Latest Fishing Reports: Size Matters
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01/2022
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Jan 2022 by Kevin McKie
Well what a first day that was yesterday, the lads fished there socks off catching and returning 33 Common Skate for a total of 4883lb!!!
They had 5 Skate over the magical 200lb mark with the biggest measuring 215lb, the lads also had four quadruple hook ups!!!
Just shows what you can do using the best possible quality tackle, harnesses and bait.
I have a had a few cancellations in the last week so here is what’s available if you would like to join us.
FEBRUARY
Wednesday 2nd Skate fishing £110 pp
6 places available 7am sailing.
Saturday 19th Skate fishing £110 pp
1 place available 7am sailing.
Sunday 20th Skate fishing £110 pp
1 place available 7am sailing.
Monday 21st Skate fishing £110 pp
1 place available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 23rd Skate fishing £110 pp
6 places available 7am sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Craobh Haven)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Craobhhaven
#Scotland -
01/2022
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Jan 2022 by Kevin McKie
Size matters is about to embark a 235 mile steam from Pwllheli to Craobh Haven in Scotland, on its last leg as a charter fishing vessel, as always we don’t do anything by half’s!!!
90 days, 90 nights, 90 charters, no days off, this is not day sailing or pleasure boating this is Skate fishing, Scottish Skate fishing, what we like to call earning a living!!!
If you have followed Mckies Fishing Charters for the last nine years you will know when it comes to putting meat on the deck Size Matters is the boat that achieves this with ease in any port it visits.
If you are booked on with us in Scotland then you are very wise and know where your bread is buttered when it comes to Skate fishing.
We have just a few individual places available if you would like to join us in Craobh Haven to fish for Giant Common Skate, White Skate and Blue Skate.
All top of the range Shimano tackle is available free of charge and we also have 3 Black magic harnesses available free of charge, this makes catching up to 37 to over 200lb per day a walk in the park for anglers even in there 70s!!
When you have the right tackle fighting Skate you can have a cup of tea, eat a pot noodle or read a fishing magazine, we like to make sure our anglers are very comfortable when fighting Scottish monsters!!
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Craobh Haven)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Craobhhaven
#Scotland -
12/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Dec 2021 by Kevin McKie
The end of 2021 is upon us, here is a recap of how the year went onboard Size Matters.
In January we only fished the first two days on the Mersey and the fishing was terrible to say the least.
As lockdown approached we had no option to stay in Liverpool Marina because the lock gates where being taken off till May for scheduled maintenance.
So we decided to get the boat to Scotland as we where fully booked from mid January to April, sadly we never managed to get any charters on in Scotland as the lockdown just kept extending.
We did manage to catch a few Skate while we were in transit and dropped the anchor for a few hours with the biggest at only 197lb, it was a shame we didn’t get to do any charters as the fishing would of been excellent.
Our biggest issue now was finding a port to fish from, Liverpool marina wasn’t ready till May and reports of the lock gates still being faulty made us look elsewhere.
We tried Plymouth, Falmouth, Newlyn and Milford Haven they where all full for any vessel over 12m, then we tried Pwllheli and got a berth from April 1st.
Now I personally hadn’t fished from Pwllheli for over 18 years, but I did have all my old fishing marks, we had our work cut out for us as we never planned on operating from Pwllheli.
Thankfully the fishing marks I had still held good numbers of fish and at the start of the season we went wreck hunting up to 70 miles from Pwllheli this paid off massively as the season went on.
The Tope fishing was excellent from April to June, we had some fantastic Tope fishing with the biggest measured at 67lb, with these big pregnant female Tope we think it’s best to measure them than weight them.
The wrecking was excellent from mid April to mid November with massive catches of over 200 Pollack to 15lb 6oz, we also had Cod, Coalfish and Ling as well.
The Bass fishing was ok from July but the best month was November it was outstanding with massive catches of over 200 Bass per trip.
We also done the first ever 10 day live aboard charters from Pwllheli, these trips where designed to give anglers a chance of going where no other charter boat in the UK has gone before to catch what no other charter boat has caught before.
On three of the 10 days live aboard charters the lads managed to catch Tuna to 620lb, Six Gill Sharks to 548lb, Porbeagle Sharks to 227lb, Blue Shark to 108lb, Blue Skate to 28lb and all manner of different species.
The highlight of these trips is the amount of Six Gill Sharks out there we had 32 in just 3 days fishing, also we hand fed Tuna to over 700lb, seen our first Loggerhead Turtle and a few hooks got straighten on fish we never got to see.
The plan now moving into 2022 is to get the boat to Scotland in January to fish till April for Common Skate, White Skate and Blue Skate, this all depends on the next Scottish government announcement on January 7th.
If is bad news from the Scottish government then Size Matters will be going to its new owner and everyone booked on for Skate fishing will be given a full refund.
We would like to thank our sponsors Shimano UK and Gerrys of Morecambe for there continued support.
From everyone at Mckies Fishing Charters we would like to wish you all the very best for 2022.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
12/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Dec 2021 by Kevin McKie
After 15 days of bad weather with back to back storms this month it was no surprise the fishing is terrible from Pwllheli.
The Bass fishing went from over 200 per trip in November to just 20 per day in December!!
The wreck fishing went from 90+ Pollack per trip in November to just a dozen at best per trip in December!!
The biggest problem was the water clarity , it was very cloudy after the storms and will need time to settle.
We have just a few more charters to do in between Christmas and New Year weather permitting, then we be heading up to Scotland for the last time to fish for Giant Common Skate, White Skate and Blue Skate till April.
We would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
11/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Nov 2021 by Kevin McKie
It’s been a real eye opener to witness the best Bass fishing I have ever seen in my life time, in just seven charters we have caught over 1100 Bass with the best day seeing 214 caught.
They have not been big fish 2lb to 4lb 8oz and on some of the charters we have only had 3 to 6 hours fishing due to the weather conditions but it’s been well worth putting the effort in for fishing like this.
Massive thanks to all the anglers who have been onboard while Bass fishing with us, I know it’s hard for some anglers to only keep two Bass and put the rest back but that’s the rules until December 1st then it’s catch and release only!
The wrecking inside of 45 miles has been very poor but if you are prepared to put the miles in its very good fishing, catching lots of fat winter Pollack into double figures.
Here is a full list of the last remaining available dates onboard Size Matters sailing from Pwllheli North Wales before we head to Scotland to target Giant Skate in the new year.
DECEMBER
Thursday 2nd Bass fishing catch & release £100 pp 3 places available 7am sailing.
Friday 3rd Bass fishing catch & release
£100 pp 2 places available 7am sailing.
Saturday 4th Bass fishing catch & release £100 pp 4 places available 7am sailing.
Monday 6th Bass fishing catch & release
£100 pp 6 places available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 7th Bass fishing catch & release
£100 pp 5 places available 7am sailing.
Wednesday 8th Bass fishing catch & release £100 pp 8 places available 7am sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
11/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Nov 2021 by Kevin McKie
When the weather allows us to get out the fishing is fantastic, it’s prime time for Bass and Pollack.
On November 5th the lads onboard managed to catch 121 Bass, no big fish all 2lb to 3lb 8oz on light spinning gear, at times it was mayhem and I even asked the lads if they where trying to reenact the film one flew over the cuckoos nest!!
Today the lads wanted to mix it up we went for Bass in the morning after just a few hours fishing we managed about 50 Bass to 3lb 8oz then we headed off to the wrecks, first few wrecks where very poor but we got lucky in the end and managed 80+ Pollack to 12lb 8oz!
Please note bass fishing from December 1st is catch and release only so if you work for Greenpeace or you don’t eat fish then you will enjoy bass fishing during December.
Here is a full list of available dates onboard Size Matters sailing from Pwllheli North Wales.
NOVEMBER
Sunday 14th Wrecking/Bass £105 pp 3 places available 7am sailing.
Sunday 28th Bass fishing £100 pp 3 places available 7am sailing.
DECEMBER
Thursday 2nd Bass fishing catch & release £100 pp 5 places available 7am sailing.
Friday 3rd Bass fishing catch & release
£100 pp 4 places available 7am sailing.
Saturday 4th Bass fishing catch & release £100 pp 5 places available 7am sailing.
Monday 6th Bass fishing catch & release
£100 pp 7 places available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 7th Bass fishing catch & release
£100 pp 5 places available 7am sailing.
Wednesday 8th Bass fishing catch & release £100 pp 8 places available 7am sailing.
Friday 17th Wrecking £105 pp 6 places available 7am sailing.
Saturday 18th Wrecking £105 pp 2 places available 7am sailing.
Sunday 19th Wrecking £105 pp 2 places available sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
11/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Nov 2021 by Kevin McKie
It’s been a while since our last report but after two family holidays and 16 days in a row of bad weather we finally got back out fishing from Pwllheli.
As we left the harbour we where greeted with brown dirty water up to 10 miles off shore, this made catching Mackerel for Bass fishing impossible so we decided to hit the wrecks.
Thankfully the wrecks where full of Pollack to 12lb to keep the lads happy.
From now till Christmas we will grab every chance we can to get out but the weather will force us to cancel lots of trips due to the winter storms.
If you want to get a chance to fish with us from Pwllheli before we move the boat to Scotland then here are the last available dates.
NOVEMBER
Tuesday 9th Bass fishing £100 pp 1 place available 7am sailing.
Wednesday 24th Wrecking £105 pp 1 place available 7am sailing.
DECEMBER
Thursday 2nd Mixed fishing £100 pp 8 places available 7am sailing.
Friday 3rd Mixed fishing £100 pp 6 places available 7am sailing.
Saturday 4th Mixed fishing £100 pp 6 places available 7am sailing.
Monday 6th Mixed fishing £100 pp 7 places available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 7th Mixed fishing £100 pp 7 places available 7am sailing.
Wednesday 8th Mixed fishing £100 pp 8 places available 7am sailing.
Friday 17th Wrecking £105 pp 7 places available 7am sailing.
Saturday 18th Wrecking £105 pp 5 places available 7am sailing.
Sunday 19th Wrecking £105 pp 7 places available sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
09/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Sep 2021 by Kevin McKie
Now our 10 day charters are over we have been fishing from our home port of Pwllheli on stranded day charters.
The inshore fishing for Bass, Bream and Tope has been very patchy and no two days have been the same.
The offshore wrecking has been outstanding every trip we are catching lots of Pollack to 11lb 8oz and odd Cod to 5lb, as soon as the lads have filled there cool boxes with fillets we have stopped fishing and headed in early.
While we have been off shore we have been spooled by a Tuna on 20lb class tackle as it took the wrecking lure on the way up, we chased it for 1/2 a mile before we got spooled, the reel was so hot you could of cooked an egg on it.
The next day we hand two Porgies at the boat while wrecking one was 60lb and another was 150lb we hand fed the 150lb porgie but it shook the hook off after about 5 mins, in comparison to the Tuna it fought like a dog fish.
Then the following day we where fishing inshore and we seen out first North Wales Thresher Shark jump six times, it was about 250lb and we had no bait to hand, so we caught some mackerel and headed over to where it was jumping but never got a touch for over two hours.
In the coming months if you have charters booked with us for Tope, Bass or Wrecking but would like to change to have ago for a Shark or two we will be more than happy to get the big guns out ����
Here is a full list of available dates from Pwllheli onboard Size Matters.
OCTOBER
Thursday 7th Tope fishing £85 pp 1 place available 7am.
Wednesday 8th Tope fishing £85 pp 4 places available 7am sailing.
NOVEMBER
Wednesday 3rd Bass fishing £100 pp 6 places available 7am sailing.
Thursday 4th Bass fishing £100 pp 8 places available 7am sailing.
Sunday 7th Bass fishing £100 pp 4 places available 7am sailing.
Monday 8th Bass fishing £100 pp 8 places available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 9th Bass fishing £100 pp 6 places available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 16th Wrecking £105 pp 3 places available 7am sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
09/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Sep 2021 by Kevin McKie
Our fourth and final 10 day live aboard charter has come to an end, after our previous 10 day live aboard charter was cut short for a combination of poor weather forecast, algae bloom and myself getting a nip from a shark, we needed to pull it out the bag on this trip!
The team we had for this trip was Team Cockney consisting of Sam, Lee, Gary and Mr ? who can not be named or be seen on social media due to his high profile job of being Prince Andrews body guard.
The day before we started the trip me and Sam went out for fresh bait, we got very lucky indeed and landed 250 to 300 mackerel and about a dozen Grater Weavers the best eating fish in the sea.
The next morning at 4am the rest of the lads turned up, we had an amazing forecast for the first six day’s, I explained to the lads we can go anywhere they want.
I was personally hoping to go the shelf off the west coast of Ireland but the lads had Six Gill Sharks at the top of there list so we decided to steam straight to Jurassic Park from Pwllheli, that’s a very long way indeed.
When we arrived at Jurassic Park there was dolphins everywhere, after the first hour Lee caught the first fish a Blue Skate of 22lb from then on it was steady fishing for the next 17 hours before the lads where beaten up and decided to call it a day.
The lads managed 12 Six Gill Sharks the biggest one measured 548lb a new unofficial British record beating our previous biggest Six Gill Shark by 36lb, Lee was the lucky angler and he also caught two Blue Skate to 28lb that he could claim as another unofficial British record!!
Sam caught Six Gill Sharks to 445lb,
Gary caught Six Gill Sharks to 294lb,
Mr ? caught Six Gill Sharks to 178lb,
The lads also caught Ling, Haddock, Whiting, Scad, Poor Cod and Dogfish.
It was now time to steam through the night to Newlyn to refuel, get an update on the weather forecast and get a well earned hot shower.
The next morning the forecast for the rest of the trip was looking good to head to Ireland or Milford Haven, the lads decided to try the Celtic Deeps before heading into Milford Haven.
As soon as we got to the Celtic Deeps the lads where catching small Blues to 60lb and just the one small Porgie, the lads pull the hook on a big porgie as it wrapped the trace up and to add salt to there wounds pull the hook on a Tuna at first light.
As we drifted into algae patches the fishing went quite but as we drifted out of them that’s where the sharks where waiting.
The next morning we where greeted by a Basking Shark swimming along side the boat buy the time we got the camera ready and steamed up to it we just managed to get a short video before it slipped away back into the depths.
We decided to check out a few wrecks for extra bait if we ever needed it while Sharking, the wrecks where full of Pollack to 10lb and the odd small Ling.
Surprisingly we came a cross a few wrecks being netted over 50 miles from Milford Haven, It’s been a few years since we have come across wrecks being netted and that was in Plymouth.
It was now time to head to Milford Haven for a well earned rest on land for a day to recharge the batteries and wet our whistles.
On our day off we done what any anglers would do and fished in the harbour for Mullet catching about a dozen to 3lb.
The next morning we headed back out Sharking in the deeps for the last leg of our trip, the plan was to try all different methods of sharking to see if we could try our best to stay away from all the small Blue Sharks that can become a pain when trying to target the bigger Sharks.
As in most cases things didn’t quite go to plan the lads caught over 50 Blues to 108lb and just one small Porgie, at one point we just used one rod because the bait was only in the water for a few minutes before it was taken.
Around 2am the weather picked up and it was 2 to 3 meter waves, the fishing went dead for about an hour then all hell broke lose, Sam hooked a Tuna after an hour he had it to the boat we roughly measured it at around 93 inch (530lb) before reviving it and watching it swim away.
We decided to go back to where we was previously fishing and get the chum going again to try a get a big Shark, as soon as we put a bait in the water it was taken by another Tuna this time Gary was on the rod, he got it boat side in 75 minutes in very tough conditions during darkness, this fish was around 96 inches (620lb) and we released it straight away.
By this time we where all feeling knackered Lee decided to have one last go for a shark before heading home, you guessed it as soon as his bait went in the water the reel started emptying and he was into a Tuna.
He got it to the boat five times I had hold of the wire but just could not turn its head it was a very big fish, sadly on the fifth attempt on the wire I had to just pull to try and turn its head but the hook pulled.
Now we had all had enough it was daylight and it was home time, as I walked into the wheel house the sonar was lite up with Tuna all over it, I said to the lads check this out, we had about 15lb of bait left so we decided to see if we could get them up to the surface to feed.
After just a few minutes we had them boiling under the boat all you could see was the out line of the Tuna and there yellow fin lets as they took the bait 20ft under the boat then a big boil of water followed on the surface, the Tuna where 200lb to well over 700lb it was amazing to see and something that will live with us forever, we did try to get them on camera but you couldn’t see the fish on the photos.
Please note shark welfare is our top priority, all sharks that are brought on board are lifted out of the water with a specialist lifting sling, measured, tagged and released in the shortest possible time while keeping well watered at all times.
Sharks that are brought onboard are measured, girth x girth x length divided by 800 to give us the formula for the weight.
We have now decided to stay in Pwllheli until Christmas before heading to Scotland to fish for Giant Skate, the reason for this is the Scottish government have recently made lockdown restrictions law and can implement them as and when they deem fit with minimal notice.
When we are in Scotland our anglers travel for all over the UK, Ireland and Europe to fish with us, they rely on accommodation to be fully open with no restrictions.
Jimmy Cranky and her associates (Scottish government) are already talking about circuit breaker lockdowns and it’s not even flu season yet, you don’t have to be the great grandson of Einstein to work out what’s coming next!
This now means we have dates available in October, November and December from Pwllheli North Wales.
OCTOBER
Thursday 7th Tope fishing £85 pp 1 place available 7am.
Wednesday 8th Tope fishing £85 pp 4 places available 7am sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales -
08/2021
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
Aug 2021 by Kevin McKie
Our third 10 day live aboard charter didn’t quite go to plan, at first the weather forecast looked good to fish the Celtic Deeps then head to The Scilly Isles for a day before heading to Jurassic Park.
We had Dean, Sam, Mike and Robin onboard, the lads where all rearing to go and had been waiting over a year for this trip.
On the first day we steamed from Pwllheli to the Celtic Deeps, as we arrived where we had been fishing the week before we could see the algae was very thick this time and it was hard finding a clear spot to set a drift up.
We managed to find a small clearing in the algae to start the drift, straight away we had a small Blue about 35lb, after about two hours Dean hooked a Porgie about 110lb it just come straight to the boat with not much fight at all.
After a quick photo we where putting it back out the stern door, I made the massive mistake of not wearing gloves and as I put my hand on it’s nose it flicked its head up and just caught my finger with its teeth.
The lads got the Porgie out of the door and back in to the sea while I got a towel on my hand and tapped it up, I said to the lads just carry on fishing then we will head to Newlyn when you have had enough.
After a few hours we hadn’t had a bite and the algae was getting worse so the lads said let’s get going and get my hand seen to.
When we arrived in Newlyn we refuelled the boat and I went to the hospital, thankfully it hadn’t cut any tendons or chipped any bone in my finger, they just give me stitches and because it was a bite from a shark they give me three sets of antibiotics to have.
When I got to the boat I said to the lads we have two options now, we can just go home and call it a day because I won’t be able to work on the boat like I normally do or we can carry on and fish but you lads will have to do everything because I can not get my finger wet incase of an infection.
The lads decided to just fish on, we went back out that evening but the fishing in the bay was very slow and the algae was bad if you went anymore than 2 miles out.
The next morning we checked the weather forecast for the coming week and the weather forecast had totally changed, there was no chance of getting to Jurassic Park or even attempting to get to the shelf, I made a few phone calls to lads in Falmouth and they said the algae was bad up there and the inshore fishing was poor.
The lads said we don’t mind a few days inshore fishing but not a whole week, so we decided to cut our losses and take the small weather window to get back to Pwllheli.
At the end of the day you can not fight nature you just have to let it run it’s course, now we just have to pray for good weather at the end of the month for our fourth and final 10 day live aboard charter of the year.
As for getting bit by the Shark it was long over due after handling thousands of sharks over the last 30 years from all over the world it was enviable it was going to happen one day and it was totally my own fault for not putting my gloves on after taking the photo.
Sadly we are fully booked in Pwllheli for the rest of the season, we do have dates available for Skate fishing in Scotland.
NOVEMBER
Monday 1st £110 pp 2 places available
7am sailing.
Tuesday 2nd £110 pp 3 places available
7am sailing.
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Pwllheli)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Gerrysofmorcambe
#Grundens
#mckiesfishingcharters
#SDHtravel
#Holymackerel
#Pwllheli
#Northwales
