jonnyswamp

thats the strain from all them cod you where catching 🐳

Rather be a penknife on a boat than at work, hope you fell better and have a great trip

Myself and 2 others managed to get a few places out of Weymouth on a Bream/Bass trip in the morning
Pulled my back in work this morning and I'm walking about like a half opened pen knife
The one trip I could do with being called off......
And it's on
 
 

Myself and 2 others managed to get a few places out of Weymouth on a Bream/Bass trip in the morning
Pulled my back in work this morning and I'm walking about like a half opened pen knife
The one trip I could do with being called off......
And it's on
 
 

Not going now, skipper double booked us and a strong easterly forecast which, said the skipper, he wouldn't go out in and would've cancelled anyway
 

That's what happens when you book time off work, the weather is shite
Just throw a couple of sickies whenever the weather is good 😁

Not this weekend, the tides are massive
But next Sat we have a trip out of Aberearon, 4 hr steam out apparently into the deeper water wrecks that not many others go to 🤞

Wow - what an excellent trip! amazing fish!

That's what happens when you book time off work, the weather is shite
Just throw a couple of sickies whenever the weather is good 😁

A solid 6

Apologies for the recent winds, I took a week off work to fish - so of course it blew up.
Saturday 17th August - Me, Tim and my father in law Phil out on Tim's boat - with fresh baits sorted we picked a new spot south of the shambles in 100ft of water, reportedly good for big rays, the hour long steam out was made better by the arrival of a pod of dolphins who played with us for about 5 mins. 


on arrival at the mark we were comforted by the fact 3 charters were there too - hopes were high! 
down went the fresh mackerel baits - pretty soon phil was into a run of pout - some of them pretty big, 

I had a big tope, which put up a good fight - it was t-barred at the side so no pics. we also had eels and dogs.
pretty soon the charters moved off and we soon found out why - the tide was ripping and half pound of lead wasn't holding - so we moved too.
The new mark showed up some rays, more conger and dogs, plus bream

with the wind blowing 15-20mph the rest of the week we didn't have many more options other than to take my boat Pugwash out and stay close in fishing the inshore reefs wrecks and sand. we managed a few afternoon trips and had mackerel & Gurnard.  

plus we got papped going out under the bridge!

Welcome Matt - 
I too have been out with Les on White maiden, he's a great skipper - been out a few times a few years back.
he took great delight in showing me how to hold a conger properly - i mean he kept on showing me...... 🤣 

and it had to be those 2 fingers......
 

I won't bore you with the travel details because, well they're boring
Two flights and a ferry ride later, we arrived at Sandland Brygge at around 8pm last Wednesday 14th August 2024
The 7 of us were met by the owners/hosts Steiner and Stina who loaded our luggage and gear into their van for the very short 2 min drive to the digs, far easier than trying to drag a weeks worth of food, drink, clothes, tackle ourselves
We had one of the 2, 8 birth lodges which are clean, comfortable and full of all the appliances you will need
Anyway, we unpacked and 2 of us had a safety briefing on the self drive boats (6.5m all aluminium with 150 suzuki 4 strokes which you can see towards the end of the first video, there are also a couple of 7.5m boats with 200 suzukis on the back) 
Briefing done, it was time for supper and an early night
Day 1, Thursday
Luckily, a few of the lads had been here last year, so knew a few marks that we went straight out to
This threw up some nice Cod (not massive I know, but Cod) and smaller Coalies, there must litterally be hundreds of thousand of them, as this was the scene on pretty much every mark we went to

Despite the abundance of bait fish, it wasn't as frantic as I expected/was assured, there was no wind and a very little tide which I decided was the reason
Not a disaster 
Day 2, Friday
High wind and heavy, prolonged showers
Spent most of the day looking for shelter out of the wind (which you can always find somewhere in one of the fjords) getting wet and pulling the odd few fish up
Did try for Plaice, but drift was all over the place and horizontal rain, though I did manage a Dab of over a 300mm
No pictures as too wet
Not a good day
Day 3, Saturday
Good weather
Thought we would try some deeper water (150m +) very difficult to get 2 drifts the same even when starting at the exact same point (not just today, pretty much every day)
Had fish on every mark when the lines weren't kiting too much

 

As well as the Cod and Coalies, we also had their equivalent of dogfish, Torsk, which can be a nuisance
A bit of a cross between a Ling, a cod and a Rockling
 
We also picked up a few Wolf fish, they call them Catfish up there
Ugly critters with razer teeth and a jaw like a hydraulic crusher, but nice eating apparently


Finished the day off trying for Plaice
I think we had between 15 and 20 between the 3 of us, with this being the best of the day
5lb 6oz

Had a couple of double hook ups with 3.5/4lb fish which initially I though was a double figure fish, ashamed to say I was a bit disappointed when I saw 2 fish coming up 🫣
This was my most enjoyable day up to now
Day 4 Sunday
Carbon copy of Friday, blustery winds and heavy showers with much the same results
Managed a few Plaice towards the end of the day as the wind turned and made the drift the right direction
This was around 4lb IIRC

Day 5 Monday
Great forecast so we set off for the "pig farm" some reefs and drop offs around 6/7 miles off the NE of Loppa
Very quiet for both boats all morning, though the few fish that were caught were worth the wait
First in were the lads on the other boats, one of them (Smurf) dropped a dead bait down and as soon as it hit the bottom, his rod went bananas
This was the result

Took the treble deep, so wouldn't go back, went 66lb when weighed some 6 hrs later
Was very probably 70lb when caught, he was over the moon, could hear the cheers (from his boat and one close by) a mile away
Smurfs mate will copied his tactics and was rewarded with it's smaller sibling 20 mins or so later
Will's (on right) went 34lb, looks like a minnow next to the monster
Will also caught the only Red fish of the trip
Our boat wasn't faring so well, until Paul also dropped a deadbait down and was rewarded with the best Halibut of the trip
Scales were bouncing between 38 and 42lb, so we generously gave him 39lb 😁
Will also picked up a halibut earlier on in the week of around 20lb
To be continued on next post

Yes, just the one of around 7/8lb IIRC, it was on the other boat
Very scarce over there apparently, Stiener (the owner of the resort and charter boat) thought the picture was photo shopped and I don't think he really believed it
The same lad also caught one last year

Not this weekend, the tides are massive
But next Sat we have a trip out of Aberearon, 4 hr steam out apparently into the deeper water wrecks that not many others go to 🤞

If you're paying that much dosh nothing except an earthquake or the end of the world would get in the way! I'd look at July though. 

Awesome, I presume that you got sore arms from the fighting 

The owner of the resort also has a 12m cat he charters out to the better, further away marks where the small, self drive boats aren't allowed to go
Its around 30 miles and apparently you aren't insured that far out, so charter is the only way and was highly recommended
A late start at 12.30 due to offshore winds early on and after a near 2 hr steam, we're dropping onto a huge reef system that can be drifted for a few hrs at a time with the right winds
A couple of winds up on my first drop produced this 
Deck hand Dave estimated at low 20's, who am I to argue
This was the stamp of fish that we were all catching on pretty much every drop, fair play they go like a train when they take the lure
After half a dozen of these, I sent a dead bait down, hoping for a big Cod or a Halibut
After about an hour and 3 bait changes, all I had caught was a Torsk (bastard fish) because that's what you call them when you see they're not a Cod or Coalie, had a few decent tugs, but couldn't connect and watching the rest of the boys pulling in fish in the mid 20's I was getting a bit tetchy, so went back to lures
In the mean time, Will had hooked and landed a Cod of 52lb, which unfortunately didn't go back, but would be given to some locals as is the case if they're too damaged and not wanted by the angler
I haven't got a pic of him holding it, so this will have to do
 
I had a couple of high teens and early 20lb Cod on a 9" lead headed lure (similar to a Sidewinder in design) so thought I'd try the biggest in the box and just target Cod
This was what the Norway veterans called "cut baits" mine was an imitation Puffin around a foot long !!!
Sent it down and they were hitting it as soon as it hit the bottom, plenty of the same size as earlier (huge for over here, just run of the mill over there)
I was hit by another 20lb + (or so I thought) and when the lunges became a bit more severe and line was being stripped off my reel, I was hoping this was something a bit better
It was, it was a 50 +
56lb 6oz and my PB ( a never to be beaten PB unless I go back out in 2026)
Because all fish are pulled up slowly and allowed to expel air as soon as you can see them (farting them) about 5/10 meters down, the majority go back unharmed like torpedos, 
This one also went back, seemingly none the worse for seeing my ugly mug, which is nearly as satisfying as catching it
Though, when I saw the size of it under the water, my arse was twitching a bit thinking that at any second i was going to loose it
2 drops later using the same method, I was hit by something bigger/stronger that I got up off the bottom by a few meters, only to watch my reel release a few more
Played tug of war for a few minutes and started gaining, then watched my reel give out more line than I had initially reeled in
So started the battle again and managed to get it, probably, 30m up after another 10 mins or so
Then I just went light and the expletives were ringing out
Whatever it was ( Cod or Halibut) was certainly a good fish
Got the lure to the surface and could see that my line had wrapped around the gape of the hook, probably disgorging the fish it fought
Ah well, there's always next time......
A pic of the lures we were using, with a 6" sidewinder for scale
I also caught a small, 5/6 lber on the Puffin lure, greedy buggers
A few other photos from the charter day and earlier
Had this view from our lodge a few mornings
To sum up my view, not as busy as I was told it would be, high water temps probably didn't help, the charter boat is a must if you go out there
But still very good fishing compared to what we have here
I will probably go back in 2026, 2025 fully booked 
 

I won't bore you with the travel details because, well they're boring
Two flights and a ferry ride later, we arrived at Sandland Brygge at around 8pm last Wednesday 14th August 2024
The 7 of us were met by the owners/hosts Steiner and Stina who loaded our luggage and gear into their van for the very short 2 min drive to the digs, far easier than trying to drag a weeks worth of food, drink, clothes, tackle ourselves
We had one of the 2, 8 birth lodges which are clean, comfortable and full of all the appliances you will need
Anyway, we unpacked and 2 of us had a safety briefing on the self drive boats (6.5m all aluminium with 150 suzuki 4 strokes which you can see towards the end of the first video, there are also a couple of 7.5m boats with 200 suzukis on the back) 
Briefing done, it was time for supper and an early night
Day 1, Thursday
Luckily, a few of the lads had been here last year, so knew a few marks that we went straight out to
This threw up some nice Cod (not massive I know, but Cod) and smaller Coalies, there must litterally be hundreds of thousand of them, as this was the scene on pretty much every mark we went to

Despite the abundance of bait fish, it wasn't as frantic as I expected/was assured, there was no wind and a very little tide which I decided was the reason
Not a disaster 
Day 2, Friday
High wind and heavy, prolonged showers
Spent most of the day looking for shelter out of the wind (which you can always find somewhere in one of the fjords) getting wet and pulling the odd few fish up
Did try for Plaice, but drift was all over the place and horizontal rain, though I did manage a Dab of over a 300mm
No pictures as too wet
Not a good day
Day 3, Saturday
Good weather
Thought we would try some deeper water (150m +) very difficult to get 2 drifts the same even when starting at the exact same point (not just today, pretty much every day)
Had fish on every mark when the lines weren't kiting too much

 

As well as the Cod and Coalies, we also had their equivalent of dogfish, Torsk, which can be a nuisance
A bit of a cross between a Ling, a cod and a Rockling
 
We also picked up a few Wolf fish, they call them Catfish up there
Ugly critters with razer teeth and a jaw like a hydraulic crusher, but nice eating apparently


Finished the day off trying for Plaice
I think we had between 15 and 20 between the 3 of us, with this being the best of the day
5lb 6oz

Had a couple of double hook ups with 3.5/4lb fish which initially I though was a double figure fish, ashamed to say I was a bit disappointed when I saw 2 fish coming up 🫣
This was my most enjoyable day up to now
Day 4 Sunday
Carbon copy of Friday, blustery winds and heavy showers with much the same results
Managed a few Plaice towards the end of the day as the wind turned and made the drift the right direction
This was around 4lb IIRC

Day 5 Monday
Great forecast so we set off for the "pig farm" some reefs and drop offs around 6/7 miles off the NE of Loppa
Very quiet for both boats all morning, though the few fish that were caught were worth the wait
First in were the lads on the other boats, one of them (Smurf) dropped a dead bait down and as soon as it hit the bottom, his rod went bananas
This was the result

Took the treble deep, so wouldn't go back, went 66lb when weighed some 6 hrs later
Was very probably 70lb when caught, he was over the moon, could hear the cheers (from his boat and one close by) a mile away
Smurfs mate will copied his tactics and was rewarded with it's smaller sibling 20 mins or so later
Will's (on right) went 34lb, looks like a minnow next to the monster
Will also caught the only Red fish of the trip
Our boat wasn't faring so well, until Paul also dropped a deadbait down and was rewarded with the best Halibut of the trip
Scales were bouncing between 38 and 42lb, so we generously gave him 39lb 😁
Will also picked up a halibut earlier on in the week of around 20lb
To be continued on next post

Around 40m depth, don't know about specific studies re survival rates

The owner of the resort also has a 12m cat he charters out to the better, further away marks where the small, self drive boats aren't allowed to go
Its around 30 miles and apparently you aren't insured that far out, so charter is the only way and was highly recommended
A late start at 12.30 due to offshore winds early on and after a near 2 hr steam, we're dropping onto a huge reef system that can be drifted for a few hrs at a time with the right winds
A couple of winds up on my first drop produced this 
Deck hand Dave estimated at low 20's, who am I to argue
This was the stamp of fish that we were all catching on pretty much every drop, fair play they go like a train when they take the lure
After half a dozen of these, I sent a dead bait down, hoping for a big Cod or a Halibut
After about an hour and 3 bait changes, all I had caught was a Torsk (bastard fish) because that's what you call them when you see they're not a Cod or Coalie, had a few decent tugs, but couldn't connect and watching the rest of the boys pulling in fish in the mid 20's I was getting a bit tetchy, so went back to lures
In the mean time, Will had hooked and landed a Cod of 52lb, which unfortunately didn't go back, but would be given to some locals as is the case if they're too damaged and not wanted by the angler
I haven't got a pic of him holding it, so this will have to do
 
I had a couple of high teens and early 20lb Cod on a 9" lead headed lure (similar to a Sidewinder in design) so thought I'd try the biggest in the box and just target Cod
This was what the Norway veterans called "cut baits" mine was an imitation Puffin around a foot long !!!
Sent it down and they were hitting it as soon as it hit the bottom, plenty of the same size as earlier (huge for over here, just run of the mill over there)
I was hit by another 20lb + (or so I thought) and when the lunges became a bit more severe and line was being stripped off my reel, I was hoping this was something a bit better
It was, it was a 50 +
56lb 6oz and my PB ( a never to be beaten PB unless I go back out in 2026)
Because all fish are pulled up slowly and allowed to expel air as soon as you can see them (farting them) about 5/10 meters down, the majority go back unharmed like torpedos, 
This one also went back, seemingly none the worse for seeing my ugly mug, which is nearly as satisfying as catching it
Though, when I saw the size of it under the water, my arse was twitching a bit thinking that at any second i was going to loose it
2 drops later using the same method, I was hit by something bigger/stronger that I got up off the bottom by a few meters, only to watch my reel release a few more
Played tug of war for a few minutes and started gaining, then watched my reel give out more line than I had initially reeled in
So started the battle again and managed to get it, probably, 30m up after another 10 mins or so
Then I just went light and the expletives were ringing out
Whatever it was ( Cod or Halibut) was certainly a good fish
Got the lure to the surface and could see that my line had wrapped around the gape of the hook, probably disgorging the fish it fought
Ah well, there's always next time......
A pic of the lures we were using, with a 6" sidewinder for scale
I also caught a small, 5/6 lber on the Puffin lure, greedy buggers
A few other photos from the charter day and earlier
Had this view from our lodge a few mornings
To sum up my view, not as busy as I was told it would be, high water temps probably didn't help, the charter boat is a must if you go out there
But still very good fishing compared to what we have here
I will probably go back in 2026, 2025 fully booked 
 

I won't bore you with the travel details because, well they're boring
Two flights and a ferry ride later, we arrived at Sandland Brygge at around 8pm last Wednesday 14th August 2024
The 7 of us were met by the owners/hosts Steiner and Stina who loaded our luggage and gear into their van for the very short 2 min drive to the digs, far easier than trying to drag a weeks worth of food, drink, clothes, tackle ourselves
We had one of the 2, 8 birth lodges which are clean, comfortable and full of all the appliances you will need
Anyway, we unpacked and 2 of us had a safety briefing on the self drive boats (6.5m all aluminium with 150 suzuki 4 strokes which you can see towards the end of the first video, there are also a couple of 7.5m boats with 200 suzukis on the back) 
Briefing done, it was time for supper and an early night
Day 1, Thursday
Luckily, a few of the lads had been here last year, so knew a few marks that we went straight out to
This threw up some nice Cod (not massive I know, but Cod) and smaller Coalies, there must litterally be hundreds of thousand of them, as this was the scene on pretty much every mark we went to

Despite the abundance of bait fish, it wasn't as frantic as I expected/was assured, there was no wind and a very little tide which I decided was the reason
Not a disaster 
Day 2, Friday
High wind and heavy, prolonged showers
Spent most of the day looking for shelter out of the wind (which you can always find somewhere in one of the fjords) getting wet and pulling the odd few fish up
Did try for Plaice, but drift was all over the place and horizontal rain, though I did manage a Dab of over a 300mm
No pictures as too wet
Not a good day
Day 3, Saturday
Good weather
Thought we would try some deeper water (150m +) very difficult to get 2 drifts the same even when starting at the exact same point (not just today, pretty much every day)
Had fish on every mark when the lines weren't kiting too much

 

As well as the Cod and Coalies, we also had their equivalent of dogfish, Torsk, which can be a nuisance
A bit of a cross between a Ling, a cod and a Rockling
 
We also picked up a few Wolf fish, they call them Catfish up there
Ugly critters with razer teeth and a jaw like a hydraulic crusher, but nice eating apparently


Finished the day off trying for Plaice
I think we had between 15 and 20 between the 3 of us, with this being the best of the day
5lb 6oz

Had a couple of double hook ups with 3.5/4lb fish which initially I though was a double figure fish, ashamed to say I was a bit disappointed when I saw 2 fish coming up 🫣
This was my most enjoyable day up to now
Day 4 Sunday
Carbon copy of Friday, blustery winds and heavy showers with much the same results
Managed a few Plaice towards the end of the day as the wind turned and made the drift the right direction
This was around 4lb IIRC

Day 5 Monday
Great forecast so we set off for the "pig farm" some reefs and drop offs around 6/7 miles off the NE of Loppa
Very quiet for both boats all morning, though the few fish that were caught were worth the wait
First in were the lads on the other boats, one of them (Smurf) dropped a dead bait down and as soon as it hit the bottom, his rod went bananas
This was the result

Took the treble deep, so wouldn't go back, went 66lb when weighed some 6 hrs later
Was very probably 70lb when caught, he was over the moon, could hear the cheers (from his boat and one close by) a mile away
Smurfs mate will copied his tactics and was rewarded with it's smaller sibling 20 mins or so later
Will's (on right) went 34lb, looks like a minnow next to the monster
Will also caught the only Red fish of the trip
Our boat wasn't faring so well, until Paul also dropped a deadbait down and was rewarded with the best Halibut of the trip
Scales were bouncing between 38 and 42lb, so we generously gave him 39lb 😁
Will also picked up a halibut earlier on in the week of around 20lb
To be continued on next post

I won't bore you with the travel details because, well they're boring
Two flights and a ferry ride later, we arrived at Sandland Brygge at around 8pm last Wednesday 14th August 2024
The 7 of us were met by the owners/hosts Steiner and Stina who loaded our luggage and gear into their van for the very short 2 min drive to the digs, far easier than trying to drag a weeks worth of food, drink, clothes, tackle ourselves
We had one of the 2, 8 birth lodges which are clean, comfortable and full of all the appliances you will need
Anyway, we unpacked and 2 of us had a safety briefing on the self drive boats (6.5m all aluminium with 150 suzuki 4 strokes which you can see towards the end of the first video, there are also a couple of 7.5m boats with 200 suzukis on the back) 
Briefing done, it was time for supper and an early night
Day 1, Thursday
Luckily, a few of the lads had been here last year, so knew a few marks that we went straight out to
This threw up some nice Cod (not massive I know, but Cod) and smaller Coalies, there must litterally be hundreds of thousand of them, as this was the scene on pretty much every mark we went to

Despite the abundance of bait fish, it wasn't as frantic as I expected/was assured, there was no wind and a very little tide which I decided was the reason
Not a disaster 
Day 2, Friday
High wind and heavy, prolonged showers
Spent most of the day looking for shelter out of the wind (which you can always find somewhere in one of the fjords) getting wet and pulling the odd few fish up
Did try for Plaice, but drift was all over the place and horizontal rain, though I did manage a Dab of over a 300mm
No pictures as too wet
Not a good day
Day 3, Saturday
Good weather
Thought we would try some deeper water (150m +) very difficult to get 2 drifts the same even when starting at the exact same point (not just today, pretty much every day)
Had fish on every mark when the lines weren't kiting too much

 

As well as the Cod and Coalies, we also had their equivalent of dogfish, Torsk, which can be a nuisance
A bit of a cross between a Ling, a cod and a Rockling
 
We also picked up a few Wolf fish, they call them Catfish up there
Ugly critters with razer teeth and a jaw like a hydraulic crusher, but nice eating apparently


Finished the day off trying for Plaice
I think we had between 15 and 20 between the 3 of us, with this being the best of the day
5lb 6oz

Had a couple of double hook ups with 3.5/4lb fish which initially I though was a double figure fish, ashamed to say I was a bit disappointed when I saw 2 fish coming up 🫣
This was my most enjoyable day up to now
Day 4 Sunday
Carbon copy of Friday, blustery winds and heavy showers with much the same results
Managed a few Plaice towards the end of the day as the wind turned and made the drift the right direction
This was around 4lb IIRC

Day 5 Monday
Great forecast so we set off for the "pig farm" some reefs and drop offs around 6/7 miles off the NE of Loppa
Very quiet for both boats all morning, though the few fish that were caught were worth the wait
First in were the lads on the other boats, one of them (Smurf) dropped a dead bait down and as soon as it hit the bottom, his rod went bananas
This was the result

Took the treble deep, so wouldn't go back, went 66lb when weighed some 6 hrs later
Was very probably 70lb when caught, he was over the moon, could hear the cheers (from his boat and one close by) a mile away
Smurfs mate will copied his tactics and was rewarded with it's smaller sibling 20 mins or so later
Will's (on right) went 34lb, looks like a minnow next to the monster
Will also caught the only Red fish of the trip
Our boat wasn't faring so well, until Paul also dropped a deadbait down and was rewarded with the best Halibut of the trip
Scales were bouncing between 38 and 42lb, so we generously gave him 39lb 😁
Will also picked up a halibut earlier on in the week of around 20lb
To be continued on next post

I won't bore you with the travel details because, well they're boring
Two flights and a ferry ride later, we arrived at Sandland Brygge at around 8pm last Wednesday 14th August 2024
The 7 of us were met by the owners/hosts Steiner and Stina who loaded our luggage and gear into their van for the very short 2 min drive to the digs, far easier than trying to drag a weeks worth of food, drink, clothes, tackle ourselves
We had one of the 2, 8 birth lodges which are clean, comfortable and full of all the appliances you will need
Anyway, we unpacked and 2 of us had a safety briefing on the self drive boats (6.5m all aluminium with 150 suzuki 4 strokes which you can see towards the end of the first video, there are also a couple of 7.5m boats with 200 suzukis on the back) 
Briefing done, it was time for supper and an early night
Day 1, Thursday
Luckily, a few of the lads had been here last year, so knew a few marks that we went straight out to
This threw up some nice Cod (not massive I know, but Cod) and smaller Coalies, there must litterally be hundreds of thousand of them, as this was the scene on pretty much every mark we went to

Despite the abundance of bait fish, it wasn't as frantic as I expected/was assured, there was no wind and a very little tide which I decided was the reason
Not a disaster 
Day 2, Friday
High wind and heavy, prolonged showers
Spent most of the day looking for shelter out of the wind (which you can always find somewhere in one of the fjords) getting wet and pulling the odd few fish up
Did try for Plaice, but drift was all over the place and horizontal rain, though I did manage a Dab of over a 300mm
No pictures as too wet
Not a good day
Day 3, Saturday
Good weather
Thought we would try some deeper water (150m +) very difficult to get 2 drifts the same even when starting at the exact same point (not just today, pretty much every day)
Had fish on every mark when the lines weren't kiting too much

 

As well as the Cod and Coalies, we also had their equivalent of dogfish, Torsk, which can be a nuisance
A bit of a cross between a Ling, a cod and a Rockling
 
We also picked up a few Wolf fish, they call them Catfish up there
Ugly critters with razer teeth and a jaw like a hydraulic crusher, but nice eating apparently


Finished the day off trying for Plaice
I think we had between 15 and 20 between the 3 of us, with this being the best of the day
5lb 6oz

Had a couple of double hook ups with 3.5/4lb fish which initially I though was a double figure fish, ashamed to say I was a bit disappointed when I saw 2 fish coming up 🫣
This was my most enjoyable day up to now
Day 4 Sunday
Carbon copy of Friday, blustery winds and heavy showers with much the same results
Managed a few Plaice towards the end of the day as the wind turned and made the drift the right direction
This was around 4lb IIRC

Day 5 Monday
Great forecast so we set off for the "pig farm" some reefs and drop offs around 6/7 miles off the NE of Loppa
Very quiet for both boats all morning, though the few fish that were caught were worth the wait
First in were the lads on the other boats, one of them (Smurf) dropped a dead bait down and as soon as it hit the bottom, his rod went bananas
This was the result

Took the treble deep, so wouldn't go back, went 66lb when weighed some 6 hrs later
Was very probably 70lb when caught, he was over the moon, could hear the cheers (from his boat and one close by) a mile away
Smurfs mate will copied his tactics and was rewarded with it's smaller sibling 20 mins or so later
Will's (on right) went 34lb, looks like a minnow next to the monster
Will also caught the only Red fish of the trip
Our boat wasn't faring so well, until Paul also dropped a deadbait down and was rewarded with the best Halibut of the trip
Scales were bouncing between 38 and 42lb, so we generously gave him 39lb 😁
Will also picked up a halibut earlier on in the week of around 20lb
To be continued on next post

The owner of the resort also has a 12m cat he charters out to the better, further away marks where the small, self drive boats aren't allowed to go
Its around 30 miles and apparently you aren't insured that far out, so charter is the only way and was highly recommended
A late start at 12.30 due to offshore winds early on and after a near 2 hr steam, we're dropping onto a huge reef system that can be drifted for a few hrs at a time with the right winds
A couple of winds up on my first drop produced this 
Deck hand Dave estimated at low 20's, who am I to argue
This was the stamp of fish that we were all catching on pretty much every drop, fair play they go like a train when they take the lure
After half a dozen of these, I sent a dead bait down, hoping for a big Cod or a Halibut
After about an hour and 3 bait changes, all I had caught was a Torsk (bastard fish) because that's what you call them when you see they're not a Cod or Coalie, had a few decent tugs, but couldn't connect and watching the rest of the boys pulling in fish in the mid 20's I was getting a bit tetchy, so went back to lures
In the mean time, Will had hooked and landed a Cod of 52lb, which unfortunately didn't go back, but would be given to some locals as is the case if they're too damaged and not wanted by the angler
I haven't got a pic of him holding it, so this will have to do
 
I had a couple of high teens and early 20lb Cod on a 9" lead headed lure (similar to a Sidewinder in design) so thought I'd try the biggest in the box and just target Cod
This was what the Norway veterans called "cut baits" mine was an imitation Puffin around a foot long !!!
Sent it down and they were hitting it as soon as it hit the bottom, plenty of the same size as earlier (huge for over here, just run of the mill over there)
I was hit by another 20lb + (or so I thought) and when the lunges became a bit more severe and line was being stripped off my reel, I was hoping this was something a bit better
It was, it was a 50 +
56lb 6oz and my PB ( a never to be beaten PB unless I go back out in 2026)
Because all fish are pulled up slowly and allowed to expel air as soon as you can see them (farting them) about 5/10 meters down, the majority go back unharmed like torpedos, 
This one also went back, seemingly none the worse for seeing my ugly mug, which is nearly as satisfying as catching it
Though, when I saw the size of it under the water, my arse was twitching a bit thinking that at any second i was going to loose it
2 drops later using the same method, I was hit by something bigger/stronger that I got up off the bottom by a few meters, only to watch my reel release a few more
Played tug of war for a few minutes and started gaining, then watched my reel give out more line than I had initially reeled in
So started the battle again and managed to get it, probably, 30m up after another 10 mins or so
Then I just went light and the expletives were ringing out
Whatever it was ( Cod or Halibut) was certainly a good fish
Got the lure to the surface and could see that my line had wrapped around the gape of the hook, probably disgorging the fish it fought
Ah well, there's always next time......
A pic of the lures we were using, with a 6" sidewinder for scale
I also caught a small, 5/6 lber on the Puffin lure, greedy buggers
A few other photos from the charter day and earlier
Had this view from our lodge a few mornings
To sum up my view, not as busy as I was told it would be, high water temps probably didn't help, the charter boat is a must if you go out there
But still very good fishing compared to what we have here
I will probably go back in 2026, 2025 fully booked