Two's company, three's a crowd, five's no showed.

I was planning on a trip down to East Lothian last Friday evening but my right knee was feeling a little sore, a recurring problem I have due to playing five-a-side football in my twenties on early generation AstroTurf, so to avoid clambering about on rocks I changed my mind. Instead I headed over the Forth to the lovely village of Anstruther armed with some black lug, squid and mussel to have a go for a five bearded rockling. The white pier there is a very easy access mark and when I hobbled along it the tide was still going out and the spot I've caught my target at before was exposed. 

This heron wasn't bothered about the tidal state and was already fishing the area where I've caught five bearded rocklings in the past.

While I waited for the tide to turn I headed along to the lighthouse at the end of the pier and started fishing a two hook flapper into small gaps in the kelp. After a couple of hours without a bite the flooding tide was almost covering my preferred spot and the sun was getting quite low when my rod tip finally started to twitch. A small coalfish had taken a small mussel bait, was quickly landed and returned. Shortly afterwards my rod tip went again and I reeled in to find a double shot of a coalfish and a viviparous blenny on the end. 

Quite a large viviparous blenny. It took the bait on the top hook of my rig. In the past I've ledgered baits on the bottom for them but clearly they'll come up off the sea floor for a juicy bait. 

Having started catching fish I was then in two minds about what to do, stay put and see what the kelp beds would produce or move to the five bearded rockling "hotspot". I opted to move and over the next couple of hours caught a few more coalfish and a cod with mussel being by far the most productive choice of bait. Whilst it remained dry all night a brisk icy cold wind made standing there on my own watching my rod tip a fairly chilly experience and really I would have preferred someone to chat to and share my misery. Sometimes I don't mind fishing on my own but most of the time I prefer company and it's definitely nice to have someone with you especially when the conditions are not great or the fishing is slow. By midnight my hands were pretty numb, I admitted defeat and packed up.

Driving home I mulled over the session and had a few thoughts. I might try fishing the area with much lighter gear, holding my rod, fishing smaller baits and being proactive, moving my rig around to find the fish. The kelp beds at end also looked like a good spot for fishing in the summer and I think a few wrasse will be resident in amongst it. Whilst on this occassion I had been out on my own I'm lucky that I have a few friends who often go fishing with me. I enjoy the social aspect of angling and with that in mind I think I'll start up a little fishing club and arrange a meet up once a month. Light rock fishing will probably be the style of choice for these group sessions and the many harbours of East Lothian and Fife are ideal venues for some light hearted light game shenanigans. 

Tight lines, Scott.