Latest Fishing Reports: Scotland
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19/09/2020
Fishing Report by DEREK ANDERSON
on Oceanic & Sagittarius (Eyemouth, Scottish Borders)
19 Sep 2020 by DEREK ANDERSON
Report on-board Oceanic & Sagittarius
Fish are still scarce the water seems a bit dirty this 7lb cod cheered us up
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View Full Charter AvailabilitySat 04/05/2024 4 Spaces 6 Hours £50.00pp Need 10 more for trip go-ahead. 7:45 at boatView details Sun 05/05/2024 10 Spaces 6 Hours £50.00pp Need 10 more for trip go-ahead. 7:45 at boatView details -
17/09/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
17 Sep 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
After our last adventure to the south catching big Tuna and Sharks on a 48 hour trip, it was now time to get back to some bread and butter fishing from Liverpool.
The Bass fishing is excellent at the moment most days we are catching 40 to 50 Bass and on our best day the lads who go by the name of The Bass Bandits caught 100 Bass and called it a day!!!
Most Bass are 40cm to 48cm with a few much bigger fish to 7lb 8oz, the lads keep two Bass each over 42cm and return the rest, even some of the lads are putting the bigger bass back which is great to see.
When Bass fishing we have also been catching, Smoothhound, Plaice, Flounder, Dab, Weaver, Tope pups and Dogfish.
Wrecking was starting to slow a little because the sea is alive with tiny 4 inch to 6 inch mackerel and Herring that the Pollack are feeding on.
On our last wrecking trip we decided to try a few wrecks we had not been to for a while, we got lucky and had over 80 Pollack to just short of double figures, with a few Ballan Wrasse, Ling, Coalfish, Cod, Whiting, Pouting, Mackerel, Herring, and Gurnard making up most of the catches.
The Mersey is alive with Rays at the moment to 8lb, you can catch 40+ a day without even trying, we have also had a few Congers in to double figures on clean ground, Sole, Flounder, Dabs, Whiting and Dogfish.
There is reports of odd Cod to 9lb in the river so it won’t be long before we start our winter season in the Mersey.
From October 1st to December 30th we will be fishing the mighty Mersey for Cod, Rays, Whiting and Dabs.
If you book a Wrecking, Bass or mixed off shore trip during this time and the weather is too bad then we will be fishing in the Mersey as a back up weather permitting.
Here is a full list of the available dates from Liverpool onboard Size Matters.
OCTOBER
Monday 26th wrecking £100 pp
1 place available 7.30am sailing.
NOVEMBER
Thursday 5th Mersey £55pp
2 places available 3am sailing.
Friday 6th Mersey £55 pp
4 places available 3.30am sailing.
DECEMBER
Thursday 3rd Inshore Banks £55 pp
4 places available 2am sailing.
Tuesday 8th Mersey £55 pp
5 places available 5am sailing.
Wednesday 9th Wrecking £100 pp
2 places available 5.30am sailing.
Thursday 10th Wrecking £100 pp
1 place available 7am sailing.
Tuesday 29th Mersey £55 pp
1 place available 10.30am sailing.
We have teamed up with Liverpools top accommodation provider "Serviced Living Liverpool" who offer 5 star apartments at internet beating rates.
Located in Liverpools Baltic Triangle area (one of the coolest places in UK) and only a few hundred metres from Liverpool Marina, give them a call on 0151 374 2401 and quote Size Matters book an apartment at the best rate.
Thanks
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters Liverpool
07999628511
#Mckiesfishingcharters
#Shimano
#Liverpool
#Servicedliving View Boats Page
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08/09/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
8 Sep 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
Our last three day trip of the year to the Isle of Man for big Tope was due to sail on Monday but sadly the weather was too bad.
I suggested to the lads we could do a 48 hour trip to where we fished on the way back from Ireland a few weeks ago because the weather forecast was looking much better further south.
The lads where well up for it, I had to load the boat up with 2500 litres of fuel and 100kg of fresh Mackerel for the trip.
I explained to the lads we would not use chum because it can attract too many small Blue Sharks in stead we would just keep chunking to hopefully select fewer but much bigger fish.
Our approach worked especially at night using glow sticks on the top of our traces,
Ste Loftus had his first porgie of 140lb it was a male fish and put up a great fight.
Paul Ravenscroft hooked the next Porgie of around 200lb again a male fish that give an excellent fight, I had hold of the wire trace twice then it just went deep down over 300ft and bit though the wire, I was so gutted for Paul it was his first ever Porgie and he would of loved a photo with it.
Nathon Berrie was the star of the show with the best Blue Shark of 104lb and Blue Fin Tuna of 88 inches (470lb) it took Nathan only 1 hour and 20 mins to get the tuna boat side on 30lb of drag, before it’s quick release, this was his first ever Tuna and won’t be his last.
All the lads had Blue Sharks but most where 40lb to 70lb, before it was time to head home for a very long steam.
From October 1st to December 30th we will be fishing the mighty Mersey for Cod, Rays, Whiting and Dabs.
If you book a Wrecking, Bass or mixed off shore trip during this time and the weather is too bad then we will be fishing in the Mersey as a back up weather permitting. View Boats Page
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01/09/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
1 Sep 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
After our trip to Ireland we took some time off to relax with the family.
When it was time to start our charters again we had two three day trips planned to the Isle of Man but sadly storm Francies put a stop to them.
Finally in the last few days we have been able to get back out from Liverpool and the fishing has been good.
Wrecking we have been catching lots of a Pollack into double figures, odd Ling, Cod and Coalfish.
The Bass fishing has been steady we are not getting the big numbers we where at the start of August but we are getting much bigger fish to 6lb 12oz.
From October 1st to December 30th we will be fishing the mighty Mersey for Cod, Rays, Whiting and Dabs.
If you book a Wrecking, Bass or mixed off shore trip during this time and the weather is too bad then we will be fishing in the Mersey as a back up weather permitting. View Boats Page
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28/08/2020
Fishing Report by DEREK ANDERSON
on Oceanic & Sagittarius (Eyemouth, Scottish Borders)
28 Aug 2020 by DEREK ANDERSON
Report on-board Oceanic & Sagittarius
Well things started looking a bit better with cod & pollock picking up & mackerel had been a tuff few weeks & now we have a storm from the North East last 4 day hopefully it’s done some good cheers
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UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Oceanic & Sagittarius
View Full Charter AvailabilitySat 04/05/2024 4 Spaces 6 Hours £50.00pp Need 10 more for trip go-ahead. 7:45 at boatView details Sun 05/05/2024 10 Spaces 6 Hours £50.00pp Need 10 more for trip go-ahead. 7:45 at boatView details -
20/08/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
20 Aug 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
Size Matters will be returning to Craobh Haven Marina on the west coast of Scotland in January 2021 until mid May to fish for Giant Common Skate, White Skate and Blue Skate.
Size Matters in the only boat ever in the UK to catch all three species of giant Skate.
We only use top quality Shimano fishing tackle, Tiagra 30s and Talica 25s reels loaded with 100 braid, teamed up with Tyrnos 80lb rods and full Black Magic Harnesses.
Using this top quality tackle makes Skate fishing much more enjoyable and easier on the angler, even the more senior anglers in their 70s and 80s can land Skate over 180lb with this tackle.
Here is a quick run down of when we started Skate fishing and how we have refined it over the last three seasons to give anglers the best possible opportunity to catch Skate over the magical 200lb mark!!
2018 was the start of our Skate fishing career, we done a 16 day trip to Scotland for Giant Skate even though we had never caught one before.
We managed 113 Common Skate to 220lb, total weight was 19361lb, with an average weight of 171lb 3oz.
11 of them where over 200lb and 91 of them over 100lb!
We caught Skate every day and out of 96 anglers who fished with us, only one angler never caught a Skate.
If that wasn’t good enough we also caught one White Skate estimated at 160lb that totally smashed the British record and was the first White Skate ever recorded in Scottish waters on rod and line.
The 2019 Skate fishing season could not come quick enough with 10 weeks fully booked, it was truly outstanding at times, we totalled 641 Skate for a total weight of 80,617lb!!!
We averaged 9 Skate a day with the average weight of 125lb 8oz!!
At times we would have four Skate on at once, trying to get them all to the boat in over 600ft of water was challenging at times but we managed it.
442 Skate where female and 199 were male, we caught 44 over 200lb and 359 over 100lb!!
The biggest Skate was caught by Wirrel angler Mick Walsh, a cracking fish of 232lb!!
Bert Willams from the Wirral caught the first ever Blue Skate in Scottish waters all 22lb of it, this is an exceptional catch in UK waters.
The most Skate we caught in one day was 37 for a total weight of 2790lb, by Garry Streeter and his lads from South Wales.
The Liverpool A Team consisting of Phil Riley, John Owan, John Mcbride and Paul Hendrick, had the most weight in one day with 20 Skate for a massive total weight of 3590lb!!
In 2020 we only had a two week window to fish for Skate due to family holidays and guiding holidays.
We decided it wasn’t worth taking Size Matters to Scotland so our good friend Davie lent us his charter boat Buoy Alba.
The weather was very unsettled, it was very stop start but we landed 87 Skate in just 8 days for a total of 15094lb the biggest was 225lb with 8 over 200lb, 76 over 100lb with an average weight of 173.5lb!!
As you can see the stats don’t lie, we are fully booked from March to mid May but because we are now arriving earlier in January we now have dates available in January and February if you would like to join us.
We can help arrange accommodation in self catering cottages at the marina for as little as £25 per person per night, they are very nice and fully kitted out just like a home from home.
The staff at the marina are very helpful and have done a great deal for us, they have decided if your charter is cancelled due to bad weather then you don’t have to pay a penny for the accommodation!
There is a pub at the marina called ‘Lord of the Isles’ they serve excellent food and drinks, the staff are very friendly and are happy to accommodate our anglers needs regarding food serving times.
We can also arrange bait at very reasonable prices that you can pick up next to the motorway in Glasgow.
Remember Size Matters has a fully equipped galley with microwave, kettle and hot plate to prepare hot food and hot drinks.
We also have full toilet facilities onboard and a fully heated wheel house that can seat up to 8 people at any one time.
Finally the best bit about fishing onboard Size Matters is the massive deck space where you can get that perfect photograph with your Skate, no shadows on the fish and definitely no need to hang over the side of the boat putting your self at risk for a photo.
We have had hundreds of anglers fish with us in Scotland since our first trip in 2018 and they have all really enjoyed their time in Scotland with us, hopefully some of them will leave comments when they see this post.
Available Dates
JANUARY
Saturday 9th £110 pp 6 places available.
Sunday 10th £110 pp 6 places available.
Monday 11th £110 pp 6 places available.
Tuesday 12th £110 pp 6 places available.
Tuesday 19th £110 pp 6 places available.
Wednesday 20th £110 pp 6 places available.
Sunday 24th £110 pp 4 places available.
Monday 25th £110 pp 4 places available.
FEBRUARY
Thursday 18th £110 pp 6 places available.
Friday 19th £110 pp 6 places available.
Saturday 20th £110 pp 6 places available.
Sunday 21st £110 pp 6 places available.
Monday 22nd £110 pp 6 places available.
Tuesday 23rd £110 pp 6 places available.
Please note charters are for a maximum of 12 hours if you think you can handle it and all top quality Shimano fishing tackle is included in the price.
Conservation and welfare of Skate is paramount, it is a 100% catch and release fishery, barbless bronzed hooks only and all Skate brought onboard for a photo are kept wet and released as quickly as possible.
Thanks
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Scotland)
07999628511
#Shimano
#Scotland
#Mckiesfishingcharters View Boats Page
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08/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
Aug 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
On our return trip from Baltimore to Liverpool we decided to try an area I had been told about several years ago by an Irish skipper who sadly passed away a few years ago.
The plan was to catch enough bait to last us for a 24 hour session before we headed back to Liverpool, this was easier said than done.
It took three of us 7 hours to catch the bait, the problem was no wind and very little tide so the boat wasn’t covering ground.
I give Tom Collins and Kieron Collins a call who are both local skippers to try and put us on some bait, they give me half a dozen marks to try, thankfully the last one we tried produced 3 Mackerel, 2 Coalfish to 7lb, 15 Cod from 3lb to 8lb and 25 Pollack to 8lb.
Over 8 hours later we arrived at our chosen area to fish in the early hours of the morning, we decided to stick to 200lb mono leaders and try lights and glow sticks in the dark for a Broadbill Sword Fish because not many people if any try different methods like this.
We set three rods up fishing at different depths, as dawn broke one of the reels started screaming it was clear to see it was a big Tuna, Sam was on the rod and was amazed how hard the fight was, everything was going well until an hour and thirty minutes in to the fight and a pod of dolphins went straight into his line parting the braid, we where all absolutely gutted.
We steamed back to where we started and set up the baits again, we didn’t get a bite for hours so I decided to get some sleep, what felt like five minutes later but was over an hour I woke up to Tony and Sam screaming Mako Mako.
I jumped out my bunk and started the engine, Tony was hanging over the back of the boat holding on for dear life then in seconds the Mako rolled on the mono trace and parted it like cotton.
I said what happened, they said they thought it was a little blue attacking the live whiting on the rod set just under the boat, when Tony hooked the shark it shot out of the water 20ft from the boat and over 6ft in the air!
We where all devastated beyond belief because you only get one shot like that in UK waters in your life time, Tony has seen three Mako sharks in South Africa so he is 100% sure it was a Mako.
We made the decision to change all three rods to wire and start chuming but we only had bran and fish oil.
After a few small blues one of the shark rods took off and the reel was emptying fast, Tony was on the rod and I was on the wheel, it was another big Tuna, 30 minutes into the fight the fish shot to the surface about 70 meters away, as we backed down on it it shot towards us and as we picked up the slack line it popped off under the boat.
At this point we thought what are the chances of having this much bad luck in one day, as the night closed in we decided to drop down to one rod to make it easier so the others could have asleep while one was on watch at all times.
Tony suggested to put an orange glow stick at the top of the wire trace to see what it could attract, that was when lady luck was on our side.
First drop in with the glow stick and Tony was bang into a 101lb Porgie, we boated it because it had a plastic band around it’s head and it’s skin had grown over it, at one end there was a bit we could cut but we could not pull it off without damaging the fish, at least now it has a much better chance to survive.
Next drop in and Sam was straight into a Blue Shark of 84lb his biggest Blue Shark, the glow stick was working a treat.
At this point know one was going to bed and I was next on the rod, I put a 4lb Cod on for bait and thought go big or go home, 15 minutes later the reel was screaming I grabbed the rod hooked the fish and it shot straight down to the sea bed I thought great I big porgie, then it started to empty the reel.
I said to Tony this is big you best take the rod I need to get on the wheel if we are going to see what this is, Tony fought the fish for 2.5 hours it turned out to be a cracking Tuna, I put the gaff in its bottom lip so we could tow it along to help revive it then it swam off in to the darkness.
Sam was on the camera so the photos are not great it doesn’t give the fish any scale, we used points on the boat to try to get the length, it was 92 inch to 94 inch around 450lb before we let it go.
We had lots more small Blue Sharks and Sam had his first ever Porgie about 80lb before it was time to head to Liverpool, what an end to a fantastic holiday in the UK and Ireland.
The wild life was amazing we seen a school of Sunfish with one coming onboard for a quick photo, we caught a few a Blue Whiting and seen lots of whales, seals and dolphins.
Losing that Mako will be the one that got away for many years to come onboard Size Matters!!
Massive thanks to all the Irish skippers, marina staff, harbour master and Navy for being very welcoming.
Also a massive thanks to everyone who wished us good luck on our trip to the shelf.
Over the last eleven days Size Matters has done more miles than doctor who’s tardis in our quest to fish new areas around Ireland and the UK, there will be a lot more of these trips in the future, as we like to say onboard
Size Matters HAVE BOAT WILL TRAVEL!!!
Thanks
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Ireland/UK)
07999628511
#Mckiesfishingcharters
#Shimano
#Ireland
#UK View Boats Page
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13/08/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
13 Aug 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
About two years ago I was talking to Mike Shearwood about me always wanting to fish the continental shelf.
After having three fishing holidays abroad cancelled this year due to COVID-19 it give me the opportunity to finally do it.
Because I was in Liverpool the nearest port to the shelf to get fuel and supplies was Baltimore south west Ireland some 300 miles from Liverpool.
I had fished from Baltimore back in 2004 onboard the Rooster skippered by Nick Dent, he told me about the Albacore Tuna fishing over 90 miles south west of Baltimore and it was always something I wanted to do.
We where ment to leave Liverpool on August 3rd but the weather was not good till August 5th and from then on the weather looked amazing for the week.
For once the weather forecast was amazing flat clam seas and bright sunshine for the five days we where out on the shelf.
When we arrived at the shelf we looked on the plotter first for any features such as rock pinnacles or rough ground, sadly where the plotter said these types of features where ment to be the sea bed was just flat, in fact we couldn’t find a snag in five days fishing.
We where fishing 24 hours a day, we always had rods in the water, we stuck to two crew awake at all times while two crew slept, this was for safety and to keep a look out for other vessels.
We done well for Albacore Tuna to 30lb on spinning tackle, they where great fun when we could find them.
We tried deep dropping during the day in depths of 2200ft to 4300ft suspending baits from 1500ft to 1800ft for Broadbill Sword Fish but the Squid where ruthless at times smashing the baits to bits.
During the night we tried drifting three rods for Broadbill Sword Fish but the Blue Sharks where a nightmare rolling on the leaders and biting off hooks, they where from 5lb to 80lb.
We did go Sharking for the day in over 3000ft of water where we had been catching Albacore Tuna, just to try and catch something a bit different.
Our chum consisted of 20kg of bran, 10kg of fresh mackerel, 30 litres of fish oil and chucked Albacore Tuna for good measure, we had lots of Blue Sharks but nothing over 65lb, Tony did show us how to tickle a 5lb Stone Bass into the boat ha ha.
We did try at anchor in 680ft and 1330ft but it was terrible not a fish, we did catch on the drift in 2400ft of water fishing baits on the sea bed, Sam had his first Six Gill Shark around 90lb and I got smashed up by something much bigger.
We all caught Leafscaled Gluper Shark from 20lb to 30lb we think this is the first time they have been caught on rod and line.
The boys where well fed eating fresh Albacore Tuna and Stone Bass each day washed down with a few pot noodles ha ha.
The wild life out there is amazing, we seen
Fin Whales, Pilot Whales, Three different species of dolphin, Sunfish, all different species of jelly fish and sea birds.
Even though we had hours of catching nothing the purpose of the trip was to fish different methods that we had never tried before, we now have a lot of knowledge of the area to do more pleasure trips out to the shelf in future.
On the last evening on the shelf we had a visit from the Irish navy once I give them all the information they needed we got the all clear and wished us good luck.
Please Note,
This was not a charter only a fishing holiday/pleasure trip, we have a satellite phone onboard for emergency’s and we only done this trip because the weather was exceptionally good to do it.
Size Matters is 45ft long with a 16ft beam she weighs 15 tonne and can sleep 6 people with a full galley, this is why we can live onboard for several days at a time if needed, she can handle very bad weather if we where ever caught out by the weather unexpectedly changing.
If you are a skipper thinking of doing this trip I would definitely recommend it but extra caution must be taken because if the weather changes it’s a very long way to steam home.
Thanks
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters (Ireland)
07999628511
#Mckiesfishingcharters
#Shimano
#Ireland View Boats Page
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01/08/2020
Fishing Report by Kevin McKie
on Size Matters (Craobh Haven, Argyll & Bute)
1 Aug 2020 by Kevin McKie
Report on-board Size Matters
The Bass fishing from Liverpool is excellent at the moment catching up to 53 Bass per trip and many more missed or hooks pulled due to the bass being lightly hooked.
The anglers are only allowed to keep two each and returning the rest, we are catching them on bait and lures using light spinning tackle to enjoy the fight.
Wrecking is going well 70 to 80 fish per trip for the table Cod to 8lb 8oz, Pollack to 7lb, Ling to 6lb and the odd Coalfish to 4lb.
Tope fishing is starting to slow, we are not getting the big numbers we where a few weeks ago but we are getting 4 to 5 per trip up to 41lb.
On one of the days we went tope fishing we couldn’t get through the Huss to 11lb we had over 70, not matter what we tried as soon as the bait hit the sea bed they where on to it.
The offshore mixed fishing is good with up to 15 species a day pretty much standard and if the anglers are willing to scale down for mini species we could see over 20 species a day.
We caught our fish Chub Mackerel in Liverpool bay, it’s the first one I have heard of in this area, we have caught them before from Plymouth, all we need now is the Tuna to turn up in Liverpool ha ha.
From October 1st to February 28th we will be fishing the mighty Mersey for Cod, Rays, Whiting and Dabs.
If you book a Wrecking, Bass or mixed off shore trip during this time and the weather is too bad then we will be fishing in the Mersey as a back up weather permitting.
We have teamed up with Liverpools top accommodation provider "Serviced Living Liverpool" who offer 5 star apartments at internet beating rates.
Located in Liverpools Baltic Triangle area (one of the coolest places in UK) and only a few hundred metres from Liverpool Marina, give them a call on 0151 374 2401 and quote Size Matters book an apartment at the best rate.
Thanks
Kevin Mckie
Size Matters Liverpool
07999628511
#Mckiesfishingcharters
#Shimano
#Liverpool
#Servicedliving View Boats Page
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25/07/2020
Fishing Report by DEREK ANDERSON
on Oceanic & Sagittarius (Eyemouth, Scottish Borders)
25 Jul 2020 by DEREK ANDERSON
Report on-board Oceanic & Sagittarius
It’s been a tuff few days again with good fish hard to find & some days no mackerel about they say July is always a poor month let’s hope August picks up.
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UPCOMING INDIVIDUAL SPACES ONBOARD Oceanic & Sagittarius
View Full Charter AvailabilitySat 04/05/2024 4 Spaces 6 Hours £50.00pp Need 10 more for trip go-ahead. 7:45 at boatView details Sun 05/05/2024 10 Spaces 6 Hours £50.00pp Need 10 more for trip go-ahead. 7:45 at boatView details
