened the door to let the mutt in where he promptly went off on one, probably best described as looking like a demented mop.

After a move and few casts I had  slight tap at the start of the retrieve, then another,  so I scanned the water looking to pick out my lure on its way back to me hoping to see a fish, sure enough there it was. I took the pace off the retrieve and did a spin stop, felt the take and the fish was on, pretty satisfying when it works out like that, worth a walk in rain, for me at least.

Nice enough fish this, probably in much better condition than its freshwater brothers in February. Easy to spot over a broken shell bottom, if you happen to be looking at the end of a retrieve that is.

  Dog meet fish- fish meet dog, neither being interested in the slightest before parting company

When the sleet started I felt it was enough for his first fishing adventure, two hours is plenty for him on a day like today. Bichon’s are not known for their hunting prowess so he had the ham and I had the roll, the least I could do I guess.

Had a bad hair day ? A thing of the past for me but a continuing issue for some it seems.

 

 

 

 

Off the mark

The morning traffic was a pain, I was eager to leave the usual mid-week routine behind me, today I was going fishing.  I’ve not been out since November and regardless of the weather or the tides I intended to be on the beach today. I went through the old routine  layering various items of clothing ,climbed into my waders, laced my boots, put my rod together, picked a likely looking lure and got down to business. It was nice to be back. February is early, the 11^th being the earliest I can target Sea Trout. Despite the traffic I arrived bang on time and about ten minutes after my first cast I felt a tap followed by a solid take and the familiar thump thump and my first fish of 2015 was on its way to the landing net. A quick picture and off it went like a silver bullet.

I made a few moves, tried my usual spots, most of my lures and wished I had picked up my bombarda floats, shrimp fly’s and ragworm patterns as either the fish weren’t there or didn’t fancy what I had with me. I did have one follow with the fish leaving a couple of nice boils on the surface as it tracked my lure before fading off. I changed my offering and covered the area again without success. I decided to make one more stop on the way home and although I didn’t fancy the tidal stage there was always the chance of a fish.

So, a couple of fish and a modest start to the year, at least I’m off the mark.

The Outback has landed!

My new 2015 Hobie Outback eventually arrived today. Years thinking about it, months waiting while I’ve put the money and gear together in a package that might possibly change my total approach to fishing. Who knows? One thing is for sure, I’m on a steep learning curve with this one.

BBC Alba- Sea Trout & Salmon on the Uists

Stewart put me on to this programme shown last Tuesday on BBC Alba. It brought back some great memories of the beaches, tidal pools and lochs I fished as a teenager through to my thirties. It’s been way too long and I really should get back up there soon and wet a line with my cousin Ian who also features in this programme. Have a look here if you’re interested in fly fishing for Sea Trout or Salmon in the outer Hebrides.

Leaping forward to spring

I’m counting down the days till I can get back on the beach fishing for Sea Trout. I don’t see any trips down south for Zander filling the gaps in the months ahead so expectations will build towards February. I can target Sea Trout again after the 11^th so don’t have long to wait. I didn’t wet a line for them  after the first week in May last year, never found the time so I’m looking forward to making the most of the spring action in 2015. I’m still looking for that big fish, 6 + (but aren’t we always?) Starting earlier will be interesting, no idea what that extra month might throw up. It will be over for me in May again where I’ll be looking at sea temps in the SW and opportunities for the first lure caught Bass of the year. It’s my intention to fish for both from a kayak at some point. I would be lying if wasn’t feeling a bit apprehensive, at the same time I’m looking forward to it, should be fun and it will definitely be wet.

Catch of the day

It's been 6 months since our wedding so we had a look through the pictures again today. I took my rod with me for the weekend as you do when visiting an island and quite rightly took pelters for it. When we had a few pictures taken at the beach it was an ideal opportunity to get it out.

We had a fantastic day and cracked it with the weather after a wet start.

 

Bowing out on a blank

That’s the Bass lures getting packed away for 2014, had a 5 hour session today without a touch. It’s only been ten days since I had a couple of fish but things felt different today. The rockpools had no signs of life, shrimps, fry, tiny gobies; they all seem to have moved on. I’ve no doubt there are still some fish about which will fall to baits, might even have a try myself if I get the chance but that’s it for me using lures.

I took a final look at the rocks from the top of the hill, had a smoke and pondered what kind of winter we might have and wondered when spring will arrive in earnest. Having had a Garfish and some nice Bass in May I might start in April if it feels right.

As I walked back to the car I stopped and washed the salt water from boots  in a little burn that I walk across , my usual ritual here as it  saves me doing it when I get home.

When I neared the car I was met with the roar of diesel engines and heavy plant. I’d spotted the signs a few months back giving notice that the wood was being harvested. I stopped and spoke to the guys for a few minutes, a full winter’s work ahead of them apparently. The forest had been planted in 1960 and now it was for the chop, quite literally. What was a nice walk will be like a battlefield next year and the crafty Jay that I had spotted five minutes earlier darting between the trees will be looking for a new home. 

A touch of silver frost

After feeding Dogfish for two days last weekend I was keen to get back to a style of fishing that floats my boat. The weather over the last week has been windy with a few decent interludes and plenty of rain of course. On that basis I didn’t think the forecast would hold for 4 days and let me pop my nose down into the SW on Sunday, but low and behold it did. There was some frost overnight and although I wasn’t on the road at the crack of dawn it was cold and foggy pretty much all the way to my spot.

I thought the water clarity would be worse than it was but thankfully it was OK. There was however a nasty swell that I would need to be mindful of, apart from that it was great to be back where I like to be of a morning. After about 30 minutes the mid-morning sun warmed my face and with no potential Dogfish on the radar I was a happy lad.

This Bass made me happier, as fit as a butcher’s dog it slammed the lure at close range and fought well against a pretty brutal drag setting due to the ground I’m fishing here. Landing the fish was problematic in the swell, you can see the fish has some scale damage from barnacles, after recovering in a rock pool it went on its way. My shoulder has responded to the physio really well and there were no major issue in the first hour, my bag however had to be dumped as I could feel it starting to cause a problem. When my second fish came along I couldn’t be bothered to get the camera, not much in it between them anyway. With the tides being so small today the fish did not seem to be where they normally are at the given stage of tide. It was basically downhill after a good start, actually surprised I caught any fish. I  did also spend some time in this session thinking about next year and the challenges I’ll be faced with transporting, launching and retrieving a kayak here. They are fairly substantial but they are doable. I’ll need to be fit and have some time on the water under my belt first but I can’t wait.

 I took this on the way home, a flooded field at sunset with the fog starting to roll in, stunning.

 

 

 

A weekend up north

My club hit the shores of Loch Sunart at the weekend with 8 boats travelling up for what is always a fairly social event with average results in terms of the fishing. On Friday afternoon reports started to come in of the first incident where a pre-trip trailer service resulted in 4 nuts being left loose and wheel falling off a trailer at the Bridge of Orchy. This set the tone, I left all my clothes in my car, boat engines failed, rods got broken and someone had suspected food poisoning and passed out behind a toilet door at 1.30am on Sunday. Despite this the guys all stuck at it catching Conger, LSD, Thornback, Pollack, Whiting, Poor Cod, Mackerel and a Skate was hooked but lost. The Spurs were elusive with less than a dozen caught over the weekend despite lots of effort. Gordon caught a fish on Saturday about 12pm which was tagged and caught again 5 miles away on Sunday at 2pm which was a surprisingly quick recapture.

Gordon with a couple of fish

It’s been about 13 years since I first fished Sunart. I took my boat up there and accompanied by another boat we had a great weekend ,there was even a rogue suspected escaped Halibut caught. This style of fishing on that venue is not for me any longer so I don’t see myself returning. About 7 years ago it became much harder to get a result for what is a fair amount of effort, my hearts not in it.

I’ll now be resting up over the next few months till Feb/March as I’m currently nursing a major shoulder problem. Miles on the clock and years of fishing with what is these days a massive amounts of reps casting lures in a session appears to have taken its toll. I have physio and possibly surgery ahead of me; learning to cast left handed is also an option which will require patience I probably don’t  have.

 

Slow for the mo

Not much happening fishing wise for me at the moment. I have however been invited to a day on the Tweed by a client next Tuesday. I don’t have much experience fly fishing on rivers of this stature so it will be hit or miss for me but I’m looking forward to the challenge. Following on from that it will be Loch Sunart in November. This has been my seasonal pattern over the last 10 years or so fishing for Spurs along with my fellow club members in what is usually a very wet but sociable weekend.

The flights and fishing have been booked for a few weeks now for our trip to the Ebro. Scott and I will be teaming up for a lure based assault on the predators swimming around the Caspe region where we will be fishing with Lee

The targets will be Wels catfish, Zander, Largemouth and Perch. I’ve no doubt Scott will winkle out a few other species on the trip and I wouldn’t expect anything else. The last email I had from Lee he mentioned that an angler with him had a 162 pound Wels on a lure. I’ve not had a Wels before so I’m looking forward to adding that to my own species tally. A week in the sunshine catching some nice fish would be just the ticket at the moment but it’s a long way off for the time being.

 

For auld times sake

After yesterday’s success I fancied more of the same today. The strengthening wind forced a change of location to a part of the coast that I’ve not fished for a while. I had spotted a track on Google maps that I know leads to stretch of beach that has the scattered parts of an old wreck just about in casting distance. You can actually see it in the satellite image if you know where to look. I’ve not been to this part of the beach before so I ended up having to reverse 1/4 of mile back along an increasingly overgrown and muddy track which was leading to nowhere other than getting pulled out by a tractor. I eventually got to my destination and worked my way along the beach casting and looking for any signs of activity. Two hours later I puffed my way back to the car fishless and headed for a spot that I used to do alright on about 12 years ago. I’ve only fished it a handful of times since but it was on my doorstep back then. I climbed down to the mark and took my backpack off and found the nice smooth rock I used to sit on and began fan casting the area. I cast my mind back, as you do, and it occurred to me that it’s still the place that I’ve caught the most Bass from in a tide, this was followed up by a similar result the next day. It never did produce as much on any other visit but was always good for a fish or two. I wondered if any of those fish were still swimming around and if they were they would be old and indeed, a fair size, you can but daydream. Just at that the rod jolted over and snapped me back reality.

I checked my watch after putting the Bass back, right on the money, same stage of the tide and as it happens exactly at the same part of the rock point that 90% of the fish hit the lure. It seems some things never change.  Anyway that was it, a snag and a lost lure brought my session to a close two hours later, but at least it wasn’t a blank.

Time for a few more before the sun sets on my Bass season. I’m hoping for decent weather on the run up to the next set of tides.
 

Grip'n & Grinning

I’ve been needing a fix for a while now having been busy with work and other commitments over the weekends recently. I snapped my 9ft HPR in the garage door in what was a bizarre accident mid-week, third tip in three years. Having never broken a rod in my life before I got this rod makes it an unwelcome PB, correction PW. If I didn’t rate the rod as much I would move on but it will be off to Century yet again next week. I stepped on to the beach today with a £29 8ft replacement, the Rovex lure Quad travel rod.  I used it in Aruba back in May while on honeymoon, really great little rod for the money, certainly for hard lures and things like SG eels anyway.

It was a pleasure to be back fishing again on a glorious October morning where I joined the otters and seals looking for their fix as well.

I positioned myself low and well back from the point where the tide was pushing past and made a few casts up-tide thinking that a Bass might be sitting behind the point of rock just out of the flow. This worked and I had two fish in 30 mins exactly where I thought they might be with both takes coming within inches of each other.

 It rarely pays to take route “A” and put yourself right on a point of rock such as this and when I fish alone I’ve got the luxury of knowing this and making the most of it.

I moved up the rock later on as the depth increased having dropped a fish in the same spot as the other two. I got another fish just as I should have been exiting the mark as I was about to get cut off. The Evo eel was barely visible as the fish had wolfed it right down, thankfully no blood and the fish went back.

 I walked for as far as the cliffs would let me and caught another fish and had one tag me almost at the end of the retrieve leaving a considerable foot print in the water. I only had the faintest of contact with it but the by looks of the displacement of water it might have been a decent fish. The tide was well up by now and I was bumping a few rocks which were now being covered and I lost an SG eel, when this fish hit I thought it was rock, it was nice to be proved to be wrong.

The sun was warm, I found a nice slopping rock and set myself down for a bit, this turned into a 45 minute kip. I made my way back along the rocks stopping here and there for a few casts but I was ready for home. The weather is about to change but I might try again on Monday; days like today will be few and far between in the months ahead.

 

   
  

Hobie Outback

I’ve been considering a Hobie Outback for a while and I’m well down the road in the thought process behind owning one. Given the investment of money and what would be time I’ve a decision to make I guess. It would open some doors in terms of Bass fishing in the SW Scotland; something I don’t think is being done on a regular basis by anyone.  The access it would provide for predator fishing particularly for Perch interests me a lot. It’s been 7 years since I sold my Warrior and at the moment I don’t have the ability to put a tow bar on my company car so boat ownership is out.

So, if anyone out there has 1-2 year old Outback, get in touch.

September surface action

I’ve been kicking my heels for a while after taking some time off work following on from surgery on my nose. I managed out this week on the big tides we have at the moment, no specimens but good fun on surface lures. Some of the takes were brilliant and although I’ve not fished as much as I would have liked this season this aspect of it has been really enjoyable.

 

I’ve three Mag Poppers left and these are showing their age. I’m sure one has a leak as the weight transfer system in the lure doesn’t always work as the ball bearings seem to stick. These are like gold dust and if you happen to come across the 105mm pattern snap them up, Bass love them.

I had a couple of fish on the Z Claw as well. I like this lure in a flat sea.

I might have got a few more fish if I stayed on well into darkness but I had to work the next day.

So I got my fix and ended up on five fish. No fishing this weekend and it will be a complete change of scenery with Zander and Perch on the GUC next weekend. As well as the usual tactics I’m going to spend some time trying for a Zed on the fly.