A Warm Welcome and an Introduction to Sea Fishing on the West Coast of Scotland

Airds Bay boat pick up point, Loch Etive

Welcome to this brand new blog, devoted to sea fishing and all its associated factors on and off the West of Scotland. It is my aim here to look at sea fishing venues, my experiences and those of my friends while fishing these locations, great places to stay if your trip lasts more than one day and - of course - fabulous recipes of my own creation for cooking up your catch when you get home. I hope you will come with me on this journey and perhaps get to see and know the West of Scotland as you have never seen or imagined it before.

The head of Loch Long at Arrochar

It amazes me to think that it is but a beginner's cast off forty years since I first wetted a line as a very young boy at the small pier in Lochaline. I remember that the first sea fish I ever caught was a coley. I even remember that after having caught a number of coley, my second caught species was pollack and my third, mackerel. Sadly, times have changed considerably since those halcyon days in the 1970's, with the despised EU Common Fisheries Policy in particular to blame for the over-fishing that has decimated the fish stocks in Scotland's inshore waters. Although most of the fish have gone, one way of looking at the problem is that knowledge of where to fish, at what time of year, at what stage of the tide and with what bait and equipment becomes all the more important.

Inveraray from the shore of Loch Fyne

This blog cannot guarantee to improve your sea fishing record on or just off the West of Scotland. What it does guarantee is quality, up to date and relevant information, designed to hopefully help you in your quest to catch more fish, of your targeted species, more often. Tight lines - and happy fishing!

Out on the boat on Loch Etive