Double figure fish.

Finally feeling a bit better after being off work sick I popped down to Dunbar Harbour midweek for a short session to see if there were any fish around inside it. I decided to try fishing a different presentation and went with a small Cheburashka lead weighing 3g. I rigged this up with a #10 undressed assist hook and threaded on a Gulp Angleworm to begin with but half way through the session changed to an EcoGearAqua Katsu Mebaru Shirasu (bit of a tasty mouthful that and not just for fish!). I went with this as it meant the hook was placed about three quarters of the way down and I could slowly retrieve it along the bottom to catch the attention of any bottom dwellers. To be honest though I don't find that presentation method matters too much with these "hybrid" type products, the heavily "scented" nature of them normally means putting them anywhere near a fish will invariably draw their interest. When I say "hybrid" and "scented" I mean soft plastics that are saturated with chemicals that fish recognise as belonging to an edible item, hence they are a sort of cross between a lure and a bait. Anyway, I find hook placement is the important aspect of whatever presentation you choose as this can improve hook up rates particularly where small mouthed fish are concerned. There weren't many fish around but a few small flatfish gave themselves away over the course of a couple of hours, emerging from the sand and lazily swimming over to have a chew on my pungent offering when I stopped moving it and gave them the chance to catch it. Three of the little fish ended up getting hooked and all of them were juvenile plaice. 

My Scottish saltwater species hunt moves into double figures. 

I also managed a single long spined sea scorpion before the wind picked up and became too annoying to persist when there weren't many fish biting. My short visit had served its purpose anyway and I think it'll be a few more weeks before things start really picking up along the East Lothian coast. I did plan on trying the open sea today to target pollock in the deep water around Eyemouth with some 100% lures, namely unscented soft plastic paddletails and metal jigs, but the onshore winds, accompanying swell and overcast sky made me change my plans and I ended up fishing the other end of the lure-bait spectrum, maggots under a waggler. It comes in handy not being fussy about what you put on your hook at times.

Tight lines, Scott.